How You Doin'?

Conversation in the local Wegmans - Old Friend "Hey Rob! Haven't seen you in a while. How you doin'?" Rob says (yes I'm referring to myself in third person) "I'm horrible. I have been trying to grow my company Masters Radio and just haven't seen the revenue I've wanted. It has been 11 months since I last had a paycheck. I had Covid for three plus weeks and I'm still coughing." Friend steps back a bit. Rob continues "I've begged, borrowed, and relied on the kindness of friends to help us out. My wife has to go back to work. I'm not sleeping too well and it seems that going bald wasn't just a phase I was in." The friend says "oh, sorry to hear that, I think I hear my wife calling me." Rob responds "weren't you divorced?" as the friend slinks away.

Who wants to talk to a person that complains? Yes, things are bad and I can't remember what the inside of an office looks like. Is that a reason to dump all of my frustrations on a friend I haven't seen in years? YES, YES IT IS! No, I'm aware it really isn't. Nobody wants to hear your tail of woe. That person may have just lost a loved one, a job, a spot on Jeapordy. They have their own problems.

The answer isn't what the person can do for me. It is what I can do for them. I have always opened my heart to others to help them in a time of need. I WON'T go into the ways I've done that because it is personal and only seems like bragging. We should ask not what our friends can do for us, but what we can do for our friends. Wait, that sounds familiar.

Yes, I'm looking for a job. The market seems to tighten a bit when you age. The political landscape puts companies on edge in making hiring decisions. There are more layoffs and they tend to increase towards the end of the year. There is partial lunar eclipse!

My advice to those suffering in some way is to reach out. I've complained enough and I think Wegmans has me on a watch list. However, if you need help in any way, write me. Don't call because I may not recognize the name and think you're a bill collector. Which BTW, if they call you, tell them you haven't seen me.