You don't have to be mad to work here

More interviews at work today. A seemingly never ending stream of them in fact. It wouldn't have been so bad, but my usual co-conspirator in these affairs had the day off (driving up to Edinburgh - I should take my cues from that), leaving me to take the lead. The position is for a contractor, and requires someone with a great deal of experience, so I found myself in the odd position of interviewing several people vastly more knowledgeable than myself (and gratifyingly, at least one person who wasn't), including one with about 20 years more practical experience. Fortunately it wasn't nearly as intimidating as feared it might be, and nor did I feel like a complete fraud (mayhap just a small one).

One of the more memorable candidates hailed from Bulgaria, and her English, though perfectly reasonable, was heavily accented with what, had I not known her background, I would probably have assumed was a Russian inflection. It was the sort of voice you'd expect to repeat phrases like "There'll be no escape for you this time, Mr Bond." Her speech patterns had a wonderful sine-like cadence, rising and falling in pitch from phrase to phrase, that was quite delightful to listen too. She'd also picked up a few unusual quirks, such as making a statement about something she'd done, then asking "why?" before delving into a deeper explanation. Why? I'm not entirely sure, but the slight pause before she continued left me continually wondering whether it were merely rhetorical or whether she was actually demanding a response from me.
It kept me on my toes at least.

I was also slightly curious about the final candidate, who was aptly qualified and extremely personable, but who kept jotting things down with a brightly coloured pen, branded in a bold black typeface with the name of a well-known anti-depressant. I was more amused than concerned, and I'm certainly not inferring anything from it, but I do think that when my time comes to be interviewed again I'll be slightly more careful in my choice of accoutrements...