My Husband Got A Job!

Today started out in a usual way. My husband went to a job interview this morning. He's had 3 in-person interviews and one phone interview in the past week. In the past three weeks, he's applied for around 60 jobs. He has spent hours on various job websites,applying for jobs, filling out forms for unemployment, updating his linked-in site, networking, doing everything humanly possible to find a job. He's been doing this since 11/11/11. This has been troubling us since last August. We were on vacation at Mammoth Cave National Park, staying at the Sunset Terrace which is a block of hotel rooms in the park. We called my brother, Dan, who was at home in Texas and asked him to look at the mail to see if there was anything from Steve's employer. There was, we asked my brother to read the letter to Steve. He did. It was a letter telling my husband that he was going to be asked to take an Early Volunteer Retirement Plan or VERP at work. In other words, they were going to ask him to leave his job and get a little money monthly as a bridge to retirement. It wasn't really "volunteer." If he didn't take it, they would make him leave anyway with nothing. It was then that we got the most horrible sinking feeling. I remember sitting out on the front porch area next to our room at night at the Sunset Terrace and praying about it. I prayed about it in the car and when we got home. I prayed over and over again.

On September 1st, his birthday of all days, he got the plan through the company website. The money offered in this plan was literally below poverty level. If this was a 'bridge', it was one of those rope bridges like in that movie, Romancing The Stone,  that fall apart with every step and slats fall into the crocodile-filled river below. At first, I didn't believe it, it had to be a mistake. It wasn't a mistake. We continued praying. We were trying to figure out how we'll make it financially.Some weeks later, I drove in the garage, coming home from my job at the Heard. My daughter came out into the garage and said that dad was coming home, they eliminated his job.The sinking feeling got bigger. He came home and said it's okay, that now he'd get severance and would be able to apply for unemployment. His last day was to be 11/11/11. So he prepared for that last final day. He also started looking for a job. He has this friend who used to work at the same company he did, that got let go 3 years ago. He has been looking for a job ever since. He said that nobody would hire anyone over 40, that nobody would hire him because he was too old. My husband didn't need to hear this.

That last day came and went. My husband brought his belongings from work home. He set up a linked-in account. Soon after, he joined a job seeker's group at our church. The lady that runs this was group wonderful. The people in the group were wonderful. This lady and the group gave him the support and encouragement that he needed. Every Monday morning at 10 AM, he would attend the job seeker's group meeting and it helped him, I could see it in him.

For the past 3 months, 1 week and 6 days, he has been unemployed. For the past 3 months, 1 week and 6 days, he's had this emptiness inside of him. When he lost his job, a part of him was lost and that left a chasm inside of him. Since before the past 3 months, 1 week and 6 days, he's been wanting to 'fix' this. Since before the past 3 months, 1 week and 6 days, we and our friends have been praying. For the past 3 months, 1 week and 6 days, our routine has been off, things have felt weird. We learned not to get our hopes up with every job interview. We learned to take it 1day at a time.

He also started a blog, called "So What Am I Going To Do Now?" I had suggested that he start a blog. He's a good writer. This would give him a chance to use his talent with words. He has written some really awesome blogs. He said that writing the blog has helped him. He put a link to his blog on his linked-in site.

This morning, he left, looking professional in his suit, geared up with a folder of resumes and business cards. I took Jeff to work, picked him up, took Stacy to her school to meet up with friends, took her coat to the cleaners and came home. A little while later, I heard Steve come home when the garage door went up. I ran out and asked him how the interview went. He shrugged and told me what they said they would pay and it was less than a store co-manager would make. Then he got this big smile on his face and said, "I GOT A JOB!"

He explained that after the interview, this other company that he had interviewed with last week had left him a message just before the interview. He returned the call and they asked him to come in to see them and when he did, they offered him a job! The pay is good! It's not quite what he made at his last job, but it's better than we thought and better than co-manager pay. The benefits are good and the health insurance costs less than at his last job. He starts Monday!

One of the things his new employer had noticed was his blog. It humanized him. It made him stand out above all of the other resumes that came in. They also liked his linked-in site. They liked him.

The wondering, the uncertainty, the constantly sending out resumes, going to job interviews, the waiting between the interviews to hear from the company, the filling out of unemployment forms, the empty feeling, it's all over with. Starting Monday, our routine is normal again. Our prayers have been answered.

My husband got a job!