Day 3 of unemployment

I didn't do any of the things I set out to do yesterday.  Go ME!

Instead I watched Starstruck and a few episodes of Raising Hope.

Most of my time was spent answering emails and texting two of my coworkers that were also laid off.  As a result of getting laid off we are referred to a place called One-Stop.  They help you with your resume, job training, and getting unemployment benefits.  I want to go with these two ladies in hopes that we can all be on the same page and help each other out.  I called One-Stop then I spent the rest of the day waiting to hear back from the two ladies on which time and day was best to go to an orientation session. I finally had things all figured out by 5pm yesterday and on Monday I have to call One-Stop back and confirm which session we'll be attending. 

I also took Daisy on a 40 minute walk about the neighborhood and she was exhausted the rest of the day...poor pup I make her do so much. 

This morning I did finally put in the applications to the UofA. 

So I guess now it's just those Halloween decorations and lunch! 

Day 2 of unemployment

I figure this will keep me busy for a few minutes each morning until I find a job.  I've given myself a month to get a new job....not necessarily better...just new.  I figure if I get a crappy job at first it'll at least be something till I can find a job I'd be happy with or pays better.  Let's hope this plan works.

Let's see since I've been laid off I've seen quite a few movies and tv shows-
-a few episodes of Arrested Development
-2 episodes of Melissa & Joey
-1 episode of Wizards of Waverly Place
-In a Day (not sure what this movie is about, wasn't paying attention)
-Dream A Little Dream (with the 2 Corey's-lame)
-I Do (not exactly sure what happened in this movie either)
-The Baxter (it was ok)
-happy ever afters (strange)
-16 to Life (I liked this movie)
-These Girls (3 girls devise a plan to all have sex with David Boreanez's character)
-love wedding marriage (eh...it was eh..)
-Haunting in Connecticut (made me jump)

And just so you know I've been working on applications and/or cleaning while watching these.  So I'm not just laying on the couch eating bon bons watching these movies!

Yesterday I put in 2 apps online for Costco and Target.  I wouldn't mind working at Costco, I hear they treat their employees right and I guess I could see myself working at Target as long as it takes.  I mean I'd probably want to buy everything while working there but I could handle it.

On the agenda today I want to put in apps at the UofA, I mainly have to work on stupid letters of interest for each position I'm interested in so we'll see how far I get. I really hate writing Letters of Interest and Cover Letters....they are so lame. 

Yesterday I also started with Halloween decorations, front gate is covered in spider webs and there are skeleton heads on our little porch.  Today I'll have to get the rest out.

And then I guess I'll work on looking through the mail basket and looking for coupons for top ramen. Zac said we have to start living on it now.

early retirement?

I don't think I can pull off early retirement as well as Zac has in his past.

Yesterday at about 9am our VP of Inventory Planning called 3 of the 4 of us left in shoe buying.  I looked around for the 4th person of our team thinking we were going into a meeting but was quickly sent into the office.  As soon as we walked in we knew what it was since the HR lady was sitting in there with packets with our names on it.  It was an odd feeling, I thought this has to be a mistake but then I saw my name on the packet and I attempted to look at the other names on the packets.

Because of cash flow the company decided to shut down the shoe book.  So they managed to call away the one remaining shoe buyer while they led the 3 of us into the slaughterhouse.  They told us we could collect our things and they would appreciate if we would leave right away, we could come back later in the evening to collect the rest of our things.  Probably 5 minutes later our VP came over and told us we needed to leave.

So we collected what we could and walked out and then waited outside to see who else would come out.  We hear all in all 14 people were laid off, mainly people that had most of their job relating to the shoe book.  Our severance pay was a measly 2 weeks compared to the people that were let go 2 years ago that received a weeks pay for every year they worked for the company and there were quite a few people that had worked there over 20 years.  The two ladies that were let go in my department with me had both been there almost 30 years and they left the company with 2 weeks severance.  Now that really sucks but at least they go something.

Rumors going around is that the parent company will try to file for bankruptcy....again....but they have to wait till next year.  So our guess is that they might make it through the rest of this year and then perhaps they'll move this catalog business somewhere else or they'll close this portion down.

Even though we all knew this was coming I was preparing myself for a November layoff.  So it came as quite a shock that it was yesterday. Overall though it wasn't surprising we knew it was coming for a couple years now, we were all just waiting for our time to be let go.

The hardest part is saying goodbye to these people that I've met and gotten to know so well these past would have been 6 years come November.  My resume has been up on a couple job site places for a few weeks now but the only calls I've gotten are for insurance companies and one call from Dillards as a sales associate. I've applied for a couple jobs so far knowing that I probably wouldn't fully qualify so now it's on to find another job because I can't have Zac whoring himself on the streets even though I know he really wants to help me out!

Oh well....onto the next adventure of lame bosses and work drama!

the only reason guys watch horror movies

the shower scene

all scary movies have them

all guys seem to pay attention as soon as the scene starts

and the shower scenes are always lame

all for kettlecorn

This morning one of my coworkers came in all huffy saying she was hungry.  She was about to tackle a lady she saw walking down the hallway with breakfast in hand.  She told us that McDonald's is no longer on her way to work now that she has to take her grandson to a different school.  So if she wants to stop at Mickey D's she either has to double back to one location or go out of her way to get to another location.  I looked at her and said "or you could eat breakfast before coming or bring breakfast like the rest of us do...you could bring frozen breakfast sandwiches and leave them in the freezer here..."  Her response was a dirty look.

Or....I responded...you could bring cereal....or oatmeal....

After every suggestion she gave me that face.

She then disappeared for a few minutes and when she came back she asked if either I or my other coworker had a dollar she could borrow.  She went to the vending machine and put her money in for kettlecorn but it got stuck.  So my coworker MJ gave her a dollar and there went coworker number 1 back to the break room to try again.  Only MJ jinxed her by saying it would probably get stuck again.  It did. A minute later CW#1 comes back to tell MJ she had jinxed her.  I asked CW#1 if she shook the vending machine and CW#1 said she did but she must not be very strong.  So then MJ and CW#1 went back to the break room to get that kettlecorn.

Our cubicle isn't that far from the break room so I could pretty much hear them when they were in the break room.  They started shaking the machine with no success.  MJ then put in ANOTHER dollar and that bag got stuck too!  So as they were shaking and finally successful the vending machine guy walks in and says "BUSTED!"

MJ doesn't stay in the break room much longer and starts laughing as CW#1 tells the vending machine guy the whole story. Vending machine guy says that the popcorn is in the wrong spot so then CW#1 starts yelling at him asking him why he put it in the wrong spot.  Vending machine guys says he's not our regular vending machine guy.  CW#1 is thoroughly embarrassed and walks out of the break room with 3 bags of kettlecorn.

Both coworkers come back laughing and telling me the story all over again and CW#1 gives me one of the bags of kettlecorn.  A little while later MJ is in the break room again eating her breakfast of cheerios and as I go in to get some ice and water I check out the vending machine to see the offending spot that held the kettlecorn.  The vending machine no longer has any kettlecorn!

I went back to my desk and looked at the kettlecorn bag and realized they expired last week!

dream journal

It appears that I'm remembering my dreams lately.  Aside from that tramp Guggenmos trying to steal my man I've also had dreams about poison dart frogs and very specifically the yellow and black dart frogs.  My dream book didn't have an entry about dart frogs but I'm assuming it means that my enemies will bake me poisoned chocolate cake.

Last night I had the dream that I lost my job, everyone was laid off and it was done.  I think I've had this one a couple times now and even though we keep chugging along at work it seems like this one might become reality soon enough.  

damn you guggenmos!

I had a dream the other night that Zac was studying with another student named Emily Guggenmos and at some point they picked me up. I was sitting in the front passenger seat, Emily was driving and Zac was sitting right behind me.  While we were going who knows where I realized I liked this girl and thought she was pretty cool.  During the drive, Emily was telling me how great Zac was and she reached back to grab Zac's hand. Well she didn't really let go and she kept holding his hand.  We stopped at a bank and as Zac and I are waiting for Emily to finish her bank business I tell Zac that it's ok she's been holding his hand because it's very European.

ummmm...wtf?....

Oh and for those of you that don't live in Tucson...which would probably be everyone that reads this blog, Emily Guggenmos is a local newsperson and is married to another newscaster named Lou Raguse.  His name makes me laugh.