FUNemployment

Well here we are in July and I’m still living in the world that is FUNemployment.
What have I been up to you ask?

Arcade Fire & all of its 13 +/- members onstage.

Well Jazz Fest started right after I was laid off, so that was a nice distraction and we got to have some fabulous house guests to spend time with. So we ate a lot of amazing food and saw/heard some great musicians such as Jeff Beck, Anders Osborne, Dr. John, Soul Rebels, Bonerama, Leah Chase, John Mellencamp (well he stunk actually), Arcade Fire, Lupe Fiasco, Marcia Ball, Allen Toussaint & Jimmy Buffet.

Then a fantastic wedding in Alpharetta, GA for some good friends of ours that now live here in NOLA. Followed by an impromptu jaunt to the FL panhandle to visit with friends on Hwy 30-A.

My view of Seagrove Beach

June brought more out-of-town house guests and a trip to visit family and friends in New York where I got to see the Alexander McQueen (RIP) exhibit at The Met called "Savage Beauty," a performance of Fuerza Bruta and Andrew Bird perform in Prospect Park in Brooklyn.

Sis & I at The Met

Andrew Bird onstage at Celebrate Brooklyn!

While I was in the Northeast, I hoped over to Boston to visit a friend who just moved to the Brighton area and got to see that city for the first time.

Returning to New Orleans, I was met by another fantastic wedding – this time in the Douglass family (and we know how fun those Douglass weddings can be).

Recently, 4^th of July brought me back to Seagrove Beach along Hwy 30-A where we dined at Bud & Alley’s and its Taco Bar, along with the new restaurant V Seagrove and Red Bar in Grayton Beach.

This weekend I will be making my way over to Birmingham to visit with some friends and former colleagues. But in between all these travels, I have been working part-time at my Dad’s law firm and interviewing/begging (j/k) for jobs. No outstanding opportunities have come along so far, but I might need to lower my standards soon.

I’ve toyed with the idea of starting my own PR practice, but I admit, I find it pretty scary. Apparently, I need to grow a pair when it comes to being more business-minded and taking that leap.

So stay tuned and I will keep you posted on my journey of starting my career over in New Orleans (again) and will also feature the rest of the house renovation completion in future posts.

The Secret Life of the Unemployed

Ah, the oh-so glamorous life of being unemployed. Checking your email every 10 seconds to see if you've heard back from a potential employer offering you your dream job (or any job really).

I sometimes envied my free, not-tied-to-a-desk friends who I’d see check in via foursquare throughout the day and wish I was having a leisurely afternoon at Whole Foods too.

Then I was laid off at the beginning of this week (really, who lays people off on a Monday anyway?) and came face-to-face with the ugly reality that being unemployed isn't as carefree as it seems.

You find yourself glued to your computer, scouring job sites like indeed and TalentZoo, emailing ANYONE who would know ANYONE in your market/industry and utilizing social media sites to network virtually. Updating your resume, your Linkedin profile, etc., only to realize it's after noon and you haven't showered or brushed your teeth yet.

So you resign to filing for unemployment with the state and just picture yourself as that percentage statistic that solely raises the unemployment rate for the state, even the country.

Then you get antsy and look for things to keep yourself busy. You make to-do lists for the day and realize you finally have time for yard work and household projects. You clean, you do laundry, but eventually you run out of things to do.

Wait, I have to check my email again…maybe I got an interview!