Well, I still haven't found "the one", the job that I think is totally right for me. But, I do have an offer so we'll see where that leads. Here's the update:
The Thursday after we got back from Disney I drove up to Chicago for an interview at Take Care Clinics. The interview went really well...the interviewer was from Arcadia, WI, a town less than 20 miles from where I grew up...she was the first person I'd met since moving away from WI that knew where Cochrane was! The only downside from that day was the area that the store is in. The interviewer told me that it would probably be OK to take the bus as it stops right outside the front door, but it would not be OK to walk the 2-3 blocks to where the "L" stops...and, it would probably be better if I drove so the security guard could watch me go to and from my car. Yikes!
A few days later she emailed me the schedule I would be expected to work. I would be scheduled for 4 weekend days each month with the option for picking up an additional Sunday (yuck)...with all those weekend days, I get fewer days during the week (11 hour days vs. 8 hour days on weekends) so I net fewer hours per month than the other person working there. The hourly pay isn't too bad but it isn't great either.
The upside is that I think I would enjoy working with the patients in that area and doing what the clinic does. However, my impression is that the number of patients seen fluctuates a lot...there weren't any patients there for the 1-2 hours that I was there for my interview. John thinks it would be super boring.
Conclusion: For now, I'm slowly proceeding with getting the necessary paperwork in so they can make the offer official and continuing to look for other jobs. The first orientation I can attend isn't until the end of July anyway so I'm not too concerned at this point...and I won't feel too bad about not taking the job if I haven't started orientation yet.
Other possibilities: I had a phone interview with Adventist Midwest. They're a large health care system with a few facilities in the Chicago area. The job I applied for was a family practice position but it was too far out in the suburbs for me to commute. They did have an opening in an assisted living/nursing home setting closer to downtown so the person I spoke with was going to send my info on to the physician for review. We'll see.
I also spoke to HR at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. I applied for a position there a long time ago. She said they're still reviewing resumes so I guess I'm still in the running. I think I would love that job...and the location is perfect!
I've applied for lots of other jobs too. Keep your fingers crossed for me!
