I know chapter one was a doozy. But it is what it is, and it had to be put out in the universe to try to move on with my life. The rest of 2020 was, well, interesting. During the first couple of months of what would become the pandemic, specifically in January of that year, I had several discussions with people about how this would be bad if they didn’t hurry and stop air travel. I remember sending my parents KN95 masks from work for their flight back to Colombia. The ventilator issues I had seen when I worked at the hospital and the struggles we had already experienced years prior, and then shit hit the fan. While I have an eidetic memory, I remember watching a lot of news and everything unfolding into chaos. While I didn’t have the answers then or now, it confirmed the healthcare industry’s lack of preparedness (yes, it is for profit; it is an industry), even though you may do all those bloodborne illness courses, IYKYK. I soon realized that I was not meant to home-school anyone child. Having to play pretend that I was a 2nd-grade teacher and work at the same time was not fun. I started to feel like my kid would resent me for it later. I remember he had to put a PowerPoint together, and we argued about how he needed to have complete sentences on his slides. Wasn’t that a major part of English class when we would get to go to the computer lab? I also did not have to make slides in 2nd grade; it was more like junior high. We managed to be ok and have everything we needed. I am savvy with the internet and finding things I need. I also got those fancy hand sanitizers from Touchland before they were sold out for months.
That spring and summer just melted into one that year. Then came the layoffs. We had a mandatory meeting that Friday before, that everyone was going to be off that following Monday, including the shipping department, which never happened, but no one knew why. Of course, I had gone on a lunch date. Nice guy who worked for Perry Homes. We had just ordered when my phone rang, and the caller ID said Canada. I almost wish I had not answered. They were so cold about it; oh, it was nothing you did (at this point, if you haven’t read Chapter 1, you probably should) when I knew at this point they were aware of my complaint to the EEOC. The worse part is I had to go back to my lunch. Oh, poor guy. Needless to say, I never heard from him again. What came next was insane; the not-so-great piece of work HR director had screwed all of us out of any federal money. She had gone out of her way to let them know what our severance packages were, and most of us wouldn’t qualify for ANY unemployment for months, Yes, and some years. So between her and the lovely governor of Texas, my finances were living on a prayer, and mostly it was answered beyond expectation.
In 2020, I had planned a trip to NYC for Memorial Day but canceled. Rescheduled for a trip to Cancun and even got my kid a passport, but no flights. Then I discovered JW Marriott in San Antonio was having insane deals. With minimal occupancy and the low rate, I took full advantage with my best friend in tow. We went for my kid’s birthday/last summer, hurrah. If you have never been, go, it has easily become our favorite. I will do a write-up when I get the chance. But so great, clean, great food, and the waterpark. Also, the amount of wildlife roaming and being in the semi-wilderness was what we needed after being in lockdown for six months.
Oh, and I cannot forget the most productive thing I did in lockdown. In March, I was interviewed for a cohort at the University of Texas and was accepted. Classes started that April and ran all thru to October. Data Analytics, I thought, great, I can use this in my job for inventory purposes and to expand my Excel skills. Boy, I was wrong. It was so hard, and there were many long days/nights; lucky for me, I was now unemployed. The coding killed me most of all, and I have never used anything I learned. I tried to use the new shiny piece of paper as a way to get into a tech company, but no one wanted the Oil and Gas employee, how crazy, this would continue well into 2021.
To be continued…..
xoxo
Ana
Everyday Banana 