Split Personality.

So I have become a victim of identity theft. Really. At first I thought it was a Halloween trick or something, but no, it was real.

The timeline goes something like this:

Was at work, and made a quick drive at noon to pick some appetizers for our Halloween potluck lunch. I paid with my debit card, no problem.

Spent the rest of the day at work, as usual, and then headed out around 5. I made a pitstop to buy Olivia some undershirts, tried paying with my debit card, and it was rejected. I didn't think a lot of it, maybe it was just their machine, so I paid in cash.

Went to my bank. Just ran in to pick up some checking registers. But at the ATM, it would not let me take out any money, and it showed that I had a crazy negative balance (over -$800,000). I ran right back inside the branch (they closed at 6 and it was 5:50). They said that my account was put on hold for some suspicious activity. Apparently, there were 4 teller credit deposits done in Providence, RI, at different branches, starting at around 2 PM this day (they tried for a 5th, but they wouldn't let him do it). What happened was that this idiot deposited these checks, but took some cash out from those checks. So if these checks bounce (which they probably will), I would get screwed with whatever fees they would issue, and he would make off with the cash. Wow.

I got home, and i did have a message from the bank telling me to call them about this. I called back, and they recommended i go in the next day to close my accounts and open new ones. And the accounts remained blocked.

The next morning, I went online to my account, and copies of the actual deposit slips were there, and I saw that someone wrote down my name, address and signed my name (they even signed my name the wrong way, but that is obvious since it was not me!) I went to the bank, and took care of the opening/closing stuff. And today I had to update all of my online accounts.

And this is far from over. I have to call back on Monday to continue this investigation. This person also has a fake drivers license with my name and license number on it (which is how he ended up getting ahold of my account). So now I will probably have to waste more time and get a new one. And then I will have to file a report with the police.

I have no idea how somebody could have gotten my info, but they get these things in so many different ways. I just hope that he tries this again using my old account, and they catch the son of a bitch.

Three week update...

I've survived three weeks of the new job so far, and it is starting to get busy.

This is definitely a new experience for me - I have always been around the bottom of my department, but now not only is that not the case, but I am supervising 14 people. And it is going well. I am already showing that I am a friendly, laid-back boss, but asking for updates when needed and signing off on stuff in a timely manner. I am grateful that I am finally given the opportunity... and my boss seems to think I am doing fine so far. I even got a compliment from the CFO today for something I took care of for him!

So far, these are the things I like about this job:

- No one worries when I get into work or when I leave, just as long as the work is done.
- I've been leaving before 5 most days. Most people in my department are out of there at around 4 every day.
- My commute - it used to take over an hour door to door, now it takes 20-25 minutes. And barely any traffic!
- I even get to make a difference - I approve financial waivers for patients that cannot afford their treatments.

Now I can officially thank my last job for laying me off. It only took a month to find this job, and it was worth the wait.

Last Hurrah In Boston

Today I went into Boston for the last time in awhile - to do some shopping and to meet up with my recruiter for lunch. While I was out, I wrote bits and pieces of a blog entry, and here it is...

- Took my old commute, commuter rail to North Station (I left early so that I could get a parking space by the train). I don't have a train pass anymore, so I had to buy a round trip ticket for the commuter rail, and ended up walking around instead of taking the subway. I found a Bruegger's Bagels (they have a yummy rosemary & olive oil bagel).

- Walked to Downtown Crossing. Was going to buy some new clothes for work, but nothing was open yet - Macy's opens at 10, and it was 9. So I kept walking, mostly to get lost and find my way back.

- Almost ended up at South Station, but turned down some random blocks. Ended up at the aquarium, walked into the park by the waterfront, and sat on a bench right by the water, looking out at all of the boats. It was a perfect day to be sitting out there - sunny, slight breeze. Blasting the new Metallica & Anberlin albums on my iPod (neither have been released yet). The new Metallica sounds really good. Better than St. Anger, and better than Load and Re-load, closer to Justice sounding. Long songs, good solos, songs flow pretty well, even the complex ones.

- Just thought of people working right at this moment (9:55 AM). I feel bad for Melissa, but at my old jobs... haha. :) But next week I will be working. Oh, and I took my drug test yesterday, and the company will do the background check today.

- Ended up walking back to Macy's - got two pairs of pants and a weekend polo shirt. Walked back to Quincy Market, walked around, and waited for noon - meeting with Jill the recruiter for lunch at Houston's.

- Lunch went well. Jill got the salmon, I got a Thai steak and noodle salad. I told her the whole story about what happened at my previous six year job and what I heard about what is going on there now (it's still funny to think of how that is going!)

- After lunch, went to the Gp and got two dress shirts and a belt. Very exciting.

- Walked back to North Station, via Haymarket.

- Waiting for the 2:20 Reading train.

- On the train. Bye bye Boston, for now. I will be back, eventually - my friend got tickets to see Metallica at the Garden in January. Awesome, and again, I do really like the new album.

That wasn't so bad...

So yeah, I got a job!

Of the two second interviews I went on, one of them came in with an offer, and I start next Monday. A great position - senior accountant/financial analyst with some people to supervise. It will finally put me back on a normal career path, and get me into a (hopefully) good company with a good culture (unlike my last two companies).

Now I can enjoy my last week away from work with Olivia (and get a mandatory drug test for work). I know I will look back at this time and think, wow it only took me a month to find a job, just in time for my severance to end, and I will miss the extra time I had with Olivia. But I at least got a great month with her, with all her new words and her curiosity. She rules. :)

Suits & Second Interviews

Ok, I am done wearing suits. The next time I wear one, it better be at a friend's wedding.

So now I play the waiting game. I did my job - I interviewed for two positions, got called back for two second interviews, and made as good of an impression as I could. Both jobs have their pros and cons, but both would be an improvement over what I had. I hope that will here back tomorrow from both of them with good news, and then I can have an awesome problem - trying to pick one job over the other.

If one of these work out, it will really put my life back on track. I know I will look back at this time and think, that wasn't so bad. And I got to spend lots of quality time with Olivia, especially at a time in her life where she is doing and saying so much.

But again, about the suits - I had to put one on four times in the past seven days, and I am done. Why couldn't I make just as good of an impression in a t-shirt and shorts (ok, a polo or button down and khakis)?

Recruiters

Last week I met up with eight recruiters. Include the one I met up with a few months ago, and two others also working for me (one I met a few years ago), that brings the total numbers of recruiters to 11.

You would think that with this many, I could get an interview already??

I remember how it works. Last time I was looking for a job, I met up with a bunch. Most of them I never heard from again. The others would give me a few updates, but nothing that was even close to what I was looking for. The one that actually found my job, I never heard of them before and they had a job ready when they called me.

I keep getting worried that this will happen again - I met up with three of them on Tuesday, and heard back from one the next day, but only to tell me that they were sending my resume to some places. Haven't heard anything since.

Last time I got my job, it took me about four months. Can I wait that long again? I'm not sure. I love spending all of this time with Olivia, and she is getting so attached to me. But I need to start working again. You know?

Eliminated.

So yeah, I got laid off.

And it happened so fast. I knew that the company was not hitting their numbers for a couple of months, and they already started with a couple of layoffs, and I even knew that it could happen to me. Just not as fast as it did. It was not based on performance, but since they have a small finance/admin department, and I was not billable, I was an obvious choice. Four others were let go the same day as me, to go with the two they let go in the previous three weeks. Oh I'm sorry, the real explanation was that my position was "eliminated" and that they are doing some "restructuring." What ever helps you sleep at night.

Also the way they did it... I know this is how companies do this, but it still feels so dirty. I was called into my boss' office with the head of HR there, and they told me. They wanted me to just leave right then and there (it was 4:30 PM). They shut my computer off while I was talking to them (quickly deactivating my email and work account). They didn't even want me to grab any of my personal belongings (I did manage to grab a few things). And they kept staring at me until I left. I felt like some sort of a criminal. I was not surprised, but it still hit me hard.

This all happened right before vacation (worse - they laid off this other guy while he was on his honeymoon!) It didn't ruin the trip at all - we went to Seattle (with day trips to Portland via Aberdeen, and to Vancouver). The trip was amazing. Melissa and I took our own little grunge tour - saw Kurt's house in Seattle and where he grew up in Aberdeen, the apartment complex from the movie Singles, and West Seattle, where Eddie Vedder lives and where Easy Street Records is (Newbury Comics for the west coast). We saw fish being thrown at Pike Place, went up the Space Needle, nearly teared up in the Experience Music Project when we walked through the Pacific Northwest wing with all of the early 90's memorabilia (including hand-written lyrics from Kurt Cobain and Chris Cornell). We even went to Cannon Beach in Oregon, which is the beach in the Goonies. We fell in love with Seattle very easily.

But now we are back, and I have spent all week submitting my resume everywhere. I have gotten calls from tons of recruiters, and i have agreed to meet with all of them, hoping that someone will have something. No matter what they promise, I know what to expect from them - lots of talk, not much else after that, except maybe an interview or two. I can see ten recruiters, and may not get anything at all from eight of them. But all it takes is one.

This is all new to me. I have always done well at my job, and even at my previous job, I knew I was awesome, I just wanted a chance to move up, which they did not want to do. So now I am home with Olivia, feeling like a single dad during the day with Melissa at work. I drop her off at the in-laws when I need to meet with recruiters (which I have been doing all week). I feel bad when I am online or on the phone with recruiters and not giving Olivia all of my attention, but I have to do what I have to do. Right now, she just had her lunch and is napping on the couch, looking adorable.

So I guess I will do what I need to - if nothing comes up right away, I need to try and enjoy this extra time I have with Olivia, because when I do get a new job, I will miss this. I am getting a severance, so at least I will still be getting some money for awhile. And after that, along with unemployment, Melissa can support my jobless buttocks. I would do it for her (wait, I already did!)

Oh yeah, and Melissa's situation - when she got laid off, she didn't find a job for months, then found a crappy job, but left that one quickly and found her current job right after, and she loves it. So there is hope for me! :)