My life was pretty simple and routine - get up, go to work as a software Quality Assurance Manager at a top grocery retailer, come home, veg in front of the TV, go to bed. Do the same thing the next day until the weekend and then hang with my hubby. Some would say boring - and they would be correct - but it was my life and it was predictable. Sometimes there is comfort in the predictable.
In late December, (December 15, 2016 to be exact) before all the holiday vacations started, we had an unexpected mandatory called. It happens so there were no concerns, no red flags, no worries. Apparently, each team was having a similar meeting but we didn't know that at the time.
Imagine my surprise when it was announced that the company was offering a Voluntary Retirement Offering (VRO) to all non-store personnel that met the requirements ~ at least 55 with 5 years of service. OOPS! I had almost 9 years of service and I was 63. WHOA! Did that mean me?
I walked out of the room in a state of shock, panic, and disbelief. I wasn't ready for retirement - I had planned on 3 more years. Could I do it financially? What would I do with my time? Would I try to find another job? Besides the panic that had set in, all I could think was "Oh SHIT!"
The next day, another meeting was held for just those people that were eligible. As I sat in the room waiting for the meeting to start, I was looking around to see who all was in the group of eligible people. My only thought as I sat there was "wow, these people are old!" HA - they were probably saying the same thing about me. They went over the package that was being offered and I have to say, it was pretty damn generous! But still - it wasn't MY plan! Fortunately, I had only 3 more working days until I went on vacation for 2 weeks. and boy oh boy, did I need it! My head was reeling.
Guess what I was going to be doing during those two weeks? Yep - making life-altering decisions. Yippee! Again ~ not MY plan. But in the words of a former manager - "it is what it is".
Decisions, decisions, decisions! What's a girl to do?
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