2001-10-13 - 2:58 p.m.

j$ tries to shape up his attitude

eRoommate and I went over to RedMan's place last night. There's a whole string of nightmares that I could convey about parts of that experience, but that's not the point of this entry.

The point is that RedMan got laid off on Thursday, and he's found out that there's currently a five-week delay between applying for unemployment and actually getting your first check. And RedMan is not a model of fiscal responsibility. Actually, it's more the opposite. He actually has a big-screen TV *Rent-to-Own*. In fact, most of his furniture is Rent-to-Own.

The mind just boggles.

And I really hope he lands some kind of new job soon, because he could be in a world of financial hurt in a very short time.

And me?

I'm just trying to effect an attitude adjustment with regards to work. Because we're entering the slow time of year for hirings, and I have some vacations I want to take. And I want to buy a house in the early part of next year, and so it is *not* a good time for me to gut my savings by being unemployed.

And since I'm in a mood to not kid myself today, I have to say that if I don't shape up some, there *does* exist an outside chance that they'll ship me out.

And as much as I want that sometimes, now is not the time.