Chasing the Elusive Dream
Viewing comments for Chapter 12 "Back to the Drawing Board"A southern couple's journey in the 60's,70's & 80'
35 total reviews
Comment from RShipp
So many times 'the grass is greener...' we think.
You are to be admired for you tenaciousness! That is a superb quality to own!!
Enjoyed your story.
reply by the author on 24-Dec-2021
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So many times 'the grass is greener...' we think.
You are to be admired for you tenaciousness! That is a superb quality to own!!
Enjoyed your story.
Comment Written 24-Dec-2021
reply by the author on 24-Dec-2021
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Thank you for the review. That was a long time ago when being tenacious was easier. Now I just find it a amusing that I had to just had to jump though so many hoops to survive.
LOL Beth
Comment from Melodie Michelle
Contacted on being RECOGNIZED and receiving ALL TIME BEST! This piece is well written and well thought out;-) The storyline is interesting and held my attention throughout the piece!
Thank you for sharing and many blessings to you and your family this Christmas;-)
reply by the author on 24-Dec-2021
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Contacted on being RECOGNIZED and receiving ALL TIME BEST! This piece is well written and well thought out;-) The storyline is interesting and held my attention throughout the piece!
Thank you for sharing and many blessings to you and your family this Christmas;-)
Comment Written 24-Dec-2021
reply by the author on 24-Dec-2021
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Thank you again for the review. i enjoyed writing these memories from the past. This particular one is just another bump in road of life that I had to deal with. Everything worked out.
Beth
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;-)
Comment from The Journaler
Again, another thoughtful story. Sounds like you have had many challenges getting started in the world of art as a job. Well written, and good at showing the hurdles that have to be overcome in life. Blessings!
reply by the author on 22-Dec-2021
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Again, another thoughtful story. Sounds like you have had many challenges getting started in the world of art as a job. Well written, and good at showing the hurdles that have to be overcome in life. Blessings!
Comment Written 22-Dec-2021
reply by the author on 22-Dec-2021
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Thank you for going back and reading that one. I appreciate another great review and comments.
Beth
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Thank you . You are doing good work in this, and sometimes that is challenging to do.
Comment from Ric Myworld
Sometimes it takes us a while to discover what we truly like and would like to do in life. And then, many times we have to search through a few to find one that suits us. Thanks for sharing.
reply by the author on 22-Dec-2021
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Sometimes it takes us a while to discover what we truly like and would like to do in life. And then, many times we have to search through a few to find one that suits us. Thanks for sharing.
Comment Written 21-Dec-2021
reply by the author on 22-Dec-2021
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Thank you, Rec. i think I would have enjoyed doing art for the television station, it the working condition had been a bit better. I wish I had the patients to have given it a little longer.
Beth
Comment from Begin Again
There's always that lump in your throat when you make a decision to change a job or start something different. Not knowing what the future hold gives us a "pause". You have always managed to end right side up so that's a star for you, Beth.
Hugs, Carol
reply by the author on 21-Dec-2021
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There's always that lump in your throat when you make a decision to change a job or start something different. Not knowing what the future hold gives us a "pause". You have always managed to end right side up so that's a star for you, Beth.
Hugs, Carol
Comment Written 21-Dec-2021
reply by the author on 21-Dec-2021
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Thank you Carol. I really appreciate the review. My bad decisions always seemed to work our for the best, in spite of me wanting to beat up on myself for being stupid.
Beth
Comment from Elizabeth Emerald
Gripping--vivid depiction of job juggling--so glad that job was still open. I'm impressed you lasted until lunch--heartrending about that child--I shudder to think of what became of him. Stunning piece.
reply by the author on 21-Dec-2021
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Gripping--vivid depiction of job juggling--so glad that job was still open. I'm impressed you lasted until lunch--heartrending about that child--I shudder to think of what became of him. Stunning piece.
Comment Written 21-Dec-2021
reply by the author on 21-Dec-2021
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Thank you, Elizabeth. I'm glad you liked it. I was with the TV station a while, but the art job, I had with them was shortest job I every had. Just making it until lunch time was a challenge.
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I can only imagine.
Comment from lyenochka
Oh no! I do remember this from your other book and I know that there was a politician who was also after you in the next job. I can't blame you for changing the job so quickly. I wouldn't have trusted them as they would have left you at the switchboard indefinitely unless you told them you were leaving! I did like your examples of those strange late night complaints!
reply by the author on 21-Dec-2021
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Oh no! I do remember this from your other book and I know that there was a politician who was also after you in the next job. I can't blame you for changing the job so quickly. I wouldn't have trusted them as they would have left you at the switchboard indefinitely unless you told them you were leaving! I did like your examples of those strange late night complaints!
Comment Written 20-Dec-2021
reply by the author on 21-Dec-2021
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The job at the newspaper had a old man who owner and editor, and he who was after every female there. At least, I wasn't alone. Thank you for a great review.
Beth
Comment from Mrs. J.B
Hey I enjoyed reading your biography personal essay. I love that you shared you the details about how most of the conversations from the annoying calls went while working the switchboard which led to you going back to look for a job that will allow you use your creativity as an artist but just when you was about to quit the company you was already working for you transition you into the art Department where you dealt with challenges that you never thought you had to face before, especially with having a co-worker with a mentally disabled child. Even more I love that I was able to read between the lines "that a TV station had placed an ad for an artist without having actually having an opening available" because someone had to personally know about the "personnel director's" situation and had done the good deed without his knowledge because when he interviewed you he was impressed that you had an art degree but he told you that the position's in the planning stage because he didn't planned on hiring anyone at first until you came -but now he needed to figure out what was the best way to go about allowing you to work in the art department with "his only other artist Sally" without exposing the real situation. But Readers such as I, can come to the conclusion that he may have already had problems with hiring other people in this department that were willing to stay with someone that "chattered non-stop" more than anything else. They probably didn't know how to react to such an innocent child with mental challenges like that either but Sally's talking probably was the main thing that caused them to walk out and look for employment elsewhere.
Seeing that this is a personal essay that started with a strong hook, holds a compelling topic, and a clear focus, and a conclusion that ended with the sentence "the next job would have its own set of challenges of an entirely different kind" perhaps you could add a few short details right after this sentence to give us insight on how different the next job was compared to this one.
Here's few suggestions on what details could be added: The kind of environment the layout job with the State Times offered you and the description of the entirely new set of challenges that you had to face- even the unexpected ones Furthermore, since you mentioned "Evan was becoming dissatisfied with when you were not there" and "maybe in time you could have gotten accustomed to working in that kind of environment" maybe mentioning that even though the last job could have allowed you to possibly bring your son to work like the character "Sally" did how there were still no regrets in not keeping it because the next job gave you exactly what you wanted could make the conclusion more thought-provoking in why it was worth going "Back to the Drawing Board" .
reply by the author on 20-Dec-2021
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Hey I enjoyed reading your biography personal essay. I love that you shared you the details about how most of the conversations from the annoying calls went while working the switchboard which led to you going back to look for a job that will allow you use your creativity as an artist but just when you was about to quit the company you was already working for you transition you into the art Department where you dealt with challenges that you never thought you had to face before, especially with having a co-worker with a mentally disabled child. Even more I love that I was able to read between the lines "that a TV station had placed an ad for an artist without having actually having an opening available" because someone had to personally know about the "personnel director's" situation and had done the good deed without his knowledge because when he interviewed you he was impressed that you had an art degree but he told you that the position's in the planning stage because he didn't planned on hiring anyone at first until you came -but now he needed to figure out what was the best way to go about allowing you to work in the art department with "his only other artist Sally" without exposing the real situation. But Readers such as I, can come to the conclusion that he may have already had problems with hiring other people in this department that were willing to stay with someone that "chattered non-stop" more than anything else. They probably didn't know how to react to such an innocent child with mental challenges like that either but Sally's talking probably was the main thing that caused them to walk out and look for employment elsewhere.
Seeing that this is a personal essay that started with a strong hook, holds a compelling topic, and a clear focus, and a conclusion that ended with the sentence "the next job would have its own set of challenges of an entirely different kind" perhaps you could add a few short details right after this sentence to give us insight on how different the next job was compared to this one.
Here's few suggestions on what details could be added: The kind of environment the layout job with the State Times offered you and the description of the entirely new set of challenges that you had to face- even the unexpected ones Furthermore, since you mentioned "Evan was becoming dissatisfied with when you were not there" and "maybe in time you could have gotten accustomed to working in that kind of environment" maybe mentioning that even though the last job could have allowed you to possibly bring your son to work like the character "Sally" did how there were still no regrets in not keeping it because the next job gave you exactly what you wanted could make the conclusion more thought-provoking in why it was worth going "Back to the Drawing Board" .
Comment Written 20-Dec-2021
reply by the author on 20-Dec-2021
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Thank you for the review and comments. I'm glad you enjoyed it. Leaving just the one line without more detail is the hook to get readers to read the next chapter when it is posted. The details will come out later.
Beth
Beth
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o okay I understand more now. I look forward to reading your next chapter. Was there anything particular in this chapter that you wanted critique?
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No, this one I wrote several years ago and I renewed it hoping to get more reviews and get it on the Best of the Best list which it gets with 25 reviews.
It is part of book. I'll put another chapter out soon.
Comment from Jannypan (Jan)
Well, I believe you have the record for the most confusing job offers/attempts at jobs, Beth. All in all, though you gave your best effort. This one was a doozy. I imagine the woman couldn't find a sitter for the child. You did a good job detailing this chapter. It was interesting with lots of details.
Thanks for sharing, Jan
reply by the author on 20-Dec-2021
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Well, I believe you have the record for the most confusing job offers/attempts at jobs, Beth. All in all, though you gave your best effort. This one was a doozy. I imagine the woman couldn't find a sitter for the child. You did a good job detailing this chapter. It was interesting with lots of details.
Thanks for sharing, Jan
Comment Written 20-Dec-2021
reply by the author on 20-Dec-2021
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Thank you for the review and comments. I have had my share of crazy jobs. For some reason, I usually got whatever I applied for but taking them was often a mistake.
Beth
Comment from Judy Lawless
You can't say you didn't have any interesting jobs though, Beth! Those were some strange calls, and although I'd feel sorry for that poor mother, I can't imagine a company putting up with the distraction of having the child in the work area. Well written. I'll be back to see what the next job offered.
reply by the author on 20-Dec-2021
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You can't say you didn't have any interesting jobs though, Beth! Those were some strange calls, and although I'd feel sorry for that poor mother, I can't imagine a company putting up with the distraction of having the child in the work area. Well written. I'll be back to see what the next job offered.
Comment Written 20-Dec-2021
reply by the author on 20-Dec-2021
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Thank you Judy. I appreciate the review and comments. If I'm not mistaken, she was a single mother who disparately needed the work. I imagine her husband couldn't take life with that baby. It was a sad situation. The company went out on a limb to allow her to keep the child there.
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I figured as much. It was good of the company to do that. It's too bad she couldn't have been in a separate space though.
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She was by herself until I got there and didn't stay. I wonder if they were able to hire someone else who could handle it.
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She was by herself until I got there and didn't stay. I wonder if they were able to hire someone else who could handle it.
