and thats the way it is. (formerly: Breaking the silence)

124678

Comments

  • hjakehjake Posts: 837
    edited December 1969

    Hi KK,

    Understood. I hope preparation, inspiration, and opportunity will coalesce for you.

    Take care :-)

  • kyoto kidkyoto kid Posts: 40,940
    edited December 1969

    ...no problem.


    Been looking at different options since last March when I was laid off (and still doing so).

    it really comes down to what I mentioned here and elsewhere, Older people just are not wanted that much anymore in today's job market. This is why there are still so many people looking for work. When I read posts on other forums and blogs about the unemployment situation, a good many of them are by people from my generation some who put more years in than I did.

    It's due to those born in the Baby Boom era of the 1950s now reaching their 50s & early 60s. Not old enough yet to retire on SSI, but considered too past their "prime" to hire in the eyes of many employers.

    They (our elected officials) should have seen this coming and prepared for it.

  • kyoto kidkyoto kid Posts: 40,940
    edited December 1969

    ...well got al the coinage sorted out as was able to find someone who had the day off who could drive me to the bank.


    Seems my estimate was a bit "off". Turned out to be just shy of 350$ Not enough for rent but will take a little of the edge off so I can get my phone service restored and keep my internet for another month. Going to talk with the landlady to see if I can make a half month payment on rent. Hopefully when our senators get back on Monday they will approve the extension.

    As I have been continuing to file my work search reports I heard that I could be reimbursed for those weeks. That would take a bit of a load off.


    Might have a line through an acquaintance on a job that pays decently and uses the date entry and database skills I have. Going to give him my resume to take in. Apparently this company (a large financial concern) likes to hire by employee referral rather than direct application. The nice thing is that it is right downtown (I can bike to work again instead of take the bus). When he sent applications and resumes "cold" to them he never got a response. After that he learned about how they did things gave his resume to someone who worked there, and he was hired within a week.

    This is not a call or collections centre either.

    Cross your fingers guys,

  • bighbigh Posts: 8,147
    edited December 1969

    Kyoto Kid said:
    ...well got al the coinage sorted out as was able to find someone who had the day off who could drive me to the bank.


    Seems my estimate was a bit "off". Turned out to be just shy of 350$ Not enough for rent but will take a little of the edge off so I can get my phone service restored and keep my internet for another month. Going to talk with the landlady to see if I can make a half month payment on rent. Hopefully when our senators get back on Monday they will approve the extension.

    As I have been continuing to file my work search reports I heard that I could be reimbursed for those weeks. That would take a bit of a load off.


    Might have a line through an acquaintance on a job that pays decently and uses the date entry and database skills I have. Going to give him my resume to take in. Apparently this company (a large financial concern) likes to hire by employee referral rather than direct application. The nice thing is that it is right downtown (I can bike to work again instead of take the bus). When he sent applications and resumes "cold" to them he never got a response. After that he learned about how they did things gave his resume to someone who worked there, and he was hired within a week.

    This is not a call or collections centre either.

    Cross your fingers guys,

    good luck - hope you get the job

  • kyoto kidkyoto kid Posts: 40,940
    edited December 1969

    ...thank you. Hoping this is the turn around I've been looking for all these months.

  • RogerbeeRogerbee Posts: 4,460
    edited December 1969

    Kyoto Kid said:
    ...well got al the coinage sorted out as was able to find someone who had the day off who could drive me to the bank.


    Seems my estimate was a bit "off". Turned out to be just shy of 350$ Not enough for rent but will take a little of the edge off so I can get my phone service restored and keep my internet for another month. Going to talk with the landlady to see if I can make a half month payment on rent. Hopefully when our senators get back on Monday they will approve the extension.

    As I have been continuing to file my work search reports I heard that I could be reimbursed for those weeks. That would take a bit of a load off.


    Might have a line through an acquaintance on a job that pays decently and uses the date entry and database skills I have. Going to give him my resume to take in. Apparently this company (a large financial concern) likes to hire by employee referral rather than direct application. The nice thing is that it is right downtown (I can bike to work again instead of take the bus). When he sent applications and resumes "cold" to them he never got a response. After that he learned about how they did things gave his resume to someone who worked there, and he was hired within a week.

    This is not a call or collections centre either.

    Cross your fingers guys,

    Oh well, looks like things might be coming together for you. I too have applied for a data entry job. Afternoons only, but, it pays, so, fingers crossed there. The government department we have has a website where we can record all our job search activities, which saves staff having to trawl through paperwork and reading my handwriting.

    I've also hooked up with an organisation called The Shaw Trust who support people with disabilities and helps them find work. They were really helpful last time I was with them, so, things might just turn a corner.

    Good luck with your endeavours, hope you get what you want and need

    CHEERS!

  • TJohnTJohn Posts: 11,072
    edited December 1969

    Kyoto Kid said:


    Cross your fingers guys,

    Fingers, toes, arms, legs and eyes crossed.
    Hurry up though, this is kinda painful. :)
  • Muon QuarkMuon Quark Posts: 561
    edited December 1969

    Fingers crossed for you KK.

  • michaeltoomichaeltoo Posts: 219
    edited December 1969

    Hi KK,
    I will certainly be praying that things work out for you.
    God bless,
    michael

  • JennKJennK Posts: 834
    edited December 1969

    Got my fingers crossed for you KK.

  • RogerbeeRogerbee Posts: 4,460
    edited December 1969

    Mine too,

    Arms and legs would impede walking and I wouldn't be able to see properly if I crossed my eyes!

    CHEERS!

  • StormlyghtStormlyght Posts: 666
    edited December 1969

    Kyoto Kid said:
    Might have a line through an acquaintance on a job that pays decently and uses the date entry and database skills I have. Going to give him my resume to take in. Apparently this company (a large financial concern) likes to hire by employee referral rather than direct application. The nice thing is that it is right downtown (I can bike to work again instead of take the bus). When he sent applications and resumes "cold" to them he never got a response. After that he learned about how they did things gave his resume to someone who worked there, and he was hired within a week.

    This is not a call or collections centre either.

    Cross your fingers guys,

    Fingers and toes crossed.

    Trish

  • Miss BMiss B Posts: 3,071
    edited December 1969

    Kyoto Kid said:
    Might have a line through an acquaintance on a job that pays decently and uses the date entry and database skills I have. Going to give him my resume to take in. Apparently this company (a large financial concern) likes to hire by employee referral rather than direct application. The nice thing is that it is right downtown (I can bike to work again instead of take the bus). When he sent applications and resumes "cold" to them he never got a response. After that he learned about how they did things gave his resume to someone who worked there, and he was hired within a week.

    This is not a call or collections centre either.

    Cross your fingers guys,


    Oh this is encouraging Kyoto, very encouraging. Keeping my fingers and toes crossed you get hired. Well, maybe just the toes, since I need my fingers to "make art". :coolsmirk:
  • nobody1954nobody1954 Posts: 933
    edited December 1969

    Best of luck.

  • frank0314frank0314 Posts: 13,918
    edited December 1969

    Kyoto Kid said:
    ...well got al the coinage sorted out as was able to find someone who had the day off who could drive me to the bank.


    Seems my estimate was a bit "off". Turned out to be just shy of 350$ Not enough for rent but will take a little of the edge off so I can get my phone service restored and keep my internet for another month. Going to talk with the landlady to see if I can make a half month payment on rent. Hopefully when our senators get back on Monday they will approve the extension.

    As I have been continuing to file my work search reports I heard that I could be reimbursed for those weeks. That would take a bit of a load off.


    Might have a line through an acquaintance on a job that pays decently and uses the date entry and database skills I have. Going to give him my resume to take in. Apparently this company (a large financial concern) likes to hire by employee referral rather than direct application. The nice thing is that it is right downtown (I can bike to work again instead of take the bus). When he sent applications and resumes "cold" to them he never got a response. After that he learned about how they did things gave his resume to someone who worked there, and he was hired within a week.

    This is not a call or collections centre either.

    Cross your fingers guys,

    Thats good news. Best of luck to you. I know you need a bit of it atm

  • kyoto kidkyoto kid Posts: 40,940
    edited December 1969

    Rogerbee said:
    Kyoto Kid said:
    ...well got al the coinage sorted out as was able to find someone who had the day off who could drive me to the bank.


    Seems my estimate was a bit "off". Turned out to be just shy of 350$ Not enough for rent but will take a little of the edge off so I can get my phone service restored and keep my internet for another month. Going to talk with the landlady to see if I can make a half month payment on rent. Hopefully when our senators get back on Monday they will approve the extension.

    As I have been continuing to file my work search reports I heard that I could be reimbursed for those weeks. That would take a bit of a load off.


    Might have a line through an acquaintance on a job that pays decently and uses the date entry and database skills I have. Going to give him my resume to take in. Apparently this company (a large financial concern) likes to hire by employee referral rather than direct application. The nice thing is that it is right downtown (I can bike to work again instead of take the bus). When he sent applications and resumes "cold" to them he never got a response. After that he learned about how they did things gave his resume to someone who worked there, and he was hired within a week.

    This is not a call or collections centre either.

    Cross your fingers guys,

    Oh well, looks like things might be coming together for you. I too have applied for a data entry job. Afternoons only, but, it pays, so, fingers crossed there. The government department we have has a website where we can record all our job search activities, which saves staff having to trawl through paperwork and reading my handwriting.

    I've also hooked up with an organisation called The Shaw Trust who support people with disabilities and helps them find work. They were really helpful last time I was with them, so, things might just turn a corner.

    Good luck with your endeavours, hope you get what you want and need

    CHEERS!
    ...thank you.

    We have an organisation here for older people such as myself called the AARP, however all they seem to list are "WallyWorld" (WalMart) positions like greeter and customer service. 1. I'm not good with the public and 2. I really have serious issues supporting some of their practises (like the way they treat vendors and heavy reliance on cheap imports), which is why I don't even shop there.

  • frank0314frank0314 Posts: 13,918
    edited December 1969

    Your very limited at what you can get so take whatever is offered.

  • Subtropic PixelSubtropic Pixel Posts: 2,378
    edited December 1969

    Frank0314 said:
    Your very limited at what you can get so take whatever is offered.

    Yep, fact of life. Take whatever is offered so you can put food on the table. Small successes will help you build some confidence, which can have a huge bearing on your long-term success. Oh sure, with a greeter job you won't live like a king. But you won't have to be a pauper either, and you can hold your head high. THEN use that opportunity to make another one for yourself. Show them that you can do the next job up. Or keep looking elsewhere. At least you buy time with a greeter job.

  • kyoto kidkyoto kid Posts: 40,940
    edited December 1969

    ...there are some who understand my difficulty with face to face public contact jobs. On days when I'm feeling lousy and in pain, putting on the kind of "smiley happy face" that a place like WalMart requires for dealing directly with the public at large is just not going to happen.

    I can still be cordial and diplomatic (enough not to alienate my coworkers), just not overly enthusiastic, "rah rah, gung ho, everything's groovy" about it, especially for a company which I've had reservations about for some time.

  • namffuaknamffuak Posts: 4,126
    edited December 1969

    KK, I understand completely. Back in high school several decades ago we had to take a 'preferences' test (can't remember the name any more) - and I'd rather change light bulbs in dank, moldy closets than deal with the public.

  • Scott LivingstonScott Livingston Posts: 4,340
    edited December 1969

    Kyoto Kid said:
    ...thank you. Hoping this is the turn around I've been looking for all these months.

    I hope it is, KK...best of luck!
  • kyoto kidkyoto kid Posts: 40,940
    edited December 1969

    ...took one of those myself Twice. I believe it was called something like the Kuder (or Kruder) DD Occupational Interest Survey.

    The first time I took the test it gave me a match to positions I had absolutely no interest or desire to work in at all like the Medical Profession (I have a low "ick tolerance" & hated Bilogy), Business Management/Administration, Foodservice, and Accounting (*yawn*).

    The only computer related career results the test accommodated were for occupations like Keypunch Secretary or Airline Ticket Agent.

    (of course back then computers were still these "mysterious" monolithic machines hidden in the basements of university research centres and government/military agencies that men wearing lab coats and black plastic rimmed glasses with pencils behind their ears and a slide rule in their pockets actually worked on)

    I ended up finding myself taking the exact same test again as part of a career building workshop I enrolled in after graduation. Figured out from the previous time I took it how to rig my answers to get professions that were in my real areas of interest like Aeronautics, Hard Science (loved Physics, Astronomy, and Advanced Math), Engineering and the Arts.

    Essentially, I pulled a J. T. Kirk by purposely changing the outcome of the test to fit my needs.

  • TJohnTJohn Posts: 11,072
    edited December 1969

    My aptitude tests said I should get a Bachelor's in Biology and take a job working in a Quality Department in manufacturing in a totally unrelated field, drifting about and changing tasks whenever possible for 32 years and then taking early retirement.
    Turned out to be an amazingly accurate profile, really.

  • namffuaknamffuak Posts: 4,126
    edited December 1969

    Yeah, that's the test!

    In my case the results were pretty accurate - even if the one was mathematically impossible (-2 percentile in personal/social). Yeah, I don't like people and I really do work well with machines of all kinds, but -2 percentile?

    So I went into electrical engineering, ran into computers at college (Purdue), flunked out (technically they didn't tell me not to come back, I just assumed it to be the better option) and got a job locally as a computer operator. And 40 years later (6 at the first outfit, 34+ at the second) - having been operator, programmer, systems programmer, systems administrator, and all-round jack of all trades, I retired.

    And THEN I spend some time on the web and find I fit very closely the characteristics of borderline or high-functioning Asperger's Syndrome. :roll:

    Luck to you, man - I've enjoyed your work these past few years!

  • TJohnTJohn Posts: 11,072
    edited January 2014

    namffuak said:
    Yeah, that's the test!

    In my case the results were pretty accurate - even if the one was mathematically impossible (-2 percentile in personal/social). Yeah, I don't like people and I really do work well with machines of all kinds, but -2 percentile?

    So I went into electrical engineering, ran into computers at college (Purdue), flunked out (technically they didn't tell me not to come back, I just assumed it to be the better option) and got a job locally as a computer operator. And 40 years later (6 at the first outfit, 34+ at the second) - having been operator, programmer, systems programmer, systems administrator, and all-round jack of all trades, I retired.

    And THEN I spend some time on the web and find I fit very closely the characteristics of borderline or high-functioning Asperger's Syndrome. :roll:

    Luck to you, man - I've enjoyed your work these past few years!


    I just found a questionnaire for Asperger's on the Wired website.
    Asperger's on the scale of scoring began at "32". My score? 32
    At 60, I've actually learned to cope better with spending time around people. I still have difficulty with looking people in the eye when speaking with them. And I warm up to new people very slowly; weeks, sometimes longer. And as a life-long bachelor I still get a lot of uncomfortable questions. "Are you gay?" No.
    Most people are confused when I tell them I enjoy living alone, and never get lonely.
    When I was 30, it would be a sure bet that I would have scored higher on that test. :)
    Post edited by TJohn on
  • kyoto kidkyoto kid Posts: 40,940
    edited December 1969

    ...scored 28.

    There are a few social situations I do feel OK with (like participating in RPGs or sports talk at the corner pub for example) but usually only with people I've known for a a while. I'm not one of those who would start a conversation with a stranger.

    Otherwise I am a bit similar.

    Yeah, I've got the "gay"question asked before to which I simply answer, "no, just single and fine with that."


    I can handle being in public and around people well enough to make it through the day, but am always relieved when I get home. My ability to sense people's emotions does make it difficult though which is why I have to close myself off to the world around me at times and just dive into my work, be it my job, or my 3D work. That's why the last place I worked at was such an emotional rollercoaster for me.

    Yeah I tend to be a little more relaxed on forums and blogs. Many wonder why I don't have a Farcebook or TWIT-er page. Nah, those places get too weird (in the wrong sense) for my tastes.

  • namffuaknamffuak Posts: 4,126
    edited December 1969

    Score - 34

    Like tjohn, single and live alone. In my case, house on 4.5 acres in direct center of a 15 acre woods. 3 neighbors, all usually run into while shopping and not while outdoors. I've got my books, video tapes, and DVDs - no shortage of diversion.

    I do well in 1 on 1 or 1 on 2 conversations; when the third person joins I might as well not be there.

    Two anecdotes, one general, one specific: I am very reticent around someone I've just met - but if I run into the same person a year later he's an old friend and the conversation flows freely, even if we only spent a few minutes together the first time.

    Second - as a sysadmin - I had a major upgrade/hardware swap coming up. Now the SAP/Oracle guys had a 500-page checklist they went through on every upgrade. I was ready to go with one and a half pages of notes on an 5 X8 notepad. My department head was a tad concerned, so he asked me to brief him and my boss (tech services head) on the plan. I passed out a copy of my notepad sheets, with each note numbered. And the 25-page written expansion of the notes into steps to be performed - and indicated that a number of the bullet points on the detail could also be expanded, but there was no point. Of the 25 pages, only four matched any previous hardware swap/upgrade and was the reason I didn't bother writing out the detail.

    I finished the upgrade 2 hours early and the result ran trouble free until the next scheduled swap 3 years later.

    Yeah, I'm an Aspie.

  • kyoto kidkyoto kid Posts: 40,940
    edited January 2014

    ...speaking of Oracle, the last two times I was referred to them by one of my "head hunter" sites (clerical/admin positions - not into the techie stuff) I got a 505 error that their career/job site was down and to check back later. Did the next day and the site was still down.

    Post edited by kyoto kid on
  • BendinggrassBendinggrass Posts: 1,369
    edited December 1969

    Dear KK,

    I just found your posts here.
    Things are very hard for you, and all I can do from here is keep you in my prayers, which I will do.
    If you have any other health problems or concerns, or even emotional issues, that may assist in getting your retirement benefits.
    Difficulty in dealing with the public, depression, anxiety, can all make a "simple" health problem much worse. Together such issues could help you to get your retirement benefits based on another reason, such as multiple episodes of depression through life.

    I hope this helps a bit.
    I will not forget you in my daily prayers.

    Randy

  • frank0314frank0314 Posts: 13,918
    edited December 1969

    Kyoto Kid said:
    ...speaking of Oracle, the last two times I was referred to them by one of my "head hunter" sites (clerical/admin positions - not into the techie stuff) I got a 505 error that their career/job site was down and to check back later. Did the next day and the site was still down.

    Have you heard anything from the guy you know that was going to turn in your resume. I think it was a data job

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