The Interview.

Monday and the phone rang, and am I glad I hadn't started a bead yet. I turned the torch off, turned Thin Lizzy down on the radio and answered. My mind clicked into place as the caller asked if I was Catherine Francis, erm yes I am, thats me. I never ever get called Catherine, I was on my wedding day and my certificates from school and college say Catherine but I'm Kate. Anyway, it was it was the HR girly from our local hospital, asking me if the date and time for my interview were ok as I hadn't answered the email they'd sent me last week. What email, I have no email, I explain that 'Oh gosh it must have gone into my spam folder and yes the time and date would be fine. The time was 2.20pm and the date 2 days time. Fab, I applied for this job over 3 weeks ago, I race indoors to fire up the laptop and search the junk folder to find the email, yes there it is, part time clinic assistant in the neo natal unit.

What am I going to wear, and are purple painted nails the right look for the neo natal unit at the local hospital.

Yesterday up early, showered and off to the nail salon, nice tidy french manicure, shorter than usual but looking nice and clean. Over the road to get some black trousers, nothing, not a damn thing that will fit my humungous self so I gave up, went across to the bakers for a danish pastry and a roast beef and salad sandwich for lunch. They'll have to have me as me.

On with a clean top and my black jeans, well its the tidiest thing I have to wear and I'd already given up on the job anyway.

I'm shown into the parents room where 3 ladies are drinking coffee and theres a tv on a bracket on the wall. I start to chat to them and they are all Mums with babies in the unit, we chat about babies in general and then I'm called in.

Well it went ok I think, the two women interviewing were chatty, I think I said all the right things in the right place. They liked the fact that I made jewellery and wanted to know if I'd give it up should I get the job, I was honest and told them no, but I wasn't expecting to make my fortune in jewellery but quite honestly if I ended up making a grand a week out of it I would be off like a shot. They laughed and said good cause they could see that jewellery would be good for fundraising. I also explained that I was qualified as chef in a previous life to which they were very pleased as they could see this coming in handy for parties.

So, the jewellery is a plus point as is the ability to cater, but what about the other stuff. I do feel that I was maybe a little loud, I do have quite a gutsy laugh and my natural speaking voice is not exactly small and the whole unit was so quiet and I do think I may have goofed up a bit when I mentioned that I felt I was able to bring an emphatic approach to the job as a Mother myself and that I thought this was important to be able to do this, at which point the head sister announced that she didn't have children. Whoops. Anyway, I will recieve a phone call by Friday if I have the job, of which there are 2 available, they have someone else to interview. I get the feeling that after I left the conversation was a bit like, ' lovely girl but not for us' type of thing. Not sure if I want it to be honest but now I've been for the interview, I want it on the point of pride, does that makes sense, I don't want to be turned down.

Watch this space.