In January, after too many months of temping, I saw an ad for an office in Vancouver. Normally I skip over those ones because of the distance, but this one caught my eye because it mentioned they were an office of women in their 30s and 40s who valued their home life as well as their work life. I made some changes to my cover letter - stressing that while I was fairly new to the profession, I was within their age range - and e-mailed my resume. That evening I got a call from the dentist, and over the course of the hour-long interview, I learned that she had recently fired her entire staff and was looking to start fresh. Normally that's a big red flag, but I had enjoyed my conversation with her, and she seemed very nice. She stressed that she wasn't worried about my relative lack of experience, because she was looking for someone with great communication skills.

A few days later I went in for a working interview, and was pleased to see it was a modern office with great patients and an excellent dentist. She had recently gone digital, so it was a challenge for me to learn a whole new system, not just charting but taking x-rays as well. She hired me for a p/t position, then called a few days later and asked if I could work full time, as she'd let the other CDA go (yes, another red flag!) I said yes, and went to Safeway to pick up a book of fare-savers for the bus.

One of the main draws for some of the patients is the "hostess" - a cute little maltese/shih tzu who greets the patients and cuddles up on their laps during the procedures. Many people find this very relaxing, and most hope she spends at least part of the time with them... which she does. She loved me though. If I was standing, she'd sit between my feet. When I was sitting, she'd stand on the patient's lap, put first one paw then the other on the arm of my chair, eventually climbing up behind me with a paw on each shoulder and her head resting on my back.

In addition to the great opportunity to learn a lot, one of the things I liked best about my boss was the feedback. She gave me excellent constructive criticism - she's a true teacher - as well as some wonderful compliments, both her own as well as those she passed on from some of the patients. She hired me for my personality, because, in her words, anyone can be "tweaked" in their skills. I enjoyed chatting with the patients, putting them at ease, and I loved the banter between her and I - it made the days go by so much more quickly.

The one thing I didn't like about the job - the commute. I took the bus in in the mornings, which wasn't bad. I liked the 10 minute walk from the bus stop to the office... but I hated the ride home. A few times I stood on the other side of the road, watching my bus pull out early, leaving me stranded for up to half an hour. A few times I didn't get home till close to 8:00. So it was with sadness and reluctance that I gave my notice. My last day, she hugged me and said "I lucked out when you answered my ad". And included with my last cheque was a thank you card that read, "Any office will be fortunate to have you on their team. Best wishes".

I'm going to miss it there.

But... Yesterday I started a new job. This one is in Richmond. One whole wall is windows with a great view of the North Shore Mountains. The office is bright and open, the dentist and the receptionist are really nice, and the pace isn't hectic.

I think I'm really going to like it there.