Sunday, May 31, 2009

More Love from the USPS... sort of

I got another package of yarn from the mailbox today. It was a RAK from a fellow rav member. It was so much fun to open the package and see all the little mini skeins for my blanket. I can not wait to start using them. I want to put all my yarn in mini skeins now, they are so cute. Anyway, it was so nice to have more love in the mailbox. It is like my birthday or something!!

Sadly, we also had a huge heap of insurance denials for Mac's care. I guess I will be on the phone with BCBS. I hope that they cover it, because I don't want to have to stop his treatment, but right now if they don't we can not afford it. But at least there was yarny goodness that came with this less than stellar news!

Friday, May 29, 2009

Good things come via USPS

I will start by saying until recently, all good things came via brown truck. It helped that the UPS guy was so hot I toyed with sending myself stuff... but I digress.

In the past 2 days the mailbox has held within indescribable joy. Yesterday, I got 10 mini balls of yarn for my sock blanket. I was so excited, I had to open the package right there and I took it to school with me to pick up the boys, so I would have plenty of time to look at all the yarny goodness enclosed. I was like a little kid, the joy was like a bubble in my throat. The arrival of said yarn was not a surprise, I was participating in a swap, so I had already sent off 10 mini balls of my own yarn in expectation of getting 10 back. That it made me so happy is the surprise!

Today, I opened the mailbox, expecting that there would be no yarn, but one can always hope. There was no yarn, but, rather some bills and a letter from my aunt. Hand addressed mail is always nice, so I opened the letter and there was a gift certificate for a massage while I am in California. She has already arranged from someone to come to her house and give me and my cousin massages. I am so excited, this is almost as good as yarn. But, it was also so unexpected and nice. I feel so blessed.

The gods of the mailbox have spoken and it is good. Does this mean the winds of our luck are changing? I certainly hope so, but for now I am going to try and ride the crest of this joy for a couple of days!

Thursday, May 28, 2009

My husband came home naked

Well, they stripped him of his equipment yesterday. All my husband's electronics were taken from him, his computer, his blackberry, his keys. He said it felt naked when he walked out, like everyone could tell that he was unemployed... well, not yet... but after tomorrow.

It is interesting how much of his identity is wrapped up in having consistent access to his email and phone. He was so upset that they took his phone, he told me he tried to hide it from them, so he could keep it until Friday. I think it would have been humane to let him keep the badges of his job until the end. What did they think he would do today that he couldn't have already done yesterday. How stupid do they think he is?

My husband is now President of the company in title only. He has been completely stripped of power and prestige. Why do they make him continue to come in? It seems like some sort of mid-evil torture. I guess people don't understand the impact of their actions.

While it is not good mojo to be negative, I sort of hope that the karma that these people have created for themselves comes back around. I also hope that the fact that we are good people, generous almost to a fault, will help us land swiftly on our feet.

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Reconnecting

As part of the whole job loss thing, we are starting to reconnect with old friends. So many people have reached out to us, it has been amazing. It is just good to hear from all these people, some doing well and others also in the throws of unemployment. I am sure as the days go on, it will be nice to know that there is this group of people that care.

It is scary, because it sounds like jobs are going to be very hard to come by. It seems like seeds of growth are germinating, but it will be a long time coming before anything opens up. This is sort of concerning.

That said, I knit like crazy. It seems counter-intuitive to put pointy sticks in the hands of a crazed, stress-out mommy, but it really does help. Right now I am making a panda for Sam. It is a birthday present of sorts. I am also working on some socks. They are from a pattern for my May sock club, but may also be the June pattern. I didn't like the June pattern, so I guess I have another month before I have to start another pair.

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

On a Tuesday it Happened

After 9 months of worrying, fretting, and generally being scared, it finally happened. Bob lost his job. In a perverse way it is a good thing, because now we don't have to worry about him losing it any more. But, now we are a family of 5 with no income.

Bob was so despondent about his job, it was a very frightening period. The owners never respected what he did for them, and they were so negative all the time. Definitely from the school of management by fear and loathing. It just doesn't work, and Bob began to believe that he was worthless. I guess eventually you throw your hands up and do what you are told. Bob did some amazing things for them in the short 9 months he was there, he really could have turned this business around if they would have let him. OH well. The part that is so hard for me to cope with is that he now feels like a failure, when the reality is that the owners failed him. Now we have to fight with them about the severance. It never ends.

I started this blog when Mac started Kindergarten, didn't touch it again until we started this process of coming to Chicago and moved. I didn't want to say anything when all of the stuff was going down, but now I think I need to let it all out. These people stole my husband from me. They took the father of my children and left me to pick up the pieces. I hope that we are blessed with an opportunity that brings us back to a place where we are content. I hope we don't have to move again.