And Now, The End is Near...

My first day of work at AT&T I was speechless.  No, I was not overwhelmed by the new experience, I was speechless because I lost my voice over Memorial Day weekend yelling at turtles at a bar down the Jersey shore.  Yes, turtles (read here)

It rained my first day – not just rain, but a deluge and, because I was young an ill prepared, walked through the aisles, silently introducing myself, soaked to the skin.  Not exactly an auspicious beginning to a thirty-five-year career; a career that ends today.

It has been a good run, overall – allowed me to live a good life, made great friends, meet my wife (now ex but still friends) and raise three wonderful children.  Although I retire, not by choice but by circumstance, I look forward to what is about to come.

Back in 2002 I was let go for the first time, and I wrote what I thought was a funny farewell email – at least, I thought it was funny – others, no-so-much, so when an opportunity arose for me to come back to AT&T, my old boss told me to “come in the building, don’t talk to anyone, meet me in the conference room – I want to get you hired before any one knows you’re here…” 

I am forever in his debt.

It occurs to me, that when I was let go in 2002, it was the beginning of March.  It also happened to be the same week that my divorce was finalized.  And now, I find myself once again being let go from this company in March.  What a month.  March comes in like a lion, and goes out like a lion, just not the same lion.

I have had so many good moments during my employment, but one of the most memorable was our lunch table at the Mt. Kemble Ave building in Morristown.  Every day, there would be anywhere between four to twenty of us, always the same table.  It was like an hour of free therapy every day.  We were like the cool kids at the cool table.  One day, we came down to the cafeteria, food in hand, and the unthinkable happened – there were other people at our table.  We froze, deer in the headlights, not sure what to do.  We eventually found a new table but stared at the intruders the whole time.

But I digress…

Suffice to say, it has been a good run. 

When I was first hired, I was told don’t get used to the people you work with, you won’t know them in a year or two.  Well, thirty-five years later, I am still friends with most of them.  Not to mention the friends I made along the way, good friends, and I can thank this company for that as well.

On March 9th I start a new time in my life, and I am looking forward to it.  So, I say goodbye to everyone, I wish you all the luck in the world. 

As for me, I leave and accept my Laurel and Hardy handshake.