by Hope
I swear I could not make up my life. Seriously. I do believe someone should make a movie out of the crazy that is my life.
I believe I wrote previously that my contract job was ending. The job that I took in July when I left my dream job/team, that was supposed to become permanent ended officially on February 23rd. And I once again became jobless. At the same time every major tech company is doing massive layoffs.
200 resumes out of the door and radio silence.
More Death
Oh, then my grandmother dies. My beloved grandmother. My strongest supporter along with my uncle who died in November. It’s been a rough first quarter of 2023. She was born in 1927.
As terrible of a loss as it has been. It was also an answer to prayer, my grandmother did not want to outlive her daughter, my mom who has been on hospice care since last September.
L to R: My daughter, my sister, me, my mom and my grandmother
Personal Change
To top even this off, all three of my boys are moving away in the next couple of months. The twins are moving back to Virginia in just a few short weeks and my baby boy is off to Texas this summer.
This mama is unraveled on every front. And truly struggling to come to grips with what life is supposed to look like next.
The Good News
The good news is that the trauma is beginning to recede and I am feeling the clouds clear from my head. My savings has been tiding us over thusfar. We are two months in. And while the end of my savings is in sight. It is not imminent. A very different situation than the last time I found myself unemployed for any period of time. (Any BAD readers been here that long?)
I have been blessed with a part time job with a local accountant. And I am LOVING it. It’s not much money but it’s something. (Grateful for my Sunday School class who facilitated this new job.) She gave me full time hours during tax season for a couple of weeks. And plans to keep me on part time. Currently, I am working on some technology changes and integrations for her as well as digitizing and organizing all her client files.
I think my head is on straight enough to resume writing. I appreciate those who reached out and checked on me.
Hope is a creative, solutions-focused business manager helping clients grow their business and work more efficiently by leveraging expertise in project management, digital marketing, & tech solutions. She’s recently become an empty nester as her 5 foster/adoptive kids have spread their wings. She lives with her 5 dogs in a small town in NE Georgia and prefers the mountains to the beaches any day. She struggles with the travel bug and is doing her best to help each of her kids as their finish schooling and become independent (but it’s hard!) She has run her own consulting company for almost twenty years! Hope began sharing her journey with the BAD community in the Spring of 2015 and feels like she has finally in a place to really focus on making wise financial decisions.
I have followed along from the beginning Hope. I hope things start looking up for you. Have you considered relocating for work? I don’t know how attached you are to the area since most of your kids are moving away.
I have been applying all over the country. But also know to take into account the cost of living along with salary.
I do have to admit, I am loving working at my new office. It’s a small office, only the owner and one other full time employee.
It’s casual. I don’t have to really deal with people. It’s pretty much perfect…if only it covered the bills.
Glad to see you back, Hope. Sorry for all the loss you’ve been experiencing lately. Hopefully the right job will present itself to you soon. If you haven’t been already, I would leverage LinkedIn as much as possible and try to make connections that way.
Thank you, it feels good to be back.
LinkedIn is where I have focused for the last several months, but truly it feels like I’m spinning my wheels there. So many layoffs and heart wrenching stories of people who need jobs.
I’ve got a semblance of a plan in my head. I’ll definitely put it down in writing and get the BAD community’s feedback.
Not that I’m stopping searching for a new corporate role, but that has been bleak thusfar.
I’ve been here since the beginning. I’m really rooting for you Hope.
I’m sorry for your loss. I’ve missed your presence here on the blog. I do hope you are able to continue writing and sharing your life.
I, too, have been a reader since the start of your journey at BAD. I do hope you are able to find something that works for you soon. Congrats on your kids leaving the nest…I know it feels devastating, but it really is a sign of success when they are grown and ready to make their own way in the world! I wish you the best of luck Hope!
I’m glad you have at least a bit of income coming in to tide you over. Time to take a hard look at what a bare bones budget looks like – ditching Verizon, small quantity grocery shopping, no extras, shopping around on car insurance, etc. Can you add in a few freelance clients to stay above the surface?