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I've worked in high-tech since 1981 (most of it as a techwriter), and aside from a very few bad-ish apples whom I could count on my fingers (and have a few fingers left over), my experience has been almost uniformly of really great, hard-working, helpful people who enjoy their jobs, genuinely want to see you (me) succeed, and every one of them honorable and conscientious. Hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of young over-achievers, crusty old hands, managers both new and well-steeped, directors and veeps.
There's the occasional end-of-project push that requires a weekend or a bunch of long days, but for the most part, any stress I experience is self-generated. I have standards, y'know... :-)
In that time, I've worked for two giant multi-nationals and a couple of smaller companies. My current gig started last century with a 40-person start-up that has since been purchased by three successively bigger companies. Given that I'm in Canada, and the companies that bought us were American, I had some worry that the culture and management would become cut-throat, abrasive, and short-sighted. Not so. Reasonable, level-headed, straight shooters abound.
Have I been inordinately lucky for 30-some years, or have some of y'all just tripped into a cesspool as you stepped out of college, and never again found the shore?
-----Original Message-----
From: techwr-l-bounces+kevin -dot- mclauchlan=safenet-inc -dot- com -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com [mailto:techwr-l-bounces+kevin -dot- mclauchlan=safenet-inc -dot- com -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com] On Behalf Of beelia
Sent: January-23-13 1:39 PM
To: Keith Hood
Cc: techwr-l-bounces+john -dot- x -dot- posada=us -dot- hsbc -dot- com -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com; Techwr-l
Subject: Re: Unemployment compensation and self-employment (was Re: Laid Off)
Thanks, Keith,
We've had quite a few exchanges over the years, and from this one, I realized that I thought you were in Canada, not Texas. Am I confusing you with another Keith?
I was only in Texas once - Cisco sent me to Dallas for a couple of days, and I wasn't crazy about it because it was really hot. But Houston is apparently the hottest job market in the country, it's probably a great place to work. I've considered Oregon and Nevada because of state taxes and the cost of real estate in the Bay Area, but I really like the weather here. I'll probably be in a mobile home forever, but at least it's a nice mobile home.
Turns out there is no place to camp at EDD, there are no local offices at all except the related CalJobs ones. Don't know if the main one in Sacto is even accessible. But I'm going to take your and Lauren's suggestions and write snail mail to all of my reps, even my congresswoman, and see how that turns out. I'll let you know how it goes.
I loved your reference to your preference of carpentry over high tech.
Don't know that I'd be a tech writer for the last couple of decades if Art History (BA and MA) had been a viable career path for me. High tech corporate culture is where I've had the worst bosses and the most stress, so I'm hoping my next job is in a nice friendly startup.
Cheers
Bee
On Tue, Jan 22, 2013 at 3:16 PM, Keith Hood <klhra -at- yahoo -dot- com> wrote:
> My sympathies and I hope things improve for you. If you can, move to
> Texas. Our system here isn't the best in the world but the last time
> I dealt with them it was a lot better than what you describe. We don't
> have a state income tax and the cost of living here is somewhat lower.
>
> I know I'm in the minority but I think your posts have been just fine
> as far as politeness is concerned. I firmly believe you have much less
> to worry about on that score than you may think.
>
> Any time you try to send a message to a politician, send a physical
> mail rather an email. They know there are a lot of bots that make one
> sender look like a thousand. A sack of mail holding 1000 envelopes is
> more impressive because it is still more difficult to produce than 1000 emails.
>
> If I were you, assuming it's possible, I'd invest some time in taking
> a laptop and a book and a pillow, and physically camping out on
> someone's desk in the EDD office for a few days. What have you got to lose?
>
> And to those of you who warned me about my email address and name
> being available, I knew that. I guess I should thank you for your
> apparent concern over my future marketability. Thank you. But please,
> don't bother mentioning things like this to me in the future. I
> decided many years ago I'll worry about something like this the day
> after hell freezes over. I've had jobs that tried to kill me working
> for people who really hated me and I returned the feeling with
> interest, and this is not large enough to register on my concern
> radar. I am as diplomatic as needed with my boss, my parents, the
> cycle cop, and the judge, but I refuse to censor myself out of worry
> over what *might* be some nameless, faceless stranger's likes and
> dislikes. And after dealing with some of the tech people I've met over
> the last 23 years, if I could make a decent living as a carpenter, I'd never touch another computer again.
>
> ------------------------------
> *From:* beelia <beelia -at- gmail -dot- com>
> *To:* john -dot- x -dot- posada -at- us -dot- hsbc -dot- com
> *Cc:* techwr-l-bounces+john -dot- x -dot- posada=us -dot- hsbc -dot- com -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com;
> Techwr-l <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com>
> *Sent:* Tuesday, January 22, 2013 11:16 AM
> *Subject:* Re: Unemployment compensation and self-employment (was Re:
> Laid Off)
>
> Thanks, everyone. I hadn't googled myself in ages, so just for laughs
> I tried it. I found only my Linkedin and Facebook profiles, several
> other people whose names contain or resemble mine, and even a couple
> of obituaries that clearly aren't me. I'm less worried now, though I'm
> going to try to continue to be polite.
>
> However, it's becoming more difficult since this morning, when I got
> up at
> 7:30 to try to get through to EDD again. By 8 AM I had dialed every
> one of their lines, and they are no longer letting anyone through at all.
>
> The main line that they tell you to call - to talk to a human - just
> plays an informational message, gives you menu selections that only go
> to the automated services, and hangs up. I even tried the Spanish and
> Vietnamese lines, since someone on the Facebook site said they got through that way.
>
> I did send messages to my state assemblyman and senator, but haven't
> received a reply yet. But this is a bureaucracy that is showing
> characteristics of becoming a black hole, and I wouldn't be surprised
> if those guys just got sucked into it like the rest of us.
>
> I have a hunch that I am going to have to forget about getting
> unemployment benefits and just live off my savings. Fortunately I have
> some, but I don't know how long they are going to have to last.
>
> Dosvedanya!
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