Finally – after a little over four months of unemployment, I found a new job and I start Monday.

It’s been a wild ride – I was really devastated when they told me that my position had been eliminated. It’s a bad feeling thinking that you were really working hard for that company and available any time they needed you – and then, without notice, they tell you you’re redundant. All the time, effort, hopes, and whatever else was rendered meaningless within a few moments.

First, I had planned to make every day that I had to myself count, and I started out strong.

• Day 1: Trim hedge in front of house and accidentally cut the satellite radio antenna cable
• Day 2: Stain peeling front door and discover it’s not out of wood after all and wood stain doesn’t work.

This event actually happened almost a month ago (on Thursday, June 12th, to be exact), but with nothing but time on my hands, I don’t seem to get anything done any more.

I’ve been wanting to do this since I first read about it when we moved here 3 years ago, and it finally happened. A couple of girls I used to work with took the day off, I was already off (see the post about losing my job!!!), and we took the convertible to Rockin R in New Braunfels where we rented 4 tubes. One for each of us and one for our coolers. With the beer.

We flew out of San Antonio on Wednesday evening and arrived in Las Vegas around 9:30 PM Vegas time -and, when leaving the airport building to find the shuttle to the hotel, my first impression was that it was pretty cool (temperature-wise)- I had expected a nice and balmy night. Not happening!!!! The shuttle took us to the Imperial Palace, and even so we were pretty tired by then – after all, it was around midnight our time, and we normally go to bed by 8ish… – we had made a pact that no matter how tired we were, we were going to the Casino for one drink and some slot machine action – minimum!!!! And we did. And then we fell into bed.

It’s 3 AM and I woke up. Not that that’s anything new. What’s new about it is waking up unemployed. I was told yesterday that the best company I’ve ever worked for had ‘eliminated my position’. It’s really sad – I loved that place, most of what my job was, and definitely who I worked with. Those are some great people – haven’t lost the people, but it won’t be the same.

So right now, I’m sitting here, trying very hard to convince myself that this is a GOOD thing. I know it is, and all will be fine – that’s how things work. But right now, it really hurts. So I sit here and count my blessings: 12.

…at around the same time, I was asleep – in the hospital shortly after my hysterectomy. And today I’m sitting here, in front of a glas of Golden Water – to celebrate this Golden Moment / Anniversary, and am celebrating quietly by myself (Eric is on night shift). So far, I have not missed my equipment (the uterus and one ovary) one bit, quite the opposite, I’m still grinning every time I come near a tampon aisle. And if I could do it again, I would do so immediately, if for nothing else but the six weeks recovery I got out of it – and I could use those every year.

But today is special for reasons other than this: Phillip had his braces taken off, and underneath, he now has very pretty and straight teeth. And it only took approximately $5,000 and a couple dozen or so trips to the orthodontist. AND today is also Phillip’s last day as a ‘child’ – for tomorrow he starts his very first job at Whataburger where he’ll start out at the grill