The Real Deal

Have you ever had a friend with a blog who you know is going through some pretty heavy stuff in their life, but they don't mention it on their blog and they just keep posting things about their kid's lost teeth, or fun at the park, or they post nothing at all? And while they certainly aren't obligated to open up to the world about everything, you wonder how they are really doing? I have and I'm afraid that's just what I've been doing for a while. I have written my private thoughts about our situation in my journal, but I know that there are people who read this blog that are concerned about our family and would like to know the real deal.

OK... so here is what's really going on with us: Twelve weeks ago yesterday, The Jack Johnson Company, the engineering firm Ricky worked for, went out of business. While the closing of the firm was something that we had anticipated for a while, the reality of unemployment hit us surprisingly hard. We had never experienced this trial before. Ricky has had two jobs during his 14 year professional career. He worked for the same firm for ten years in Mobile and then the last 4 for JJC. We had moved across the country for this job and we found ourselves on our knees asking the Lord to guide us as we decided what to do next. We gathered the children together and explained to them exactly what happened. We then told them that we had food stored and enough money saved to live for several months while Ricky looked for another job. We assured them that people experience things that are way worse than this and that we love them, we love each other and we would get through this together.

The first couple of weeks we had a lot of momentum. Ricky applied for every engineering job in the the valley that he was remotely qualified for. He found that many of the available jobs were centered around highway work, where most of his experience is in commercial and residential development. We then spent a couple of days in Las Cruces, NM where he interviewed for a job. He was offered the position, but after careful consideration, we decided that we needed to do what was necessary to stay here in Saratoga Springs. In the time since, Ricky has literally made finding a job his full-time job. He has gone out and met with the principals of at least 30 engineering firms along the Wasatch Front. These firms are not hiring, but Ricky basically calls these guys and asks them if he can come talk to them about who they know and what they know. They have been surprisingly accepting and helpful. We feel pretty optimistic that one of these meetings in particular will result in a job offer very soon. I don't want to jinx it, but hopefully soon I'll be able to share the details about what led him to find this firm.....

Ricky really is a Superstar. My love and respect for him have grown so much during this time. I have so many things I want to write about the blessings of this experience, but I think I will save them for another post...