Well now.....I am day two of this "retirement", "sabbatical", being out of work.....whatever it is I want to call it. There is finally time to start reading all those emails that have been coming in for the past few months since I posted my resume on (site withheld). In the past I was only glancing at them here and there, not having time to read all of them. Now I've got time and have been going thru them. This morning I applied for another contract position; one here in Tucson. It's with a medical device manufacturer. We'll see where that one goes.
My mood has been both up and down as of late. One moment I am excited about having this block of time off and thinking that I just might enjoy retirement and stay in it. Another moment later on I am stressed about how I'm going to do this, how I'm going to handle this, and feeling a sense of anxiety that was almost as bad as the anxiety I had earlier this year when I was starting up that new assignment. I guess I can expect more of this as the days drag on.
Sheila came over last night to watch an old Hawaii Five-O episode with me, after which we went out to the back patio for a long talk. There is one employer in Florida that is looking for engineers, primarily in Orlando and we were discussing that (one of their recruiters contacted me some weeks back). I haven't been to Orlando since 1986 when I was with my then supervisor, Clarence "Lumpy" Smith, who unfortunately is no longer with us. We were talking about Florida, and he said that if he had to leave California he would try to land in Florida, and I agreed. My then firm needed engineers at the Eastern Test Range near Patrick AFB and I thought about it a lot. I decided against it as that I saw that the work would be drying up in 18 months, and I wasn't going to go out there if I had to be looking for another job that soon.
Later on, in the 1989-1990 timeframe I was making some trips out to St Pete and I found myself wanting to get a job with that company, which of course didn't happen as that was overcome by other events. In mid-1991 they had an opening that I would have been perfect for; it was with a satellite project I was well familiar with. I would have gotten the job if I had applied for it, hands down. But at that time, like there is now, I was engaged and things then were stable and there wasn't really a need to pursue that opportunity.
Now I am learning that there are opportunities out there, and I have been discussing those with Sheila.
Sheila doesn't like Florida and doesn't want to live there. My preference is to remain in Arizona, but the reality is that you have to go where the money is if you're going to work and right now there is money in Florida too. One issue though with Florida is the distance of move and the other is that it's further away from my parents. I can get to San Jose a whole lot easier from here than I can from there, when I get that phone call that's going to come one day that I am needed in San Jose.
Sheila has green-lighted my contacting that recruiter again, and I think I will call her (the recruiter, that is) on Monday to apprise her that I am available. Phoenix though would be preferable, and much easier to deal with. Having once worked for that employer I don't know if they would bridge my prior service or not but that's a discussion that can be had later if need be.
I do know one thing. I am much more open to the idea of leaving Tucson than I was six months ago. It would obviously be easier to remain here for everyone involved, but as I said up above, you have to go where the money is.
Saturday, June 28, 2014
Friday, June 27, 2014
I'm Retired.....for the Time Being........
Yesterday my employer of 15+ years had another round of layoffs, I think the sixth or seventh since they started doing this last year. It was my turn this time. After 15+ years of service, and at the age of 55+, I was handed my severance package yesterday morning. This brings to the end one chapter of life that was started in March 1999 and it ushers in another.
To be honest, I saw this coming. I can now make public that throughout the course of this year, in my nearly-monthly meetings with my financial planner, I have been examining various retirement scenarios. It was sorely tempting to pull that trigger two months ago, but if I had I would have forfeited a severance package that would have come my way thru the inevitable layoff. They're downsizing, and the best guestimate that I have is that the workforce in Tucson with this employer will be, within two years, just barely half of what it once was some four years ago when the downturn in this industry started.
One thing my mother told me a month or so ago is that retirement isn't what you think it is. She's very right in that. I was beginning to hate going in to work. I didn't hate the job per se.....I love engineering and I have no regrets about choosing the profession in the first place. But when you see several rounds of layoffs and rumors of more to come, the workforce becomes demoralized. You start thinking about retirement. You wonder if it's time for the changes.
The changes of course, have been forced upon me, as I have seen them forced upon some others. Yes, I saw this coming, but I'll have to admit that maybe I'm not really ready for retirement. Maybe not just yet.
As I am typing this, I have been in touch with various recruiters. One week ago today I was called out of the blue by a Florida-based firm that is recruiting for contract positions. There is a rather lucrative opportunity in Phoenix that they want me to apply for, and I have already given them the green light on this. It's contract-to-hire.....it lasts for five or six months, and if they like me then I'll get a permanent offer. Sheila will have to run the household while I am up there, and I think she'll want to have the knot tied before I go. I don't know if this opportunity is a longshot or in the bag but you don't get these if you pass on them.
I think what I really needed was a sabbatical, and one right now seems assured. I took last week off for a vacation, not knowing that a forced one was imminent. I was hoping to hold off on this for a few more years, then go on my sabbatical, and decide later on if I was going to come out of retirement and be an engineer again or do something different like a part time job somewhere bagging groceries or stocking shelves.
Regardless, I am in a state of transition right now. I know some others who were forced down this road and there will most assuredly be more who follow. Some hard decisions will have to be made. Sheila would like to leave Tucson, and although I have found myself loving to live here these past 15+ years, it probably is time to consider a new town. I have several friends up in Phoenix and I have relatives on both sides in the Midwest. I would much rather remain in Arizona, but it may be desirable to move further north some and put some more mileage between here and the border when you consider what's been going on lately. I guess what I would really like to do is go into contracting, and work nine months out of the year and have three months off....working in other cities but coming home to Tucson between contracts. And then when I get tired of that, retire for good.
Anyhow....today was my first day of my "retirement", as I prefer to call it. I met with the financial planner again this morning (this was planned some time ago) and I don't need to be robbing my retirement savings just yet. Ten years ago I made it my mission to get one year's worth of house payments in the bank, and then I started working on getting my second year's worth in there as well. There's also additional funds I have access to that I am not counting towards that, which I may not have to tap at all seeing as how I have a very healthy 401k balance.
As for how I'm coping, I have a volunteer counselor from my church coming over tomorrow morning to visit with me. I have been a volunteer counselor for the past 2+ years and I guess I now am on the other end of that. This kind of transition, although doable, may not be easy on some days. I can tell you that today I have been both elated and depressed. Elated that I am free of the business conditions I've seen as of late, but depressed because I am, at the moment, not a practicing engineer. I know that I can't be an engineer forever and didn't want to for the rest of my life. I envisioned a retirement where there would be plenty of hiking, hunting and fishing......Arizona's good for all three, but for right now it's too hot to do any of these.
Meantime, I will be looking for contract engineering work in the weeks to come, but if a good permanent position comes along I would certainly entertain a return to that kind of work. I also should get caught up on some things in the house and to get it ready for my upcoming marriage, the date of which has not been set. For all we know we may just go downtown to the courthouse and get it over with.
I have to say that Sheila has really been a wonderful support for me. In the past I have unfortunately gotten used to womenfolk abandoning me whenever the going got tough. I've known for some time that Sheila is most definitely a keeper, and I don't need this kind of circumstance to have that proven to me. As I'm writing this, I guess what I really want in retirement is several years with her.
So......a new chapter in life is now here. It's a great unknown. It's both scary and exciting at the same time.
Forward I go.
To be honest, I saw this coming. I can now make public that throughout the course of this year, in my nearly-monthly meetings with my financial planner, I have been examining various retirement scenarios. It was sorely tempting to pull that trigger two months ago, but if I had I would have forfeited a severance package that would have come my way thru the inevitable layoff. They're downsizing, and the best guestimate that I have is that the workforce in Tucson with this employer will be, within two years, just barely half of what it once was some four years ago when the downturn in this industry started.
One thing my mother told me a month or so ago is that retirement isn't what you think it is. She's very right in that. I was beginning to hate going in to work. I didn't hate the job per se.....I love engineering and I have no regrets about choosing the profession in the first place. But when you see several rounds of layoffs and rumors of more to come, the workforce becomes demoralized. You start thinking about retirement. You wonder if it's time for the changes.
The changes of course, have been forced upon me, as I have seen them forced upon some others. Yes, I saw this coming, but I'll have to admit that maybe I'm not really ready for retirement. Maybe not just yet.
As I am typing this, I have been in touch with various recruiters. One week ago today I was called out of the blue by a Florida-based firm that is recruiting for contract positions. There is a rather lucrative opportunity in Phoenix that they want me to apply for, and I have already given them the green light on this. It's contract-to-hire.....it lasts for five or six months, and if they like me then I'll get a permanent offer. Sheila will have to run the household while I am up there, and I think she'll want to have the knot tied before I go. I don't know if this opportunity is a longshot or in the bag but you don't get these if you pass on them.
I think what I really needed was a sabbatical, and one right now seems assured. I took last week off for a vacation, not knowing that a forced one was imminent. I was hoping to hold off on this for a few more years, then go on my sabbatical, and decide later on if I was going to come out of retirement and be an engineer again or do something different like a part time job somewhere bagging groceries or stocking shelves.
Regardless, I am in a state of transition right now. I know some others who were forced down this road and there will most assuredly be more who follow. Some hard decisions will have to be made. Sheila would like to leave Tucson, and although I have found myself loving to live here these past 15+ years, it probably is time to consider a new town. I have several friends up in Phoenix and I have relatives on both sides in the Midwest. I would much rather remain in Arizona, but it may be desirable to move further north some and put some more mileage between here and the border when you consider what's been going on lately. I guess what I would really like to do is go into contracting, and work nine months out of the year and have three months off....working in other cities but coming home to Tucson between contracts. And then when I get tired of that, retire for good.
Anyhow....today was my first day of my "retirement", as I prefer to call it. I met with the financial planner again this morning (this was planned some time ago) and I don't need to be robbing my retirement savings just yet. Ten years ago I made it my mission to get one year's worth of house payments in the bank, and then I started working on getting my second year's worth in there as well. There's also additional funds I have access to that I am not counting towards that, which I may not have to tap at all seeing as how I have a very healthy 401k balance.
As for how I'm coping, I have a volunteer counselor from my church coming over tomorrow morning to visit with me. I have been a volunteer counselor for the past 2+ years and I guess I now am on the other end of that. This kind of transition, although doable, may not be easy on some days. I can tell you that today I have been both elated and depressed. Elated that I am free of the business conditions I've seen as of late, but depressed because I am, at the moment, not a practicing engineer. I know that I can't be an engineer forever and didn't want to for the rest of my life. I envisioned a retirement where there would be plenty of hiking, hunting and fishing......Arizona's good for all three, but for right now it's too hot to do any of these.
Meantime, I will be looking for contract engineering work in the weeks to come, but if a good permanent position comes along I would certainly entertain a return to that kind of work. I also should get caught up on some things in the house and to get it ready for my upcoming marriage, the date of which has not been set. For all we know we may just go downtown to the courthouse and get it over with.
I have to say that Sheila has really been a wonderful support for me. In the past I have unfortunately gotten used to womenfolk abandoning me whenever the going got tough. I've known for some time that Sheila is most definitely a keeper, and I don't need this kind of circumstance to have that proven to me. As I'm writing this, I guess what I really want in retirement is several years with her.
So......a new chapter in life is now here. It's a great unknown. It's both scary and exciting at the same time.
Forward I go.
Monday, June 9, 2014
Monday, 6/9/14
When I arrived at work this morning there was an email from my supervisor. I'm being placed in charge of a huge technical data package, this time having responsibility for schedule and budget. It's a huge one; it will take some six months to execute. I view it as a resume enhancer and I'm glad that this one landed in my lap!
I am also continuing support of the computer re-design effort, which is also a resume enhancer. I split time between the two. This places me in the position of having to serve two masters at once, and in the past that's not been a good position to be in.
However, the universe these days is not operating normally. One of the deputy chief engineers came up with a quote last year that's still on my white board: "Bizarre is normal".
I know one of the two masters is pleased and my mission now is to please the other.
I think I'll somehow manage to pull it off.
Sheila is now proudly displaying her engagement ring. In all the time I've known her, I've never seen her this happy! People keep asking us if we've set a date yet, and we haven't.....I mean, one thing at time. I still need to get her a wedding band and we need to get a ring for me.
There has been a lot of controversy over the so-called Bergdahl Release. I'm using the phrase "so-called" because I'm not sure at this point in time if the Obama administration paid a cash bribe, excuse me, ransom, to the Taliban. What we do know at this point in time is that we don't know everything there is to know about this.
When this first broke, there were comments on the Yahoo articles that Bergdahl was a deserter. I wasn't sure what to make out of all of this as that the initial news reports said he was being released after five years of "captivity". It now seems as if these initial commenters are on to something, and we have a lot of veterans upset over how this all came about.
I'm not happy about this myself, as that the Taliban got the five guys that they most wanted. I also see this as an opportunity that Obama had to weaken the country even further, and there was no way that he was going to let that go.
I feel the need to remind what audience I have here about something.
The Republican Establishment, in the early 2009 timeframe, went on record to state that they wished to see Obama "succeed". Every Republican in a leadership position in the RNC or in Congress said that. "We want Obama to succeed!". Not one of them has ever repudiated that. Not John McCain. Not Lindsey Graham. Not Reince Preibus.
Bottom line: if you're hoping for articles of impeachment, forget it. There's no way that will happen. No way.
Remember: the Republicans want Obama to succeed.
You have to wonder why the Taliban is working to destroy the United States, while we have a Republican (and Democrat!) Establishment that is working to accomplish the same thing.....though albeit from within.
If I sound like I am thoroughly disgusted with both parties, it's because I am.
I guess I could join the Libertarians, but I don't think they want me either.
Weather in Tucson has been hot, as can be expected this time of year, but I don't remember previous Junes being as hot as this one. We had a mild winter and if we have a harsh summer then I wouldn't be surprised.
It does make me think we might be in for a colder winter than usual, as that we don't ever seem to find the middle ground here when it comes to weather.
That's it. I'm out of here for now.
Don't forget to pet a dog or a cat!
I am also continuing support of the computer re-design effort, which is also a resume enhancer. I split time between the two. This places me in the position of having to serve two masters at once, and in the past that's not been a good position to be in.
However, the universe these days is not operating normally. One of the deputy chief engineers came up with a quote last year that's still on my white board: "Bizarre is normal".
I know one of the two masters is pleased and my mission now is to please the other.
I think I'll somehow manage to pull it off.
* * * * * * *
Sheila is now proudly displaying her engagement ring. In all the time I've known her, I've never seen her this happy! People keep asking us if we've set a date yet, and we haven't.....I mean, one thing at time. I still need to get her a wedding band and we need to get a ring for me.
* * * * * * *
There has been a lot of controversy over the so-called Bergdahl Release. I'm using the phrase "so-called" because I'm not sure at this point in time if the Obama administration paid a cash bribe, excuse me, ransom, to the Taliban. What we do know at this point in time is that we don't know everything there is to know about this.
When this first broke, there were comments on the Yahoo articles that Bergdahl was a deserter. I wasn't sure what to make out of all of this as that the initial news reports said he was being released after five years of "captivity". It now seems as if these initial commenters are on to something, and we have a lot of veterans upset over how this all came about.
I'm not happy about this myself, as that the Taliban got the five guys that they most wanted. I also see this as an opportunity that Obama had to weaken the country even further, and there was no way that he was going to let that go.
I feel the need to remind what audience I have here about something.
The Republican Establishment, in the early 2009 timeframe, went on record to state that they wished to see Obama "succeed". Every Republican in a leadership position in the RNC or in Congress said that. "We want Obama to succeed!". Not one of them has ever repudiated that. Not John McCain. Not Lindsey Graham. Not Reince Preibus.
Bottom line: if you're hoping for articles of impeachment, forget it. There's no way that will happen. No way.
Remember: the Republicans want Obama to succeed.
You have to wonder why the Taliban is working to destroy the United States, while we have a Republican (and Democrat!) Establishment that is working to accomplish the same thing.....though albeit from within.
* * * * * * *
If I sound like I am thoroughly disgusted with both parties, it's because I am.
I guess I could join the Libertarians, but I don't think they want me either.
* * * * * * *
Weather in Tucson has been hot, as can be expected this time of year, but I don't remember previous Junes being as hot as this one. We had a mild winter and if we have a harsh summer then I wouldn't be surprised.
It does make me think we might be in for a colder winter than usual, as that we don't ever seem to find the middle ground here when it comes to weather.
* * * * * * *
That's it. I'm out of here for now.
Don't forget to pet a dog or a cat!
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