I
thought about stepping back even further in time, to discuss how I became a government
contractor...
Well,
it all started in November 1, 2000. I
was working as a Disaster Recovery consultant at Allstate in Illinois, and I
told my company that I needed to be in Michigan, so I could vote in the
presidential election. So, I stayed in
Michigan that week, when I got home from voting. I got a call from a recruiter in DC. “Good Afternoon my sister, I hope that you
are doing well.” Most African Americans know that this was my cue
to hang up, but I didn't. The recruiter went on to
tell me that they were looking for contractors who had worked on commercial
projects to come to DC and work on a large government project. He stated that the government was beginning
to realize that contractors and consultants who worked in commercial projects
had a larger range of skills than those who had always worked in the
government. And they needed people like
me to come to DC and work on this project and share your skills with your
country. Why don’t we fly you out here
and you can interview on this project.
At most, you will get a great job and help your country, if it doesn't
work out, you will at least get to see our nation’s capital. Can you fly out
tomorrow? The recruiter told me that he
would pick me up at the airport and drive me to my hotel. (Yes, I fell for it.) So, I booked my flight and selected a hotel,
with the impression that they would reimburse me, when I got there. Well, he did pick me up, granted I waited at
the airport for 2 hours. When he finally
came, it was getting dark. So, as we
were driving, he told me that he didn't want to be rude, but I had a lot of
skills and experience on my resume, so he and his manager were trying to guess
my age. So, he said, “How old are
you?” My response was “Old enough to
know that you don’t ask a lady her age!”
He drove me to my hotel, but he had a nervous look on his face. So, I asked him, if I had picked a bad place
to stay? After all, I didn't know DC and I could change my reservations. He told me that it was fine for the
night. I asked him if he was sure, he
said yes, and offered to carry my bags.
Well,
I checked in and then we went to my room.
I went to open my door, and he asked me to wait and let him do it. He put the bags down, opened the door really
fast and jumped in the room. Once again,
I asked if I needed to change my reservations, and he told me no, but he said
that I should be careful entering into a hotel room at night, and his goal was
to startle someone if they were in there waiting for me. Well, I know that I was startled. He also told me that before he became a
recruiter that he used to be a New York City policeman. After, all the excitement, he left and told
me that he would pick me up tomorrow at 9:00 am for my interview. I was tired, so I decided get something to
eat, unpack my bags and go to
bed. Well the hotel had a restaurant, so I ate something and then I went back to my room to unpack. I opened the dresser drawer and the biggest roach jumped out. Now I couldn't sleep, and I decided I had to change hotels. So, I went to the yellow pages, to look for phone numbers of local hotels in the area. Well, the hotel and motel section of the yellow pages were torn out of the book with a razor. I called the front desk, and I told them about the roach. The hotel's response was “Really, we just had the exterminator spray that room. Well, we will be glad to move you.” So, I moved, but I didn't want to be there. I felt like I had entered the beginning of one of those horror stories. I didn't sleep much, but I managed to go to sleep.
bed. Well the hotel had a restaurant, so I ate something and then I went back to my room to unpack. I opened the dresser drawer and the biggest roach jumped out. Now I couldn't sleep, and I decided I had to change hotels. So, I went to the yellow pages, to look for phone numbers of local hotels in the area. Well, the hotel and motel section of the yellow pages were torn out of the book with a razor. I called the front desk, and I told them about the roach. The hotel's response was “Really, we just had the exterminator spray that room. Well, we will be glad to move you.” So, I moved, but I didn't want to be there. I felt like I had entered the beginning of one of those horror stories. I didn't sleep much, but I managed to go to sleep.
#federalcontractor
#interview
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