The Other Side of Story

Due to the strong likelihood of my coming across a bit too cynical in previous blogs and for the purpose of balancing out all the negative energy I've thrown into the universe with my crabbing about the job situation, I feel it's not only fair but necessary to comment on the rest of my life and those aspects of it which for the most part are surprisingly pleasant. Prepare yourself for a lot happiness and magical unicorns in this blog!

Having lost our insurance and then applied for Medicaid for the kids (Gasp! Horror of all horrors!) I've been keeping tabs for the last six plus months on when that first trip to the new doctor would be. . The doctor, who probably in reality is a perfectly competent person with a lot of letters after their name and an exceedingly packed waiting room, has much to my delight not been visited by any of our offspring as of yet (!). If you knew my children's medical history, this point alone would be worthy of double backhand springs and flaming sparklers being waved all over the neighborhood into the wee hours of the morning. My children have never, ever, ever, ever enjoyed such health. And yes, they did both get the swine flu back in the fall, and we were very fortunately able to get the necessary meds and treatment from our old doctor - but I'd say overall for going on 7 months here and having only contracted a single illness that necessitated a doctor's visit: I am delightedly bewildered, and I'm attributing it to our new quite nearly gluten free diet. It's insane what a little non-processed food can do for one's immune system!

Little Jimmy is a little ham. Never shy and always having some unintentionally hysterical comment to make, he makes our days a lot more comical. And while he does have a great sense of humor (whether or not he knows it) he's also a little smarty. He actually can really read to his sister now with enough speed that she doesn't lose interest and leave the room mid-sentence. He's going to start soccer in a couple weeks so that should keep us all busy with some happy family time, and it should do wonders for his excess energy that usually manifests itself in the form of his chasing Kyla at break neck speeds around the couch whilst pushing a doll stroller or miniature vacuum.

Kyla is our midget Mommy. I truly believe she has way more maternal instinct than I do despite the 27 year age gap between us. She can usually be wholly entertained simply with caring for all eight of her babies - that's right EIGHT. You can just call her Nadia. It's a lot of working dressing and changing and feeding and napping and walking EIGHT BABIES. Why just as soon as she's done with one, she's got to start on the next one, and the next, and the next. . When I take her to the nursery at the YMCA she'll usually inform me very seriously with her big doe eyes that she's going to be "takin' car of babies." No, she doesn't go to the nursery because she's too young for the three and up section, she goes to the nursery to help the paid caregivers there; there's just no telling what kind of chaos would ensue there without Kyla's help. Today I took Kyla to story time and observed as she called to every other child in the parking lot and inside the library, "Hi, friend! Hi!" and then proceeded to offer a warm little welcome hug. Just how cute is that?!

Jim has been staying busy helping friends and family, and they in turn have been helping us. I don't know what it is about 'unemployment' or how in the world this happens, but I know it's a real phenomena that actually does happen to others aside from just us, but (brace) we're madly in love. Call it TMI if you will - which it is, but in the interest of presenting a more balanced perspective, it's out there. I have a feeling it may have something to do with totally losing all security and fallback, but with that also losing all the need to be uber responsible and to save or prepare for a rainy day; the rainy day is here and it's raining hard so I've totally shut off the hyper-preparedness section of my brain. 'It' (for lack of a better word and so as to not further gross-out any unsuspecting readers) may also have something to do with the fact that Jim's around a lot more; he helps me get things ready for the day, and he's pretty much never late getting home (and that's HAWT!). Top that off with a huge lack of 'work stress' and you've got a recipe for a happy marriage.

And just to add the icing to this blog that already poops rainbows and sends jets of sparkles through the air behind little shooting stars, it's almost springtime! Do you have any clue at all, whatsoever as to just how beautiful Ocala is in the spring? Le'me just tell you. It's GORGEOUS. Picture the forest in Bambi in the springtime - that's Ocala (alright, it has a few more trees than Ocala). You pretty much can't go anywhere without seeing the brand newest little baby foals and calves and colts EVERYwhere. It is breathtaking. Do you know what the cutest farm animal on the planet is? You'll never guess it - it's a bebe donkey. They are THE darlingest, most awkward, fluffy little balls of adorableness you'll ever lay eyes on. And as for scenery in general, all these fields that are usually entirely unremarkable turn a vibrant purplish-pink in the spring. Now top that, peeps! It's like all of Ocala's nature sings the Hallelujah Chorus perfectly with volume all the way up.

So the whole job search thing feels like it's totally in the dumper. We keep trying, but it's just not happening. Fortunately for us, a LOT of other things are happening. There's a lot in life that's not fair and is terrible and horrible, but there still is a lot of beauty and joy in life too. I know I do a lot of crabbing and whining and venting on this blog, so a post like this is sort of a rare jewel. Consider this one a gift - maybe like a little prozac from me to you. XOXO and lots of sprinkles and shimmery hearts for you today!

A Job Update - And No, It's Not Anything Exciting

It's been a while since my last post. The main reason for this would be the plain and simple concept of: if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all. Oh, I have a lot to say - trust me; I just feel it's better if on a regular basis (1.) others don't have to hear it, and (2.) I don't have to actually connect with different less than desirable aspects of my life in order to articulate them. Still, it's been a long time, so I'll give a highly edited version of my current perspective on life. Brace yourself - this won't be pretty.

I've once again come to the conclusion that life isn't fair. Again. I've also come to the conclusion that the early bird does not get the worm. Further, it's true that being responsible and disciplined will yield few if any worthwhile results (I know this is not true in everything . . but it is true in some areas), while utter negligence and thoughtlessness are rewarded and nurtured in our society.

For the last six months I've spent my spare time (read: Kyla's nap time) searching for jobs and submitting resumes and filling out tedious and lengthy applications. That's my spare time (I feel that point should be dully noted). That means that other tasks that I normally handle in my spare time don't get addressed (i.e. - cleaning, ironing, reading, blogging, talking on the phone, personal time in general). And the results of my efforts have been utterly disgusting. There've been a handful of interviews which (obviously) have not yielded any decent results. Several of these interviews (I'd put it at 3 -4 at this point) have ended with the companies simply deciding not to hire anyone. Period. They interviewed people, narrowed down the best candidates, and then they crapped out. . the big boss men who call all the shots decided that the already existing staff should fill in for the position which was to be created, but which now had been kicked to the curb.

Do you have any idea how much wasted time and energy goes into each of these interviews which are then just discarded? - and not because my spouse didn't qualify, simply because the company changed their mind. Or do you have any idea how much time goes into typing personalized cover letters for each company with a listed available position? Or what about *simply* submitting resumes? Or what about filling out their generic applications which usually start at around 3 pages? Maybe you're getting the picture that my husband is unemployed not for lack of effort or skill - he's unemployed simply because the job market sucks right now. (And that's actually my edited thought.)

Do you have any idea how much rejection that is on a daily basis - and more so on interview days? I've come to the conclusion that all aspects of job hunting are crappy. I don't like sending in info to companies, and I don't like not having companies that are looking for info like ours. I don't like interview days, and I don't like non-interview days. I haven't liked hearing back from companies, and I haven't liked not hearing back from companies. Pretty much all aspects pertaining to finding employment are utterly annoying and discouraging.

And while we may struggle with finding a real job, I'm acutely aware that life could be worse. We could be homeless; we could be without family or help; we could've been living in Haiti; we could have ill children or family. . the list goes on. And while many people are facing terrible situations, that still doesn't change my perspective that life, in general, sucks - for a lot of people. Is that any consolation to me? Nope. Am I wanting any sort of admonishment, religious or otherwise? Nope. I'm just sharing where I'm at. There are happy moments in life, but a large part of it is suffering and struggling. And the more irresponsible you are (I've found) the more the government and people in general try to assist you.

So there it is. My verbal vomit all over the internet. Blah. Feel free to comment on this blog, but as a matter of common knowledge, don't ask me to my face about my life; I guarantee you won't want to hear what I have to say as far as "the job search" goes.