Well H@ll

Ralph called this afternoon. He has been laid off. No reason given. His contract was at will, so they can let him go for no reason.

The good news is he'll be coming home. The bad news is that he's unemployed.....again.

He called back later and told me there was a ferry leaving tomorrow and he'll be on it. It will get him to Prince Rupert, Canada on Friday night. Looks like he'll be home next Wednesday, maybe....might be Thursday, depending on driving conditions (snow and ice) and how long it takes.

I was shocked. Of course, it always happens when you are frazzled already. We had tight schedule...Rico and I got a haircut then we came home and the kids showered. They were just out of the shower when he called. We had a PTA meeting and I was trying to get homework done and dinner going when he called. I didn't say anything to the kids but my mind was spinning.

Our biggest concern is insurance. We actually did continue our COBRA, even though the new insurance was supposed to be effective Jan 1st. The company kept blowing Ralph off and I just had this gut feeling and so paid the premium, thank God. But we are almost out of coverage. I told Ralph that I wondered if they fired him because of the insurance. We had a 3 month wait and were supposed to be effective Jan 1. But they are a really small company, around 30 employees and with the history of a child with cancer, I knew that their premiums would take a big hit. I told Ralph that I wonder if they got the notice that their premiums would skyrocket and so just decided to terminate him. I told him that when he went in to get his final paycheck tomorrow, ask for the insurance card and see what they say. My money is on them saying that the paperwork didn't get in or something like that and that the insurance never went into effect. Want to make a bet on it?

The kids, of course, were over the moon happy. I waited until we were on my bed, snuggling in before bedtime and asked them, "If you had one wish, what would you wish for?" Both answered that they wanted Daddy home for good, not just for a visit. Then I said, "Well, your wish is about to become true!" They were jumping up and down with happiness.

I've decided that everything happens for a reason and there must be some reason here....so I'll hold on and trust in the future...that it will be a good future for us.

Foo-Foo and Fuzzy's Great Adventure

Ralph took one stuffed animal from each of the kids up to Alaska with him. They picked one out,and had him take it, so Daddy wouldn't be lonely so far away from home. Before he left, I told him to take pictures of the stuffies on the trip north.

He emailed them to me on Saturday and I made a book on Saturday night, after the kids went to bed called, [U]Foo-foo and Fuzzy's Great Adventure[/U]. The kids were happily surprised when they got up on Sunday to see all the things that Foo-Foo and Fuzzy had seen. It's really cute...starts out with them belted into the passenger seat on the truck, there were pictures of them near signs of towns that DH had stopped in, with totem poles, looking out the window on the ferry to Juneau. Really a fun way to show the kids the trip that Daddy took.

I told Ralph that he needs to take more pictures now, so we can continue the story and so that the kids can see what Juneau is like.

Alaska!

So Ralph got a job....it's a one year contract, which is great. The only downside is that the job is in Alaska. So he left on Thursday and is currently in Canada, at Prince Rupert and today he gets on the ferry that will take him to Juneau.

I sometimes wonder if people who have pretty safe jobs even realize that there is a recession going on. I know this, people are shocked when they get laid off and then even more shocked when they realize how hard it is to get a job right now. See, even if a company is doing all right, they aren't hiring. People hear on the news that the unemployment rate in CA is what....10%, 11%? But do they realize what that translates to in actual people who want to work who are just unable to find a job?

Ralph retired from the Coast Guard in January, 2008. He would have liked to stay in, he was on active duty for the last 8 years, but he had too many years in, so he had to retire. In 2008, he worked a total of 5 months after retiring. By the way, we get no retirement benefits. He was in the CG for 34 years, but only 15 of those were active duty, so no retirement benefits until he is 60.

So he went up to Alaska last year for 5 months, the only work he could find. Then he came home and tried to find something locally. After about 6 months, he realized that there was nothing going on locally, so he broadened his search nationally. Finally, he found another job in Alaska.

Construction, especially large construction projects, are just not happening right now in CA. And even if they are getting funded, there are so many people lining up for those few jobs that it's pretty near impossible to get one.

We are very lucky in that we always have lived the life of saving. Always lived below our means and socked money into the bank. We have no debt, except our mortgage. I wonder how many people can say that, after having the breadwinner out of work for a year? That doesn't mean it's been easy. It hasn't been. But we made it. And now we have income again. And now we'll start to replenish our depleted savings accounts.