Tuesday, June 26, 2007

“There will be consequences”: ONE FINAL INDIGNITY

One last crushing blow from the corporate fucksticks to whom I gave almost a decade of my life and loyalty, shrinking my current job market options by a significant amount. A pox upon those who lied to me… they know who they are.

Eighteen months after losing a job I’d held for 6 years, in a Company I’d been with for nearly 10, I was recently offered the perfect position by a former co-worker who’s now working in a different division of the Company. Unfortunately, it seems that although I was told verbally that I was not banned from ever working for the company (that was the ONE question I asked the HR rep during my “exit interview,” because the Company is one of the largest employers in my area, not to mention my particular field), I signed away my future when I agreed to something I apparently missed, saying I’d not seek employment with them. Ever.

I called the HR rep who’d told me I wasn’t banned from the Company, and asked if there was some way to officially appeal that clause. For fuck’s sake, it’s not like I was terminated for embezzlement, or an EEOC violation, or some other nefarious deed… I took the fall for a series of errors, including some that weren’t made by me, because in the end the Process put the responsibility squarely upon my shoulders and any future I might ever have with the Company was utterly destroyed by my failure to send one email.

The former co-worker for whom I would have been working at my dream job was as surprised as I was to learn that I was ineligible for rehire at the Company, as are most others who found the circumstances of my termination political, unjust (or simply “so fucked up!"). Regardless, I have neither the time nor desire to mourn or avenge my being fucked in the ass - no kiss, no grease - by the Company as a soulless entity, and most disappointing of all by people who failed to speak up for me when they could (and should) have. My heartfelt gratitude goes out to the people who saw how things went down and have expressed their outrage and sympathy. To those who were complicit in my being railroaded: Kindly go fuck yourselves.

In the end, once again I shall take full responsibility for exactly where I did, indeed, screw the pooch. I should have gotten a lawyer before I signed anything. It was a grave error to have ignored what I know to be true: that there are certain people in every company who, despite their assurances to the contrary, never do anything that isn’t in the best interests of the Company (or their own careers). I should have put more of my salary into my retirement and pension accounts, because as I’m cashing them out in order to survive, I’m finding they don’t amount to much in comparison to the years of blood, sweat and tears I put into my years in various jobs with the Company… and the cash-out payments are hardly compensation enough for the depression, pain and humiliation of being blackballed from a Company where any number of people in the position to do so would gladly hire me based on my experience and recommendations; nor the anxiety and worry of trying to survive on Unemployment Insurance in Southern California.

Oh well, no turning back now… Why Bother? I suppose I can always go back to porn

Wednesday, June 06, 2007

Happy Bloody Birthday to ME!

I’ve wanted to adorn my big Sicilian schnozz for a long, long time. I finally decided I was going to just go for it… what the hell, I’m 45… no time like the present! Thank You, Sir SkipDog for a fabulous experience! And thank you, Karen, for being such a good slave and taking excellent pictures of this momentous event.

Other gifts included a bottle of the best mead I’ve ever tasted, and a beautiful sculpted metal crossed-cutlass Jolly Roger tile from my dear friend and fellow pirate, Robin St. Graves of Medieval Fantasies. My life is filled with such talented artists and craftsmen… and it’s a good thing, since my own artistic talent is limited to singing, and maybe this writing thing that I enjoy so much but don’t do nearly enough of.

Special appreciation to my sister, Liz, dear hubby, Rob and the rest of my family who made my birthday so great by helping get the joint cleaned up, kept my glass (and my belly!) filled, and kept me laughing even while getting skewered by our friendly local Sadist.