New Job

Yahoo! I got a job!

(Disclaimer: All mentionings of the word "yahoo" are strictly exclamations and are not intended to refer to the corporation or web site of "Yahoo," is parent organizations, affiliates, or subordinate associates.)

I'll be working as an analytical chemist at a military base (privately employed, however) and work on testing gas masks and biosuits to make sure they work properly for our boys. No offensive stuff - purely defensive/protective, which makes me feel good. I graduate on a Friday and start work the next Monday. I figured I might as well put that degree to work right away, considering it's put me to work for so long.

I love analytical chemistry. Wet chemistry and titrations aren't too bad, but I really love gas chromatography and mass spectrometry, IR spectroscopy, NMR spectroscopy, UV-VIS spectroscopy, atomic absorption analysis, and all that good stuff, which is what I get to work with.

The downside: I don't want to make my family live on an army base, and so I have a 1.5 hour commute. Luckily there is a shuttle which picks up employees and takes them to the base, and it is only a 4-day work week (10 hours/day x 4 days).

Remember, I put this thread on BTS and not ATS for a reason.

I like the 4 day work week. It'll make the 1.5 hour commute a little easier to digest. Still........................1.5 freakin' hours?????? Yikes!

Peace

p.s. I remember when I had to walk 1.5 hours to and from school everyday...........in the snow.............without shoes.............without clothes.....

/great stuff and i wish you all the luck with the new job, keep us updated on ho its going

Originally posted by Dr Love
everyday...........in the snow.............without shoes.............without clothes.....

uphill both ways... had to hunt my own lunch... father would kill us to sleep every night (Monty Python joke)... washed my ragged clothes in the river, if it wasn't frozen over already...

Well I just mailed back all the forms I had to fill out to start work. A little bit different from the stuff I had to fill out to work at the movie theater or car dealer parts department.

Of course, there was the page that you sign if you accept the job and wages. Then there was the job description page that, in three sentences, informed me I would be required to work around "hazardous industrial chemicals and various chemical warfare agents for extended periods of time," and yet the drug policy was seven pages long. Thought that was kind of funny.

Of course, I was well aware of this before I looked into the job. The only reason you are around these agents is when you test them on the gas masks and biosuits. Sure, they have stuff that simulates the real thing, but after a while you have to test the real thing. And, no, they don't stick anyone inside the biosuit while they test it. They have these awesome manequins that they put the suit on, and they can cause the mouth and nose parts to "breathe" and simulate a human inside.

Anyway, there was also the release form for a federal background check, a step above the standard "Former Employers / References" section on previous applications.

I've tried bringing this up on the ATS section, but everyone just tells me they will insert microchips in my brain and make me eat my children and that I will be a tool of The Man and will betray the American People. I forget the ATS rules once in a while: Nothing is as it seems, and Everything is as evil as possible. Right.

Anyway thanks for your support. I'll let you know on my progress.

You will inevitably morph into a raving disinfo agent. Losing your sense of humor and whimsy in the process.

NC

[edit on 13-4-2006 by NotClever]

Ralph....if I may quote my favorite funny movie of all time Raising Arizona - "you're young.....you got yer health....what you want with a job?" :w:

very cool sounding job, congrats! Now the pressure is on you to post about what we all need to know about chemical risks etc!

I got a new job aswell!

Im still one semester from completing Robotics Engineering... but meanwhile...

I landed myself a job working with Hewlett Packard. I'm a tech for their iPAQ's.

I have to say, I've worked with other companies technology in the past, and been baffled by how unstable their products are... BUT THESE IPAQS ARE SOLID! I mean, I've never seen a device run so long and stable without critical failures. I'm seriously considering buying one of their newer models.

great news mate!..congrats!

i love to hear about people who are going into somthing new and are excited about it!

good luck.....let us know how thinds pan out for you