The Job Hunt

As I mentioned Monday in my bullet point update, Danielle made a big deal Thankgiving weekend of how superior her birth family was to ours, and how she couldn't wait until she turned 18 so she could move out of the house.

I calmly reminded her that if she wanted to be successful at moving out on her 18th birthday, she'd better find a job, now, so that she has time to save up for all the things she will need to support herself in her own apartment.

We've been talking about Danielle getting a job for more than a year.  She's good at complaining that she doesn't have enough money, but she hasn't actually done anything to find work.  Even when offered temporary paying gigs, she's not particularly interested or motivated.

So I was somewhat surprised when we went out to get dessert one night and Danielle asked if the place we visited might be hiring.

"Go ask them for a job application," I told her.

She did, and was told they only accepted applications online.  The staff behind the counter handed her a business card that contained the URL.

We suggested that she take the card to school and have the staff there help her fill out the application.  The school is supposed to be setting up some sort of vocational program for Danielle, so we thought we'd let them handle it.

I have no idea if Danielle completed the application, since she didn't say either way, but she did come home excited.  She can't wait until she starts her new job.

She didn't much like it when I pointed out that there's no guarantee this one place will hire her.  "You need to put in quite a few applications before you will get hired," I explained, "especially in this economy."

But Danielle didn't want to hear what I had to say.  "There are no good jobs in [our hometown]," she complained, "so I don't want to work anywhere else."

She also didn't want to listen when FosterEema and I tried to explain that her first job probably isn't going to be all that great.  We both ended up with low-paying jobs in the fast food industry when we started out.

Danielle thinks she's too good to work at a job like that.

Our local economy is still very much struggling, and teen unemployment is at record highs.  I don't think she realizes that beggars can't really be choosers.  Because of her age, lack of education, and inexperience, she definitely is a beggar in our local job market.