Bumps in the Road

Well now.  No net, no wings.  If it weren't for occasional updrafts I might already have hit bottom, but so far only a few bumps against the cliff on the way.

1)  Two days after last post, I was visiting my daughter in New Hampshire, and while on a hike down Mt. Major (beautiful view of Lake Winnepesaukee from the top!) slipped on some some loose gravel and broke my left arm.  Had to hike about another two miles to get to the car, drove 45 minutes to the hospital, x-rays, pizza in the examination room, and "your arm is broken. See an orthopedist when you get home; they'll set it and cast it."  First day of plumbing class three days later, I can't do any of the hands-on learning, and the teacher tells me we'll discuss options after I see the orthopedist.  Dr. Andrew tells me the next day, "We need to do surgery to put in a plate; from the x-ray it looks like there are several different fractures, and since too much time has passed, setting it is not an option."  Surgery on Friday, and he recommends dropping the course as I will need at least 6 to 10 weeks to recover.  Teacher agrees, so Plumbing School is on hold.  Plumbing 01 not offered again until next fall.

2)  Went to Morgantown, WV for Labor Day "weekend" to visit with parents.  Mom is now in Hospice (congestive heart failure, kidney failure, two falls which leave her with bruised ribs and a broken pelvis) and it turns out they need more help than it seemed from a distance.  So I end up spending a week up there, helping Dad get everything in order (identify the meds Mom says she doesn't need, one of which is the pain medication, take the door off the bathroom and install a curtain so she doesn't get stuck in there, re-engineer the wheels on her walker so she can get through all of their narrow doorways.  Thank you Charlie for that one.)

3)  Sign up for COBRA.  I had been searching for cheaper medical insurance, but hadn't signed up yet as I figured I had time -- I hadn't been sick for 2-1/2 years, so I should be fine!  Ha.  Two days after the last post was also two days after my previous insurance ended, along with my previous job.  I had to wait for them to send me the forms, and they to receive my check for $338.00/month before any of my bills could be processed.  So now I'm stuck with COBRA for the foreseeable future, and a best-case scenario calculation looks like at the minimum I will pay about $4,000 (on top of the $338/month) for having my broken arm repaired.  Which leads to

4)  I hadn't calculated major medical expenses into my decision to take the time off to go back to school, so now I am starting a part-time job next week, at Hancock Fabrics.  Twenty hours per week at minimum wage (and for readers not in NC, here that often means Federal minimum -- $7.25 per hour).  That should just about cover my COBRA payment.  Looking for full-time but of course so is everyone.

So, step back and re-group.  Perhaps the broken arm is the universe's way of telling me, "NO! Not that plan!"  A good friend suggests that I am being told to stop and listen to what I really need to be doing, and so that is what I'm about.  I'm excited to get back into the sewing world for a while, and hopefully will be able to do some at home to supplement minimum wage (pillows, window treatments, alterations, custom sewing -- if you need any of that, let me know!)  Will continue here, though, and keep the blog name -- it works in so many ways, and we'll see what happens until the net appears.  Stay tuned.

Leap and the net will appear

Okay, August 11 was my last day at work at smart center Cary. When I started there in January of 2008, I thought it would be perhaps a year and then I would move into something more like a "real" job -- Monday through Friday, 8 to 5, holidays, sick days, etc. Then the economy tanked, finding something like that got to be a real problem as you all know, and at least I had a job. As my co-workers left one by one, the hours and uncertainty got longer, and pay got smaller, until I was working usually 50+ hours per week, at $7.25 per hour. I had THREE Saturdays off in over 2-1/2 years, and every Sunday or the one day every other week I did get off had a sense of urgency to it that was very unsettling. So, after the last rejection letter ("we decided to hire someone with more legal experience") I decided something had to change.

I have thought about plumbing or electricity as a career for a long time. I'm handy; I've installed a faucet and repaired a toilet, hung some light fixtures and installed dimmer switches, a programmable thermostat, etc., and have thought about hanging the "handy woman" shingle out a few times, with encouragement from a good friend. When I looked at the Wake Tech site and weighed the two options, I decided (perhaps erroneously, but we'll see) that one was less likely to be killed while plumbing, so applied and sent an email to the man who runs the program for more information. One week later I was registered, and classes begin next week!

So, I am unemployed but a full time plumbing student. I have some money saved and enough alimony to cover my major living expenses; will have to work out the health care issue (COBRA = $338 per month for medical, and another $28 for dental - yikes!) and eat a lot of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, but I'm excited and looking forward to something new. At the end I'll have a skill that should be pretty sale-able as well as handy, and who knows what the future will bring.

In the meantime, I'm going to try to make some extra money using some of my other skills, including my "mad" sewing skills (alterations? pillows? simple curtains? I used to specialize in flower girl outfits!) so if you need anything give me a call! And I'll be keeping this record of the journey, so if you want to follow along, I'd be glad to have you. I'll also be posting plumbing tips, as I learn them! :)

Thanks to my family and friends for all your support and encouragement.