Good evening folks.
It has not been a fun day for me today. In the so called Town Hall Meeting, the operations manager has been for the past six months making inwards of moving our printing department up to some place in Minnesota, the first shot was fired when we had to do a prepare for the future of job elimination but in their smart P.C. mode called it something else. A lotta people was kinda looking around but we didn't think much of it, although I noticed in the weeks since that some of our stuff we printed was being moved up north. But today the smug dude said that most of what we print will be up in Minnesota by the end of August. Therefore, my time after 25 years at the great NCS (RIP) and Pearson may be coming to a close. And won't have a blue cart in my name for time rendered.
Which means the lifestyle that I have enjoyed for the past 25 years will be over. There'll probably be no more Arizona trips or Vegas, the bargain hunts to Madison will be either be done or a weekend thing unless we move over to become a jack of all trades whereever Pearson needs help. Which means packaging or scanning or whatever the hell peak season is down there. Which means set breaks, set lunch and set exercises that don't a thing. The plan is to bring the Iowa City folk up there, move printing to Minnesota and close down the PSY building and move that to the Iowa City location.
I'm not much into the rah rah shit, when we were down in Packaging we did our job the best way we know how but I work at a pace that doesn't set rates, that's a sticking point to them despite the fact I might been a dedicated 25 year employee, it's basically what have you done for me lately? And I'm not sure if I'm the dedicated employee that has to hear the slightest bitchings and complaints and get written up for the slightest of things.
Everybody is in shock, it was bound to happen but I thought it would be moreso in 2015 but that before they decided to go with the Onotonna dude who was head up there. When you're 52 years old, you don't have much chances out there, unless you know somebody and our department has been my family for the past 20 years. Going to Minnesota would mean job security for a while, unless they lose a big contract and then you're hanging again and the internet and digital goings on has been killing our paper printing business for at least a decade. The only advantage I would see is that it's a hour away from Minneapolis and St Paul which does have at least four Half Priced Bookstores to go too and a few more select record stores but the big drawback is that I know nobody from Minnesota there, unless they're big shots.
It's not bleak for me, I do have four choices of note. 1) Move up to Onatonna and try to fit in up there and work all them hours since they got all the work up there. But the weather sucks in winter, they get twice more snow than I do, it probably floods in the summer and I hate Minnesota. They have a Wal Mart and a Target but anything close by for music I'm SOL. 2) Roll the dice and hope on April 15th that we managed to get in on the other side of the department and humble ourselves to do their dirty work. Will that mean a reduce in pay I don't know, I'm sure I make more than some of them anyway. There's some good people that work there but there's a lot more snippy seniors and a no nonsense boss who charges you a dollar for a cookie that goes to Pearson Cares or some other thing they're hyping. The drawback might be I make too much $$$ and may have to lower it four or five bucks more and this day and age I don't see bills being lower anytime soon. The state of Iowa may have to start paying me again. 3) Take a severance payout and live off them for a full year, the only advantage of being there 20 plus years. The plus is that health and dental care will still be there, and may use that for a hangnail or gas problem. This might be the way to go, if they plan to let us all go before September hits, that will enable me to use my 5 weeks vacation and week's personal time off before then and still get paid the full year which might enable me to spend more time out in the desert and even pay Diggy Kat a visit to do some music together, but that's a dream. 4) Retire, a blue cart dedication for my years of being there and live whatever is off the 401K but that would be going into poverty since 64,000 dollars doesn't go very far in this day and age.
Or the final solution: Die.
This also figures into any more future of blogging. If I have to go into survival mode chances are I may have to ditch the internet and computer and go back to a nonexistent life before computers and the blog. To go into survival mode means I'd be cutting way back on eating out, cutting down on future bargain hunts and even Half Priced Books in town would see less of me unless they hire me on. I could also open up a junk shop or antique store since I have enough things here at the Hoarder House to eek out a good living but God forbid if I have a major health issue unless it's a heart attack or stroke or walking out in front of a train. But probably a better way just to open up a EBAY online store and go from there.
It's hard to believe back in 1988 when they first hired me that I'd be there as long as I had been. I guess the reason why is that our department has been a family to me for all these years and even though some have come and gone that the majority of folk that has stayed these years have been good friends and great co workers. I know they have put up a lot with me in my rants and ravings and when the machines breakdown or the form is shit I blow up in a rage and I can't do that if I move to Minnesota or packaging. My anger issues need to be better under control but perhaps a change or scenery or job might do wonders. But I love each and every co worker that has been a part of second shift and to see this coming to an end does break my heart. We have a great team of bosses in Kirk Hoeppner and John Allen, to which Allen has been one of the best managers that I had the pleasure of working with. Nobody wants to see it end but sad to say it has been decided and implementation is starting to take place. We don't like it but what you can do? Either go with it or move on.
And this is the fork in the road that I face. And I am still deciding which one to take.
