The Next Phase

Some interesting things have happened on the work front in the past few weeks.  As I shared in a recent post, the funding for my position was due to expire on June 30th, and although a potential new funding source had been found and I had all but the final approval, the position was in jeopardy because of cuts in the new state budget.  I was in danger of again being cut adrift.

The first seredipitous happening was that I received a text message from my old manager at the design company I had worked for two years ago.  Business is once again on the rise, and they are considering hiring again.   Would I be interested in coming back?  I told them I will consider all offers.  They are watching economic indicators and not quite ready to hire, but will be in touch.

As the days ticked away and the 30th approached, it looked as if I would be signing up for unemployment benefits in the very office I have worked in for the past eighteen months...how bizarre.  And how troubling, because I could not get by on what those benefits would pay each week, now that we own a home. 

Human resources sent along my exit package with emergency health insurance info. A letter from the agency arrived in the mail thanking me for my service and expressing regret that I was being terminated.

Then at the eleventh hour, an email arrived stating that I had final approval as a permanent hire.  I felt relief, tempered with a little anger that I had been left to dangle for so long, not knowing whether I had a job or not.  For now, I will continue in my present job...close to home, good health insurance but low pay.  If my old company comes back with an offer I will have a lot to consider.

Once again, my faith has been rewarded and I have not been forsaken.

I am getting ready to visit the island again with my sister and her family.  I will take the ferry over tomorrow morning and stay for two or three days.  I'm looking forward to some sunshine, swimming and good food.  Hope you enjoy the Fourth of July holiday!
  

The Karma Wheel Turns Again

Employment drama has again reared it's ugly head, friends. You might remember that I was cut adrift from my beloved admin job in an international design company back in December of 2008, sparking the creation of my first blog, "Deedee, Cut Adrift!".  Eight months later, after a harrowing and dreary stint of unemployment, the president of that company called and asked me to come back and serve as his executive assistant, which I happily did.  In the interim however, I had applied for a state job in the office where I had gone for unemployment services, and eventually, they offered me a job.  I accepted because the benefits and health insurance were much better, plus it was a shorter drive from home.  That new position was funded by the Obama Stimulus (the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act) and as such, was a temporary position. 

In the meantime, my new operations manager decided that they really, really needed me as a permanent part of their team, so she set out to find a new funding source for me.  She found one, and at the beginning of this year,  I had to apply and interview all over again for my own job.  Early in March of this year, I was told that I had been chosen, approved and signed off on every level to stay as a permanent part of my office team as front desk receptionist and office clerk.  I was a virtual sure thing, and I have just been waiting these past few months for the final approval.  Then, a few weeks ago, the recession era state budget hit.

Now it seems they have less funding than last year and are rethinking how to distribute it.  All pending appointments are in Limbo.  There is a very real chance my position will be eliminated, after all.
 The ARRA funding which has been paying my wages in my state job thus far, expires on June 30th.  If the word does not come down that I have final confirmation before then, I will be unemployed again. Now that I have a mortgage, I could not live on what I would receive on unemployment benefits. We will be in financial trouble very quickly if that happens.

 I am not freaking out yet.  As I read recently on an inspirational webpage,  I believe that I will either be given a firm place to stand, or be taught how to fly.  I believe I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.  I am now waiting for a sign.