Yay?

 

I suppose I should write up a post about how The Husband's 2-year unemployment stint came to an end recently, but it is one of those things where you sort of question, "is this a real job?"  But this is par for the course with this job market. You envision and hope that it would be more along the lines of a normal, full-time job with a salary and benefits, and stuff, even if said salary is low and benefits are mediocre. And you’re quite happy about that outcome. But that's not really how it went down. More like a bunch of people on valium at a surprise party trying to be really enthusiastic. 

About 4 weeks ago, a company that had called him back in like November or something, about doing some project management work and then fell off the earth for, oh, 3 months, came back and decided they would like to have him work as a contractor for him. Seriously out of the blue. The main dude running the project (which is here) is on the east coast and seems to be very busy, so much so that it's hard to get a hold of him, get answers to questions and decisions, etc, etc. So we were sort of wondering (a) would he get paid, (b) how effective could the HZ be when he didn't necessarily have autonomy over decisions yet couldn't get a hold of this guy (that seems effective), (c) how long is this project , etc, etc.

EDD was nearly up, so, obviously, he took it, but, well, it pays only slightly better (though it is not full-time work, it is a part-time gig) and it’s 1099, so, when it goes away there is no EDD to collect since it’s not W-2 work. I'm not necessarily complaining, really, I'm happy he got something, but I suppose this is completely in-line with what you would expect in this shit-tastic economy. That those that finds jobs, well, they’re not great jobs. We are lucky as I have benefits and a good job so he could take a part-time gig that pays crap, is unstable, and has no benefits. When I put it that way, it’s definitely not sunshine and rainbows, however there are people who are in much, much, much worse shape, so, I am grateful.

And the other crazy thing? The group I work in is combing the earth in San Diego for a mid-level programmer and forget it! Everyone needs H1B sponsorship. Talk about disparity. We can't find someone to hire as a programmer to save our lives, yet, other folks have been out of work, looking diligently, for years. I suppose it all boils down to demand, and, well, we tech dorks are where it's at, apparently.