I left work Wednesday without my paycheck, didn’t think about it until I was bumper deep in traffic on the Southfield Freeway.  So yesterday, for my day off, I came to the office.  Brought my 2 year old with me, he had fun flirting with all the assistants and they loved it.  After picking up my check and while in the area, I made a stop by my former place of employment.

I was laid-off/let-go in June of 2004 after 6 years with the company. I had gone part-time after having Gavin; a year later they decide to cut all part-time positions and suddenly I was just as expendable as the position I held.  To keep the story short, I’ll just say that I loved working there and hated that I had to go. Yeah, I could have transferred out to Chicago or worse yet demote myself, take a pay-cut and ignore the 6 years worth of on-the-job training and learning about the system to become their new receptionist.. NO THANK YOU!  Again, in short… it sucked getting let go.

So Gavin and I walk in and we’re greeted by my old boss, it was nice to see her.  I still get the gossip every now and then because my husband works for one of their clients (which is how we met).  Walking through the office suite was like walking through a ghost town.  When I started there back in 1998, there were hundreds employed there, today there’s little over twenty, which is pretty much how it was when I left.  The size of the suite has shrunk since I started and even now there’s far too much useless and unutilized space.  Empty cubicles that once housed ringing phones, blinking computers, papers, pictures, and the most obvious, people.  I walked past my old space in client services, it was still empty.  I purposely avoided lingering in the area for too long.  What a waste.

It was great to see some of my old co-workers. I miss them the most. My husband sees them now more than I do.  He fills me in when he can.  Just the other day he was talking about a new product they are taking on and I began my sentence with "we" meaning my old company and as if I was still working there.  That was an added benefit, having my husband working for a client.  Benefit for my side as well as the place my husband works.  But we could each come home from work and actually know about the other persons day, including the quirks, pitfalls, hassles, and yes the gossip.. LOL  On top of that, my husband’s employer just happened to be one of the clients I took care of… needless to say, he and I became the topic of gossip for awhile once the secret that we were dating was made public within the circle.

I could go on and on.. I really miss those days.  My new job is well… working out.  I like my new boss and his associates.  I’m appreciative of the opportunities that he’s opening up for me.  But it’s not a ‘comfortable old shoe’ yet, if that makes any sense.  My old job was 2 comfortable old shoes that I at least get to put on every now and then when I go by there.  Just isn’t the same.