The End....or is this a beginning?

Soon, all too soon, I think. Soon I will take my final walk through those familiar orange double doors. Walk in and see all the mechanicals bathed in unnatural fluorescent lighting. Walk in and smell that unidentifiable and yet unmistakable odor that permeates the plant. Walk in to the incessant clanking of the overhead conveyor that transits the car doors to the assembly line. Walk in and see all of my coworkers, wearing the burgundy and gray Mitsubishi uniform in all imaginable shapes and sizes. Walk in to see the yellow painted robots performing their choreographed dance of automotive assembly, contrasting with the dull pale green paint on most every other metal surface. Walk in to see all the cars in progressive stages of assembly. Walk in on the bare, smooth, worn concrete floors.

It was just over 26 years ago that I first walked through those doors. Wide-eyed with anticipation, excited, timid, and unsure. No idea what this expansive building had in store for me. In the 27 years since I first applied for a job here so much has happened. Our first-born started kindergarten, grew into a wonderful person, got married, got her Masters degree, and gave my wife and me the best little granddaughter ever. Our younger child was conceived and born, went through years of education, and is now nearing completion of her training to become a funeral director! We've gone through several cars, a couple of houses, who knows how many tons of groceries, and a couple gallons of beer. A large portion of this is a result of the paycheck this place traded me every couple weeks in exchange for my time spent in the behemoth structure.

If you know me very well, you are aware of the fact that I am not overly fond of my job here, but I feel I should say that I do appreciate all that I've been able to do with this paycheck. The job was a means to an end, nothing more. Our standard of living, while definitely not extravagant, is quite comfortable. We have been able to enjoy the middle class American dream: a comfortable home, a pair of decent cars in the garage, good food and drink in the refrigerator, and Nancy and I have both been able to enjoy our respective hobbies. Yes, it was a good run while it lasted. I bear no ill will toward my soon-to-be-former employer. I was treated well in my tenure there, with good pay and outstanding benefits. A business decision was made, and it sadly and unfortunately had a massively negative impact on over 1200 people. This is just a sign of the state of the world today, the mad chase after the almighty dollar (or yen!)

So one day in my near future, an alarm will disturb this sleeping autoworker for the last time at 4:00am. For the last time I'll pull on the burgundy and gray, the steel-toed safety shoes, the hardhat, and the safety glasses. It will be bittersweet. I think perhaps my one regret may be that I have made few real friends here. As in the outside world, there are good people here, but I find that outside of our common employer, I have very little in common with these folks. At the end of that ultimate day, I will say "good-bye" instead of "see you tomorrow." It may be difficult, knowing that I will likely never again see the majority of them. Good-bye has always been difficult for me, and I suspect I will shed more than a few tears that day, but I also imagine I will be in the minority in doing so.

Where do I go from here? I've been asked this hundreds of times (most frequently by myself) since that announcement in late July. I still don't have a definitive reply, but I now have a few thoughts. The first, and I suppose easiest, would be for another manufacturer to purchase the plant, and after some retooling, rehire the workforce. I have only slim hopes for this however, since there has not been any indication that this is likely. My other two options are to either join the student body at our local community college to pursue an associate's degree or perhaps a technical training program, or hit the streets looking for work. I hopefully will receive more information from the company and the state soon to help me finalize my future plans.

Until then, I just keep going through the motions, waking up at 4:00am, donning the burgundy and gray, and building cars. Only time will tell what my future holds. Is this a setback or an opportunity? I try to remain cautiously optimistic. Is my pint glass half-empty or half-full? I don't know, but it looks about a quarter-full from here.