Well. I suddenly find myself with tons of time on my hands. Part of me wants to be a total ass and try to go after them for harrassment, but... well, that part of me never really has been all that powerful. And honestly... They're being a lot nicer about it than they could be. A whole heckuva lot nicer than the last job to fire me.
I was weeding some flower/mulch beds with my partner in crime of late, my nephew, when I get called up to the office by my now ex-boss. My ex-boss was like... "Mister Andrew"... I think it's time for us to part ways... You were a great worker when you were hired, but you've lost your motivation - which is true, though I don't know if she quite realizes WHY I've lost it. After all... there was that "Mister Andrew" right from the get go, but I'm sure she saw my cringe that I tried, quite unsuccessfully, to hide, when addressed in such manner.
When you go into work each and every day to be run down and told to be more of a dude, and they refuse to respect you enough to even TRY to refer to you how you would like to be... And your opinions and ideas are treated as less than irrelevant... It becomes just a tinsy bit hard to keep up the motivation, no matter how hard you try. Before I was out to myself, I was more or less an automaton. And they essentially wanted me to stay such, it seems. They didn't want me to really exist, they wanted a robot to just do what they said, how they said, when they said.
Oh well... They're letting me keep my employee discount through the end of August on my Apt. And an additional $75 off my rent for whatever reason. They're being nice enough about letting me go, I suppose. I was kinda trying to make it till school started, but, whatever. I knew this was coming, it was just a matter of them finding the right excuse to get rid of me and having replacements lined up for pool duty and grounds. Farewell _________. You really did play a very important part in my life, the tedium of the job was part of the formula that was needed for my deep soul-search in which I finally found myself.
The important thing now is where and how do I go from here? Since I'm already planning on going back to school full-time with hours essentially identical to those of the full-time job I've just been fired from, I don't particularly wish to seek another job at this time. However, this might not be such a "BAD" thing. Since I was fired, and worked for them for over a year prior to, I now qualify for unemployment benefits in the state of Ohio for 52 weeks. Should be just about enough time to last till the end of beauty school. Since I'll now be on unemployment, I might just qualify for food stamps as well. I'm pretty sure I'm still SOL on health care though.
If I play the systems right, I might not be all that bad off really... about $100 a week blood money... errr... plasma, that is ;) Which is completely unreported income, and unemployment and food stamps... Live back with my mom again, so no rent, electric, internet, etc bills... I could actually stand to be in a better position than when I was working. Even if I can't do plasma for whatever reason... never know, really... It'd be tight, but doable. I just need to be able to survive until I can get a cosmetology job OUT of Toledo.
Speaking of living back with my mom... She and I seem to be mending our relationship somewhat. She's still not ready to see me as her daughter Abigail. But she is ready to stop calling me names about it. She's not quite ready to stop calling herself names, however... But... It's progress. And any progress is better than no progress. Progress is good. I can handle progress. Even if it is slow progress.
In other news... I've filed for my name change, I have my "Toledo Legal News" bill sitting here waiting for me to sign, place a check inside, and mail it off... hearing is on September 11th... Yeah... 9/11... Good thing I'm not stupidstitious. Unfortunately, that happens to be my second day of school. So I'll be starting my year off missing a day right away. Joy.
I have something called a Noogleberry ordered. We'll see if it does me any good. (Google it if you're interested... But I should warn you, the results are probably NSFW)
I also have a One Touch home electrolysis device that should be arriving tomorrow. My nephew is a self-taught tattoist, so I'm gunna see about letting him play around with it on himself and if he can sufficiently provide evidence to me that he can use it safely, I'll be subjecting myself to his tortures, since I can not afford a professional. The nice thing about doing this though, is that my nephew is very resourceful on getting his hands on normally tightly controlled substances... Sooooo... ;)
So today's an ending of a sort. But it's also a beginning. My ex-boss said it rightly. It's a "parting of ways". It is a farewell to a stage of my life that allowed me to begin to be, but then tried restraining me from fully flexing my wings. It's also a welcome to the rest of my life. I no longer have to associate with those people whom I worked with who were attempting to hold me back from fully embracing myself. I am Abigail Drew Patridge. Andrew Lehi Patridge ceased to properly exist on the eighth of October, 2011. His shadow is still here, but a little bit more has been displaced by an ever slowly growing ray of light this day. Which probably sounds pretty weird. You'd think I should be all depressed about losing my job. But, really, in a way, a burden has been lifted. Well. A few, actually.
Comments
Good luck hon.
I'll be curious how that gadget works. My mom was very small breasted, so I will be nonexistent most likely.
I'm always suspicious of devices like that though. Hope it works for your sake, and perhaps ultimately for mine. :) Let us know how it works, or doesn't.
I'm leaning toward Wendy for the name, now I have to pick a middle name.
It is a common theme though, how we loose jobs, I hope mine is safe, but I intend to put that part off as long as possible.
If you haven't been there I do recommend Laura's Playground. The name may seem facetious, but the site is not. It has been most helpful for me.
I suspect that if you used it
I suspect that if you used it regularly enough, you'd end up lactating.
I'll get a life when it's proven and substantiated to be better than what I'm currently experiencing.
actually...
While this -IS- possible, from what I've seen exploring the forums, both Noogleberry's own, and various other similar products, and more generalized NBE forums, it would be extremely rare, and is always in connection with playing around with estrogens and progestins as well.
I am playing with my progestins a little, but not nearly to the degree that the women who experienced lactation using the device or similar devices were. And I'm barely touching my estrogens at all. There's probably SOME effect on them from my anti-testosterone regimen, but again, not nearly as much. Also, the women who experienced lactation were cycling their supplementation in a manner that is believed to closely resemble the cycle that a pregnant woman experiences... Essentially, they were asking for it. Whether they realized what they were doing or not.
The nipple-only type pumps that pretty much do the exact same thing as a suckling baby would, probably would encourage lactation quite quickly. But I'm not planning on using those. ^^
It's arguable on whether these kinds of devices can produce any lasting differences... But it's very plainly obvious that as long as I keep them pumped, my breasts will be as large as I pump them to for at least a few hours before starting to calm down. The only real question as far as that goes is how far can I pump them safely. ^^
I'm only planning on the temporary effects, but if I get anything permanent... coolio. I figured... a good set of breast forms would cost close to $200, everything I wanted for this cost close to $200, and with this I won't have to worry about hiding any seams! ^^
Abigail Drew.
sorry about the job hon
but it sounds like you're making some headway in other areas, so that's good.
the job...
Honestly, it's not that bad a thing to have lost...
The work atmosphere was becoming increasingly hostile, with my ex-boss, the office ladies, and most of my co-workers absolutely refusing to budge on referring to me as male, with only my nephew and 'Thal even trying... That said, my nephew was great. 'Thal... He was trying, and I'll give him props for that.
It was still a bit strange getting up this morning after I should've already clocked in and NOT going to work, though. It'll probably feel strange all the way up till I start school and have the same hours all over again lol.
Abigail Drew.
Good luck
Seems like you've got the right attitude for it all. I wish you all the best and hope everything works out well.
And I hope you'll have time to write!
Hugs,
Kaleigh
Attitude and writing.
Eh... my attitude is pretty much the result of the way in which I'm being let go... They aren't being excessive about it, I honestly think they just don't understand how to handle it, and just aren't ready to try to learn how to handle it. My transsexualism, that is. I can accept that. Do I wish they were more willing to learn? Of course. But I'm not going to hold it against them when they let me keep some of my benefits for an entire extra month and a half, and sound as though they might be willing to give me a good reference as long as I'm not trying for the same field...
As for time to write... Should find some of that. Though honestly, I think I'm going to stop pubbing Open Your Heart here... I'll be on the look out for some solid beta-readers though!
I should be able to resume work on Atlantia shortly, though. Just give me a little bit to get some things around here into shape.
Abigail Drew.
Just a thought
I know in Michigan, you could lose some of the unemployment money if you go to school, so make sure to check up on that.
Yeah...
I've already been looking at all the little rules and stuff. I don't want to be caught with my skirts up.
Abigail Drew.
I'm glad...
...so often we find ourselves almost abandoning that part of us who may have sustained the person inside. Andrew the warrior steps back to become an integral but still only one part of Abigail... a joy; Drew...still that part of you as a whole being... My prayers for a swift resolution regarding income as you continue to take steps for education and your move forward.
Love, Andrea Lena
Hm. It's strange...
But really, that part of me that was Andrew wasn't built on much more than my bull-headed stubbornness. The rest of him was pure construct. As you can see though, that bull-headed stubbornness definitely ain't going anywhere ^^
Abigail Drew.
As to Insurance...
if you're a full time student, you may qualify for health care through your school. I don't know if many beauty schools offer such benefits, but traditional colleges and universities do... And, who knows, you may have selected one that does make benefits available. (Don't hold your breath, but it doesn't hurt to ask.)
Good Luck!
Annette