Katrina's Nonsoapy Journal

May 27, 2003

There is so much going on, or rather a lot of extensions of one really big thing, that's it's hard to know where to start.  Backwards, I guess.  Or maybe back and forth.

Most of you know what all went on last late summer when Eric was laid off for three months and things got... interesting. 

Friday, Eric found out he has been laid off again.

It came out of the blue and is part of a really unusual series of events that has just proven to me that even when it looks like things are going smoothly and calmly, there is an intricate network of activity hard at work. 

If you will remember, I've had two weird things going on for me, even though things are calm and peaceful.  I spent a little over a week with a headache and prior to that, about a month of nonspecific depression and unrest.  In fact, in retrospect, I hit the nail on the head when I described it as a "dis-ease" that felt like a storm building and said that something big was coming.  It was and it is.  On May 11th, I wrote:  Strange stuff.  Maybe it's hormones.  I feels like... energy.  Eh.  I'll let you know.  :)  The winds of change are definitely blowing and I can feel the energy of the transformation welling up.  Weird stuff.  Tomorrow is definitely and another day and we'll see what blows in!

I want to take you through this step by step so I can understand it myself as I explain it to you.

Eric, my wonderful husband who I adore and who is really, really hot, works for a company here in town that installs electrical systems like fire alarms, security systems, etc into buildings that are under construction.  Here's a picture in case you've forgotten how hot he is.  It's a thumbnail, so click it and get a big copy.  That's Eric and our son, Nathan, who's three.  Anyway, Eric LOVES his job.  It's the same job he got last October when things had been so bad and it has just been such a blessing.  The pay is good, he loves the work and enjoys the people who work with him.  He's well respected and his employment there has been mutually beneficial.  It's been just great. 

About 3 weeks ago, a man came to work there whose name is Dan.  He worked with Eric for a total of 4 days on the new VA hospital they are building, then was sent to San Francisco to work on a security system for one of the prisons there.  During that 4 days, Dan and Eric worked together on the nurses call system, which is what Eric is in charge of in the project.  When electrical guys are working on wiring up systems, they talk back and forth quite a bit.  During that time, the guy mentioned that the reason he had come to work there was that he'd had his own business that had failed.  What he would do is go into housing divisions that are being built and do installation on the security systems, the fire alarms, the cable outlets, the phone jacks, home theater systems and such.  He was making a good amount of money at it, but the way contractors work is that you do 30 days worth of work, then the builder pays you for that 30 days, then you do another 30 days worth of work and get paid for that.  They had a great contract for a subdivision and worked like mad for the first 30 days, then when they got paid for that month (a sizable amount), his partner, a single guy, took the money and disappeared.  That left Dan with a contract he had to try and honor by himself and a mess on his hands.  He lost a lot of money and that's how he ended up working for the same company as my husband. 

During those four days, he offered my husband the opportunity to take his partner's place in the company as an equal owner.  He knew a guy who has the contractor's license they need (you can work 3 men on a license as a business) and who has a strong background in sales and marketing, as well as in low voltage installation like they would be doing.  This is an untapped market and the builders are forced to get the electricians to do the work and they hate it because it's not their job.

Eric came home and told me about this on May 16th and all I could feel was panic.  We were still so close to that time of total poverty and near homelessness of last fall and all I wanted was a year of security to heal and regroup and get some bills paid up; a year with no one dying, no one getting laid off, no one losing their home, no major upsets.  My husband looked like someone jammed a maglight up his ass and turned it on.  He was officially on fire.  I told him my concerns about him only knowing Dan for a few days and not knowing this other guy, Mike at all.  I told him my fears about him not having work for a period of time, about the funds needed for start up when we are so precariously perched on having enough funds to get by right now.  I worked hard to get our budget to where it would handle everything and help us to get somewhat caught up.  It was working.  I felt nothing but fear, no, terror, that kind of terror you see in the eyes of a deer caught in headlights. 

Eric asked me where the fear was coming from.  Was it from intuition or conditioning?  I told him I honestly couldn't be sure and he was positive that the good feeling he was getting was fully intuitive and that he felt he had to roll with it.  It was his dream come to life and he couldn't pass on this opportunity.  The plan (of course, we didn't know about the layoff then) was to keep his current job and work for "the business" on the weekends until they got enough business to work full time.  Start off slowly and build a little at a time, maybe 2-3 months of working 7 days a week.

That was where and when it all began.  The next day, my headache was gone.

One thing led to another and in less than two weeks, the following has happened:

Eric, Mike and Dan have had several business meetings to set all of this up and have instantly set up a tight friendship and mutual respect.

They have 3 contracts pending the instatement of their business license and their insurance policy.  They have 2 people who are interested in investing in the business to get them set up in return for shares of the company for a specified period of time.  This would allow them to hit the ground running and go straight to work. 

Eric has prepared a fantastic power point presentation for the investors that could crack open the wallet of Ebenezer Scrooge.  They have an investors' meeting tomorrow morning at 11am PST.  If it goes well, our lives will change dramatically for the better. 

About a week ago, Eric felt compelled, despite his better judgment, to tell his superiors what was going on and that he'd likely be resigning within a few months. 

What was interesting is that Eric wasn't feeling well last Friday and called in sick.  Later that day, he got a call from Dan, the new partner, saying he'd (Dan) been laid off from the job.  Eric was surprised, but if layoffs were to happen, it made sense that Dan would take a hit since he'd only been there a week or two.  The next person in line was Eric's best friend.   

Eric has a friend at the company who has difficultly obtaining employment, despite being a good worker and well trained engineer, because of a prison record he got during a bad time many years ago.  He is married with two small children.  Eric got him this job, which pulled him from the last job Eric also got for him into an even better situation. If Eric's friend were to be laid off, it be tragic for him and for his family.  As soon as Eric hung up from talking to Dan, he called his friend, who had heard nothing.  This prompted Eric to call his supervisor to find out if his friend's job was safe, only to learn that *he* (Eric) was being laid off.  Since Eric had been moved to tell him that he'd be leaving, they bypassed his friend and went straight to Eric. 

This sounds like a bad thing, but Eric and I were both relieved that it was him and not his friend.  For us, it might be difficult, but at least we have a great prospect that could pan out.  Eric's friend would have nothing except a hard time finding work and a family to support.

So that's where it stands right now.  Every day, there is some sort of exciting news about "the business."  "The business" is all we talk about.  All.  We.  Talk.  About.  The layoff put the shark in the water, so to speak, for both Dan and Eric and they are highly motivated and optimistic to the extreme.  I realized how hard I was trying not to be involved in this or put energy into it out of fear that I would contaminate something wonderful with my doubt and slow its roll.  Once I thought about it, I realized that fear was keeping me from participating in something that was very important to my husband and potentially to my family, so I'm working on abandoning all of the misgivings and throwing myself into it, trusting what is to be. 

The Universe hasn't let us down yet and even when I thought we were being mistreated, it was always just a pit stop on the way to something better.  Like labor pains.  You can give in to the fear and pain and wail and moan and claw the walls or you can relax and breathe and let it happen.  I can clearly see the hand of fate in this, putting Dan and Eric in the same place at the same time, under the circumstances to discuss this incredible opportunity, having contracts find their way to the guys before they even incorporated, prompting Eric to divulge that he was leaving just in time to protect his friend's job, having Dan almost accidently meet the capital venturists who want to invest in the business, pairing them up with someone who has the contractors license and is well connected and a great sales person, then giving Eric this time to work on getting things started.  It's really pretty amazing.

This could go very, very well and we're excited for all that could be.  If you have a free moment to stop and make a wish for us, it would very much be appreciated.  I've pretty well done away with the initial fears I had about this and I'm putting my faith in Eric and in the Universe to make this a success.  Instead of "scary," I'm going to say it's "exhilarating."  Instead  of "unemployed," Eric is "in a holding pattern" and a pre-business owner. 

Deep breaths and survival mode.  I've totally curtailed unnecessary spending and I'm waiting to see what comes my way.

*in*out*in*out*

One foot in front of the other!

Love,
Katrina

Update:  May 28, 2003

Here are two pictures of my sweetie getting ready to leave to go to the investors' meeting.  Doesn't he look handsome?  They didn't do the shirt and tie thing because it was labeled as informal, but I think he cleans up real good.

They met with the investor at 1pm (Olive Garden) and Eric said the presentation could not possibly have gone better.  She was impressed with his presentation and enthusiastic about the company and unofficially promised them the money.  She'll give her formal answer on Friday and let them know how much she wants to invest, then they can start working these contracts that are coming in.

We just might float this lay off after all!!

I'm very excited.

And he's bringing home chicken alfredo!

Yayy!

Thanks to all of you who said a little prayer!  Let's hope they get good news on Friday!

Love,
Katrina