Blogger pal and sometimes drinking buddy Joe.My.God reports that DC is the #1 U.S. city for job postings, and by a wide margin.

This is not really surprising since the largest office building in the world is right across the river, and the Feds employing so many more not to mention our 10% tax thriving restaurant scene. Do I want to be a civil servant? No. Do I want to be a waiter? No.

That was just a dream.

Six months ago while I contemplated moving to another city to find employment it actually seemed plausible with some good, almost perfect, jobs that I was applying for. Apparently the big thing for employers these days is to not send out any kind of “Thank you, but no.” correspondence. Hell, I’d be happy with a “Fuck off” email returned from a prospective employer, at least that way I would know that they actually received my resume. Maybe stamps are too expensive these days to send out so many TYBN letters.

Whatevs.

So besides scouring the want ads, the only thing I’ve done today is nothing. Supposedly the weather was beautiful today but beautiful weather on Saturdays is for people who have jobs and can’t normally be out in the daytime enjoying it. So I stayed inside and let me have it all to themselves. I hope they had a good time doing whatever it was they were doing.

Enjoy.

If you read here, you’ll notice that DHS stated that I would have to bring validation from the VEC (Virginia Employment Commision) and proof of payments for rent, utilities and phone in order to complete my paperwork. As I was gathering these together I noticed that my July deposit (which was supposed to cut off in June) went through so I figured it wasn’t a rush to get back down there. I figured I’ll have to take everything in before the end of July but at least it gave me time to get everything together.

This I received in the mail last week:

Your application for food stamp recertification has been approved effective July, 2009 through June, 2010.

So, they’ve obviously processed the form as is without any verfications of my private information. And they’ve extended benefits for an additional 12 months! Ridiculous. Hopefully I won’t be needing them for much longer though, but the job search continues on.

A while back I received notice that the Stimulus Package was being put into effect, raising my weekly unemployment benefit as well as upping my monthly food stamp payment as well. Every little bit helps, right?

Then I received noticed from the Department of Human Services that my food stamp benefits were scheduled to be terminated, with June being my last beneficiary month, but that I could come in and get them extended for another six months. That’s what I’m doing this morning.

7:43 I’m on the red line Metro, opting to take the train instead of bus/long walk since it’s supposed to be pretty warm today. Quite a difference from the cold and rainy day in January, when I was last here.

7:55 I’m here now corraling in the waiting room. They do seem to be calling people a little faster this time, although I know that’s pobably no indication of how quickly I will be processed. And only two screaming/crying kids!

8:08 Being here is kind of like being at the DMV: lots of waiting with fellow humans that you probably would ever encounter elsewhere in your life circles.

8:44 Name called to fill out paperwork. Then wait again for appt with case worker.

9:52 Coming up on the two-hour mark and these chairs are not comfortable at all. There is a man that came in and took off his shoes, no socks. He grabs a towel from his bag and wipes his feet off. He puts on brand new athletic socks and puts his sneakers back on. He is also carrying another, nicer pair, of sneakers in his bag. Now he’s putting on a yellow tie, yet he’s wearing a tshirt.

10:30 They’re putting The Wiz on the TV!

10:52 Well that was a fucking waste of time. Now they’re saying I need to show all this different paperwork that wasn’t needed before. Which means now I’ve got to get in touch w/ the H8ST8 to get proof of unemployment payments with them, as well as proof of lease (neither of which was necessary before). I think it all depends on who you get waiting on you and what kind of mood they’re in.

WASHINGTON (AP)—The D.C. mayor’s office says the city is planning to eliminate more than 1,600 jobs to balance next year’s budget.

Officials say 776 jobs will be cut through layoffs. Another 398 jobs will be cut through attrition, and 458 vacant jobs will eliminated, about 7.5 percent of the city’s 32,800-person workforce.

It’s the first time in more than a decade that the city’s budget will shrink. That’s because of a shortfall in revenue due to the nation’s slumping economy.

The D.C. Council can make changes to the budget before it is sent to Congress for final approval.

It’s now been three months since I was laid off from my job. In these last 90 days I’ve dealt with city and state bureaucracy, shame at the grocery store and extensive amounts of utter boredom. I’ve taken walks halfway across town, sometimes to accomplish errands but sometimes because there was nothing better to do. I’ve seen the sun come up on Wednesday mornings, and not because I’m getting up while it’s still dark, as I did when I was employed. I’ve often stared out of my front door during wet, cold weather, watching traffic and the occasional D6 fly by. I’ve walked to the Metro and back during evening rush hours just to get a sense of what everybody else’s world is still like. I’ve gone to the corner store, without showering for a day or two, at 11:00 in the morning, wondering if they’re wondering why I’m there at that hour.

I know what this experience is like now, becoming accustomed to an unwanted routine. I wonder what the next 90 days are going to hold for me, as I see unemployment benefits terminating, and what happens next? At what point do I start putting furniture and other material goods up for sale on craigslist? At what point do I stand out front during the morning car commute avenue and hold a cardboard sign saying “will blog for food” or “websites while you wait for the red light, $14.95″? At what point do I give everything up and stay with each friend for a night or two and how long can that be sustained? At what point do I (shudder the thought) move in with my Dad? At what point do I abandon everything, seeing how far I can work my way across the country, doing menial jobs without being tracked by a credit card?

Currently, I still have not received this month’s food stamp ration, and while I’m not starving, I’m still hesitant to spend any cash on groceries, hoping everything will be rectified and my deposit that was supposed to he made eleven days ago will go through. I think if it does, I’m going to have a meal that forgoes my usual “buy only what’s on sale and make a meal out of it” mantra and buy some scallops or a porterhouse steak.

Because of some vacation days I had previously scheduled, the last day I was actually employed and in the studio was my birthday. That day we had planned to visit a homeless shelter and cook food for the residents there. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I was in charge of frying up the grilled cheese sandwiches; we had decided a hot meal was in order, so we supplied tomato soup and a vegetable soup too. It was a total group effort from the six or seven of us that participated that day. It felt so great serving the residents and they seemed genuinely appreciative.

Now, I wonder if I’m closer to the receiving end of this process than I am to the giving end. Working in a creative field in a non-creative town, it’s hard to see any kind of upswing anytime soon. People I know who work in other fields are still going like gangbusters—DC is weird that way, often recessions/housing markets don’t hit us quite so hard because the government is still going to employ people, and those people need places to live. So those markets never dry up. Providing smart, unique messaging systems for them and the businesses that rely on them, however, is something that is frequently (and often, stupidly) cut from budgets.

So where does this halfway point leave me? Maybe thinking it’s time to stop looking for a comparable job to my experience and take a position that earns half the salary I’m used to making? Doing someone’s crappy temp work on Powerpoint? Waiting tables? Being one of those rubber-gloved guys cleaning out Metro trash cans during rush hour? Coffeeshop barista? Or maybe it’s *really* time to become the joke job of my 2nd year architecture professor: court reporter. Certainly I’ve seen enough late-night commercials where I can earn that degree in 6-8 weeks.

Spotted on JMG.

I guess the honeymoon is over with all my unemployment crap being processed efficiently. My monthly food stamp ration was supposed to be deposited on the fourth but hasn’t gone in yet. This means I’m using the remaining balance from last month, down to $36.30.

I’ve been calling DHS (Dept of Human Services, not HomeSec) and if your call is answered, its directed to a machine where you are forced to leave a desperate message that will be returned “within 24 hours”. I’ve been leaving these daily messages since last Friday. I hope I don’t have to go down there just to get this resolved.

At the store today I really needed to keep track of my budget instead of simply filling up my basket and then checking out. I didn’t need much, I still have lots of goods in the pantry & freezer, but wanted to get some items to supplement what I have already. Prepping/cooking for these weekend: garden salad, broccoli salad, hamburgers and a pot of sauce. These are for separate meals, of course.

Purchase: $22.55
EBT Card Balance: $13.75
Club Card Savings: $8.46 (27% of purchase)

dead city
deaf congress
dupont circle
don’t congregate
define centrism
dork channel
defeat civility
determine chances
deconstruct construction
deport capitalism
deep chasm
derivative chaos
defamed call
dog collar
dinosaur culture
diseased cell
drunk civilians
diversified civilization
desperate cheat
dumb clown
dollhouse court
disappearing center
destitute cleverness
downtown crease
dirt count

First, an early morning trip back to the Grocery store: chicken breasts (and some thighs for making soup) and frozen pizzas.

Purchase: $40.55
Balance: $87.94
Club Card Savings: $31.84 (44% of purchase)

Then, onto the day. What was supposed to be an early afternoon departure down to The Mall turned into a phone call with Kenny Sss and then heading down to The Mall. KSss is also unemployed and has recently started to re-enter the resumé game so there was a lot of pointing things in the right direction and being okay with it if nothing came ’round. He’s always a good center for me and I should have talked with him sooner but sometimes things need to spiral a bit before the upswing begins. And that’s all fine.

I get a little bit of a late start to the day to head down to the inaugural concert on The Mall. I took the D6 thinking I would get off at Farragut Square and walk on down, but once downtown it was entirely gridlocked. With cars and people, it was like Times Square in New York or Chinatown in DC after a game lets out of Verizon’s MCI Center. But it was everywhere, it didn’t dissipate. So I excited at 11th St and walked on down to The Mall. People were everywhere! It was amazing.

The open part of The Mall was crowded and I could see how the actual inauguration was going to be setup with the Jumbotrons and how they were allowing access. But moving further down past the Washington Monument was where everyone was packed in, this is where the concert was happening. I was getting there a little late but still had the opportunity to hear Obama speak. Really amazing, Tuesday is going to be incredible. Of course, on the mass exiting, I get frustrated with the moronic tourists not getting out of my way, and it’s made me rethink going down on Tuesday. I’d still like to, but now I’m on the fence.

Here’s Obama’s speech from the Lincoln Memorial:

First blog post of ’09. Whatevs.

Today I will be doing my best James Evans impersonation as I apply for government assistance and food stamps, just as soon as I polish off this pot of coffee. Coffee is a luxurious commodity that cannot be wasted.

I have use of Goldy’s car today (kthxbai!!1!) and that would make it a lot easier to get to The Man’s office on Rhode Island Ave, but the food stamp office is on North Cap. There’s ample parking on RI but not at NC. So I think I’m going to take the bus/train so that I can get all of this completed in one day.

I think I hear the bus go by (early) and run outside to check but it’s only a large truck. Looking the other way, the bus is two blocks away (early) so I scramble to grab everything and run outside. I hadn’t set my umbrella out, so I’m hoping the rain was only in the morning and will hold off this afternoon. I did manage to make a PB+J to take with me though. I think it’s going to be a long day.

Since I live and pay taxes in DC yet worked in the H8ST8, the DC online filing page said I would need to come into their 1500 Franklin St NE location to file my claim, hence today’s excursion into the wet and cold. When I get there, it turns out that I need to file in the H8ST8. Could DC have put a link on their page for residents who work in MD or VA?? DC Governent Web 1.0: FAIL. So now I can go home and file online, now that I have the VA web address. Oh DC, why do you make it so difficult?

Yet walking up Rhode Island Ave, I did pass the former Salvation Army where 12 years ago I purchased a blue & green lamp that went perfectly with the blue & green split couch I had at the time. The SalArm is now Gussini Fashion & Shoes.

Now it’s on to DHS, where (I’ve been told) you have to apply in person for food assistance. It’s right before lunchtime so there will be fewer clerks doing their duties, so this oughta be fun.

DHS: 60 minutes and counting…
DHS: 120 minutes and counting…

The book that I brought to read is Less Than Zero, a paperback edition I purchased in 1986. In it are two bookmarkers. The first is a ticket stub from General Cinema, ticket price is $3.75. The second is a Houston bus transfer from May 20, 1992. Punches in the transfer show I was headed east on the 42 line, probably headed to school.

After waiting 10 minutes shy of three hours, I’m finally called to speak with my case worker (I have a case worker!). Mr. Davis asked questions, made copies of papers and entered a lot of information into his locked-to-the-desk-with-a-cable Dell computer. He even signed me up for Medicaid. I’m totally living off the state now. I think it’s time to start listening to some early 80s British ska music.

I didn’t bring my work termination letter because the unemployment people said I wouldn’t need it, but apparently DHS does. I need to go back down there at some point this month and turn that in for next month’s check. But I can go tomorrow (to a smaller, less crowded gubmint location) and pick up my food stamps card. $148 per month. Pretty generous, huh?