Laundromat versus US Senate, Part I

As we have changed the calendar and are embarking on a new year, I am pondering what this new year holds for me.  I am hoping to join the ranks of the gainfully employed.  But what to do?  I have been sporadically looking for a job for the past few years, but nothing has materialized.

I called a friend and former elected official, and asked him what I should do.

"Lauren, you can do whatever you want," he said.

That vote of confidence is nice coming from someone I respect.  I explained that I've tried looking for jobs, and have been told I have too much experience for a junior level job, but not specific enough experience for a senior level one.  I am stuck in a vortex, spinning in a circle and not moving forward.

"I also don't have experience in a field that I can go back to,"  I told my friend.  "I was in consulting and project management--which I loved--but spending three days a week in Los Angeles was not compatible with motherhood and husband who is a physician."  I have met another mother who was struggling with the "cool job before motherhood that can't be done with kids" scenario.  She was a music promoter, and traveled the world with bands when they went on tour.  This was awesome job for someone in their twenties and thirties, but nearly impossible as a mom unless you want your kids raised by full-time nannies.

My friend continued.  "You aren't going to get a job with a salary right out of the gate after not having held a paid job for years.  My wife went through this when she returned to work.  You are going to have to take contract or part-time work, and build a portfolio of experience before someone will hire you."

I had to let that sink it.  It wasn't my imagination that looking for a job felt like I was beating my head against a wall.  Talking to my friend helped me realize that going the traditional/conventional route might not work.  Let me phrase:  this will not work.  This is hard, because I consider myself painfully conventional at times.  When I am solving problems for other people, I am a think-out-of-the-box, just-get-it-done kind of person.  When it comes to my own life, I stick to the middle.  I ponder, I weigh things.

So what next?  Sticking to the middle isn't going to work.  I need a goal.  I am partially thinking about running my own business, perhaps something like a laundromat that does not require an excess amount of brain cells to operate but could bring in a small income.  I could have flexibility to drive the carpool to soccer, and mind space to write.

My other idea is to run for the U.S. Senate.  Murray was the famous "mom in tennis shoes" who got into government.  Maria Cantwell has Midwestern roots, born in Indiana and went to college at Miami of Ohio.  I am both a mom in tennis shoes and from the Midwest!  Woohoo!  Patty Murray is 64, and imagine she has a few more years ahead of her.  Maria Cantwell is 56 probably has more years ahead of her, too.  So, this will be a back burner idea, but maybe I could start positioning myself now so I would be a viable candidate in five to six years.

Laundromat v. US Sentate: Could I do both?  Become a beacon for small businesses in the government, while also advocating for children and the mentally ill?


Postscript
Or, should I start quilting and selling stuff on etsy, as my daughter recommended.  "That stuff on etsy is expensive," she said.  "You should sell your stuff there."  I've made four quilt-type things, plus a few pillows, which does not bode well for a career on easy.  How does Claire-Adele know about easy?  I know she reads the internet, but etsy?  Etsy is for middle-aged women, not teens.  Hey, I stay out of SnapChat.  What is she doing poking around vintage dresses, quilts and other artsy things?