49%

Economy-related bellyachin' to follow:

I guess the gods of the economy wanted to tell me I was wrong about that recovery I was thinking was happening. OR maybe I was right, and we just didn't have as much luck as I would have hoped. Wife's position was eliminated at her job last week (corporate accountant for a company that makes ductile iron pipe- not many water mains sell when every city, county, and state is in a budget crunch...), so we're restructuring at home to see what we need to do to live on 49% of the cash we had before. I'll confess: I'm freakin' terrified.

Le sigh. I guess I'm in the job market again, too- but in my case I'll be hanging onto the 9-5 I have for dear life and trying to upgrade a step to see if we can live on just my salary. Anybody need a purchasing manager or a manufacturing planner?

I was let go back in Feb. It sucked, but i had another job lined up and it turned out to be OK.

Keep your chin up and work hard, good things will happen. I'm pretty sure of it..

Hang in there man. I hope the wife can get decent unemployment benefits to soften the blow a bit while you wind things down a bit.

I know the girlfriend and I are working towards similar goals as my current life as a contractor is a constanly moving target and well, she simply dislikes her job intensely (surgeons are really shiny people when no one stands up to them, BTW) Towards this end, we've been looking at some of the home-based business stuff. She's making beaded jewelry and handmade cards and getting into selling some health & wellness products and I'm trying to turn my love of fabrication into some cash as well.

Good luck!

Hell, 18 months ago I was in the same boat you are in, laid off with no warning. Permanent layoff BTW. Sucks. Then I found a job pretty quick like. Yeah me! Then was laid off almost as quick like. Boo me! Now it's been a year and I still can't find work!
The terror has subsided and now I'm just shopping for a nice, double-side cardboard box under a quite overpass for my wife and 3 kids and I to live in.

turboswede, surgeons are really shiny happy people when someone stands up to them too. I believe it's a job qualification, but could likely be a chicken and egg thing.

Wow, quick response.

She did get a severance package, but obviously that will run out. We're working on developing her part-time photography business into more of a going concern, and that's something that we have been looking to do anyway, so maybe this is the push we needed- we're choosing to treat it that way for now, at least.

Thanks for the words of encouragement- DrBoost, these go for you, too.

Random thoughts here. You are a skilled fabricator, right? So you know tools and equipment. I would wager that haunting Craig's List will find cheap, decent tools and stuff you could sell on Flea Bay. Yard sales? Auctions for sure, including gov. types. Simple in concept, probably not so in reality, but with your knowledge, possible. You would need some storage area besides the living room. People that have a need will be shopping price, you can fill that need. I will make some inquiries to my Caribbean friends to see if there is a market there. Gotta see what import duties are. They have trouble finding a lot of things at decent prices.

Jake, sorry to hear that. We've been in a similar situation for almost a year now - wife used to work for a four-letter government agency, they couldn't secure any more funding last year and I've basically been paying both our bills since. Fortunately I do make reasonable money for now but that's going to end in March.

Anyway, just a couple of idle thoughts:

• You said your wife was an accountant. Maybe it's worth considering if she can look after the books for a couple of small companies part time? I'm not claiming to be any sort of economics forecaster but I have a hunch that you'll find more people running their own small businesses soon - people still got to eat...
• Good luck with the photography business, if that's something she really wants to do it'll be more fulfilling than a 9-5 job that pays more
• If you're both pulling in the same direction you'll pull through. Things will change and your life will be different than what you thought it might look like in a few years but as long as you're both in agreement as to where you're going, it'll be OK

Hunker down fast on the spending.
I survived a year off a couple of years ago. You will learn some lessons you should never forget.

To the advise above, I suplimented my income by selling MR2 parts. I did not have room for a parts car but I did have a local pick-a-part type JY where I could buy cheap and sell high on ebay. I specialized in trim pieces where I knew the internet value was much higher than they were selling to me for.

Good luck. My current job pays me exactly 50% of what I made two years ago, in my prior job. We found a way to make ends meet, though, although barely. Although my current job sucks ass, it does provide some income, and it's in my career field (although in the same position where I was at 18 years ago, at age 20, before I had a college degree).

My poor advice is to find a job-any job. If anything, it will help maintain your sanity and self-worth.

You'll be amazed how little money you really HAVE to spend. After my layoff, we're on month 5 of ~40% income. We're surviving. That said, I can't wait to be employed. I also plan on continuing our new found cheapness until all debt is removed.

I hope I never have to try to live on 40% of what we made last year... That would suxxor the big11!!1!1 1

Kramer wrote: My poor advice is to find a job-any job. If anything, it will help maintain your sanity and self-worth.

Probably some good advice. Sanity and self-worth are easily lost after being canned. Some days are worse than others.

You guys are lucky losing jobs with severance packages. With all the new laws and limitations us self employed guys are left sucking hind tit. With the 2 of us working we are making only about 1/3 of what we were making 2 years ago and about half of what we made last year.

I am so glad all you people voted for a CHANGE. The only thing is you forgot to ask what they were changing. That'll learn ya!

DILYSI Dave wrote: You'll be amazed how little money you really HAVE to spend. After my layoff, we're on month 5 of ~40% income. We're surviving. That said, I can't wait to be employed. I also plan on continuing our new found cheapness until all debt is removed.

When My dad lost his job when we were kids we learned how to live real cheap. It let him eventually live on a job he liked that didn't pay nearly what he thought he needed to make.

Dr. Hess wrote: turboswede, surgeons are really shiny happy people when someone stands up to them too. I believe it's a job qualification, but could likely be a chicken and egg thing.

Yeah, but yelling and insulting at a 5'1" Asian woman who, is one of the most intelligent and most caring people ever, is hauling trays of instruments around and handing specific instruments to you, is not something that I'll understand. There isn't a need for that in a surgical setting.

Her management "team" are about as ineffectual as wet toilet paper is for wiping your ass.

Note: Every single one of the traveling scrub techs (some from prestigious hospitals) has broken their contracts after only a few weeks because they can't handle the way the management runs the place.

turboswede wrote: Note: Every single one of the traveling scrub techs (some from prestigious hospitals) has broken their contracts after only a few weeks because they can't handle the way the management runs the place.

It has been my experience that companies with a high turn-over rate have a management problem, not a personnel problem.

She should have handed him the scalpel blade first STAT After his hand healed (after 4 ot 5 surgeries) he may have an attitude adjustment.

I wish I had a 9-5 job right now.

carguy123 wrote: You guys are lucky losing jobs with severance packages. With all the new laws and limitations us self employed guys are left sucking hind tit. With the 2 of us working we are making only about 1/3 of what we were making 2 years ago and about half of what we made last year. I am so glad all you people voted for a CHANGE. The only thing is you forgot to ask what they were changing. That'll learn ya!

What's that fish called again?

Joey

There is an obvious answer!

I, (NAME), do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God.

Just make sure you list me as your reference when you join! I get 2k once you finish basic :D

Too bad they don't shine on overweight 40 year olds. I am willing and able.

JB . . . you would be surprised . . .

I pay attention to our local politics and one of the items recently was stimulus money that is to be used for improvements of our water and sewer system. I am going to march my smiling PIA self in to check on the source of materials to be used.

No fan of the government spending, but gotta play the cards that are dealt.

I think they just pushed the age limit to 40 plus, my back surgery puts me out of that class, unfortunately even though I'm 99.9% recovered, still get an occasional twinge, I'm more than willing and quite able, but because of the scar down my back, no go.