We are living history

When I was in 9th grade I wrote a history paper on the Great Depression; I got a really good mark on it, too, 98%. I remember that I became fascinated by the subject; all those people having to buckle down and make do, using their will to survive and creativity to rise above this situation that was completely out of their control. I remember stories of ripping back blankets to knit underwear and growing vegetables in tin cans. Of course, I never thought I’d end up living through it myself.

We all know by now that this period in time will likely be described in future generations’ history books as The Great Depression II. American consumer debt is now at 100% of the GDP, which has only happened once before in history. Can anyone in the class tell me when that was? Beuller? Beuller? That’s right, in September 1929, Great Depression I.

Since I was so fascinated in GDI back in jr. high, history, in its infinite sense of humour, has decided to give me a taste. This is a very round-about way of telling you that I’ve been laid off. The company that purchased the independent school that I’ve been working at for the last 3 and a half years has decided the merge my position with another woman’s position and they have someone that they want to take on this new role, and it’s not either of us. Since my colleague is going on mat leave soon, they are legally required to provide her with job security for when she comes back, so she doesn’t have to worry. When she gets back they’ll have something new for her to do. In my case, however, they have no such legal requirement. They want me to stay on long enough to train the new person, and then I’m gone.

Don’t get my wrong, though; I’m not bitter or upset in any way. In fact, I’m excited, and not due to some juvenile romanticization of global recessions. I’m excited because I was looking for a new job anyway, and now I get to do my job search full time, and get paid doing it, for a short time, at least. The severance I’m receiving is actually more than they are legally required to give me, so I have a bit of a cushion before I go on EI. The real source of my excitement, though, is that I’m determined to make the most out of this opportunity. I took this job straight out of university, with my student loan repayment date nipping at my heals. It was the first job that I was offered; in fact, it has been my first and only full-time job. I learned a lot and got some great experience, but I always knew that this wasn’t what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. In fact, I’m constantly surprised that I stayed as long as I did; I initially took this as a stop-gap job and figured I’d find something else and be gone in 8 months, tops. Now I have the opportunity to figure out what I really want to do and go for it.

The thing is, I don’t really know what it is I want to do. The idea of doing the same thing for the rest of my life feels suffocating, but at the same time I feel that at my age I should have some kind of career path. But every day I think up a new job I’d like to have: film crew, publishing, freelance writing, yarn manufacture, full-time etsy story owner, craft instructor (I’ve often thought of opening a craft college), dog trainer, professional organizer, environmental advisor. And of course, there’s always the persistent thought that I’m just not meant for the working world, that any career I try will ultimately leave me feeling trapped and frustrated, that I’m meant for more free spirited things, like doing an assortment of volunteer jobs and running my home business and (eventually) being a SAHM. But if this latter option is my destiny, we’re still a ways from being able to afford to be a one income household.

Which brings me back to my main point. Now that I’m unemployed, I have access to the various job search services that didn’t want to talk to me while I had a full-time job (fair enough). Even the ones that were interested in helping me in my pursuit of a career change had most of their services available during business hours. One in particular that I’m interested in is a 2-week government funded workshop that helps people assess their skills and interests and narrow their focus as to what they should be doing as their next career. A friend of mine did it a few years ago and said it was really helpful, and seemed designed for people who had been laid off and wanted to find work in a different field from the one they were leaving.

So as you can tell, this blog will have a brand new focus, and I hope I will be blogging much more often (sorry about that, by the way). I’ll be writing about my efforts to “find my path”, as well as our new frugal lifestyle. I’d love to hear about how this recession is effecting you, as well, so feel free to leave a comment and join the discussion.