About a half
year ago, I moved into my buddy’s apartment in California. The idea was that I would be able to get back
into the career I basically abandoned some five years ago. The horrible job I left and the douche-bag of
a boss that forced me out are just side stories that I won’t bother to mention
here; the point being that I made the choice then to throw away my 20-years of
professional experience. To be honest, I
figured that I would be able to use that experience to get back into my field
of expertise later if what I was attempting didn’t pan out. Boy was I wrong… Moving back to California was a way to get
closer to where most of the jobs doing what I know are located. Granted I’m living in southern California and
most of the work for my skillset is up in The Valley (the Silicon one…),
however I figured it would be better than having a Nevada address. Turns out it really doesn’t matter. With a four-plus year hole in your resume, you
could be living in a company’s actual building and they wouldn’t bother
considering you for any open positions they might have. You are un-hirable.
I was, with
the help of my buddy, able to pick up a bit of contract work here in the L.A.
area. I mistakenly saw that as a
positive thing. Made a bit of money
and got the opportunity to hone my skills a bit with some technology a bit more
advanced than I had on my resume at the time.
Turns out I was wrong about that as well. The company I worked with was flaky as they
come. I was actually visiting their
office once when, on no less than two occasions, they refused to answer the
door when people were knocking. I don’t
know why they didn’t answer however I saw how tense the employees got when the
knocks were heard and distinctly remember the boss telling everyone not to
answer the door. As far as my interaction
with them went, it was basically them giving me the inputs I needed and me
completing the work requested. I
constantly attempted to discuss the work with them but was basically ignored
and had to figure out everything on my own.
There was literally no professional interaction between us other than a
bare minimum. A complete month had
passed after delivering my work before they told me that we were done and asked
me to return the equipment they loaned me (well, I had to inquire several times
as to what was happening and whether they wanted their equipment returned
before they finally said we were finished) and they never even looked at what I
had delivered – I asked… I’m still quite
baffled as to what all that was about.
It wasn’t anything I could use other than, as mentioned earlier, the
pay. Having such a short contract job on
my resume after a four-and-a-half-year sabbatical actually looks more
suspicious than positive. I successfully
completed the contract without issue, however it does still look suspicious…
So, this
brings us to today. I have been keeping a
detailed spreadsheet on all of the jobs I’ve been applying for in these last nine
months – more than 150 different positions with over 90 different companies and
recruiters. I’ve had a few interviews
that all seemed to go well although they’ve all gone mute. I’ve heard nothing back from any of them even
after sending post-interview inquiries.
It’s like I never existed. Makes
me wonder why they bothered getting in touch with me in the first place…? Was it some kind of sadistic game? Granted a couple of those interviews were
with people that didn’t notice the hole in my resume until I was basically
forced to point it out to them during the conversation. The tone of the interview consistently
changed at that point and I knew I had no chance. 20 years of experience means nothing then…
I am
currently trying to move back in with my parents. My savings are most definitely not what they
used to be – I will admit that I lost a large chunk playing poker for four
years – and there is absolutely no way I could afford an apartment here in
sunny Santa Monica without any income. I
very much doubt I would be able to obtain a lease. I’m pretty sure they’re expecting a tenant to
be able to show steady income no matter how high their credit score may
be. No, I need to move back home. Housing is much cheaper in Michigan – free if
I move back in with the parents for a while – and my buddy’s kicking me
out. Not that I blame him – I never
expected to be here this long. Hindsight being what it is, I never should have moved in with my buddy. Sure, as far as Santa Monica rents are
concerned, he gave me a great deal (no, I wasn’t living here for free…) and I
honestly thought I would be able to land a steady job by now; unfortunately,
the world appears to have had other plans for me. All I know is that moving back home directly
from Nevada would have been so much easier than what I currently face. What I’m dealing with now is a nightmare…
I’m actually
half-way done with my move out of Nevada.
I chose a moving company, had them empty out my apartment in Nevada and put
my stuff in storage (for a monthly fee that I am currently still paying) until
I was able to acquire an apartment in California that they would then deliver
my possessions to. It’s all described in
the paperwork/emails that I have. I then
loaded up my car with a selection of my clothing, a couple of my guitars, my
laptop computer and a bunch of things I thought would be useful and drove to my
buddy’s. So now I have a few
problems. I now need to get myself and
all the crap I took to my buddy’s over to my parent’s house in Michigan. I’m also planning on driving my 16-year-old
car for this trip. The same car I drove
to my buddy’s apartment from Nevada; however, Nevada to California isn’t quite
the same as California to Michigan. I’ve
done my best in keeping my car as pristine as possible but it is still 16 years
old – you never know, right…? And if I
load it up with all the crap I drove to California, it’s basically a target for
theft anywhere I stop on my trip. And
what about the crap I have stored in Nevada (at the moving company that, by the
way, was sold to new owners a couple months ago)? Will they be able to deliver to Michigan once
I get an apartment there (assuming I’ll be able to get that all figured out…)? Everything is a huge mess now!
I’ll say this much, “I never thought my
life would be what it has become.” I’m
basically homeless, jobless and pathetic.
Thinking of shipping the guitars to Michigan, flying a buddy out from
Michigan, loading up my car (without the guitars it shouldn’t be too bad) and
cruising Route 66 with my buddy from Santa Monica to Chicago then driving home
from there. Fuck it, might as well make
an adventure out of this madness. I’ll
deal with the crap in storage sometime later…
bis später,
Coriolis
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