2022 has been hell of a year. I started the year working for a roadside assistance company remotely. I liked the job, and I was good at it, but I knew it wasn't something I wanted to do forever. After a bit of a mental health crisis, I started looking at things I needed to change. I've lost a lot of weight in the last few years, but getting more stamina and feeling less depressed led to a gym membership. I needed to focus on myself, so I also made the choice to get my bartending license. It was a spontaneous choice, though not the first time I'd considered it. I like cooking, I've always enjoyed mixing drinks for my friends, though I'm not a big drinker myself. I was also looking for a new job, I felt like sitting in my living room 5 days a week staring at a screen, when that was all I was doing in my free time as well, wasn't good for me. I needed out of the house more, so I was also applying for new jobs. A lot went on in this month long period, and I made the decision to quit my job, I felt storm weathered.
Now hindsight is 20/20, quitting a job I mostly liked was not my best choice. I did take on another job just a couple weeks later. I'll talk about this one outright. I was hired by Buff City Soap, it's important to note that I had never worked retail before. I like cushy desk jobs, and I excel in them generally speaking, but the idea of making handmade soap, and the fifty percent discount led me to take the job while I was attending bartending class. The store I was hired at wasn't open yet, so the first couple weeks of the job we were preparing the store for customers. I didn't hate it, it was a part time job, that I knew was temporary. I had convinced myself, I would continue working part time there, and find a nice part time bartending job, and that would be perfect. Listen folks, I'm only twenty three, I'm using the excuse that my brain isn't done cooking for the error in my judgement. The store opened, and I hated it, I couldn't handle the pain I was in from being on my feet all day. I got written up for rolling my eyes at the assistant manger. The 'tude in this one is strong, I can't always keep the look off my face if I'm annoyed. I came home and cried in pain, I couldn't hardly make it up the stairs at my apartment. My partner and a friend tried to convince me to quit when they put me on the side of the road flipping a sign in 95 degree weather. I waited a few days, really debating the intelligence of that choice. Ultimately, I did make the choice to quit on June 13th.
Now let me harken us back to when I was still working at the previous job, I had had several interviews. When I didn't hear back from any of them at that time I was disappointed, but continued the hunt. After quitting Buff City, I applied for and interviewed at several places. One day, I received a surprising email that a job I had interviewed for on May 3rd was still interested in me. I was a final candidate in their hiring process. I was ecstatic, the job paid well, and was almost exactly what I was looking for. But I never count my chickens before they hatch, so I continued to apply and interview elsewhere. It was a Friday near the end of June (no I don't remember the exact date), I had just finished two interviews around town, when I received a call from the first one at a Nissan Dealership, offering me the position on the following Monday. I wasn't especially excited about the job itself, but I was going to take it. The bills were calling, I knew they needed to be fed. About 30 minutes later, the job I had interviewed with in May called. I was offered the position. I took it, screaming in happiness once I was off the phone. It was call center, but I was going to be doing more administrative work than calls. Exactly what I was looking for.
I started with Rural Metro (yes the Fire department) on July 11th. I adored it instantly, everything about the job was perfect (aside of the 8am-5pm schedule, but I could adjust. My coworkers were some of the nicest women I'd been around in many years, there was camaraderie and understanding. The work itself was a breeze. I got up everyday happy to be there. Unfortunately, I contracted Covid at the very beginning of August, so I missed 3 and 1/2 work days. Even during this time, the people I worked with were caring, offering to help in anyway they could. I returned to work on August 9th. I was finally starting to take calls, things were going perfectly. Until the fire nation attacked on August 17th, just after my lunch. HR pulled the five people that made up our little member services department, and let us know that we were all being terminated due to Covid 19 causing higher business expenses. They laid off 200 employees across the company.
I cried a few tears with the nice women I'd come to love, packed my stuff and came home. It still makes no sense to me why they would hire a new employee, only to lay off the entire department barely a month later, but I guess I'm not a CEO, so what do I know. We were officially employed until August 31st, after which time we would receive a severances package based on tenure. Mine was for one pay period. So here I am, looking for my 4th job of 2022, feeling a bit depressed. Of course this has given me the chance to finish Code Red. I've had a few interviews, though nothing solid on the job front currently. Life is nothing if not filled with twists and turns. I guess the old adage, if something seems too good to be true it is applies. But, I'm not down, this is just a chance for new opportunities in my life.
Wish Me Luck.
Taila Out
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