Update XIX: Melancholy and the Infinite Napping

[Joe Biden 2020]

King, I have gotten north of $700 each paycheck after taxes.  That's only because of the holidays.  I normally get $900-$1000 after taxes.

Grumps, I work nearly everyday.  You cannot fault me for the holidays.  Without holidays, which is most weeks, I work 40 hours.  I get paid $15 an hour, so I get a pretty decent paycheck every two weeks.  So, I have enough to pay 90% of my bills making Memphis's statement factually inaccurate and insulting.

[Joe Biden 2020]

Bushie, you're confusing "adequate paycheck" with "fat paycheck". $900-$1000 might sound pretty nice and is a lot higher than you've ever received before, but that's at best around the median income of most Americans. I recently got a paycheck with over $600 in bonuses on it, I'm fine calling that a fat paycheck but clearly I don't get that every two weeks.

Plus with what you're working (which I'll point out is not simply your hourly pay times 40 times 52), you're not even pulling $30k/year even if the job lasted a whole year. Enough money to live on for a single male with no dependents in a low cost of living area? Sure. But you also have tons of debts, bills (including some unnecessary ones), and you've admitted that even with what you're getting now you're only paying 90% of them. And as King noted, if you were really pulling in an upper middle class type job you could've easily paid off the computer by now.

Now I'm not saying you need to get a $50k/year job immediately or anything like that, but a decently adequate paying job for 5 months is not the same thing as being set for life, as you seem to think. If the job was a permanent gig you could probably justify it a bit in that your debts would eventually drop and you could soon be paying 100% of it on your own, but that's not the case.

I can accept this explanation.  Memphis's post just came across to me as I'm an expensive, worthless bum who has no place in society and should live off his parents till I die.  Maybe I overreacted, but he put it very offensively, even if he didn't mean it in that way.

[Joe Biden 2020]

Memphis, let's just suffice it to say I'm doing the best I can.  I'm not where I want to be, but I'm on a good track to get there.

[Joe Biden 2020]

Breaking News:

Due to lack of work, my work contract has been cancelled.  My last day of work will be this Friday, January 16.  I'm going to come up with an emergency game plan tonight.  I did not see this coming this early...

[Joe Biden 2020]

Grumps, it's not an actual firing, I completed the contract, but the end result is the same as what you called earlier today...

[Joe Biden 2020]

Let me be clear.  This was not a firing.  It was nothing of my doing.  All of us temps are being discontinued.  I am not ashamed of anything.  I knew this day was coming, I just didn't expect it to come this early.

As far as my plans now, I am going to transfer my resume from my desktop to my laptop and get that all beefed up with this addition.  Then, after I officially leave work for the last time, which could be anytime the next three days, I am going to call a couple of my CAD recruiters in Tulsa and get them started looking.  Tomorrow night, I am going to talk to a guy at church who is a drafter for a company in Oklahoma City and ask him if he knows how or can help me get on with his company.  We have company coming in next Tuesday who will stay 8 or 9 days.  I will look for a job in Tulsa from my computer in OKC while they are here and then I will go back up to Tulsa to stay before the end of January.  I have a dentist appointment in Shawnee on February 2, so I may not get much searching done that day, but I will resume as soon as I get back up there after the appointment.  I am going to just resume life back in Tulsa and will look for a job in the Tulsa metro and outlying areas like Pryor, Vinita, Okmulgee, or Sand Springs.  Look on the map for the locations of these towns.  As of right now, I do plan on extending the lease at the end of March, but I'm going to opt for a six month lease instead of twelve month and re-evaluate things in August and September when it comes time to make a decision on the lease by September 30.  I will also scale back my cable bill when I get back up there.

[Joe Biden 2020]

Since Jeff was a contract employee, only worked there a few months and averaged less than 40 hours a week, I take it unemployment insurance is not an option.

Let me be clear.  This was not a firing.  It was nothing of my doing.  All of us temps are being discontinued.  I am not ashamed of anything.  I knew this day was coming, I just didn't expect it to come this early.

As far as my plans now, I am going to transfer my resume from my desktop to my laptop and get that all beefed up with this addition. Then, after I officially leave work for the last time, which could be anytime the next three days, I am going to call a couple of my CAD recruiters in Tulsa and get them started looking.  Tomorrow night, I am going to talk to a guy at church who is a drafter for a company in Oklahoma City and ask him if he knows how or can help me get on with his company.  We have company coming in next Tuesday who will stay 8 or 9 days.  I will look for a job in Tulsa from my computer in OKC while they are here and then I will go back up to Tulsa to stay before the end of January.  I have a dentist appointment in Shawnee on February 2, so I may not get much searching done that day, but I will resume as soon as I get back up there after the appointment.  I am going to just resume life back in Tulsa and will look for a job in the Tulsa metro and outlying areas like Pryor, Vinita, Okmulgee, or Sand Springs.  Look on the map for the locations of these towns.  As of right now, I do plan on extending the lease at the end of March, but I'm going to opt for a six month lease instead of twelve month and re-evaluate things in August and September when it comes time to make a decision on the lease by September 30.  I will also scale back my cable bill when I get back up there.

You still haven't put your resume on your frickin' laptop and signed up for Dropbox?! I distinctly remember telling you to do that months ago when you were between jobs the last time.

Again with the company? Don't go, Jeff. Just stay in Tulsa. Drive to OKC for ONE day to see them and fulfill your familial obligations. If you stay there, you're going to get nothing done except have endless family dinners and veg out in front of the TV. I repeat, STAY IN TULSA. Apply for jobs. Practice CADD. And use your lack of daytime obligations to actually do some exercise - you really will feel better; endorphins will do that.

Why are you extending the lease on an apartment that you have no money to pay rent on? And why are you scaling back your cable bill? Cancel it. Get out of the apartment and go watch a sporting event that actually matters at a bar somewhere. Order a club soda. Meet some people.

You better believe I'm going to at least try for unemployment benefits.  It may not happen, but I'm going to try.

As far as the resume and Dropbox, no I haven't signed up for them, yet.  Frankly, I forgot about it.

As far as the company goes, I will still job search up there while I'm down here, because we'll just meet primarily in the late afternoon and evenings for dinner.  I can still job search from 0800-1700 and go over there and eat at 1730, the normal dinner time with company.  It'll only be for 2 weeks, then I will be back in Tulsa full time.  While I'm down there, if I have an interview or a job during those two weeks, then I will get ready and hop in the car and make the 100 minute trek to Tulsa for the interview and/or first day of work.  I'm fairly confident that I can get a job pretty quickly now that I have five months experience.  I will only apply for CAD jobs and forget about customer service.  That would be a step backward in my professional life and I need as many steps forward in that arena as I can get right now.

As far the apartment, if I live and work in Tulsa, I have to keep the apartment because where else would I live? I have no family in Tulsa.  As far as the cable, I still want some entertainment and relaxation.  I don't do bars.  I stay as far away from bars and clubs as I can.

[Joe Biden 2020]

Wow, this is quite the ending for the 19th season/lead-in for the 20th.

Why don't you end Season 19 now and start Season 20 with a title related to the job search.  This is a perfect story break into the next season, don't you think?

[Joe Biden 2020]

1. why are you going to tulsa
2. the problem isn't you have cable, the problem is you have premium platinum cable

1. I still technically live there and I have an apartment up there already nearly completely furnished except for computers, printer, clothes, and food.  It would save Mom and Dad $1000+ on movers.

2. Which is why I'm going to scale it back some.

[Joe Biden 2020]

Still planning to buy a new car?

Oh heck no!!!

[Joe Biden 2020]

Why don't you look for jobs based in both OKC *and* Tulsa?  Your Tulsa lease is expiring in two months anyway, so if you find a job in OKC, you can ditch the Tulsa apartment.

If I get a job in OKC, I would have to yet again change my address and uproot everything again.  Plus, that would bring back the $1000+ on moving expenses.

[Joe Biden 2020]

IndyTexas, I just signed up from Dropbox and have put my newly updated resume on there and verified I can open it from my laptop.

The cost of the movers includes the moving truck and labor of the men who move the furniture.  Mine and Dad's backs are not strong enough to lift all that furniture.  If I sold all the furniture, I'd just have to buy all new stuff in the near future which would make it much more expensive.

[Joe Biden 2020]

IndyTexas, I just signed up from Dropbox and have put my newly updated resume on there and verified I can open it from my laptop.

The cost of the movers includes the moving truck and labor of the men who move the furniture.  Mine and Dad's backs are not strong enough to lift all that furniture.  If I sold all the furniture, I'd just have to buy all new stuff in the near future which would make it much more expensive.

Jeff, even if you didnt have dropbox, dont you have a thumb drive or couldnt you email it to yourself? It just seems you make simple tasks difficult.

That's what I was going to do if it weren't for dropbox.

[Joe Biden 2020]

So, I officially started the job search about 2045 (15 minutes ago).  Within 5 minutes I found a Career Fair in Tulsa that includes drafters and a mountain of other job titles.  The fair is next Thursday, January 22, 2015 from 1000-1400.  I have just pre-registered for the fair and will make sure I take several copies of my resume and get there by 0945, if not earlier, to get in line.  I will probably go on up to Tulsa a day or two before so I can get things set up and go straight from the apartment to the fair instead of having to get up super early, fight traffic, and worry whether I'm going to get there on time.  The fair is only 5 1/2 miles from my apartment.

[Joe Biden 2020]

Well now that he's been fired, I expect to be un-purged in a week once he admits as much to his facebook friends.

Don't use the word fired.  It's the wrong term.  That term implies I am at fault.  I had no fault in this termination.  All six of us temps are getting cut.  The boss is proud and grateful for our work, but he simply cannot keep any of us.

[Joe Biden 2020]

Well now that he's been fired, I expect to be un-purged in a week once he admits as much to his facebook friends.

Don't use the word fired.  It's the wrong term.  That term implies I am at fault.  I had no fault in this termination.  All six of us temps are getting cut.  The boss is proud and grateful for our work, but he simply cannot keep any of us.

Weren't you saying like 1-2 weeks ago that there was a ton of work about to come in and you guys were going to be jam-packed busy?

Yes, but I didn't see the whole picture.  We had a deadline last week, but we got on top of that real quick and we spent all day Thursday, Friday, and Monday doing busy work just to fill up 8 hours in order not to bug the boss, lead, or assistant lead.  I did some work today, but nothing was pressing.  We have been unusually slow and the heavy work load just has not hit.  I guess they were overestimating the amount of work we were going to get.

[Joe Biden 2020]

Bushie, I have a red hot lead for you.

Williams Corporation posted a job opening in Oklahoma City yesterday for Design Draftsman

link

It's so red hot whoever entered it did it wrong and there's an error message as job description. But it's a legitimate company with a job titled Design Draftsman. I have to bet that is CAD and I have to bet if you apply ASAP you'll be one of the first applications for it.

Haha, if the job description is empty, then I'm not touching it.

Then read the job description for the Lead Designer they also posted.

link

And just imagine that "Design Draftsman" is that job with experience and responsibilities kicked down a few notches.

I am giving you a job posting from a Fortune 500 company in OKC. Apply now and ask questions later. If there was ever a moment for you to go out on a limb...

You're trying to trick me into a potential scam.  Not this time!!

[Joe Biden 2020]

This chapter is officially closed.  It's a little sad, but at least I will get a good reference from this boss.

[Joe Biden 2020]

So counting today Bushie has 24 hours remaining in this job. How many do you want to bet he actually works?

I worked 20 minutes and got paid for 1 hour.  I was able to finally talk to my boss, and he reassured me that this lay off was not my fault and that I will get a good referral from him for future applications.  When my recruiter said the end of the job was Friday, I knew that meant anytime between now and Friday.  Sure enough, I get in at 0800 and my boss called us all into the CAD room and broke the news to us in person, but reassured us over and over that he did everything he could to keep us, but the work load wouldn't allow it.  He told us that if it weren't for being able to use the holidays as a smoke screen and an excuse to take time off, we'd have been done before Christmas.  Things just never materialized.  So, like I said, I left work at 0820 this morning, but he was gracious enough to pay me until 0900.  I am going to take a nap now and then get back on the job hunt after I wake up until church time tonight.

[Joe Biden 2020]

After looking at the link again, I will say that it doesn't look like a scam, but it still looks like it wants too much experience.  I'm going to pass on that one.  I was thinking scam when the first link came up with no search results and I can't cognitively back down the requirements from the link that had an error message in the job description without proof.

[Joe Biden 2020]

I like how he prefaces the news of his non-firing firing with "breaking news."

Your life will stop being a joke once you stop making it one, Jeff.

Can I not have a little fun and light-hearted humor?  Don't go all Inks on me now, Phil.  Nobody wants that...

[Joe Biden 2020]

Oh my, so many complements the past two pages.  (I'm saying that sarcastically, of course).  I don't care what anyone else, except my parents, think.  I'm not going to go through and answer every single post since I last posted.  That would be ridiculous and time consuming.  Suffice it to say that no one can blame me for this lay off.  Everyone has to agree with the truth that it wasn't my fault.  What is more debatable, however, is that I am doing the best I can not letting it get me down.  I am doing what I feel I need to do to put myself in the best position to get a job as soon as possible.

[Joe Biden 2020]

Oh my, so many complements the past two pages.  (I'm saying that sarcastically, of course).  I don't care what anyone else, except my parents, think.  I'm not going to go through and answer every single post since I last posted.  That would be ridiculous and time consuming.  Suffice it to say that no one can blame me for this lay off.  Everyone has to agree with the truth that it wasn't my fault.  What is more debatable, however, is that I am doing the best I can not letting it get me down.  I am doing what I feel I need to do to put myself in the best position to get a job as soon as possible.

1.  You have a history of not being completely truthful of why you have been let go of certain places in the past.  Combine that with the fact as of a few days ago you were so sure that this would last for several more months.  Not saying that what you said didn't happen (it is certainly possible with the type of contract job you had), but your own past history of being less than honest at times when discussing your job situation does make people question it.

2.  You need to get your s*** together.  Other than Customer Service/Sales or a Call center, you need to open up your job search a bit.  CAAD should be your preference, but you shouldn't just corner yourself into just that.  You should apply for jobs you think you might be under-qualified for (within reason) and jobs you think you might be overqualified for. 

3.  I'm not sure what your resume looks like, but based on your job history I'm sure it is a nightmare.  You should try going to some career center or something like that to help out with it (I did when I was out of work, and it helped, considering how much you have bounced around you could really use the help.

4.  You should take the advice you are getting here.   While we take our shots at you, yell, scream, curse, bash you or whatever, it is for a reason.  Much of it comes from frustration about your complete lack of taking any advice or listening to anyone about anything.  While well intentioned your parents advice hasn't always been the best, you need to open yourself up to more and stop closing yourself off to other things no matter if it hurts and is a shot to your pride.

5.  You need to take better care of yourself.  While from time to time you seem to be eating a little better, you aren't doing it enough.  You also need to exercise.  Unfortunately, appearance can play a role in people getting hired, and when you look like you can't take care of yourself, an employer could think you can't take care of your job.  Not to mention you are extremely unhealthy.  You have major health issues, some are a life and death issue.  I'm basically the same age as you (J-Mann is as well) I can't even imagine having a fraction of the health issues you have had at my age.

1. I understand where people are coming from considering my history, but they need to trust me on this one, as hard as it is.

2. You've "seen" me for years on Update, what would you recommend as another field?  The job fair next Thursday has a lot of job titles and drafters are only one of them.  I'll stay away from the sales and customer service related employers, but the others might be an idea.

3.  To be honest, I don't put every job on my resume.  I would never have a job if I did.  I only have five jobs on my resume - ONG, Dell, Xerox-Utah, John Shields and General Dynamics.  I'm thinking about scrapping the Utah job since it has no relevance to my current career path and goals.

4.  I just am uncomfortable taking life-altering advice from internet strangers.  Most of the advice is sound, and I do take it at times (i.e. the turkey wrap), but it's just the internet stranger thing.

5.  I know about the health.  I don't want to start another dialogue on that, so I'll leave that here.

[Joe Biden 2020]

Let me say something with the utmost respect.  Even though I'm unemployed, my life is not in shambles.  I have a great life I'm living.  I'm thoroughly enjoying life and I am not at all down about being laid off.  Could I have been a little more proactive in looking for a job?  Absolutely.  Am I fat?  You betcha.  Do I have reasons to be very happy with where God has me right now?  You better believe it.  Life has dealt some tough blows, and a lot of them, I inflicted on myself.  That doesn't mean my life is in complete disarray.  I have no reason to be ashamed or even worried.  I have every reason to be thankful and determined.

[Joe Biden 2020]

I just sent in my first application for a Detail Draftsman/CAD Operator in Tulsa.  I've got to get ready for church, then I will do more job searching tonight before I read my Bible.