Learning to Say Goodbye

I have never really had to say it. When I came to "the Bank" I left a part-time retail job which I was happy to escape from. I was 19, and had no real ties to the people I left behind. This is different. Today, possibly for the last time, I leave behind people who have never failed me. They helped me grow up. Taught me to be a good mother. Supported me through the best and worst times of my life. They have been close when my family was far away. I think of them as mothers, sisters and friends:

Lurue, Diane, Dawn, Vera, Shirley, Toni, Martha, Rhonda, Donna, Sarah, Ann, Carlen and the countless others who have already left us

You will forever be in my heart.

Fast-Forward to the end

Last week it was announced we would close on the 21st instead of the 31st, since the clean-up process is going so well. That means 6 extra days of relaxation. Six additional days to take photos, do homework and housework, cook, finish those home projects, and be on time to class. I may have to get a job just to rest up!

Only 19 more business days!

The countdown is getting serious now. It feels like Christmas and my birthday all rolled into one. Even better. I have never not had a job since I was 14 years old. First, I worked at a small amusement park, then at 16 it was the K-Mart shoe department. It is amazing how many people steal shoes, put on new ones, and leave the old ones just laying in the aisle. Picking up those old, worn, odiferous shoes was the worst thing I ever had to do for a paycheck.

At 17 I moved to a Sears Catalogue counter, taking orders and helping people find their packages in the "self service" bins. I never did understand where the "self" service came in, as we had to help over half the customers find their packages. Apparently the package filing people didn't know their alphabet.

After high school I found my current job at the Federal Reserve Bank, where I have been for 25 years. In 19 days I will be unemployed. Not that I won't be busy, with class three nights a week. Of course, I already have my days planned:

7:00 wake-up
8:15 put Dakota on the bus and walk the dog
9:00 breakfast & shower
9:30 homework
1:00 lunch
1:30 craft and/or housework time
4:00 start dinner

Interesting, when you write it down, being unemployed looks like such hard work?