Basking in the Afterglow
Highlights of my trip to Washington, DC as Contest Winner of “My Dream Job” September 08
To all my family and friends who have been asking me to describe my experience of the trip to Washington, DC last week. I started off this contest by writing, so it seems I’m to continue.
Wednesday: The travel arrangements were impeccable and there were no delays or problems. San Diego Airport and had a direct flight from San Diego to Washington/Dulles airport via United Airlines (~10 hours travel time).
The hotel was the Renaissance Mayflower and it was located only a few miles from the White House and the Washington Convention Center where we were to spend most of our time. This is an exquisitely kept hotel built in 1925 with 650 rooms. We had above-average hotel service. Everything from great linens and beds to maid service twice daily and exceptional food. It felt like celebrity treatment.
Thursday: The first night of the convention, there was a dinner in our honor at a lovely restaurant with Louisiana flare called, Acadiana. The AARP staff who had worked with us for 9 months planned and attended this dinner with us. We were introduced to local TV News Anchor, JC Hayward. She is DC’s answer to Oprah and highly respected. She was there to meet us as we were to be interviewed by her the next day.
Friday: This was our day of being in the spotlight! We were on stage at 11:00 in a room that seated about two to three hundred. I couldn’t see how many people were there due to the bright lights of the cameras.
JC Hayward asked questions of the six winners and each of us had about 3 questions to answer. I was very nervous as we had prepared our answers ahead of time, but she decided to change it up and ask us what she wanted to ask.
The one question that stands out that she asked me was to describe my emotions about being downsized, as that was the category in which I won the contest. I basically said that I was devastated at first since I thought that I loved my job, but I found out that you should never love your job because you are only a number on a budget spreadsheet and it’s not personal. I also added that it was a bittersweet result because my boss gave me a large severance package that enabled me to relocate to be with my mother in the last months of her life.
Truthfully, I can’t remember the rest of the questions for that session.
We were again on stage at 2:00 that same day, but this time we were individually responsible for speaking with the microphone before a small audience in the convention center about “Networking”.
I described an actual experience I had this summer when someone from AARP in Washington talked to AARP in Sacramento, who talked to someone in San Diego about me and they guided me to the County of San Diego. I was then hired on a 3 month assignment at the San Diego Public Defenders office within 3 days!
Both “talks” were very well received and people came up to us and shook our hands and wished us well after each session. Some even asked for an autograph and a business card (which AARP had furnished for us). One man came up to me who said he was a retired doctor and said that I was “on the right track with my dream job because the right person in the medical office is sadly missing” and he also said that I should work for a doctor who accepts Medicare patients as that’s going away as well. This was news to me as I haven’t started researching Medicare yet( I think I’m in denial that I’ll be 65 in~15 months)! Very unique and interesting experience to say the least, but I was exhausted afterwards.
Saturday: This was to be our tour day to see the Washington monuments and Arlington Cemetery, but Hurricane Hanna had her way and brought a big storm to DC and there was flash flooding and high winds to the point of all tours being cancelled. We were disappointed, but found a great discount store across the street from our hotel and went shopping, got soaked and then went back to the convention center and visited some more exhibits.
Sunday: Clear and sunny. This was our travel home day and we had to be up and ready very early for the shuttle to pick us up to ride the 30 miles back to the airport.
Provided by AARP: Three concerts – Natalie Cole/Chaka Khan; Chicago and Paul Simon. Also all travel – even shuttles and baggage fees, along with the air fare and 5 star hotel for 4 nights.
It’s not over yet….we are still receiving our career coaching until the end of the year from Retirement Jobs.com in Boston.
Next year, the 6 winners hope to be able to have a reunion at the 2009 AARP Convention in Las Vegas – WITH our dream jobs achieved!
Great Granddaughter's last visit with Mama/Granny - May 07
