Sunday Personals Pt. 1

I was thinking I would take the time to share about my plight on the job front. If you’ve been following my updates, you know I was interviewing for jobs and my mention of some tough things that have happened…I heard from two of the three interviews from last week…one to go, nothing so far…

Just one Piece will do:

I had a job. No let me start here…I moved from North Carolina …due to things out of my control. I moved for all the right reasons. I left a good job, college, and a place I called home. I’ve been here for two years, unhappy for two years. Someday I will share my journey…I have a long story and it should be told in pieces…so here goes.

I had a job, a good job. A job that made me feel like my move from North Carolina was not in vain. I have a disability…called MCS = Multiple Chemical Sensitivity. What this means…I am sensitive to all things that have smells, except food. I get sick. I can’t be around perfumes, lotions, soaps, sprays, chemicals…and so forth. I get lots of questions about what it is like to have this…I didn’t always have this. I developed this in my twenties...and year after year I learned to adapt. Such as…I don’t go to movies, unless they are early shows. I don’t go to concerts, plays, or anything else that involves lots of people in an enclosed area. I use EVERYTHING unscented. If I meet with friends, I ask them to refrain from using scented products…I could go on and on…but I think you get the gist of it…When I started my job I let my employer know about my disability…offering medical documentation to help understand. There were ladies in the office who wore strong perfume and I asked for help…long story short…Under the laws of the ADA=Americans Disability Act…I was protected and they passed a statement that said the office had to be free of such chemicals. I know many have and will argue they have a right to wear what they want, except the laws say, no you don’t. Some feel they have their rights taken away…and I say, what about my right to be healthy? If I was in a wheelchair, should I be denied a ramp just so others don’t have to be inconvenienced to walk around it? Since my disability is invisible, some have a hard time believing there is even something wrong. Many of us who struggle with MCS, go through such things. There is little education about MCS and the people who suffer. It is painful. More and more there is talk about MCS and many places are going “scent-free” There is hope.  

After the office approved the scent-free policy, they decided to lay carpet. CARPET! As soon as I learned of this, I went back out for help; worried…I knew what it would do to me and feared for my job. In the beginning they accommodated me, only when I took the time to learn the laws and knew I had rights to be accommodated until I could return to my office where the carpet was laid…again, long story short…no accommodations…equals me with no job. I lost my job due to my employer not willing to accommodate me, even after I was given an accommodation for 6 months and able to perform all details of my job. You should know I was less than a minute walk from where I use to sit and work.

It’s been over 8 weeks since my employer sent me out on an unpaid leave. There are no words to describe how this feels. This is the first time in over 15 years I’ve been without work…I’m applying for jobs, even considering relocating. I’m limited where I can work due to the MCS. And with all that has happened, I am no longer able to pay my financial obligations. The Hubs paid his side of things with our budget of both incomes and now only working with one income…speechless.

I am angry, scared, sad, and fight every day to get up and remind myself how truly blessed I am…I will share this…God is good. He has a plan. When I was going through this difficult time on my job, before they released me, I would sit at my desk…ask myself, “What am I doing?” “How long will I sit here?”

I work in higher education…for a large university. I’ve done Administrative work for over 10 years…it’s not my passion. I’m good at it, but I know in my heart that this is not what God has or had in store for me. I believe things happen for a reason. I want to write; hence this time away from work allows me the time to blog. To be connected and inspired by others. I want to be a photographer…and now considering going back to school, only after I get the kids “squared” away.

You see…even though I stand to lose everything, my journey will take me in a new direction. Even though two of the three job interviews didn’t work out…maybe God is saying I shouldn’t sit at a desk anymore. I’ve been unhappy for as long as I can remember, feeling like I’m not doing what I’m supposed to do…whatever that is…All in God’s hands.

Right now I am trying not to feel defeated, trying to find the good in a “tough” situation. I hope you read this far…Don’t feel sorry for me...this is just a “piece” of my journey…I think Sundays will be a day I share some personal details about my life…Life is Good.

Be Good to You.

Smooches,

Lola