John of All Trades

…actually quite easy, when you’ve got FedEx. I can overnight you, and include an envelope so you can overnight me back. It’ll be fun.

Seriously, though, Day 2 was another very full day. I heard from a couple more people from the Maven and CodeHaus OSS communities (thanks for the warm wishes), and spent some time chasing down promising initial job leads. It’s a little depressing just how little IT industry there is here in Gainesville, but what do I really expect from a town whose university seems to still run on Microsoft and mainframes, and where the remainder of industry focuses on healthcare (read: medical devices). As a result, I’m beginning to explore more of a – shall we say – national scope in the job hunt. After all the chucks on the shoulder in the last two days, I have to say I’m feeling cautiously hopeful that this won’t be as bad as it could be.

Another big thing that took place today was the Reading of the Severance Agreement. Legalese is so fun! I popped up some popcorn, and dug in. I understand people are just doing a lot of CYA and it’s probably a result of long experience, but the things in these agreements are a little chilling. We “reached an amicable agreement” as a result of the contract to that effect, but it was an interesting read. So, that’s the end from the OldCo side of things, and all that’s left by way of sweeping up is deciding what I think certain stock options are likely to be worth, and determining whether COBRA is worth handing over my firstborn child to get (with interest, since I don’t have one yet).

Tomorrow’s another very interesting, not-nearly-as-depressing-as-I-feared day, and all joking aside, I can’t wait.

Oh, and as an aside, I started looking in earnest at Ruby on Rails today. I know, I know, what’s next for me? Maybe that new-fangled Micro-Wave? Well, let’s not be hasty. Honestly, can this framework really be as dead easy and still be reasonably performant?? In intend to find out tomorrow, if there’s any time at the end of the day.

Until tomorrow, sleep well everyone.

So, one day into unemployment, and I have to say I’m pretty happy with the progress I’ve made. This morning started with me realizing how many people still read my blog (seriously!)…when there’s something to read of course. When I realized this, I winced visibly thinking that I hadn’t posted since April. I’m flattered that so many people noticed last night’s post, and extended their best wishes. To take full advantage of this podium (just in case I wind up having anything interesting to say), I’ve connected the blog to my Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn profiles. As an aside, WordPress really makes this a breeze.

The next order of business was filing for unemployment benefits. I’ve heard that this can take a few weeks to come through, and living in Florida I’m sure a few weeks is optimistic, so I figured that should be the first priority. Maybe – hopefully – I won’t really need it, but the last thing I need is to be conquered by my own overconfidence at this point. Florida, if you’re listening, you should really spend a little more time thinking about the validation of web forms…if questions only need to be answered when a previous question is answered “Yes”, don’t force me to fill out those fields after I start off with a “No”. It’s just confusing all around, and makes people think you don’t really know what you’re doing…

After that very involved and overly confusing process was finished, I waded into the thicket that was my resume. It’s hard to believe how out-of-date something can get when it’s neglected for six years. I know, I know, the first commandment for IT workers is Always Keep Thy Resume Up-To-Date. What can I say, I was overcome by a mixture of optimism, overconfidence, and denial. After outlining, researching, and writing this up, I think I’m finally ready to start sending it out to everyone and everything that will stand still long enough…first thing tomorrow morning.

As a closing note, I thought I’d indulge my philosophical side for a minute. Have you ever noticed how long it takes things to start up, and how quickly they end? I’m not just talking about The Phone Call yesterday; I’m talking about the fact that The Phone Call was only yesterday, and by lunchtime today I was looking at an envelope containing my severance agreement. By contrast, my unemployment benefits will probably walk here from Seattle. I guess it all comes down to motivation.

Well, it’s official: I’m laid off.

All of the responses I’ve gotten from friends and family so far have been of the “I’m so sorry”, “You’ll find another job, don’t worry”, “Do you need any money?” genre. I appreciate the sympathy from everyone, and no, I don’t need any money (yet). Thanks for your warm thoughts, everyone.

On the other hand, I feel like the clock has been ticking down on this one ever since I took my first job at a start-up. An absolutely shocking number of start-ups die with a whimper, compared to the one or two that make it to daylight, and I’ve never had any illusions about what that would mean for me as an employee. Funding runs out, boards of directors become unhappy with business models, etc. etc. When I first left my relatively stable job (where I’d just survived a round of lay-offs) for one in a start-up, I started socking away money for this very day. Also, as a side effect of our emerging eco-consciousness, we’ve been trying like crazy to live a less cash-intensive life in preparation for a day when we might try something different and less, well, profitable employment-wise.

Now all that preparation will start to pay its dividends.

I’m still getting my head around this whole thing, and trying to make a plan that I can follow to land the best job possible with the best net result for the family, under the circumstances. I plan to log my thoughts here as I slog through unemployment, job applications, resume writing, and so on. Maybe it’ll make for an interesting read someday when I’m able to look back and laugh about this.