Day Eleven

Last night, I broke the unemployment news to my father... who is unemployed.

The last job he had was as a gas station attendant on the outskirts of Nashville. He quit because someone held-up the place at gunpoint.

Before working at the gas station, he was studying to be a massage therapist. He couldn't find work.

Before studying massage therapy, he was a very successful computer consultant for a major national company. He got laid off.

Before working in IT, he was a captain in the army, stationed in Seoul, Korea. He was honorably discharged.

When told my dad that I quit my management position at Cafe Gypsy, he shrugged and congratulated me for quitting a job that I didn't feel was right for me.

Then he moved on to the next topic of conversation; his cat just had an eye removed and is in a deep depression over the cone she has to wear. It's not going to be a comfortable period of time for her, but it's for her own good.

I can't help but draw significant parallels between my unemployed self and a one-eyed cat.