Debt Reduction 101

In December 1982, I would have been four years old, probably obsessed with “Sesame Street” and “The Muppet Show.” I hadn’t been fitted with glasses yet, but that was soon to happen since I was running into tables because I couldn’t see anything. My mom stayed at home with my older brother and I, my father operated our family farm and while we were probably far from rich I remember having everything I could ever want or need, but most importantly, my family was all together and we really loved each other. (Well, my brother and I tolerated each other.)

What I probably didn’t comprehend in December 1982 was that the United States was in the grip of recession that would not be paralleled until December 2008. In an article published today by Bloomberg.com, 4.09 million workers collected unemployment checks during the last week of November. That number exceeded the previous record that was set in December 1982.

It’s December 2008, I am 30 years old, I’m intrigued by shows like “CSI” and have an addiction to the Food Network. My glasses have been replaced by contacts and I still run into tables occasionally, but that’s typically caused by tripping over the Evil Cat or walking to the bathroom in the dark without my glasses on. I’m not rich, but I’m not poor and I have everything that I want and need.

Last night a dear friend (and former coworker) of mine called to tell me that effective January 2009, she would no longer have a job at the company that’s employed her since she graduated from college. And not only is Lola out the door, every member of her department will also be unemployed come January 2009. The long shadow of the crappy economic situation our country is in has finally hit home to me.

I’m going to call my friend Lola to give her some aspect of privacy. Lola’s one of the most talented people that I know on his earth. And beyond sheer talent, Lola is one of those people that you just want to hire because she’s intelligent, she’s a hard worker and she rarely complains. I worked in newspapers once upon a time – you can trust me that Lola’s something of a rarity among the divas that I used to hobnob with.

Although Lola’s unemployment has hit me hard, she’s not the only friend of mine who has lost their job recently because of budget cuts. And after my friend Evan (another pseudonym) lost his job, Future Husband and I talked about the scary reality of layoffs as we drove home that night from our respective jobs.

FH and I pride ourselves on being good workers – we just are. But we’re living in a world where hard work isn’t cutting it anymore. Our friends, the hard workers, are getting cut and it doesn’t matter if they’ve been in a job for 7 months or seven years. The companies that we work for no longer have loyalty to us – their employees and this is a hard reality to accept, because my mom always told me that if I could work hard enough, I could achieve anything that I wanted. (The trick, of course, is to target those goals that are attainable. I will probably never be a supermodel. I may someday write a book – with hard work.)

But the cynical optimist in me sees the gunmetal lining in the proverbial storm cloud. First and foremost, Lola’s husband Jim is gainfully employed at a growing company. She’s finally going onto his health insurance effective January 1 and they don’t have kids to build into this new budget. They also have enough money to get by with Lola’s severance package until March or April. And finally, Lola’s been unhappy in her current job for the last couple of years, but she’s been terrified to leap into the unknown (especially with the job outlook as rosy as it is). For Lola, the unknown has been cultivating her weekend job of shooting weddings, family and graduation portraits into a full-time gig. Lola is phenomenally talented and she’s built a mini-weekend empire from scratch over the past five years. But she hasn’t had the kick she needs to make it her full-time deal. And she’s still looking for a “normal” job – even if it’s 30 hours a week.

So Lola – I told you this last night and I admit that it’s odd in the midst of a layoff, but I’m so happy for you. But my happiness is influenced by the fact that you and Jim are smart. You didn’t expect this, but you’re prepared regardless.

Wednesday’s Latte Factor:

Ironically, I bought a Christmas gift for Lola yesterday before I heard her “good news.” - $25.21.

Total: $25.21 – I brown-bagged it yesterday, baby!