Outplacement Services

Yesterday I went to an orientation meeting at the outplacement services firm hired by the Company. They gave me three books to read that cover planning a job search, measuring progress and getting results. I need to begin the arduous task of rewriting my resume. I absolutely hate writing resumes and cover letters. When I lead the interview team I always threw the cover letter away. They were just a bunch of crap. Now I have to craft one for myself. I have an appointment with my consultant on January 9^th to review my resume and formulate a plan. My consultant was also the woman who ran the orientation meeting. Overall, I think she had a lot of good ideas. She used an analogy of firing a hair stylist while making a point in her presentation. I almost laughed because this woman’s hair is stuck in the eighties. I wanted to give her Helena’s card so that she could bring her style current.

Today I’ve been working on gathering documentation and reviewing a fee agreement for a professional I will be hiring. I think it will be a good start to a fruitful endeavor.

Tonight Jackie, K and I are going to dinner and then on to a New Year’s Eve party at the art gallery that wants to show Jackie’s work. It should be a fun time.

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Redishstribute

I came across Barbara Wallraff’s column in The Atlantic while doing cardio at the gym today. I love her column. She has a piece on people who have an “irresistible impulse, when faced with a dishwasher that someone else has loaded, to rearrange the dishes.” Her readers were posting suggestions on what word should be used to describe the impulse. I almost fell off the treadmill laughing. There were many new words to describe the impulse I often have. Check it out.

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Control

K is so good to me. We went to Cherry Creek Mall on Saturday because K wanted to buy a new pair of shoes. At first I didn’t want to go because I wanted to avoid the temptation of the post holiday reductions. But K thought it would be good to spend time together since he was going snowboarding on Sunday. He offered to buy me anything I wanted. At first I was tempted to push this to the limits. A found a pair of Ferragamos on sale at Nordstrom’s for $450.00. Then reality hit me. Was I crazy? I liked the shoes but I really didn’t need the shoes. I got caught up in the excitement because the shoes were marked down from $875.00. We moved on to other stores. K finally found the shoes he wanted. K once again offered to buy me something. I looked around and found several things that I liked but really didn’t need. I couldn’t let him buy me anything. I’ve been taking care of myself since I was eighteen. I find it really hard to depend on another person for my needs even though K is my life partner. I want to be frugal and economize so that no unnecessary money is spent. I don’t know why I find this so difficult. Perhaps it is a control issue. I’ve always been in control of my adult life. K is now the primary breadwinner and I am depending on him to carry most of the financial burden of the household. I fear that means I’m no longer in control.

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Patty Resurfaces

Patty finally resurfaced yesterday. She was invited over for Christmas dinner but called to cancelled in the morning. K and I ended up having a quiet but very tasty meal with Jerry. I called Patty on Friday to check in with her. I was concerned about her mental state because this is her first holiday season without Steve. Patty ended up going out to dinner with K and I last night and explained her absence. She told us she stayed in her pajamas all day on Christmas and only got out of bed to eat. Patty couldn’t pull herself together and wanted to be alone and near Steve’s things. She needed to be in the house that he remodeled and expanded for her. It was her way of spending Christmas with the love of her life who recently died. Patty has promised to return calls promptly and was in a much better mood last night. Since I have a key to her house I told her I would come over and check on her if she doesn’t return my calls. She promised to stay in touch. I think the worst may be over but she is still grieving the loss of the love of her life. It’s going to be a long process but I have faith that Patty will prevail in this battle. She is a strong woman who makes this world a better place.

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Deleted Posts

I have removed a number of posts from this blog on the advice of legal counsel. I may also change the name in the next few days. If you have been reading this blog you will probably know what has been removed and why. If you can’t figure it out and still want to know you can send me an email at rjjs8878@aol.com.

Have a good day!

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Happy Holidays!

Wishing everyone a safe and happy holiday!

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Unsettling News

I found out this morning that our friend Mary is having a bilateral mastectomy on January 13^th. This will be followed up by several reconstructive surgeries. I’m stunned at this news. The last time I talked to Mary the plan was for a lumpectomy. Additional tests determined that this is not the case. Now she is losing both breasts. Aimee, Mary’s daughter, told me that the only things Mary likes about her body are her hair and her breasts. Now she will lose both. Granted the hair loss in only a temporary side effect of chemotherapy but it is still unsettling. K and I will see Mary tomorrow night when we build gingerbread houses with her grandchildren, Max and Eliot. It will be fun but bittersweet. I can’t wait to give Mary a big hug. I wish she didn’t have cancer. I wish Mary didn’t have to deal with this trauma. Why can’t they find a cure for breast cancer?

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