BTW, I was FIRED when I told my employer I needed IVIG. I got NO unemployment. I was 52 when that happened. That ADA thing is a joke...I spent a lot of money on an attorney and our state is 'fire at will'....so it was a total waste. There is no recourse. I am no stranger to the insult of unemployment, that is why my situation is so painful....I have to make light of it.

Sorry I offended you. It was meant to make people laugh.

.....in Cy's defense, may i just say
I am a firm believer in 'humor is thy best medicine'.....

Nothing said is ever 'meant' to target another's situation or circumstances....
.....we all cope
.......we're all in this together

Cy was just sharing with us a typical day in the life.....in her own colourful way........
she paints a wonderful 'picturesque' of her world, and we are blessed to have her share....... sometimes i think it would make for fantastic cartoon screenplay.......
so, by being a 'firm believer' in humor.......does NOT mean i 'laugh' at people's situations.........or make light of our pain and struggles.....
It's just another form of medicine, never intended to hurt anyone.....

PS...i hope you found all your chickens?
.......i have a mare ready to have her foal......we're in triple digits!! (temperature that is, ...... not foals....)
Anyway, i'm still looking for a crate large enuf to ship you the 'pony' i promised you several posts back.

Cy, I know you weren't being mean-spirited, and thank you for taking the time to explain. Please understand, though, that there are plenty of people (not you) parroting a perspective that they hear on the television and radio that sounds similar.

Just the other day, my neighbors (and I thought friends) of 10 years said to me that people on unemployment just want to sit around and collect checks instead of working, knowing that I've been unemployed all this time. I went home and sobbed for an hour. Your comments made me feel like I can't even come here without hearing it.

And I also know that you are more on my side of the political spectrum than not, but there are lots of unthinking people in the world who feel validated when they hear that kind of stuff, even if you meant it as humor.

Having said all that, apology accepted, and I'm truly sorry that things have been so difficult for you as well.

i constantly pray that things will improve in this world.....
sometimes i don't know who has it worse......the older generation .....or the younger......my daughter (who just got a degree in psychology!) is in a real tough spot right now and i thank God that we DO have the government aid that is helping her thru this rough time.....

it's truly painful to see my daughter struggling due to circumstances that got out of her control, but i really admire her bravery as she gets thru this rough spot.
Somewhere over the horizon i pray that our struggles will be kept to a minimum........ .....even just a low pain day is something to rejoice over!
.....these things i took for granted for so many years.
(((HUGS))) to all

can i interest anyone in a pony?
i don't have the heart to have my stallion 'gelded'...... so, the foals keep coming.

I second that.

I hope things turn around for your daughter, and everyone in your family too, cy.

I just wrote this post without having read the 2nd page of this thread! But I don't know how to delete it so am adding this explanation....wrote this not with any emotional push, just for information to those who may think it's easy to go get a job somewhere or just at MdDonald's (I don't know how hard that is, don't think it's easy anymore.)

Any job is hard to find. Last year my daughter was laid off from her "real job" as an urban planner. She was 7 months pregnant, so a few months after the baby was born, she looked for work with nothing showing up. She turned to her other jobs of bartending and waitressing, interviewing at the large string of restaurants in the area. The one where she had experience had just hired and would keep her in mind. She heard nothing back. Meantime she was keeping in touch with past contacts and doing all the things you are told to do in times like these. Finally her husband had a contact, a restaurant manager 50 mins. away who hired her for 2 weekend nights! Here was something because she knew someone!

Then a 1/2-time planning job came open 2 months later with the county and she got it b/c the director had noticed her resume when he was looking for another position. And she knew someone who worked there too. But she was very qualified for this position. It had been 8 months since her lay-off.

The bottom line is that jobs are VERY HARD TO FIND now and I would bet it's true everywhere you go....??? And she is still looking for a full-time position, hoping one comes open with the county right now. So Joan, I know a little of how you feel....

So how many times have I been labelled a progressive, prosocial, anti-war, greenie type??? It is refreshing to have it inferred that I am not, lol. Gives some mystery to my being....."What will she say next?" The fact is I have friends that are both.

Frankly, I think my SIL could pay gas money given hubby gets up at 5 to drive him to work....while he saves over $1000 owed in tickets, to get his drivers license back.....Then hubby drives the youngest of our group to the sheltered workshop, then he drives 60 miles one way to his job....LIFE IS NOT EASY for anyone. PN is a sideshow around here.

Thank you, Rrae.... I think you are my bestest friend....lol.

Gotta run....this infant thinks I am his mom(silly him).....lord, so do my chickens....what have I done?

That $1000 was a generous rounding down.

Thanks dany. The figure they keep stating is 5 job seekers for every opening, but I have heard HR people say that for "real jobs" the figure is more like 60 to 1. At my partner's company (big, big company that you've heard of), it's 200 to 1. And obviously, my knowing her hasn't helped a whit, even though they've had multiple openings in my field.

Then there are the MickyD-type jobs. What percentage of those require being on your feet all day? How many people here can do that? I can't.

I hope that your daughter finds something better soon.

Rrae, I am working on this.....quite a few neighbors have stopped by, and they all have accomodations.....I would have to drive a hard bargain tho....oh, how I would love a pony for my G-kids....(and me).

And on my daughter's problems....some are self inflicted. I had 4 kids and when they were almost grown, we adopted 4 more, older kids....and none of their lives were a cakewalk prior to coming to us.....we expect to have some bumps in the road, and some poor decisions on their parts. The only thing is, this economy is NOT forgiving to dumb mistakes. I am growing older and can't expect to be around to 'fix' mistakes....time for some tough love. Every one of our kids gets ONE major boo boo. This financial mess is hers. I could not bear to see her child, 3yrs old in a homeless shelter. Her husband is NOT the victim of a bad economy in some ways....he has done nothing to prepare himself for the world of work. At 23, he has spent 2 years on unemployment with no thought of going to voc school or anything. He is darn lucky I drove him all over creation to find work.....and that I made him ride a bike to his first placement, since my car was in the shop....(He told them no, initially, and I said, 'What do you mean, no?? Get thy butt on a bike".) Ok, so he hates me....fine, he is now permanently employed.

The other girl had a boo boo, and don't get me wrong, I love him dearly....well, he is sitting in his jumper smiling at me. This is a huge consequence to a behavior! Luckily he has a grandma and grandpa who are head over heels over him. Only thing is....he doesn't sleep the nite and wants to be held constantly....at a time when my labs have taken a turn for the worse, and so has the way I feel.....time for a tune up for me. I am used to being on idle....not full throttle!

When you have 8, there is always some crisis, major or minor.

Yes, ALL of my chickens are accounted for....and my hubby's look a like scare crow has worked....he used my clothes and a yellow mop for the head.....looks just like me....only thing...it is silent, lol.