Update on Mr D ...
So, at the moment we are a one-wage family! Mr D left his job on the 30th November, and right now he's a house husband :D
I won't deny, I think we both had a couple of wobbly weeks in the first month after he handed in his notice - there was one week where I actually lost 7 pounds in weight - the stress diet obviously works - but we have done a lot of talking and made some economies and I'm feeling a lot more comfortable about things now (well, I've put the 7 pounds back on so I must be!!!). We've worked out that as long as we don't have any unforeseeable expense over the next couple of months until Mr D is back in work, we'll be fine.
We went to see my parents two weeks ago, and part of me was dreading that they'd be disappointed. My Dad particularly, as much as I love him, is quite old school, and is very practical. I grew up in a family that is phobic about debt, and even now I refuse to have a credit card because that debt fear has rubbed off on me, and I really thought he'd sound off at Barry for not just manning up because we have a mortgage to pay, but I've never been happier to be proved wrong.
He and my Mum were both sympathetic and understanding. My Dad explained that he knows what it's like to suffer in a job you hate, and that no job is worth your health. They both said that they know we don't want charity, but they won't see us get into problems and if anything untoward does crop up, just to get on the phone. That alone was a HUGE weight off my mind.
Mr D is like a new man. He's happier than I've seen him for months, and the mystery abdo pain he was suffering has gone. He's relishing being at home and isn't being idle - he's blitzing the place - honestly, my bathroom hasn't looked so clean and shiny since the day it was fitted, and he's actually excited about deep cleaning the kitchen next week!
He's not being idle on the job front either. While he was serving out his six week notice, the bosses were - true to type - being utter bastards and blocking all leave, so unless he went sick or AWOL, he couldn't get time off for interviews. He hasn't taken a day off sick in the whole nine years he's worked at the hospital - not that it actually meant anything to those morons - and he was too proud to spoil his 100% record. He did manage a couple of interviews out of office hours, but nothing came of them (I admit to being furious at one where the organisation more or less admitted he ticked every single box on the job description, that he interviewed brilliantly, and could do the job blindfolded, but there were other applicants who were 'a better cultural fit'. I've worked in HR for nearly thirty years, and I still can't work out what the hell that gibberish means.)
Now he's a free agent, he's got six job applications in so far, and he's already got two interviews lined up on the 18th and 19th of December.
I honestly can't see him being out of work for too long, so just for a few weeks, it's actually kind of nice to come home after a long day to a cooked meal, a clean house and a cup of tea, and to be able to be the one to say 'Hi honey, I'm home!'
I won't deny, I think we both had a couple of wobbly weeks in the first month after he handed in his notice - there was one week where I actually lost 7 pounds in weight - the stress diet obviously works - but we have done a lot of talking and made some economies and I'm feeling a lot more comfortable about things now (well, I've put the 7 pounds back on so I must be!!!). We've worked out that as long as we don't have any unforeseeable expense over the next couple of months until Mr D is back in work, we'll be fine.
We went to see my parents two weeks ago, and part of me was dreading that they'd be disappointed. My Dad particularly, as much as I love him, is quite old school, and is very practical. I grew up in a family that is phobic about debt, and even now I refuse to have a credit card because that debt fear has rubbed off on me, and I really thought he'd sound off at Barry for not just manning up because we have a mortgage to pay, but I've never been happier to be proved wrong.
He and my Mum were both sympathetic and understanding. My Dad explained that he knows what it's like to suffer in a job you hate, and that no job is worth your health. They both said that they know we don't want charity, but they won't see us get into problems and if anything untoward does crop up, just to get on the phone. That alone was a HUGE weight off my mind.
Mr D is like a new man. He's happier than I've seen him for months, and the mystery abdo pain he was suffering has gone. He's relishing being at home and isn't being idle - he's blitzing the place - honestly, my bathroom hasn't looked so clean and shiny since the day it was fitted, and he's actually excited about deep cleaning the kitchen next week!
He's not being idle on the job front either. While he was serving out his six week notice, the bosses were - true to type - being utter bastards and blocking all leave, so unless he went sick or AWOL, he couldn't get time off for interviews. He hasn't taken a day off sick in the whole nine years he's worked at the hospital - not that it actually meant anything to those morons - and he was too proud to spoil his 100% record. He did manage a couple of interviews out of office hours, but nothing came of them (I admit to being furious at one where the organisation more or less admitted he ticked every single box on the job description, that he interviewed brilliantly, and could do the job blindfolded, but there were other applicants who were 'a better cultural fit'. I've worked in HR for nearly thirty years, and I still can't work out what the hell that gibberish means.)
Now he's a free agent, he's got six job applications in so far, and he's already got two interviews lined up on the 18th and 19th of December.
I honestly can't see him being out of work for too long, so just for a few weeks, it's actually kind of nice to come home after a long day to a cooked meal, a clean house and a cup of tea, and to be able to be the one to say 'Hi honey, I'm home!'