With the economy in the shape it is in a smaller pay check is better the no paycheck. It's so bad out there that most employers will not hold it against you taking odd jobs. They know that you need to eat and your willingness to work. When I got started and got laid off, I took a job sorting and packing parts because i had two girls at home to feed. Gaps in resumes are a little more accepted but if you can fill them in today's economy, that will work in your favor.
Employers are also in the driver seat when it comes to who works for them. There's is a big line outside the door of people who want you job for less then they are paying you.
If you go into a interview be ready to ask the big question when the interviewer asks you, "Why should I hire you over the hundrend other applicants?" If you can not answer or give a canned generic answer, chances are, you are toast. Do your homework, practice what you are going to say and be confident. We play with electricity for a living. One of the tricks I use is look at the walls of perspective employer and look at the certificates, pictures, and awards. See if you have some sort of connection to any of them then bring it up in the interview.
