I have accepted a job that was verbally offered to me in a phone call from the employer after an interview (with two people), a technical test (evaluated by a specialist) and a selection from a small pool of qualified candidates. I agreed to all the terms and was told that I would receive a contract from HR soon, but that they were a bit...slow. The employer told me that I could ideally start working within two weeks. (Clearly we have a different definition of "slow", but I'm not complaining.)

**Questions:**

Are there any legal advantages to requesting a written confirmation of this offer before hearing from HR, or is the "anxious first-time employee" vibe off-putting for an employer? Is it weird if it's been a few days since I verbally accepted the offer? 

What is the expected/usual/common time frame between the offer and the contract, and the contract and the first day? With the suggested two-week time frame in mind, what would a likely time for me to receive the contract? Past that time, should the employer be contacted just in case?

In the event that I'm contacted by other employers with a follow-up on an application I sent them, should I explain that I'm mid-hiring process with another company? Would specifying that nothing has been signed yet make me sound like an opportunistic jackass or, on the contrary, would it be a good move just in case something happens on HR's end? Would it be disrespectful not to mention it? Because it's one of those "everyone knows everyone" fields, would I be shooting myself in the foot by agreeing to interviews elsewhere?

**Bonus Question:**

I have a Friday-Sunday trip (non-refundable event tickets purchased a year ago) that falls right on my expected second week of work. I absolutely have to take the entire Friday off. When and how should I bring this up? Can an employer refuse to let me miss work strictly on the basis that I'm a new employee? Is there anything I can suggest to do (work remotely, unpaid overtime, etc.) to make up for it? How do I bring *that* up?