Last December I attended a “Laid-off Camp” put on by my county’s unemployment office. There I made a new friend named Brett Newmyer.
Brett offers me some nice support with his own special brand of humor thrown in. I jokingly refer to him as my “court jester” now. He even volunteered to act as the first reader for my new e-book.
Here’s Brett’s honest opinion of my book:
“I love the way you write, with a ‘human’ voice. It’s like listening to an old friend. Is your book helpful? Hell yes! You speak from the heart and from experience, which lends credibility.”
I asked Brett to write up his own true midlife crisis story to share with you here:
Damaged Goods by Brett Newmyer
Just over three years ago, for my 50th birthday, I finally quit smoking. How, you may wonder, was I able to give up a 35 year, pack-a-day habit? Under the circumstances, my only option was the radical two-step method. (And no, I am not referring to country dancing.) The first step is the most important, for without it, I could not have succeeded, and that is to have… no, survive, a heart attack. Step two is, quit! Fear can be a powerful motivator.
At this point, you may ask ‘What, no patch? No gum?’ In my case, my cardiologist installed an IAD (Implantable Auto-defibrillator), in my chest to monitor my heart. In the event my heart decides to march to the beat of a different drummer again, it will get a good zap to bring it back in line. Apparently, any nicotine at all is a no-no with a defibrillator, so, much like the dreaded ‘Soup Nazi’ from Seinfeld, my doctor informed me ‘No gum for you’! Little did I know that my new ‘battery backup’ would figure in yet more challenges down the road.
After a mandatory 90-day period to ‘rest and recuperate’, my employer declined to have me back. Evidently, I was ‘damaged goods’. Now, not only was I unemployed, but because of an earlier divorce, I was homeless, too. What to do, what to do? One day, my good friend J.C. simply said ‘Dude, go drive a truck’. Brilliant! I had always wanted to, and now, it would not only be a job, but as an over-the-road driver, a home, too! Three grueling, 60-hour weeks later, I had my Commercial Drivers License in hand, and a great new job driving a truck.
All went well for a year and a half, including passing several stringent Department of Transportation physical exams. Naturally, the topic of the defibrillator always came up, but I had clearance from my cardiologist, which was fine with the DOT, until they abruptly said it wasn’t.
Sometime in 2008, they changed the rules to say ‘IAD is disqualifying’, and that September I was told to get out of the truck and go home. Unemployed and homeless, ‘damaged goods’, once again. Fortunately, I have been able to stay with family, but I am still looking for a good job. Maybe I could learn to write…
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Isn’t it strange that we don’t seem to move on by our own volition but require a strong push by some negative event to get going?
I too, am wondering how this will all work out for me. I left Michigan in 2005 for Arizona and all the construction business opportunities just in time to see the wheels fall off our economy. Now I’m 2,000 miles away from children and aging parents, few networking contacts, renting a room in a friend’s home and wondering which way to go. I may end up being one of those folks who have exited the job market. But, I’m healthy & have enough loving and concerned people in my life to keep my days interesting. I’ll be fine!
Brad:
How are you? Good to hear from you and know you’re still kicking! – LLC