An Awkward Wrap-up

There's a reason I haven't been blogging about my internship for the past two weeks.  I no longer have an internship.  The ad agency I was working for suddenly closed two Mondays ago.  Unfortunately, the economy and draw back in advertising spending got the best of them.

This was certainly a surprise to me as I rolled into the office that morning, but it was much harder for the other employees who have worked there longer.  I knew that I might be searching for a job after the internship was over; I knew there was a possibility that I would not be hired on after its completion.  But now everyone that worked there was in the same boat as me: unemployed.

Now I know how it feels to have graduated and not have any concrete plans for what to do next.  Now I know what it feels like for the enormous percentage of people who graduated a few months ago and are still looking for a job.  And it's not fun.

I've applied to scores of companies.  But it's hard, especially when most employers are looking for a person with 3-5 years experience already.  Do my four years in college count?

I know that if I keep looking an opportunity will pop up eventually.  So that's what I've been doing for the past two weeks: looking.  I even went to a job fair this week.  However, it wasn't quite as helpful as I'd hoped since not many companies there were looking to hire someone for a marketing communications or writing position.

I have also spent my time creating a website, so that a potential employer can look at my portfolio electronically.  I think it looks pretty shiny.

Anyway, I'll keep you updated on the job search.

The Lost Art of Letter Writing

How long has it been since you wrote a letter?  Not an email, tweet, or Facebook status.  An actual letter that you hand-wrote and dropped in the mail.  Can't remember?  Neither can I.  

May be that's why Snail Mail My Email popped into existence.  

It's an art project that is going on for a month to reclaim the art of letter writing.  

However, they didn't anticipate such a great response.  Already, they've received 900 emails and they are struggling to write and mail them all out.  And since it's a free service they've recruited some 220 volunteers to write out emails.  

Clearly, this isn't something that could go for very long for free (the cost of stamps alone...), but it might prompt a written response from those who receive a letter.  And then maybe we'll all recover the lost art of letter writing and save the Post Office with our influx of business.  

Joking aside though, I have to point out how cool this is.  Don't you get excited whenever you get something in the mail?  A postcard, a package, any letter that's not a bill or sales solicitation.  I know I do.  I love getting mail.  Even if it's something I ordered online, when the package arrives there's still a little thrill in receiving something.  

Maybe this is what this art project is meant to do: remind us how connecting through a medium other than a screen can hold excitement.  It's kind of inspiring.  Excuse me, I have to go write some letters.