xtr

36 minutes ago, Tonksadora said:

Okay, interesting. Is she furious because she lost the case when she thought she had it in the bag? Did they move her from first chair to 2nd chair?

I've been a fan of SVU since the beginning and my favorite episodes are without fail Olivia Benson shows! I'm glad you're enjoying!

Thanks. I've been enjoying many of the episodes of the earlier seasons with Stabler and Olivia. Love them together and separately. I think that the best seasons are the ones where Stabler were still around, and they worked together. I also like Ice T's character Fin, and Tamara Tunie and BD's Wong's characters. I like some of the ADA's especially some of the earlier ones. I'm not as a big of a fan of later seasons especially the ones that focus more on Amanda Rollins/Kelli Giddish's character. But overall, I have been enjoying the show and see why it's lasted as long as it has. I wouldn't mind if GH took a page out of their playbook when it comes to this hooker storyline. Especially if they do decide to make ADA Arden the hooker.

9 minutes ago, sheilaforever said:

That's no shameful statement. Samiri is one of those really rare finds for the perfect kid actor. He nails all dialogue and has chemistry with everyone on set. Happy to see him back at B&B!

I agree. I think he's a terrific young actor. I'm glad he's back. He's adorable and he can act. I thought he should have been at least nominated the year (I believe 2020) that Douglas was dealing with Thomas acting poorly and revealed that Phoebe was Beth. Heck, I think he should have won it that year, but all female performers were nominated.

1 hour ago, John said:

Saying it now: The Hook Killer is ADA Arden. She snapped and is attacking people attached to Trina's trial and I bet she sets up Esme to take the fall. 

I've seen some other people speculate that and the more I think about it, the more I believe it could be the case. Some people have said they don't like the thought of it being made a random killer like the ADA, but I think it could be interesting if written right. (Though, I'm not sure if that would happen.) The past couple of months I've been watching Law and Order SVU more regularly. This year is the first time I've ever watched this series in the 23 years it's been on air. I'm watching episodes from random seasons, especially the earlier seasons. (I think that the seasons with Christopher Meloni/Detective Stabler as a regular are the best). It's quite good and has had some interesting storylines/twists.

If written well, I think that ADA Arden being the killer could actually be interesting. Especially if they give it an SVU storyline type of vibe. They could have her start to appear more, and frame Esme for the attacks. She could use her expertise as an attorney plus first-hand knowledge of the crimes as the attacker to frame Esme. Esme could end up getting arrested, facing her own trial with ADA Arden manipulating the situation.

Maybe at some point Esme could actually do something to help save someone/other people's lives and that could go towards "redeeming" her character/strengthening her chances of staying around on the show longer. I don't know if it would go all the way to another trial, but it could be interesting watching the ADA try to get her convicted in court, only to be exposed herself at some point. It could be interesting, though I can't say for sure that the writers would write an interesting storyline out of this.

Here are some nice pics that were just posted of NC and TA together. They are doing a Zoom event together in late November. Maybe they will shed some light on their upcoming storyline during that time. The show needs to pick up the pace with their storyline.

I also think it's interesting that the hooker is a woman and I do believe that the attacks could be related to Trina. Especially now that Oz has been attacked. At first, I thought that Esme may have been the hooker, but now I wonder. I've seen people speculating that the hooker is the ADA. If so, I could actually see her trying to frame Esme for the attacks.

19 minutes ago, JaneAusten said:

Thanks @xtrall very helpful. Some of the gvmt stuff is not much different than the private section. You have to use certain keywords in your resume or it will be rejected regardless of your actual qualifications. 

My biggest ? is the politics. Should my brother worry about that or not and while it should not impact his job, one can never tell in the times we are in right now.

 

You're welcome JaneAusten. Hopefully if your brother applies and is hired, he won't have to worry too much about politics impacting him. I work for the military/deal with a lot of military personnel. I have interacted with several veterans who are Pro Trump and can be vocal about that. But employees at my jobs have pretty much been told from the beginning not to mention politics too much/push political beliefs on each other. One of our bosses did talk to us after the insurrection happened one on one in his office. He made it clear that we were not to be caught participating in events like that. And I believe I've seen some memos mentioning that but for the most part employees at my job act pretty neutral regarding politics.

I think that several other agencies behave in a similar manner. It looks like the job your brother may be interested in might also have the opportunity for some teleworking, so that could possibly help down on that type of issue as well.

Federal government agencies can also have a lot of good resources in case someone has an issue at their workplace. My agency has a good Equal Employment Opportunity department, we actually had training/met with one of the higher ups from there not too long ago. It was very informative, and he seemed helpful. We also have someone separately we can reach out to if we feel like we are being harassed for something that doesn't fall under EEO. Some federal government agencies also have unions as well that can help people deal with potential issues in the workplace.

13 minutes ago, Taoboi said:

Hehe. I was just about to tag you, @xtr. Perfect timing. It did not work out for me (but I'm doing much better now) but I know your advice would be appreciated. 

Thanks, Taoboi. I'm glad that you are doing much better now.  And you can always keep applying if you ever feel like doing so again. A lot of people don't get hired the first time. It took me like four or five applications until I finally got a permanent position. This was also the case for other co-workers I had who were hired underneath temp contracts and some who applied for permanent jobs from the start. Federal governments job really do have a lot of excellent benefits.

Working for them is the best employment decision, I've ever made. I still do part time/part year work for my last job (that I was laid originally laid off from). Sometimes I will do the two jobs for part of the year. Because I also enjoy the type of work at my second job (it's also closer related to my fields of study). Plus, I have another retirement account with the second job and it's nice to have more money to add to savings/investing. But the government job far exceeds the second job as far as benefits goes and the way my bosses act. My bosses at my government job actually recognize me and other people for working hard, which I can't say for other jobs I've had.

Here is some more information about the hiring process and benefits.

I'm not sure about the interview process and I believe each department and their supporting agencies can handle things differently. I was very fortunate in the way I got the temp job and then later the permanent one. After my contract ended, I exchanged information with one of my bosses. She told me to apply again as we had some people leaving permanent positions. After my temp at home job ended, I applied for like the fourth or fifth time for the gov job and finally was told I met the qualifications and would be referred to the hiring manager. I texted her, told her to look for my name on the list and her and a couple of my other bosses/higher ups selected me. They sent a tentative and then later a firm offer, and I didn't have to interview with them. Though, I do believe most jobs will require people to do some form of interviewing. 

That's another reason why it's good to try and follow the tips, it can help you land on a list to get noticed.

A lot of agencies are always hiring, people can apply anytime a job is open. Sometimes you might not hear back for a bit, but eventually they will get back to you, and tell you whether or not they deem you're qualified and if you will be referred to the hiring manager. Sometimes they will tell you are qualified but that they currently are not referring to you to the hiring manager. That actually happened to me too one of the times I applied. But you can continue to apply to different jobs, and you can apply to the same jobs, multiple times, once the position opens up again. Also sometimes depending on the job/agency, you can also take a temp contract and either have the contract extended or become permanent afterwards. My younger sister also works for the federal government under Health and Human Services and currently has a multi-year contract with them. She is looking to apply for a permanent job with them when one becomes available.

Federal government jobs also have excellent benefits. They have very generous leave. Even a new/lower ranked GS person gets at least like 26 days of leave each year. At the very least most employees will get at least 13 annual days/13 sick days. Depending on the GS/how long you've been working at the job you can get even more leave than that. They also give Weather and Safety leave in the event of people not being able to work due to things like Hurricanes, snowstorms, etc. Sometimes you can also get admin leave and time off awards for your performance. It can build up nicely. I have co-workers that take off weeks at a time throughout the year. (One has taken off a month before) I have a boss that does this as well. They receive that much leave.

A certain amount of leave rolls over (240 hours) and then people have to use or lose the remaining leave. If any annual leave if left when people separate or retire, they will get that paid out to them. I had two weeks of annual leave saved up when my temp contract ended, and they paid me for that. I think they still don't pay people for sick leave should they separate or retire. (Unless that changed). But you can use sick leave and get paid for sick leave as long as you are working.

The main reason I was able to get my foot in the door and was hired underneath a temp contract is because my job allowed at risk people to stay at home for 10 months. I was able to help fill in for them while they stayed at home. Those people were able to get their full pay, plus they were allowed to acquire sick/vacation days during this time. They were able to stay at home almost a whole year and then were able to come back after the vaccine came out. My job also provided us with the vaccine very early before most other people got it.

And even with their generous leave policy you still do have people that abuse leave and exhaust it. But it is generous.

People also pay into a pension that I believe you're vested in after like 5 years, and you contribute to the Thrift Savings Plan. Unless you change your additions, a person will have at least 10% of their check go towards retirement plans.

And they will pay a percentage of your healthcare insurance if you opt to get it through them. If you work 40 hours, I believe it's around 50%. If it's 32 it's less, but they still pay a nice amount for you. Same goes for dental and vision. I worked 40 hours during my temp contract and am now a 32-hour permanent employee who gets anywhere from 32 to 35 hours, and I have health insurance/dental/vision.

People also get a Cost of Living Raise each year and can also get raises every time they go up in their steps/promote to a higher GS. I've gotten four raises since I've been working at this job. Some agencies are less likely to give raises than others, but people will at least get a COLA raise each year.

I work for the federal government (for the military/ Department of Defense). I actually didn't go the traditional route in getting hired, in that I was hired originally underneath a year contract for my agency as a critical hire during Covid. I was laid off from another job and decided to inquire about the government job after I heard they were hiring. I literally walked into the admin office after finding out about a job from an acquaintance of my dad's. I asked her about the available jobs. She was nice, gave me her information and then told me to shoot her my resume. I was hired and then a couple of weeks later was sworn into the position. I worked there for the entire year, applied for a few permanent positions, got rejected, left for a couple of months, did a separate temporary at home job and then was hired back in a permanent position.

Normally when people apply for federal government jobs, they go through usajobs gov first. That what I had to ultimately end up doing to get a permanent position. It's very important for people to read/understand all of the instructions for the application process because if they don't their application can get rejected. The government is pretty specific in how they want you to do the application process. That's what happened to me the first couple of times I applied for permanent position while I was on my contract.  I didn't understand the process all of the way and that factored into my applications getting rejected.

Some useful tips for applying for a job are:

To make sure that a person clicks either expert or skilled journeyman (depending on the job) during the questionnaire. If you are applying for a government job, you are an expert at everything lol. I didn't answer it like that when I first applied, and I believe that was one of the reasons my first application was kicked back. I was told by my bosses to make sure you put expert or whatever the highest skilled answer is. That will give your application a better chance of making it through. 

People also want to use pretty much all of the job qualifications in the job description on your resume. You're not supposed to write it for word, but you can reword in your own words. I was told resumes was run through a system where they search for keywords in the job description. That helps determine whether they push an applicant forward. If you cover the job qualifications on your resume that can help.  

People also want to make sure that their timelines for each previously held job they list are properly covered. One time I was rejected because they said they couldn't determine proper starting and ending dates for previous jobs I held.

People need to make sure they list the proper preferences on the application and make sure they can apply to the position they are seeking. Some jobs are only for veterans/miliary spouses, others are open internally and/or to the public. That's important to remember and could factor into people getting rejected if a specific job is for certain people and they don't fit those preferences. 

Some jobs like will ask for proof of higher education, so people can make sure they have that information ready. Some jobs will tell you specifically not to show proof of any higher education and people can take note of that as well for particular jobs.

It's also okay if someone wants to apply for a job with a slightly higher GS than they currently are. You can go at least one level higher, and I believe you can go as high as two levels. If your application/resume is really impressive you can land a higher GS job, than your current rank.

I will mention some more stuff like when you can apply and benefits in my next post lol.

People that are currently in Florida and in this storm's, path need to be safe. The Weather Channel and other reports are saying now that the storm may hit as a near/possible Category 5 storm. And that it will probably impact pretty much all of Florida. Late last night and this morning, they were talking about potential catastrophic storm surges, flooding and tornadoes. They mentioned that these things can be life threatening. Weather Channel was saying the surges could be anywhere from 6 to 12 ft in some places.

People that are still in Florida definitely need to be careful. If people are in a situation where they can still evacuate, they may definitely need to do that, depending on where they are at. I also believe that people will lose power for multiple days, so I hope people that will still be around in areas that will be impacted are prepared for that.

I am from/live in NC, and we've had our share of hurricanes over the years. I remember growing up and experiencing hurricanes like Bertha/Fran. I can remember the impact of those storms and things like losing power, not being able to eat perishable food, being out of school etc. for multiple days... And of course, there was the devastating impact from other Hurricanes like Katrina. People definitely need to be smart and safe. If I had currently been in Florida, I would have evacuated.

Here are some upcoming interesting daily spoilers from the date of September 20. (originally from a tv guide). 

 9/20/2022 Port Charles mourns the death of one of their own. Carly takes on a new fight. Sonny reminisces about Mike. TJ confides in Stella. Portia consults with Finn. 

It looks like someone is going to die. A lot of people are speculating it's Brando. People are saying that one of the actresses on the show posted something on her Instagram that showed characters at a funeral. It looks like the picture of the person they are mourning may be Brando.

I guess whoever hooked Ava kills him. I could see them trying to hurt/kill other people as well. There are other spoilers for that week that say that Sonny will offer comfort, (possibly regarding Brando) that Finn will work to save a life and that Alexis/Gregory will make a gruesome discovery. I think that all of these things could tie into whoever attacked Ava/possibly kills Brando. The Finn/ Alexis/Gregory spoilers happens after the town mourns one of their own does, so maybe at least one or two other people are attacked as well. 

2 hours ago, DRW50 said:

That's terrible news. Nelson's columns were so widely discussed when I got on here and I will always remember that period of time, which was exciting and interesting, much moreso than anything on the soaps themselves by that point,  even when I had my own criticisms of the whole thing. I'm sorry to hear of his passing. This whole month has felt like another closing of a door on soaps, but we keep them alive in our own individual ways, generation to generation, as Nelson himself did. Rest in peace.

1 hour ago, Taoboi said:

Wow. That takes me back to the SOC days and when I read DC and Serial Drama and his pieces on TV Guide Canada. 

 

Definitely a lightning rod. May he rest in peace. 

Yeah, I remember him posting spoilers/articles from places like TV Guide Canada. I enjoyed a lot of that stuff and a lot of it was posted back when we used to get a lot of fun/interesting spoilers from several places. We don't get as that many interesting spoilers anymore, especially since a lot of soap sources/sites are no longer around. Nelson definitely played a part in delivering some interesting soap tidbits. May he rest in peace.

I wish her the best. I wonder how she will exit and what they will end up doing with the Cody character now.

I think that today's show was solid overall. I was glad to see Spencer finally admit that he's in love with Trina to Cam and Joss. I thought it was romantic and soapy how he decided to keep it to himself because he believes Trina would be happier with Rory. Speaking of Rory/Trina, I enjoyed their scenes as well. He does make Trina happy and I'm fine with them being together for the time being, though I'm also looking forward to when she finally finds out about Spencer's feelings. I always figured he would become her boyfriend first and I don't have a problem with it.

I see her getting closer to him/settled in a relationship and then Spencer finally telling her how he feels which will create more soapy/angst for this triangle. I do hope that Spencer manages not to go Pentonville for the whole three months, or if he does if he can get some visits from Trina. Maybe she will visit him once the truth about her paternity comes out and will confide in him then. That could bring them closer together/help them repair their friendship and create angst for her and Rory/this triangle. 

I do wonder about Dex and his past. I wonder how much he is really lying about. I am liking the actor/character so far. 

Also, I am enjoying TJ/Willow together. It's nice to see them bonding while he's helping her cope with her diagnosis. I like their chemistry together.

I enjoyed today's show. I'm glad that Oz was able to testify as a witness for Trina's defense. It was nice seeing the charges dropped against her and how everyone was excited for her when Oz testified and she was able to go free. I like this picture.

I do wonder what will happen between her and Spencer tomorrow. He definitely is looking/acting like he's in love with her, but I believe they will be interrupted again in some way. Trina will continue to bond with Rory (which I like), though I want to see more movement for her and Spencer as well in this triangle.

I also wonder about Dex. I wondered at first if he had actually intimidated the jury foreman into bringing in a guilty verdict for Trina. As a way to sabotage Sonny. But it looks like he may have indeed tried to convince the foreman to bring back a not guilty verdict for Trina to impress Sonny and gain his trust for the time being. (And then may possibly sabotage him later on Michael's behalf). I do wonder about Dex's background and what has Sonny so angry about it, (after he talked with Brick and found out new information).

I also think that Willow may stall telling Michael about her having leukemia for the time being, though she definitely needs to tell him. 

And I do wonder what will happen now that Victor is involved in Ava/Nikolas's predicament regarding Esme. I do think that Esme will show back up at some point. 

28 minutes ago, AbcNbc247 said:

I saw some of it. As for Dex/Trina, I think I need to see more of them, especially in an uninterrupted episode  I have a feeling that Joss is going to end up cheating on Cam with Dex, so we'll see what happens. I just hope it's written as it should be: Joss as the villain and not Cam.

I still like both Sprina and Rorina, but to me, it seems like both pairings have kind of stalled out in the last week or two. I was hoping Sprina would finally have their first kiss after their testimonies, but we got nothing.

Same thing with Chase/Brooklyn: nothing. It's like the writers want to drag it out further but have no idea what to do with any of the pairings right now. IMO, it hasn't really been a good summer for GH. Or for any of these couplings.

Nice to hear your thoughts on things.  It was brief but I did enjoy Dex/Trina and am interested to see how they possibly interact going forward. TA has a very lovely feminine demeanor about her and that really shines through in her portrayal as Trina. I can see why the young men on the show are attracted to her character. I can see why Dex was looking at her the way he was today.

Regarding Rorina and Sprina, I have been enjoying the pace of Rorina. I like that Trina is opening up to him and trusting him. I think they have a nice easy chemistry together and I appreciate that Rory is nice and cares for her. He's a safe space for her right now and I'm totally fine with that. (Even though I also enjoy Sprina and think they may end up being the longer term/end game couple.) I've always felt that Rory would be her boyfriend first and I think that's a good/soapy way to go about things. 

Though I wish they would do more with advancing Sprina as well. I definitely agree with you that the pacing is too slow for Sprina. Spencer should have been told someone that he's in love with her IMO. Even if he asked that person to keep it to themselves for the time being. (Due to factors like her being with Rory, them both potentially facing jailtime). I think it's obvious that he's in love with her, but he hasn't told anyone that. And no one has straight up asked him if that's the case. Some of them even seem surprised that he helped Trina, even after learning he was playing Esme. He should have told someone, Cam or Sonny, somebody lol.

He could have told Sonny today and Sonny could have understood and maybe given him some advice about that. But we get nothing on that front and certainly not a kiss. Plus Joss didn't even tell her that Spencer was playing Esme and believed Trina the whole time. Which could have helped this potential pairing as well.  The writers dragging their feet on Sprina is not helping this pairing at all. They need more time to interact and build up/explore potential chemistry. I do wonder if the show may have them end up in prison together.

I also wonder what may end up happening with Joss/Cam to help facilitate Dex/Joss. While I enjoyed Dex/Trina's interaction, I do believe the show is headed towards a romance with Dex/Joss. I wonder how Cam will factor into things.

And regarding Chalynn, the writing for them has gotten ridiculous. At least with Sprina you have legitimate obstacles, other love interests (at first Esme and now Rory) and potential jailtime. There is nothing standing in Chalynn's way of becoming a legitimate couple. They are acting way too reluctant to get together, especially given their ages and situation. Brook Lynn and Chase should be a couple like a Sam/Dante are right now. Heck, Austin and Maxie act more like a legitimate couple, than Brook and Chase do. 

I enjoyed today's show. I thought there was some nice soapy/dilemmas being faced today by different characters. Portia and Curtis had to deal with the potential consequences of trying to wake Oz and trying to figure out how to get past Rory/Jordan to do so. I also liked Spencer having to deal with whether or not he should take the deal Martin arranged for him, (going back to Spring Ridge for 10 days or taking three months in Pentonville.) On the surface it seems like a good choice, but in a way, I can understand why Spencer would want to cover for Victor. Victor for all his faults, does genuinely seem to care for Spencer and has tried to help him as much as he could. (Regardless of his methods). Victor is the type of person that may always try and help Spencer whenever he gets into trouble.

So, I could see how Spencer might be trying to look at the big picture and protect him. I hope that Spencer doesn't really end up in jail, even though he signed the documents to go to Pentonville today. I also hope that Trina doesn't go to jail either. Though I do wonder if they may actually do a storyline where her and Spencer end up in jail together like Shawn and Alexis did. I hope not, but you never know. I also liked Jordan asking Rory if his feelings for Trina will interfere with his assignment of guarding Oz. I thought that was interesting as well. I also liked Trina's interaction with Dex. It was pleasant and I think they have chemistry together. 

29 minutes ago, AbcNbc247 said:

God, I hate the media in this country 

EDIT: GH is finally back on

Did you get to see Trina's/interaction with Dex? I think they have nice chemistry/spark together. Dex was giving her some looks. I am interested in hearing your thoughts about their interaction (whenever you see it), because you also like both Sprina and Rorina like I do. Rorina gets a lot of backlash on Twitter, but there are those of us on various sites that like both pairings. Might have to act Dex/Trina to the mix too, lol, though I do believe the show will probably do something with him and Joss. (And I wonder how Cam will factor into things).

I thought that today's episode was good. It had a lot of focus on Trina, and I enjoyed it. I liked seeing Trina have a good support system around her, Portia, Diane, Joss, Ava and also Curtis and Marshall trying to help her as well. And I enjoyed the Rory/Spencer confrontation scenes. Spencer was making me laugh with the way he was looking and acting when he confronted Rory about kissing Trina in the park. He was so jealous, and I liked Rory calling him out too.

After Spencer told him he would answer to him if he hurt Trina, I liked that Rory told him he wasn't the one who hurt her. Rory got the last word today, but I think these more of these confrontations between them will happen and I'm looking forward to them.  I want to see a good romantic/soapy/angsty triangle for Trina. 

I do wonder if it will be revealed that Spencer is her alibi around the time the sex tape was released. Or if she will be exonerated some other way. I am interested in seeing how this trial plays out. It also looks like today/possibly tomorrow is Laura's exit story for GF's vacation, with her getting news about Lesley. It looks like Valentin may have arranged for that to happen so that Victor wouldn't kill her. Victor did try and have shot today, but Valentin saved her. 

They also mentioned Serena today as an excuse for why Scott was away, and Diane was taking over Trina's case. They said that Serena got arrested for activism (trying to prevent the slaughter of animals such as Dolphins in another territory) and Scott went away to try and help her legally. 

I enjoyed today's Rorina's scenes. Trina looked pretty today in her dress. They continue to style TA well. I liked that her and Rory got to bond a little more and that they kissed a couple of times. It's been a while since she's really got to kiss anyone, it was nice to see her have that romantic moment today with him. And I liked that Spencer showed up and witnessed them kissing. I still like Sprina, but I like Rorina as well. I hope they pick up the pace a bit more with this storyline and continue to develop this triangle.

I also enjoyed Sam/Dante today. They continue to be comfortable with each other and have easy chemistry. It was nice to see some romance on the show today. This show has been really lacking regarding romantic moments lately. 

I really enjoyed Ms. Wu on today's show. She was fabulous with the way that she handled Morgan's Fairchild's character when she was threatening to sue Deception. Ms. Wu is such a strong no-nonsense lady who will handle things quickly before they get out of control. And I like that lol. Sasha's meltdown was definitely a very rough moment for her, but I liked the way Ms. Wu came in to clean things up once Lucy/Morgan's child started arguing with each other. I also liked Lucy/Morgan's character Haven squaring off with each other too. The scenes with those ladies were the best scenes of today for me. 

I also liked the scenes where Nina got emotional about seeing Sasha's meltdown on live tv. (And Sonny comforting her afterwards). 

I had thought that Cynthia Watros might win tonight and was deserving of it. But I am happy for Mishael. That was an unexpected but pleasant surprise. I thought she gave a lovely speech. 

Sean Dominic is so handsome.  

Also, I'm a little surprised that John McCook won.

I thought it was going to be GH again for the writing award, lol. But congrats to Days and Ron. 

Congrats to Nick Chavez for winning the younger performer award.  He is deserving of that award and seems genuinely thankful to have won it/be on GH. 

I enjoyed that segment honoring John Aniston getting his lifetime achievement award. I liked seeing both Suzanne and Jennifer talking about his career and honoring him. I also liked seeing the classic clips of him on Days. 

Tanner looks really good in his suit. Congrats to KT on her win for supporting actress. I had thought that someone else might win it, but she genuinely happy and appreciative that she won, and that's nice. And now Jeff Kober has won. GH are getting these acting awards so far tonight, lol.

Also Camila looks really good in her dress as well.