Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Change is Hard

Life has thrown us a big, giant curve ball. We found out last week that the company Patrick works for is closing their local office. That means after 35 years of working the same job, he will be unemployed at the end of March. There will be a modest severance package, but we don't have all the details of that yet.

We are both having a hard time coming to grips with this new reality and working through what our next steps might be. We are not quite old enough to just go ahead and take retirement. The most troubling aspect is the loss of our health insurance.

Facing forced career change is never easy. That's especially true at 62 years old. I must admit that I'm very angry. It seems to me that this company has little regard for an employee who has been a loyal worker for many years. I know that I've got to work my way through this anger in order to make this into a positive change.

We have only just begun to explore some alternatives. I'd like to use this as an opportunity to move closer to Our Little Princesses. But, truthfully, we will see where a job opportunity arises and follow the work.

We have always met our financial responsibilities head on. It is very important to us to pay our bills on time and to live within our means. The prospect of losing our income and having to juggle and stretch to meet our obligations is scary. I've been trying to do a little research and gather advice about how to prepare for unemployment and loss of income.

I know it's been a long time since I've posted. I just don't seem to have enough hours in the day. I've taken today off to try to get some rest. For the past few days, I've come home from work and literally fallen asleep sitting straight upright in my chair. I'm gong to try to get in a trip to the grocery store today and maybe do a little sewing for myself if I don't spend the entire day sleeping.

If you have any advice or tips for us in dealing with this situation we're facing, I'd love to hear from you.