Its funny sometimes, (more funny ‘strange’ than funny ‘ha-ha’), how life repeats itself in ever varying cycles. Ups and downs, highs and lows, whatever you prefer to call them, that affect our lives and the decisions we make. Like most people, I’ve had many throughout my life and it seems that another may be fast approaching my way.

Back in 2005, September 30th to be precise, the AT&T-Lucent-Cirent-Agere microchip plant here in Orlando, Florida closed its doors forever. Gone were 15 years of service, gone too was the best paying job I’d ever had. We had ample foreknowledge of the closure, so preparing as best I could for the changes I knew would take place, I had to search for a new job and maintenance repairman for the Florida Department of Health was the one I found. I started here making less than half of what I did before, but I knew that coming in. I figured that government employment would be a more stable and secure position, though pay would be less than in the private sector. I figured that after a few years or so, I’d be making a little bit more and doing a little bit better, so on January 13, 2006, I began what appeared to be a nice, steady job. As we approach the end of 2010 and near my five year anniversary here, apprehension fills our workplace. In my nearly five years of employment here, we’ve seen one bonus and that was back in 2007 I believe. It amounted to basically one extra paycheck before Christmas, which was nice indeed, it just didn’t go very far. Now, as 2011 approaches, we find ourselves facing layoffs. We’ve dodged the layoff bugaboo over these past three years and even with Barack Obama’s, “The recession is over.” rhetoric, we, along with many more American’s to come, will feel the cold, harsh reality of unemployment, loss of homes and everything we’ve worked for all our lives. Some will say, “Good! Now you’ll feel what millions of other American’s are feeling.”, but in the last 20 years, this may be the fourth time I’ve gotten laid off or closed out. Its never fun, its never an easy transition, (at least none of mine have been anyway), and its a bitter pill to swallow. Our “leaders”, continue to let us down time after time and we continue to be the ones who make most of the sacrifices. I may or may not lose my job come the springtime, if we even last that long, but the fears and the uncertainties will haunt and affect us for many years to come.