Updates

Today marks two full weeks and three days that I have been unemployed. It feels so much longer than that. In that space of time I have prepped as best I can by investing in a new suit (with shirts and ties), a haircut, and making sure I shave pretty regularly, all just in case. I have done pretty extensive job searches and have submitted my resume or applied on-line to over two dozen jobs. I have had at least one nibble from a recruiter, but it did not amount to anything solid; still need to follow-up with her on other possibilities.

In the past several weeks, I have also read daily news articles on how much worse this country's economic downturn is getting. Since I was laid off on February 4th, I think it can be safely estimated that over 100K jobs have been lost. That is just in two weeks, man. Unemployment is estimated to get up to 13 or 14% before anything even thinks about changing....and I can't even get a call through to EDD to find out what is up with my own unemployment check. There was actually a news story discussing that very thing - how EDD is so overwhelmed with people coming to file claims and check on their statuses, that they actually do not have anyone available to answer their phones. How ridiculous is that? The EDD is in need of hiring people and can't! I am perhaps a little luckier than some. I am still expecting my final pay, my severance package, and my entitled bonus check from my former employer. Add to this that we had the foresight to file our taxes early and had already had our refunds deposited in early February in addition to the fact I actually get a child support check from my daughter's mother bi-weekly......we will survive for a bit before things get too desperate. I am doing my best to keep a stiff upper lip and weather through all of this, but it is a little disconcerting when the main stories every day are detailing how much we as a country are, well, to put it bluntly, FUBAR'd (for those of you who do not know what FUBAR means, go here). I guess one could say I have a case of the Mondays today. It just seems so utterly hopeless sometimes and I just don't understand how everything could have come to this.

I am doing the best I can and I know it has only been a couple of weeks. Most companies do not even get around to looking at resumes for several weeks after submission (and half of those get tossed, I am sure). Keeping my fingers and toes crossed and continuing to do the only thing I can by searching, searching, and more searching.....

Note: Oh! And to add to the general feeling of despair this country is being forced into: The "stimulus" package recently passed will probably not even help the majority of CA homeowners underwater on their mortgages because the amounts are so totally out of whack with the reality of the CA - especially The Bay Area - housing market. PLUS, any and all tax breaks that have been written into it will pretty much be wiped out by the fact that we live in what is essentially a bankrupt state which will be raising taxes to rebuild themselves, effectively negating any possible hope of tax benefits we might have seen from the Federal Government. All this and unemployment too! Yay!