Hoo boy. I'm reluctant to blog about this, because I'm sort of staggered by it.

Anyway, Boss Sunshine made a rare appearance in the office today. We were talking, I was updating him on various and sundry issues. I actually can't recall how the conversation turned--I suppose we were talking about the impending departure of Staffetta--but he said, almost tentatively, that it would be good if I found another job...

So I've been fired. Sort of. I mean, he stressed that he wanted it to be an okay thing publically (he doesn't need more enemies than he already has), that he'd do everything he could to find me a new position, and that it was not at all based on any performance issues (I'm pretty blameless there) but more in terms of my temperament. He was hoping for me to be more of a firebrand, and I'm "too even tempered."

Where did this come from? As usual with him, I have no idea. A few weeks ago he was saying he was going to get me a raise. It probably has a lot to do with the departure of Staffetta. She's young and idealistic and enthusiastic and energetic (everything that I'm frankly not) and we worked well together, balancing each other out. He probably suspects--and not incorrectly--that after she's gone, it's unlikely that I'll suddenly be inspired. And, Staffetta reacted to his cynicism by goading him ("What do you mean you don't care about this? You have to care about this!"), whereas I just find confirmation for my own cynical tendencies.

So I'm sort of stunned. I mean, it's not at all like I'm unhappy to leave here, which was not the best move to make in the first place. And the conversation I had with Boss Sunshine was... how do you say... warm and amicable. It's just that I've got rent and car payments and food and such to think about. Ay. There's the rub. A perusal of the usual jobs sites confirms what I suspected: the economy is in the toilet, and there are no jobs out there. Nada. Boss Sunshine suggested a colleague of his who is looking for someone. Alas, her office is in Southeast Queens, by the airport. That would just be a horrendous twenty mile commute every day from Jersey City, and I'd have to wait until after 10 a.m. to get through the Holland Tunnel because of the single passenger car restrictions.

If all fails (and this would have to be totally all, as in everything, as in, 'having dug the last penny out of the car seat'), my parents have a tenant house on their property. It's two bedrooms. My Ex brother-in-law's cousin has been living there and paying about $500/month in rent for the past several years. He's moving out in June. It's only about an hour and a half from New York City. My dog would like to be out in the country with a yard. I, of course, would rather lick 8th Avenue clean. But, knowing that there's a safety net of sorts is kind of reassuring.


Dang. I actually had a really cool idea for a blog today. But you will have to content yourselves with this one. My powers of concentration are severely diminished. That will have to wait.