Ugh, I've been soo busy at work I haven't had time to think about anything else. I've been soo ecstatic about Barack Obama but mentally it's been kind of an anticlimactic time because I've been too busy to really bask in this achievement. I actually forgot about a doctor's appointment yesterday! I rescheduled for this Wednesday.
Speaking of doctors, I'm still waiting to hear from NT's HR whether it would be cheaper to join his health plan or to stay on my company's next year. It's hard because their open enrollment isn't till the first of the year, but I've got to make my decision here by mid-November. Hope I get some information in the next day or so!
AS is still waiting to be "officially" laid off, though it's been acknowledged by everyone she's spoken to. And the terms of the layoff keep changing. First they said she could leave whenever she wanted after it was announced, and still be eligible for severance and unemployment. Then it was stated that they had to put in the letter that she would work for 28 more days, but that she could still leave whenever and get unemployment, though no severance. The latest scoop is that she'd have to stay the 28 days, or else it would count as a resignation, and if that happened, she'd get neither severance nor unemployment benefits!
Well, that leaves her with two options, both of which she's willing to go forward with depending on how things pan out. 1. Try to get them to retrodate the letter, pointing out (if they protest) that she has been working for at least 2 months since she learned about the layoff, and that they've broken any number of well-documented rules regarding the layoff notification process already, so why not break another (and avoid legal action against them)? (This option contains several levels of escalation which may or may not be necessary.) Or 2. When she gets the letter, "work" the 28 remaining days by calling in sick, taking vacation days, working from home and taking advantage of the Thanksgiving holiday so that she's not actually in the office for any of the days. This might actually end up being the road she takes. (Did I mention she doesn't have any work to do because there is no budget for any new products? And that she commutes 45 minutes each way to sit around and do said nothing?) Whatever it ends up being, she's determined to get at least unemployment, if not severance, since she's stuck it out this long solely for that reason.
I've signed up for National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo.org) again this year, but thanks to Halloween party, election fever and the insanity at work, I haven't written a word. Well, I probably will try to participate anyway. It's not like I ever finish, so doesn't really matter when I get started!
I've fallen behind on my budgeting too this week, but all it really needs is for me to total up our grocery and party spending and subtract that from the household line item, so it won't be too hard to catch up. Hopefully I'll have a little time this afternoon!
One of NT's student loans is already coming due--the private one. I thought those didn't need to be paid until after he stopped school. I was going to call them and check it out, but it's less than $50 per month, so I've decided to just start paying it. I can find room in the budget for it, and it will mean chipping away at our big student loan debt, and it doesn't take that much away from our CC debt snowball, so I don't mind.
BTW he is getting straight As and high 90s grades in all classes so far! I'm very proud of him.
I guess that's all in my frazzled world right now. Just felt like writing for awhile. Thanks for listening!
STILL waiting on layoff! and other news
November 6th, 2008 at 06:26 pm
November 6th, 2008 at 07:01 pm 1225998084
Have AS try to stick it out for severence depending on what it is (if it's only two weeks, skip it). I had DH inquire as to what the severence is at his present job. I was thrilled to find out that it was two monthes. At least I don't have to wonder what $ I'd have to work with should he be laid off.
Congrats on a smart hubby! My kids brought home their report cards on Monday and got all As and Bs!
November 6th, 2008 at 07:23 pm 1225999380
It's just a week's severance; pathetic! We don't even care about that anymore. But qualifying for unemployment compensation, even though it's only about $800 per month, would mean the difference between us being able to meet our budget and AS having time to really carefully look for a job that suited her; or AS having to scramble to find any old job, thus keeping her from pursuing the dreams afforded her by her master's degree. So she's gonna fight to get that "laid-off" vs. "resigned" status from her job so she qualifies.
November 6th, 2008 at 07:54 pm 1226001297
That severance is pathetic! I'd definitely do whatever to qualify for unemployment, even if it surfing the web looking for the next job! Good luck to her!
November 6th, 2008 at 11:47 pm 1226015243
November 7th, 2008 at 06:41 am 1226040101
November 7th, 2008 at 06:36 pm 1226083016