Finally, I have a job

You know I've been looking for a job for a long time. I just found it, but this first week was really bad. Full of uncertainty.

I found a job posting on a Thursday about 2 weeks ago. A confectioner was looking for a kitchen helper. I called the phone number but they didn't pick up the phone. I tried again the next day and a young woman picked up the phone. I arranged with her to meet that evening. The job interview went well and the boss said she would notify applicants of her decision the next day. But less than half an hour after I went home, she called me to go on a test work day on Monday. I was very happy. It’s not my dream job, but I’ve been looking for a job unsuccessfully for a year now.

So I went to the patisserie on Monday morning. It was a tiring shift, I tried to work as well as I could. The shift lasted from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. I knew the confectioner would decide my fate. The boss will ask her how satisfied she is with me. She had already told me during the day that it would be better for them if I would rather work from 8am to 4pm because then I could stay longer to help. From this I already knew that she was satisfied with me and the working time she suggested would have been better for me as well.

As the end of the shift approached, the boss appeared and called me. I thought she wanted to talk to me about the details of the job. But unfortunately that is not what happened. She said a confectioner had applied so she no longer needed me. The news shocked me. She offered that I could still work that week because the new confectioner would start work next week. I replied that I was thinking about it because suddenly the ground completely slipped out from under my feet. I started crying. It was one hour back from the shift. Then the confectioner asked me when I will arrive the next day. I told her I didn't get the job. She was also surprised and tried to comfort me.

At the end of the work day, I went home tired, dirty and frustrated, but when I got home I had another unpleasant surprise. The door was locked with the little lock that could only be closed and opened from the inside. I called my partner on the phone, but he didn’t answer, he was asleep. So for a while I sat on a bench and waited for my partner to phone so he woke up and I could go home. When I got home I wanted to drink a hot green tea, but first the bag of the sugar tore out, then the tea filter tore out. So I think I can say I had a pretty bad day. I later called the boss to tell her I was taking the job that week. It's more than nothing.

So I worked both on Tuesday and Wednesday. On Wednesday when I went home I told my partner that I really liked my workermates. When I applied for this job, I was hoping that one day I would get from the kitchen to the counter , but I didn’t want that anymore. The colleagues were kind, the working hours seemed perfect to me (08: 00-16: 00), I wanted to stay with them. After talking about this with my partner, my phone rang. The boss called. She said she would still employ me, but not in the kitchen but at the counter in the shop. Telepathy… Of course I said yes. The work is less tiring and the salary is more. But working hours are worse: 10: 30-19: 30, which means I almost don’t meet my little boy all day. I would have 2 days off a week. Unfortunately, my partner was not happy about that either.

I had two options: stay unemployed or accept a sales job. So I accepted.

I worked as a saleswoman that week and next, but my partner and son didn’t enjoy the situation, so there was a quarrel every day about it.

I knew I wouldn’t be able to stay in the patisserie for long, meanwhile I was hoping there would be something wrong with the new confectioner. And so it was. Colleagues complained that he was very clumsy and my help was more helpful to them than that of the new confectioner. The new confectioner was also dissatisfied. There is a lot of work in the kitchen of this patisserie. You can't be lazy. One day the new confectioner simply went home shortly after the start of the shift. Colleagues then suggested to the boss that she put me back in the kitchen, but she said no. Later, I talked to her too and asked her if she would put me back in the kitchen.
She was very surprised and asked if I seriously wanted this. I told her that because of my son, the kitchen shift was much more suitable for me, no problem with more tiring work and less pay. She said it was okay as soon as she found a new employee in my place I could go back to the kitchen.

Within a few days she found a new employee with whom I spent a day at the patisserie, I showed her everything. The next day I went to work in the kitchen. I was very happy! And colleagues were also happy, which feels really good. 

But then I started thinking. Okay, they have a saleswoman, I help in the kitchen, but they still need another confectioner. What happens if a new confectioner shows up? I also talked about this concern to the confectioner, who reassured me. She said they had already discussed with the boss that they wouldn’t let me go, but would teach me more things and then I could help make the cakes. Currently, it is my job to prepare the raw materials and do the dishes.

So it was a very stressful time for me. But I am very happy that they trust me, appreciate my work and plan for me for the long term. There would be many applicants for my current job, they could replace me at any time. But they want to keep me and it feels really good.

Thank you all for your support and consolation for being kind in these difficult moments. I am especially grateful to @MarSou , without her I would have given up.

/photos taken in the confectionery by me