Hey folks, welcome to the new whine/general topic thread. Feel free to use this thread to discuss anything that is on your mind. Caregiving- related stuff, life after a loved one's death, your own emotional wellbeing. Whatever..........anything on your mind.
Until you can sort through where you'd be a good fit out in the work world, is there a charity or other organization that could use your help a few hours a week
When I was unemployed for an extended stretch, I reached out to a children's foster care group - I not only made a connection which helped me find a job but I made some new friends
Maybe take an adult community class and brush up on some computer skills or take something just for fun like a language or art
I went with a good attitude and was so grateful even though it was not perfect by any stretch. Within six months I knew I would be looking again. My supervisor was a complete a$$. He even wrote me up for having a shoe untied. For crying out loud!
So a year later I moved again, much closer to home, 120 miles now, a couple of hours in the car to see my kids. And in spite of it being a challenging political position, you can NEVER make all the people all of the time, I am enjoying it. Those elected officials want everyone happy always. Life just is not that way.
So, Gershun, think outside the box, push your comfort zone. I had to be willing to go to a less competitive market, I did, it was very difficult and emotional, but it served a purpose. And now I am comfortable with where I am.
Do you have a work force center type service? Ours here offer courses to update skills. They have job hunting strategies and would help you. Good luck, I know how very hard it is. The right thing will come along. Get your foot in the door.
One of my friends dropped out of the work force when she had children. She then took care of her MIL and her parents. Ready and able to go back to work at 68. She couldn’t find anything. Her accounting and computer skills were totally out of date. She started volunteering with RSVP helping seniors do their taxes. Within a year through people she met at RSVP she got a good job as an accountant, now has her CPA.
PJ and I plan on working as long as our health and bodies hold up.
Retire to what? How many times can I vacuum the rug? Or wipe off the kitchen counter? Oh joy, what excitement !! I know my Mom did this for 75 years as that was her "job" taking care of the house and pampering my Dad. Not my cup of tea.
But I do have to admit, modern technology as flashed by me too quickly. I use to be an expert using DOS. How time flies!! Our office recently hired a "social media" person to keep us on-track and getting the business name out there. She makes it looks so easy. Heck I still can't remember how to answer my cellphone :P
I know I can't expect to just start back where I left off but to be honest with you I don't want that anyways. I really just would like to have somewhere I need to be and having my own income so I don't have to ask Hubs for money when I see something I like would be nice. I'm not a shopaholic by any means but it would be nice to occasionally buy myself a new lipstick without running to Papa, so to speak.
I felt so old and dowdy when I went downtown too. I know it's something that most of us have to face eventually but it sure brings your self-esteem down a notch.
I know that most of you are dealing with things that are so much more important than this and forgive me if I sound like a cow. I don't mean to.
What you are wanting right now is a track record. I think that when we re-enter the job market, whether it's after childcare leave or eldercare leave, if we don't have special qualifications or certifications, there is sometimes a bit of catchup to be done.
I'm not saying you need to take THIS job; it's just that you might need to lay down a couple of months of a track record at being employed before you get to jump a couple of rungs.
No, DO NOT stay home and clean. Cleaning in an honorable profession. But it should be done by a professional. The rest of us really suck at it. At least, I do.
But getting a new outfit for the interview and rehearsing answers and all that to find that it's practically an entry-level position. I know I shouldn't but I feel like such an idiot. Going downtown all excited in my new glad rags. Now I feel let-down and depressed. Partially cause I've been out of the workforce for a while now and I just don't feel like I fit in there anymore. Not that I ever really did but you know.
I'm not a caregiver anymore so what am I now. Just an unemployed 56- year-old woman with nothing to do and no money to do it. I think my Hubs would like it just fine if I were to just stay home and clean all day. And our new place needs cleaning all day cause we made the mistake of buying a place right across from railroad and a recycling plant. We go out and scrub the balcony from top to tail and two days later it's filthy again. We have this system in our place that recycles the air from outside to inside to outside again. Sounds wonderful in theory except we are dusting all day every day it seems. I don't mean to sound ungrateful but I think I would rather live in an old place that is lower maintenance.
Anywho, that's my gripe for the week. :(
"Hard Times" is just as relevant - and a LOT shorter! :)
When Bleak House was published as a book in 1853, it had been serialised before so Dickens wrote a preface. He explained that he had been taken to task in a jocular way by a judge who accused Dickens of greatly exaggerating the problems of the Court of Chancery, for which in any case (the judge said) the court was not to blame.
Essentially retorting "have I buggery exaggerated! - if anything I've downplayed it" Dickens mentions some cases from real life including one "not yet decided, which was commenced before the close of the last century, and in which more than double the amount of seventy thousand pounds* has been swallowed up in costs. If I wanted other authorities for JARNDYCE v. JARNDYCE, I could rain them on these pages..."
* = £8,365,544.90 today, or $11,217,191.85
If you haven't read Bleak House and you've plenty of time on your hands this summer, I do recommend it. But don't drop it on your foot.
It might make you want to send that Probate Office flowers and candy.
The letter was from the County Probate office, my Dad's Probate was finally signed off.... heck we started the Probate back in late 2016 a couple months after Dad passed. Yes, Dad had a Will as in my County even Wills of a certain asset amount has to pass through Probate.
Finally I can distribute funds that my Dad asked me to do to my cousins who were so sweet to write, call, and send greeting cards to my parents over the years. They aren't expecting this :))
Whew, I thought the Probate would out live me, and would have created a whole new complex issue.
Why does getting old have to be so complicated :P
And, how successfully they can present the concept that these benefits will be withdrawn or withheld only from the Undeserving. Cheats, idlers, scoundrels, the feckless, smokers, illegal immigrants (obviously). You know, the usual suspects.
I wonder how many of our Congresspeople and Senators would be saying "yeah, great idea" when a large percentage of voters are senior citizens.
Housing for seniors is going to become more and more of an issue. In our area waiting lists for senior HUD apartments are a two to three year wait. Most of the apartments are double or triple deckers with steep steps.
Homelessness here is widespread. And no one seems concerned. My stepson owns a large apartment building. It used to be a subsidized senior building. It’s very nice. It was owned by the state. But 5 or so years ago the sate sold a lot of it’s property because the state was going bankrupt. It’s approved for subsidized rent, but no money to subsidize. There are 112 apts.
No one in government seems to care about homelessness_
Some cities are citing the ridiculously high rents as one reason for the rise in homelessness
With the aging population, I wish politicians would even mention it but there were three separate candidate ads on tv tonight for the June primary and no one mentioned elder care
Seems their house of reps is looking to make cuts in Medicaid and would plan to send eviction notices as they close down nursing home facilities
"Big Burly Advocates for Seniors" is quite an idea.
As a coincidence, the Senior Center Handiworkers Program has a big burly guy they send out.
In the future, I will try harder to be more respectful to pastors, because only heaven knows where they will be going.
I have shopped around today and found that Cold Stone Creamery has ice cream cakes for mother's day. Tried the "Strawberry Passion" and even the cake is so very soft, it could pass as pureed? Your Mom might like it.
Did you miss your opportunity to say: "You can tell her yourself when you make your usual visit to the elderly, widows, at the NH, you know....in the bible.....the true practice of religion?"
No you are not the only one....there may only be 2 of us but you are not the only one.