Oh, Hi.

Still here.

Still unemployed.

Have gone on a bunch more interviews.

Am panicking a bit about running out of unemployment insurance.

I Should've Been Paying Closer Attention

I totally thought I had more time to get the UI. Ummmm, no. Instead of getting a check last week I got a letter saying I'd gotten all the UI I was going to get. My time was up.

Not the best thing to get on Friday. I was counting on that check to finish buying Christmas presents.

So I mailed off the form asking for an extension, called the Student Loan folks (they're so nice each time I called) and am getting the form to suspend my student loan payments while I'm unemployed. Then I called my dad to plan the weekend (spent at my parents' house because I love visiting them and I don't have to buy groceries when I'm at their place) and to ask him to help me buy presents. He was really nice and bought himself a book he wanted and promised to forget about it before Christmas.

It's really shitty, but I should've been on the ball.

But there's a bit of good news!

I'd applied last month for a position at an organization for which I used to volunteer and for which my mom still volunteers. I didn't hear back from them but she mentioned to someone in HR that I'd applied and they said they'd take a look and see if the position was filled yet and if not look again at my materials. I'm sad that I apparently didn't make a good enough impression the first time, but I'll just believe that I got lost in the 100+ resumes they got.

Also, I heard back from a local school where I'd applied for a Management position in their food service department. I have an interview next week! I'm trying not to get my hopes up because God knows that hasn't worked out so far. But this is the position for which I think I'm best qualified out of all the jobs I've applied for in THESE SEVEN MONTHS.

I'm excited for Christmas as well. I'm not even joking.

Merry and Bright

I met with the manager of that coffee shop and we were both straight with each other. She wants someone who can commit to at least 6 months of part time work and I want part time work until I can find full time work. I may be in touch with another manager of that company's shops about working through the holidays. We'll see.

Last week I went into my favorite salon for a (free) bang trim and my hair guy asked me about my job search. I told him I'd had some interviews and that I was looking for part time coffee work. (An aside: he was one of my semiregular customers when I was a barista!) He let me know that the cafe across the street needed some experienced baristas as three (THREE!) of their employees are going on maternity leave. I stopped into the cafe and met the manager and returned with my resume. No word yet but maybe I'll hear back. She let me know that she's looking for part time work that'll probably be temporary and I said, "that's perfect!"

My unemployment didn't keep me from splurging a bit last week and spending a few days in California. I met some people I know from the internets and we got dinner, saw a movie, and went sightseeing together. And we totally met a favorite director we all like! That was pretty epic. There's some talk among a few of us about going back for another event in a few weeks. I was sure I wouldn't be able to go but I got an email a day later from one of my former bosses at the firm where I used to work. She wondered if I had ever used airline miles I won from the company's holiday party a few years ago. I told her I hadn't and she let me know that I still can. So I'm maybe going to California for the second time in a month! I'd get free flights and would share a hotel room with a few people, so it wouldn't set me back too much financially.

I'm really excited for the holidays. I've figured out most of the presents I'm getting for my family and I'm hoping to have some dance parties to Christmas carols in my apartment.

I'm Maybe Becoming a Productive Member of Society?

I met my former boss for coffee one day last week and he had some news for me. First, though, a little background.

FB (Former Boss) and I first met when I was working as a barista in the office tower where he worked. He'd come in at least once a day and when I started working in his office we'd stop to talk often. I ended up working on the team that he headed and that's what I was doing when I got the ax.

So. Just before meeting me for coffee, FB stopped into a different coffee shop he frequents and the manager mentioned that one of the employees at one of the shops she manages had just left and she asked if he knew anyone who was looking for work.

Woot.

The manager ended up coming into the shop where FB and I were talking and she and I exchanged information. I just talked to the person in charge of the hire at the shop with the vacancy and I'm going to meet her tomorrow afternoon. I'll fill out an application and we'll talk. She knows that I'm looking for full-time work in an office, but that I want to get back to work, even just part-time.

My unemployment benefits will be cut a little, but I'll be getting a paycheck and tips and maybe even free coffee. And, while I left the coffee industry on a sort of sour note, I did really enjoy the work. The making of drinks and interacting with customers was usually pretty rad.

The theater experience was really good! And I scored a free ticket to the show, so I may go again!

Ah, the Theatah...

I've been a live performance junkie for as long as I can remember and over the last ten years, ever since my first years at university, I've made an effort to go to theater and music performances. I've subscribed to a couple local theaters, the Seattle Symphony, and I'm currently a Seattle Opera subscriber.

So I have no problem dropping many dollars on shows. I got a really amazing seat when I first subscribed to the Opera last season and thank baby Jesus the Opera has a payment plan.

I follow a few of the local arts organizations on Twitter and Facebook so I get wind of discount offers and these have let me see shows I've really been excited about for less than $30. Definitely a good deal.

But I just panicked and wasn't sure I'd get a really cheap ticket to a musical opening this week. I did get a discount code to save money and I've been spoiled by these Twitter discounts and now need to sit at the orchestra level. So I just dropped $50 on a ticket to a show next week. I really love this musical...I've heard the songs since I was a kid but I've never seen it live. But now I'm having a little bit of buyer's remorse (which I never get with theater tickets!) because I really can't afford this ticket right now. I mean, I can, I have dollars in savings, so I'm not gonna forgo dinner for a week or anything. But I'm worried that my expectations are too high.

Ack.

Still Figuring

I'm losing motivation. I'm becoming convinced that I'm going to have to go back to making coffee. I loved making coffee but didn't love the company I worked for. Luckily I have a friend who's a manager at a shop that's not part of the company I used to work for, so at least if I give up and go back to coffee it'll be a better gig. Theoretically.

I was chatting with a friend tonight about my whole existential crisis and survey says I should keep on with the UI business until it's about to run out and maybe do some part time (coffee) thing and volunteer. While this is happening I'm to figure out what I want to be when I grow up. Whatever office thing I end up with (if I go that route) will be a pretty low-man-on-the-totem-pole thing, which I expect. But I need to figure out how to grow from that. I had started getting that information at the job from which I was laid off, but that's clearly out of the question now.

My dad recently let me know that if I want financial help to take classes for some kind of extra training that I can get that from my parents. Which is really, really great of them. But that kind of kills me. My undergrad studies were crazy expensive and my dad even took a second job during my first year at university. He's no spring chicken and the job took its toll. I finally took it on under my federal loans and I've known since high school that I was going to be making payments on my loan until I'm in my late 30's. And that's fine. I'd even be willing to take on a couple more years' worth of payments for grad school. But I just don't think I'm ready to go back. That's basically it. I don't really want to go back to school right now. The most appealing option is law school and I have neither the patience for studying nor the funding for such a venture.

Also, I've been spending time with my parents and have let them buy groceries and toiletries and every cell phone I've had has been on their plan. I've never paid for my phone.

Okay, so there's that. Existential crisis. Trying to figure things out and may volunteer and may use the time to learn how to drive.

Now another thing.

The hot issue right now is this whole health care debate. Here's what I think about that.

I want affordable health insurance.

I recently had a diagnostic appointment thing and when I get the bill I'm going to have to pay about $125. My unemployment insurance is great to get but my monthly income is about $500 less than it was when I was working. And I wasn't making bank when I was working. So I'm probably going to let my parents buy me some groceries so I can pay my medical bill.

So that's annoying.

But here's what has really fried my bacon.

When the economy first started into the shitter I talked to my boss to see if I should worry about my job. We ended up having a sort of running joke that of course I was safe because my salary was ridiculously low. What I've pieced together from information shared by a multitude of sources was the reason the wave of cuts of which I was a part occurred was that the company couldn't handle paying for employees' insurance. So they needed to get rid of bodies. And since I was such a low man on that totem pole I got the ax.

So I lost my job because insurance is so expensive.

And what doesn't make much sense about that is that I'm doing the COBRA thing and that company is still paying for my health care. Which I have to supplement with my valuable unemployment insurance.

So, yeah, people who are opposed to the health care reform and a public option are assholes and they can mail checks to me to pay for my fucking pap smears.

I need a job.