{"id":2220,"date":"2019-07-13T01:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-07-12T22:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/yemeniamerican.com\/en\/?p=2220"},"modified":"2019-07-13T01:00:00","modified_gmt":"2019-07-12T22:00:00","slug":"the-alternative-universe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/yemeniamerican.com\/en\/the-alternative-universe\/","title":{"rendered":"The Alternative Universe"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Michael Beck – YAN<\/strong><\/p>\n

For me it happened on May 1st of this year. I was leaving work when one of the owners stopped me. She had been waiting for me. \u201cI need to talk to you.\u201dI knew it wasn\u2019t going to be good, but I was still caught off guard. \u201c We\u2019re closing today…for good. I\u2019m sorry. I know\u00a0 I\u2019m turning your world upside down.\u201d I was in shock. \u201c I\u2019m going to need your keys.\u201d And after almost 25 years, that was that.<\/p>\n

My mind was racing. I wasn\u2019t getting up to go to work tomorrow. I missed one day of work in the last eight years. I had the stomach flu. And now, no reason to wake up. I did anyway. I couldn\u2019t sleep, so I drove my kids to school.<\/p>\n

Right away I went to the Michigan Works office and filed for unemployment. You look around the room thinking you shouldn\u2019t be here. You\u2019re not like the rest of the people there. What you fail to realize is that is exactly what all the rest of the people in the room are thinking.<\/p>\n

It becomes a routine of applying for jobs, interviewing and certifying so you can receive your unemployment check deposit. There\u2019s rules to follow. Repetitive questions to answer.<\/p>\n

Magically, you are in an \u201calternate universe\u201d. You are no longer in the world of the employed. Their lives go on. \u201cGood luck buddy!\u201d<\/p>\n

When it first happens, you get the phone calls…the texts…the emails. \u201cSend me your resume. I want to help you out.\u201d A couple weeks later – crickets. People check – in less and less.<\/p>\n

You can\u2019t spend all day applying for work. It\u2019s mentally draining. You find other places to pass the time.<\/p>\n

In the \u201calternate universe\u201d, I spend my time at the library and at McDonald\u2019s. That\u2019s where the other people who are unemployed also spend their time. We all notice each other. We all know we are members of the \u201calternate universe\u201d.<\/p>\n

The library is great because you get free computer usage. You see the same people almost daily. And most people stick to using the same computer day after day.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m a bigger fan of McDonald\u2019s. I get a large drink that I can keep refilling and maybe something to eat off the dollar menu. I try and get the same booth. I like to do paperwork and get some reading done.<\/p>\n

I see the same people when I go there. There\u2019s Robert. He\u2019s the guy who is always reading the Bible. Then there\u2019s the guy with the tablet who is always sneezing. Then there\u2019s the guy who asks for a water cup but fills it with Coke when no one is looking. And there\u2019s this older couple who have been married over fifty years, and want to know all about me. We see each other in this \u201calternate universe\u201d.<\/p>\n

My phone goes off. Another job alert for a job I\u2019m either not qualified for, or a job that doesn\u2019t pay well.<\/p>\n

Time to put in another application. I need to tweak my resume. Maybe this one will be the one. Fingers crossed.<\/p>\n

I want to go home. I want to get out of this \u201calternate universe\u201d. I don\u2019t belong here.<\/p>\n

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