Good news for people who love bad news

[constance]

After spending a relatively painless couple of hours down at my local department of labor (where I saw one of my former coworkers), I am now part of the problem and not the solution. Yes, for the first time ever, I'm collecting unemployment, and it feels a little icky, sure, but I'll be able to pay my bills; and it seems a small price to pay, ye olde job-hunt patronage for the privilege of, like, keeping my house. With a little judicious pruning, and some creative grocery planning, I should be able to manage without trouble.

And that's not even the best thing about today. I went with my mother to her latest doctor's appointment, and NO MASTECTOMY. Just some new medications, and off the estrogen, and lots of soy, and with any luck, she will be like one of the women in the trials who went from having surgery every year to no surgery at all in six years. So, GOOD NEWS. Just hearing the oncologist's gasp of appalled consternation when my mother mentioned the dreaded M-word was worth the price of the copay.

I'm feeling pretty cheerful right now, all things considered. I'm more-or-less on a shoestring budget, but financially secure for the moment. I got to sleep to 9:00 this morning. Friends and former coworkers are coming through to offer up recommendations and job leads. My dogs don't know what to do, they're so excited to have me home. And no mastectomy!

Comments

[gmth.livejournal.com]

First off, yay for your mom! That's such great news. Here's wishing her good health for many years to come. :-)

But please, stop feeling icky about collecting unemployment. Remember, part of the money you're getting is from your former employer, you know, the one that screwed you over. This is their penalty for being asshats. Collect as much as you can, I say.

[tofty.livejournal.com]

Hahaha, the fact that it's my former boss's money is definitely making the idea more palatable. One of my work friends also got laid off, and she remarked that she'd like to stay on unemployment as lng as possible, just to make them suffer. I don't have the luxury of stringing this out to the very end--but it's definitely a temptation!

And I think my whole family is feeling better about my mother's situation. :D:D:D!

[leestone.livejournal.com]

Yes! >:D You will triumph and I love you.

[tofty.livejournal.com]

*sings rousing version of "We Shall Overcome"*

I love you too! :*:*:*

[violetisblue.livejournal.com]

Yay for everything! :-) I didn't think your mother would end up with a mastectomy--they try to avoid that as much as possible unless things are quite advanced. Good luck to you both.

[tofty.livejournal.com]

I have no problem believing that mastectomy is a last resort, but my mother's regular doctor was bandying the word about so much that he had us in a panic. I'm glad he's just a crazy old man!

:):):)

[laurelwood.livejournal.com]

Oh, wow, that's so terrific about your mom! What a fabulous piece of news!!

I know you'll enjoy your dogs' delighted "OMG, is it Christmas? What's she still doing home?" mindset. My mom said it took weeks for her dog to start taking her increased presence for granted after my mom got laid off. And maybe you're a freak like me who'll enjoy a shoestring budget for a time as well; there's something virtuous and homey and victory gardenish about clipping coupons, finding new recipes for beans, hanging laundry to dry and all that other parsimonious stuff that, in its own way, can be really satisfying. Not for life, certainly, but for a while, anyway. (I promise I won't mail you the recipe for homemade crackers I got out of the Tightwad Gazette that my sister still mocks me for 10 years after I made it ONCE)

No mastectomy!!

[tofty.livejournal.com]

Tightwad Gazette! Hahahaha, did you reuse your ziplock bags until the sides split and then iron them shut again?

I used to have the books, but they were part of the huge moving-from-New-Orleans literary casualty list; otherwise, I'd probably be pulling them out right now. But in the meantime, I don't think I'll mind so much; it might get tiresome on a permanent basis, but I think for a month or two it'll be kind of an adventure.

Maybe I can play Ingalls family! My childhood best friend S and I totally used to love that game. That and Xanadu. And this game where we pretended that her geodesic jungle gym was a hollowed-out rabbit pellet painted red, and we were tiny aliens living in it (we had a song and everything, sung to the tune of "Yellow Submarine"). *snickers*

[laurelwood.livejournal.com]

Heh- you know, I do occasionally reuse the gallon-sized ziplock bags, but I've never taken it to the point of doing restorative surgery. :D

Also, I thought my friends and I were pretty creative with our make-believe games, but the hollowed-out rabbit pellet trumps anything we ever came up with! I wish I'd had more childhood friends like you; so few of them eschewed the kickball games and playground gymnastics in favor of really good imaginative play!

[tofty.livejournal.com]

I reuse them too! Not the ones that held meat, though. And not until they've got to have repairs made.

We should have lived in the same neighborhood as kids, Laurel. My childhood rocked because I had S--we just sparked ideas off each other and went along with each other's eccentric games--and I feel that you'd have been a perfect co-instigator!

[dahlia-777.livejournal.com]

That's a relief about your mother, but T I am *so sorry* about the job. I've been made redundant in the past and it totally sucks, at least at first. I found the extra money turned out to be a real advantage though once I'd calmed down and got things in perspective. It sounds like you're in that place already.

We'll speak soon I hope. I am fine. Looking forward to my brief holiday. I also have a fun work assignment, which I'll tell you about next time we talk.

[tofty.livejournal.com]

Oh, yeah, I really am okay now. (Ask me again if I don't have a job in six months!)

And if I don't talk to you again before you leave: hope your trip is glorious!

[somniesperus.livejournal.com]

Hurrah for your mother! And yay for you! *smooch*

[tofty.livejournal.com]

*smooches back!*