Evening Walking

I enjoy walking a lot. Especially in the morning or when the street is quiet.  It's very calming and helps me clear my mind.

Allow me to describe my walk last evening.  Prior to my walk, I was feeling a bit frustrated.  If you have been following my blog, you would know that my year hasn't been going well so a lot of little things that used to not bother me would now bother me.

Before I lost my full-time job, I had no time to shop or to volunteer.  I am only working an unfulfilling part-time job now so I have time to shop and volunteer.  I shop because I am bored and I want to reward myself for all the hard work and time I put in at my last place of full-time employment.  I am shocked that my recent online shopping experience has been horrible.  In one transaction, I could not use a promotional code properly.  In another transaction, the price changed either during check out or when I received my confirmation of order and part of my order got cancelled.  In both cases, I had to contact customer service.  The fact that their electronic system was hard to use or not working properly reflects badly on their company because it created an unpleasant experience for the customer.  I was happy when I was shopping and I was ready to pay.  I have to go through and worry about my order and the incorrect amount of money taken away from me because of flaws that I should not have to worry about as a customer.  Anyways, this is just a small glimpse into a lot of things I would otherwise not experience if I was working full-time.  I am extremely disappointed this year to come across many working individuals that did not act professionally when I used their service.

The person that stood out for being the most unprofessional would be a customer representative who received my documentation to renew my passport.  I was feeling down when I was at their service centre and did not want to socialize.  I brought everything in for you.  Your job was to check my documentation and let me know if I missed something not make a rude comment about the fact that I am sitting at the chair behind the computer monitor screen.  There was two chairs and I just happened to be sitting on the chair behind the monitor.  It was as simple as that.

I also was unable to find employment services that was helpful.  I wanted to sit down with someone to talk about my options.  Out of all the "employment" service places I went to, no one ever talked or listened to me properly.  It is upsetting when I am talking to you, the employment expert, and telling you explicitly that I am considering a change in occupation and why I no longer want to work in my last field of employment yet your reply to me was you hear this a lot from people in my field and that I should just continue trying to look for a job in this field.  I finally have time to consider my options and I wanted an expert to discuss with me what places are looking for employees and what type of training is required so that I can think about it properly.  From a few unpleasant and unhelpful initial interactions, I was discouraged to approach more of those "employment experts" or "consultants" or any of those services they labeled as "helpful".  How can you refer services when you are not listening to the person who is coming for help?

I have reverted back to my old ways of only applying to jobs that I am interested in.  At least I can approach it with a positive attitude.

So, last night, originally I was thinking of not showing up to volunteer because they really don't need me but I wanted to step out for some fresh air so I walked there.  It was very quiet and dark.  The wind was blowing and it was snowing.  The first snow fall of the year.  When it snows the air feels fresher.  I was delighted.  Many random thoughts came up.

For example, I got to appreciate the walk more because I am experiencing it at a much slower pace than driving, cycling, rollarblading or running.  I am also in full control of my body and don't have to worry about a tool not functioning properly.  I got to do silly things that I used to do as a child when it is cold and snowing!

At one point, I had an empithany about Spartan Race or Events companies.  People are willing to pay to participate in sporting events because the experience is really priceless.  The medals, the headbands, the t-shirts are all simply the cherry on top of something already great.  These tangible items help me keep tracks of things I've accomplished.  The experience of what I've accomplished on the other hand is intangible and this is actually what is valued.  So yes, during my walk I thought about how much fun I had completing obstacles race courses at different ski resorts during the summer.

With that said, I strongly encourage people to do something out of your ordinary when you have some time to spare.  It could be as simple as walking around your neighbourhood at 9 p.m. or 6 a.m.