hard boiled
Sophia boiled an egg with a cracked shell. It looks like ice cream. Smells like a fart. She got laid off and sprained her ankle too. She’s still in good spirits though. “there’s so many people laid off right now it’s kinda fun. A lot of my friends are too so I have people to hang out with. It’s refreshing to break the routine I had for four years.”.
So week one of unemployment is a success for her. Perhaps the cyclical nature of economic collapse is a product of workers frustration reaching critical mass. Subliminally people want things to fall apart because they need a goddamn break.
Depending on your life situation, there’s a definite euphoria with being canned. I remember when I got fired in 2000 because my employer thought I was drinking on the job (they were monitoring my email and I was sending emails to friends in jest about what I was doing at work). It was a contracted position so when my real employer walked me offsite and offered to get me alcohol counseling it was a pretty funny situation. I couldn’t convince him that I wasn’t a drunk. He mentioned the cough syrup on my desk. “It’s alcohol free,” I retorted. Hilarious and frustrating at the same time.
Anyhow, I was actually ecstatic to get out of there. I’d only been there for 3 months but working in county government wore on me pretty quick. The 3 months that followed were some of the most fun months of my life.
Of course, I had a second job that kept me solvent and it wasn’t as hard to find work then as it is now. I don’t think 3 months off would be so great this time around, especially with a family to worry about. I’d be interested to hear how long Sophia’s window of enjoyment lasts. I hope it’s only as long as she wants it to be!
Comment by Lyle_s — April 6, 2009 @ 6:12 am
I want to get laid off sooooooo bad.
Comment by nate — April 7, 2009 @ 1:52 pm
She’s a bit stressed of course, and there’s always a sense of rejection, she said, when you are “let go”, but a severance package and unemployment can make it seem like a party. Why is it people who work for themselves aren’t eligible for unemployment? Or insurance?
Anyway, that was an awesome story Lyle.
Comment by Rolston — April 7, 2009 @ 11:13 pm
I only scratched the surface of my firing confrontation. If I ever make it out to California, I’ll stop by and give the full rundown.
Comment by Lyle_S — April 8, 2009 @ 5:52 pm