I heard a story from Nastia's school and everytime I think about it , I have to laugh. It seems Nastia was in hip hop class and she got angry that someone was on their phone and they weren't dancing. She goes up to them and tells them if they don't dance she is going to hit them. It's like a bad version of Foot Loose. Let's call it Foot Tight about the town that if you don't dance the tough kids, the little 5'1" 98lb (yes) dancing queen, who runs the town will make your life bad if you don't dance.
We went to the Nyack Hollween parade, Saturdays, I bought a folding chair and set it up in the middle of Broad st. looking toward Main st., the parade route. I was very happy sitting there, people were even staying out of in front of me. Then the nightmare started. A ninty year old women asks if she can hold on to my chair while she stands to watch the parade. She continues to talk to me. I resist asking her if she would like to sit in my chair. Yes, I am now going to hell. I did redeem myself when the parade started I did give up my chair and after a little no I don't need it I'm tougher then you she sat down and enjoyed the parade. I won't get sainthood, but maybe hell is not so close.
Now the shocker. I'm at my high paying job at Crystal Spoon, (a reasonable $13.00 an hour, but only four hours a day) , I remember it was a little after one in the afternoon she called, when I pick up the phone she says, just like I did that she's been fired. It didn't register right away. It was a concept that I couldn't understand. She had said it could happen, but I thought it never would. I knew she was unhappy and was going to try and leave in about two years but this I never would of believed.
The story behind this is there is a new General Manager, that wants to cut costs. So he or she got rid of my wife because she did an excellent job over thirty-three years and was rewarded for it. How modern business is so messed up. What does that tell the people who are left. Work hard, put in unpaid overtime and get fired or goof off work regular hours and get fired. It is sad on so many levels. I fear for this country.
She got a middle management's version of a golden parachute, with a little golden shower mixed in. Access to her pension and well wishes from dozens of friends and colleagues. It made her feel a little better.
This is like a death in the family and we are in the middle of the wake and funeral. The hard part is always afterwards when you have to get back to the real world, that starts soon, maybe next week. That might include selling the girls and me getting a different job. ( Just checking to see if you were paying attention. The girls are like used cars once off the lot they depreciate to the point it is cheaper to keep them.) Teri has many friends and connections hopefully she will find a new job that will make her happy. If not then we might end up in Florida and I'm not ready for that. We need more money to retire like I want to and retirement or even getting low paying jobs ends my dream of going to England and maybe living in Italy for a while. Those are two dreams that I would really be sorry to miss out on.
