Temporary assignment:

Temping is different from working. Temps talk about assignments rather than jobs, and "I'm on assignment" is a universal excuse for postponing interviews, skipping lunches, changing any plans. On short term assignments, though, temps spend all their time talking about the next assignment and the last assignment. This is what I did last week. Let me call to find out what I'm doing next week.

For me, if I'm not on assignment, it isn't the end of the world. Not paying rent has some benefits. I needed at least a week of work to make sure I could pay for England, $400 after taxes would be brilliant. I should get there, even if I don't get any more assignments.

Right now I am on assignment, working at the registration desk for a government conference held in a swanky hotel. The work is ridiculously easy, it's just check people in when they show up and occasionally clean up the front table. We would have random busy spurts, combined with lots of slow periods, where I talked to the other temps and read some of my book.

It's a little boring, but it is the easiest job I've ever had, and I don't even have to pretend to be busy. The only real issue was that I had to be downtown at 6:30am today. Yes, 6:30am. I left my house at 5:35, caught a 5:50 MARTA train, and got to the CNN Center at 6:15. At least there's no traffic at 5:35am. And I got a REALLY good parking place.