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"The Firm (brutal introduction to capitalism)
Around the turn of the century, I was working for an attorney in a tiny "boutique" office, where I found a good "groove", and fell into a "working rhythm". Due to the fact that I didn't dig in in my early 20s and get well educated in a trade/industry, I had to take a "grunt" position at this firm. I did all the things that supported the "professional" staff, and received the pertinent compensation for this work. Because of that, I had to rent a room from a guy. I could not afford a place of my own.
This was fine. I did not work full time, and got the weekends off. I spent a lot of time exploring and "documenting" the area (with a camera), and drinking a hell of a lot of beer.
I started "kinda" getting into web-dev (at this time, it was no more than trying to make plain HTML work in all the browsers... CSS, Flash and JS did not exist just yet) I thought maybe I could make some money off of it.
But mostly I just drank. Life was hard. I wished I'd done better at school. Web-dev was getting too dense for my weird brain.
Then 911 happened.
Within a year of that, I was living at my father's house, many, many miles away. This would last another year, and on my own volition, I started to look for employment (gotta pay for that beer somehow) I found one at a big law firm (little b) It was a bottom level job, but I would get into it.
Within another year, I'd really want to be in my own place. I was +30 now, and I'd never had that yet. I found a neat place, and ended up living there for +5 years.
After a few years as a "grunt", I would be offered a better position at the firm. Still a "lower tier" job, but it payed a bit better, and I got my own cubicle. I was able to lease a better car, pay for a high speed connection, and a internet phone line, and begin to build a strong line of credit. I "bought" a bunch of goodies, the best being an Apple Power Mac. What a monster! Things were looking up!
Of course, this would not last. There were rumors floating around the firm that major change was in the air. One of my co-workers was obviously being driven out, through an insidious manipulation by the CFO. This co-worker was very vocal about most every problem at the firm. It "made sense" they'd be targeted as they were.
It was 2008, and the firm was being absorbed by a Bigger one. Because, obviously. Our firm would not survive funding all those epic attorney lifestyles with the coming recession. Many of the younger/junior attorneys left. The CFO (my boss) was bought out. The others made deals to ensure THEIR lives would not be affected too much. Us "grunts" though? Better work harder! Management got further stressed. It was getting ugly.
I was "promoted" in a way, and demoted at the same time. My hours were cut, yet I was able to stay afloat due to the aforementioned credit line. It was a good buffer. I also nurtured a few solid relationships with staff there at the location I worked at, as well as a few in the "other" office (the headquarters of the firm that bought us out) including (Score!) a really good one with their CFO.
Then I met a girl (re... ugh... what is the word? we got back together after 10 years) She now had kids, and had just gotten divorced. I would be flying down to see her, and vice versus, on a monthly basis. Many times I'd pay for her to come up.
The credit line got maxed out because of this. Loneliness is expensive under capitalism (there's another story there... I did indeed live in NV for good long while...)
Within the end of the decade, she would convince me to move down to be with her. I was to find employment there (IN THIS ECONOMY?!)
The firm was nice enough to allow me to get unemployment aid (due to the cut hours) and I would have this "boosted" when I moved. I was able to pay for the car with it for a good while.
But of course, things don't generally get better under capitalism. Within 3 years, I would lose the car, my storage, and end up leaving the GF, them moving out here to TX, as I could not find a job that paid well enough to keep my former lifestyle up, among other things (my figuring out I was autistic was, for sure, a relationship killer) (supposed BFF also was not up to supporting me until I could get back on my feet... they funded the trip out here)
Ten years later, I'd be stuck in a tiny room with a +70 y/o man, in a tiny house, in some shitty suburb of Houston, TX, under the "care" of an authoritarian younger sibling, with only an old laptop to help keep me sane. Nowhere to walk to, too, this time. Plus, it's too much work to "fix" the backyard here (something I've done at the 5 other places we've lived at through those 10 years... yes, we moved 7 times in the past decade... yeah, capitalism!) (also, I'm to hand over my newfound SSI aid to said sibling, because they are unable to realize that THEIR lifestyle is unsustainable, even at their "good' income)"
And here I sit, waiting for something to break.
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