y'all were probably haunted that it's 7pm and i hadn't been online yet today. well, i've got a pretty good reason. i got laid off today, and when you work in the same place for 15 years, it takes a long time to say goodbye to everyone and sort / trash / pack 15 years worth of crap. this round of cuts was deep.
no sympathy needed here. i got a decent severance package, and i've got no animosity towards my former employer. it is what it is. my wife is on board to leave michigan, and we're looking south. greenville south carolina is our most desired location, but we'll see what comes up. i'm people who knows people, so i've got a lot of leads in a lot of areas.
people have been coming around with sympathetic words, etc, and i keep tellin' em: it's like finding out you got syphillis. on one hand, you've got a dirty dick. but on the other hand, it ain't HIV.
i look at myself as tom hanks at the end of Cast Away. i'm standing in the intersection deciding which way to go. only there's no hot welder chick. and once i choose the path, i'm not gonna squeeze the throttle. it's gonna be WOT until i get there!
That sucks but it sounds like you have a good attitude and a plan - good luck!
15 years is a long time. Sounds like you have the right attitude about it though.
I wish you good luck in finding your new path/new home town. It's frustrating when this sort of thing happens around the holidays.
hey,
you've got a good head start before the big 3 collapse
Greenville is really, really nice. My parents just moved away from there, and I'm kind of bummed about that. If you have specific questions, you know where to find me.
Type Q
SuperDork
11/20/08 7:23 p.m.
I am sorry that you lost your job. 15 years is a quite a chunk of your life to invest. I got laid off in the dot com crash a few years back. At the time my wife said, "Everytime a door closes, 10 more open." It took me in a different direct work wise that I don't regret at all. You seem to have a firm grasp on that and I applaud you.
Please keep us posted on your progress. These kind of transitions are hard, but can lead to better things. Speak up if you need some encouragement. We are pulling for you.
gamby
UltimaDork
11/20/08 7:27 p.m.
Well, SC winters > MI winters. That reason alone sounds inspring.
Good luck w/ the next phase. Great that they hooked you up w/ a decent severance package.
You're fortunate that you can have such a great attitude.
Greenville is very nice. BMW plant.. freightliner. some aerospace..
Duke
MegaDork
11/20/08 8:17 p.m.
Good luck. Maybe if you move south you'll be "ComfyCorvair"?
SVreX
MegaDork
11/20/08 8:24 p.m.
I'm thinking someone is about to get a really good employee!
Good luck Angry. I have a feeling this will end up well for you.
I'd offer you help... but we are not hring cept for a few select positions.. and for the ones that are open wouldn't interest you....
Mental
Mod Squad
11/20/08 8:37 p.m.
You should move to Greenville. Its not a bad place at all, the mtns are nice and when I retire to Atl in a few years we can establish eVil south.
T.J.
MegaDork
11/20/08 9:26 p.m.
I too will be soon looking for another career after 20 years. (Not getting laid off, transistioning out of the military). I am looking at it as an opportunity even with all the bad economic news of late.
Hopefully your networking will pay off and you will have no trouble in the job search.
Look at it this way, you'll be a lot closer to the 200X Challenge!
Well that sux. My wife was laid off a few months back, and just got a great offer from a previous employer, so it does work out. I have a freind who just relocated to Columbia and bought a house on a golf course at a $100,000 discount!
Yep, sounds like it is time to make a change. I'm facing this as well since my current contract is up at the end of the year and unless I find something in my current field right away I'll be looking at changing directions.
Good luck to you!
ddavidv
PowerDork
11/21/08 6:37 a.m.
Good luck, P. I'm another one who's been laid off (and even fired once) and it has usually led to better things. Sometimes it may take a transition job or two to get you there, but it should be viewed as an opportunity. You've got the right attitude.
Good luck to you!
Hey, Greenville sux big time, terrible weather, rednecks, nowhere near Road Atlanta, overpriced houses, you get the idea. Not to mention I plan to move up there sometime or other so you'd have to tolerate the thought of being in the same city as me.
Well, now you can finish up the Angry P-car and sell it for fortykabijillion dollars and pimp out some new sexy air cooled in the SC for the future.
yeah man.. I'm heading to the upstate every 3 months or so now. It's a great place.
No hills down here near the beach...
yeah.. the upstate sucks..
That's taken from the top of Table rock. Ceasars head is to the left
Back and to the right would be greenville.
Sorry to hear about the job, but it looks like things are going to work out great. I live 25 miles down the road in Spartanburg. I hate to say it, but you will love Greenville.
I do not recall, but what is your line of work? Do you have a lead on a job yet?
If you move down and Jensemenan moves up, we have the foundation of a new Challenge team.
924guy
Dork
11/21/08 7:43 a.m.
i got lost in those mountains a few years back, on purpose...met allot of great people and found allot of twisties to drive around...beautiful country, and greenville just a hop away, where i stayed. seem to be an inflated number of "car " people there as well. i drove in on a friday night and saw everything from late model jdm wannabees to chevelles and everything in between, and there weren't any organized events going on.. looks to be a nice place to live...
you want we should write an official grm message board letter of recommendation? ohh, then again, that might might not actually help, but id bet it would be interesting...