Quietus

I woke up this morning an unemployed person, for the first time since--well, since a long, long time. Fortunately it's Saturday, so I can ease into unemployment slowly.

First: coffee.

That was easy. Next, fire up the laptop. And there in my email is the word for today:

Word of the Day for Saturday, January 19, 2008
quietus \kwy-EE-tuhs\, noun:
1. Final discharge or acquittance, as from debt or obligation.
2. Removal from activity; rest; death.
3. Something that serves to suppress or quiet.

My situation, in a word.

I have discharged my obligation. Yesterday I cleaned off my desk, answered my final emails, and put a forwarding message on my office phone. The Powers That Be decided they could do without me; now they must do without me.

I am removed from activity. There will be a little rest, and mourning for the death of the job where I learned how to organize information and understand scientific research. I made a lot of friends. I was given food from all over the world: Arab hummus, Turkish coffee, Vietnamese chewy candy, Australian wine, Chinese fish, Hawaiian spam sushi. There were horrible days of conflict and wonderful days of accomplishment. I will miss it all.

I will be quiet for a bit, listening outwardly for job leads and inwardly for heart leads. Where will I go? What do I want?

People react to the unemployed differently. Some ask if I want to retire. Well--sure! But I can't live on air, which is all I will have in a couple of months. Some suggest a career change. Maybe novelist or stand-up comic. Those take a lot of energy. Let me think about that some more.

In the meantime, there is plenty of coffee in the fridge, mere steps from my laptop. There's a blog to keep up. Every day USC HR automatic email sends me job leads to peruse and apply for.

Today: quietus. Tomorrow: adventure.