Early Retirement

I officially ended my tenure at Sara Lee today. Looking forward to a couple weeks of goofing off/household chores before I get serious about finding the next paying gig.

My Dad would sure have trouble understanding today's employment world. After my Mom's funeral, my uncle (her brother) told me how she was considered to have landed quite a catch when she married Dad. In rural post-depression Iowa, Dad was unusual in that he had a regular paycheck. Most folks depended on the sale of farm goods or work for pay from one project or construction job and then wait for another to come along. Dad worked for the railroad. He went to work every day and got paid regular as clockwork. That was a privilege not all shared, and Dad recognized that himself. He was glad to have that job and performed in a series of positions for the same railroad for over 30 years. He was loyal to his company and he expected company loyalty to him in return.

Things have changed. Folks take on a job these days and more often than not they move on to another job after 2 - 4 years. Sometimes it's the employee who moves and sometimes it's the company that allows the employee the opportunity to grow elsewhere. I have never had an unfavorable employee evaluation in my career, but I have worked for 10 companies over a 33 year career. 6 times now, it was the company's idea that we part ways. It's almost as if employment with a company has taken on the form of contractor work ..."the project's done, it's time to leave."

I've gotten used to this, but Dad wouldn't understand.