How My Son Has Helped Me Cope With Job Searching

"Why should I hire you?"

Being out of work is really never fun.

Okay; I take that back. Being out of work can be fun for the first week or so (unless you get your wisdom teeth out). After that, being out of work just gets tough.

Luckily for me I have two sons that have been helping me through my days.

As you can see, Aedyn has been helping me out with some role-playing to get my interviewing chops back.He is tough.
I actually think I was on my way to getting the job before he asked me that word problem with the 5 apples and 50 bowling balls.

Who has 50 bowling balls in real life?

Sometimes You Just Gotta Dance!

Sometimes you just gotta dance!

While it has been a little stressful being out of work these past few weeks, I will say that I have loved having special moments with my family.

Tonight I had one of those moments.

Heather was away teaching her first ballet class in years (Hooray!!) so it was just me and the boys.

Since I have been writing more frequently these days I have started listening to music while I write and have especially taken to putting on a Pandora station I created around the electronic dance style music of the group, Daft Punk.

The songs are mostly upbeat and don't have lyrics, so I can set a great pace for myself without getting sidetracked. But back to dancing...

Finishing Well

I have never been a strong finisher.

Starting well is easy.

A new project. A new recipe. A new diet. A new job.

I can deal with the frustrations and bummers because the new there is energy and excitement that helps me see all the possibility and promise in the new things in my life.

The problem I usually face is when the excitement wears of and the reality of my situation sets in.

Wisdom Teeth and Job Searches

So, what's up with my title?

Well, these are the two most significant topics in my life as of late.

For a few years now I have been experiencing intermittent pain from my two lower wisdom teeth. Since the pain has not been constant and I didn't have dental insurance for most of that time I have just been getting by with ibuprofen to take the edge off.

After I was promoted to General Manager last October (more on that front later) I could actually afford dental insurance. The down side was that I was working a new job that required a minimum of 50 hours a week and we were headed into the busiest part of the year.

Not a situation conducive to having oral surgery performed.

So... I waited.

Then, two weeks ago I was asked to step down as General Manager at the restaurant. All of the sudden I have plenty of free time and have to move quickly before my insurance runs out.

I would like to think that usually I am a pretty tough guy; but getting my wisdom teeth extracted was a big deal.

I decided to go ahead and undergo general anesthesia. Not only was it recommended by the oral surgeon, it was covered by my insurance.

As time passed and I came closer to the appointment I started getting nervous. This was kind of a big deal to a guy who had spent all of a few hours in a doctor's office since being born.

I was starting to worry about what would happen if there were complications that lasted beyond my insurance coverage period. I started to worry about the anesthesia.

Luckily the day came quickly and since it was first thing in the morning I was knocked out by the anesthesia almost before I had a chance to wake up.

The surgery went fine and Heather did a great job of taking care of me as I recovered.

I found that the most frustrating thing about getting my wisdom teeth removed was not being able to chew properly, and thus, not being able to taste food normally.

I have never really considered myself a foodie, but I do have a pretty good palate and enjoy cooking. So it was frustrating to cook a meal for my family and not be able to fully enjoy all the flavors.

I also found that I can be a bit impatient when it comes to recovery... okay... extremely impatient.

I over did it on Wednesday and have been paying the price for my transgressions since then.

Which leads me to the job search.

After losing my job, I had decided to be serious about searching for new employment.

I had a plan; a well laid out strategy with milestones and goals. A plan that got shot all to smithereens since I couldn't talk and was hopped up on pain meds for the better part of the week.

I will say that one positive outcome of all this "down time" has been the ability to really contemplate what it is I want out of my next job.

While I loved my last job, I didn't like all the time I spent away from my family. The last week was marked by a great deal of training, which meant I went nearly 4 days without seeing my sons while they were awake.

That may not affect some people, but it actually drove me to tears.

I really do have a better appreciation for my family after this week.

Despite my sons' special talent for getting into all things they should not, they really are very special to me and the joy of my life. I also have a better appreciation for my wife and the way she loves and cares for me and our boys.

I guess that makes this one of the best weeks I have ever had.