2 Years and Counting

I lost my job on December 23, 2008. I was a technician for Comcast Cable, and I worked my butt off. I was scheduled four days a week, 10 hours a day, but I often put in 12-15 hours a day, five days a week. When I was working life was good. I had a nice car, had a nice little place of my own, and had an active social life.

The day before Christmas eve in 2008, that all changed. I showed up to work at seven a.m. just like I did every day that I was supposed to be there. That day I didn't get my normal route. I got called into the managers office along with my supervisor and the HR woman. Apparently I had screwed up on a job by taking care of a customer rather than following the companies book. I went to a call, and found the problem was outside of the home. I scheduled a line technician to come out and correct it, and I left the customers personal amplifier in the house so they still had some service through the holidays. I left the customer my card and arranged a visit to remove the amplifier after the necessary repairs were made. Comcast didn't like that. I guess they would rather have the customer cancel their service.

After they terminated me, my supervisor actually had to audacity to wish me a merry Christmas as he escorted me from the building. I'm sorry, but there is nothing merry about having to go home and tell your family you lost your job.

At first I wasn't worried, I had decent savings, and I was going to apply for unemployment. I figured it would be at most a month before I was working again. I had been unemployed before but never for very long. I looked at it like a little vacation time. Well that was 2 years ago and counting, the savings are gone, the car and the apartment belong to someone else now, and I am still looking for work. At least I'm still on vacation, Right?