The Trading Game

Ch. 16

    I shake hands with Lindsay Costa, who is the third applicant I'm introducing to Alix. She's around my age, pretty with a bubbly personality. I instantly like her, she's very sweet and I can tell she'll be easy to get along with. I give her the run down of what we expect in terms of conduct and work ethic. Now were are just waiting for Alix to end his call.

"Sorry, he should be done soon." I apologize.

She smiles. "I'm not in a rush."

I offer her a seat and sit down across from her. "You have experience, that's always a plus." I tell her, sensing her nervousness.

"Is he nice to work for?" She asks, quietly.

I shrug. "I get along with him just fine."

She visibly relaxes. "He looks very stern, which makes him intimidating."

"He's on the phone about a shipment that's been delayed." I tell her, "He's definitely not happy right now. It makes offloading times problematic for the whole operation when things like this happen. Not to mention the customer complaints."

"Do you think I should just come back at a better time?" She asks, sympathetically.

I look towards Alix who is looking at his computer and talking on the phone simultaneously. "Just one minute." I stand up and go to the desk.

I write down, "I'm hiring her."  On an note pad and hold it in front of him. He reads it quickly and nods his head. She hasn't once referred to Alix as sexy or eyed him like the first applicant, she has more experience than the second interviewee and she seems nice. She has my vote.

I walk back to Lindsay and smile. "You're hired."

She stands up shocked. "Are you sure?"

"Yep, he's fine with it. I'm sure we'll be working closely together. So, it should be my call. I think we'll get along great." I tell her truthfully.

"Thank you! When do I start?" She asks, excitedly.

"Tomorrow 9 a.m.?"

"I'll be here. Thanks again." She says, as I follow her to the door.

After she leaves I take the boxes from the corner of the office that contain the new computer. I unbox them to start setting up Lindsay's desk. After that's done I look in the storage room trying to locate a phone. I finally find one, it's a little outdated, so I walk to my desk and unplug the newer phone. Which I've never used and plug in the older one. I take the one from my desk to Lindsay's and hook it up.

I download the different programs we use and link it to our system. I'll be showing her how to use them tomorrow but she'll probably know all about it. There isn't much variation if you have been a secretary before, you know the routine and you just have to pay attention to scheduling and filing. I shutdown the computer and go back to Alix's office to get some work done.

Turns out zoning permits are a bitch to get in a timely manner. You have to know people and the person we need to know is a Mr. Albertson. Who at present is in no rush to do his job, I've called his office repeatedly only to be told his schedule is full. Now well past the stage of making a nuisance of myself, I call again.

"Hello, this is Sam Rivers. Calling on behalf of Mr. Alix Greco. Its very important-"

"Sam Rivers. Where have I heard that name?" A man asks, thoughtfully.

Surprised to hear a male voice I ask, "Are you into jazz? There is a famous American jazz musician named, Sam Rivers."

"No, not into jazz. Are you named after him?" He questions, interested.