For the past few nights, Cindy has not been feeling well.  She has been having fevers at night and feeling sick to her stomach.  On Thurssday, she went for labs and Friday she went to see the surgeon.  Everything looked good,   The surgeon thought one of the medications he had prescribed for her was not agreeing with her and he took her off of it.  He also put her on antibiotics just in case …  Cindy is susceptible ot pneumonia and wants be precautious.  When I spoke to her this afternoon, she was feeling much better.

Also on Thursday, I was working from home.  Pauline was in the hospital and my kids were home so I didn’t go into the office.  Around 10 that morning, I received an email from my boss, saying he was coming into the office and wanted to meet with me.  He lives in Texas and had been in Chicago, so I knew this was serious.  I emaied him back telling him my situation.  He called me a half-hour later to let me know that my job had been eliminated.  This is the way a company in California says “You’re Fired” while  protect themselves from a lawsuit.  My heart was pounding since I am the breadwinner.  I told him I had to wait for Sarah, my daughter-in-law, to pick up Lucy and Emma, my sister-in-law and granddaugter, from the airport and would be in by 1 to clean out my stuff.

As most of you know, I have a hectic life.  Pauline has many health issues.  I have 2 special needs teenagers, and Cindy has a long way to go to recover.  Working full time and being a caregiver can be a challenge and stressful.  I wasn’t sure what to do with the news that I had just received.  Then I realized that one of the stresses in my life had just been eliminated for me.  I shutdown my computer and just sat there.  Then I realized I was beginning to relax.

When I went into the office I was bombarded by co-workers hugs and good wishes.  They all told me that I would have no problem finding another job with my experience.  I packed up my stuff, met with HR to get my severence package and drove home.    I thought about getting another job – updating my resume, making calls, using LinkedIn, etc.

I also thought about my family life and how I now have more time to dedicate to caring for them without the pressure of work.  I was likeing my new situation more and more.  I’ve been working on a memoir for a few years, but hadn’t been able to dedicate much time to it.  Now was my big opportunity.

So readers, you can expect more blogging from me about Cindy and Pauline.  I’ll also be sharing my writing progress and possibly some exerpts from the book.