A LOT has happened since the beginning of 2009.

MOVING FROM THE PAST:
The first week of January, I spent prepping my team for my 2-week vacation off in Hong Kong. This week went pretty smoothly as I distributed my Lead tasks off to Will and Hanna, each to be the caretakers of the rest of the team. At the end of that week, my team was cut in half due to layoffs. My last day before Hong Kong was spent mostly adjusting to a huge slash in Operations, something which obviously was an emotional hit for me and the rest of the Leads.

Then, I went to Hong Kong for two weeks for Alex’s wedding, which was great to go back to HK for dedicated SHOPPING time!

NOTE: For those that are looking for an AWESOME place to go shopping in HK (for women’s clothes) I suggest a wholesale market called “Hong Kong Industrial Centre.” Get off at Lai Chi Kok, take the “C” exit, step out of the train station exit and turn around, walk along that side of the block and you’ll see on your left a big huge driveway that says “Hong Kong Industrial Centre”. winner! Clothes there are SUPER cheap because the boutiques buy them from these folks. Also, I didn’t have to bargain or anything since the prices were SO cheap due to the New Years sales. Only problem is that you generally can’t try anything on unless you pay for it; then you can try different sizes or colors–but be sure to ask them to confirm first!

I’m still collecting my bro/mom’s pics to blog about our trip, but to say the least, it was a long time to be spending 24/7 in extremely small quarters with family. We’re all very used to reverting back to our old ways, and I think so much time together makes us forget respect amongst other things. I’ve discovered that my parents are reaching an older age, and they’re not as sharp as they used to be, and that I am often unforgiving of these “flaws” that are uncovered. Embarrassed to admit, my old habits that sometimes resurface are to see these flaws, point them out, and maybe throw some salt on it too. Bad. I know.

I came back from HK and was laid off with the bulk of remaining employees at Embark. I’ve been telling people that I’m okay with it, and that this truly IS an opportunity for me.

INTO A BRAND NEW START:
I’ve started my 2 art classes, “Color Dynamics” and “Figure Sculpting”, which are keeping me busy since I’ve missed a couple of sessions. I absolutely SUX at color and don’t understand the technicalities of when to use what or how they even work. So far, the class has taught me a lot already about how to make some colors pop, or how colors drastically change once placed next to different colors.

Figure Sculpting is fun, being able to play with clay again! I noticed that I really like to keep my clay smooth, while other folks clump their figures together in order to get the mass. I’ve only attended one session so far but I’ll be sure to post pics from both these courses soon.

Also keeping me busy while not in class is working on the redesign for this site. I’ve gotten a lot done now that I have more time to dedicate to it. I’ll be using some hand-drawn illustrations to use as part of the design, but the more I incorporate it into a template, the more I want to just hand-draw the rest of it for consistency. Tempting, but I’m afraid this might take longer and might not be necessary. Right now, I’m just going with the flow to see how things go. One thing for sure: I’m glad I took all the time I needed to “ink” in the pencil sketch I had with the Wacom pad. This proved to save me a lot of time in cropping the pic for web use!

Today was a big milestone for me.

I went home and told my mom and dad that I’ll be moving in with Brent.
Freaking out, my mom’s first reaction was, “Are you planning to like… marry him?”
THANK YOU, TRADITIONAL CHINESE MENTALITY.
Of course, what she was concerned about was what others would think–what other people would say if they found out her daughter was UNMARRIED, living with a MAN. I mean that entails that we’re “DOING IT!!!!!” But to be honest, she was very understanding of it. And although I know that she purely 100% would prefer for me to live home, I appreciate that she was able to try to understand that I’m learning to “grow up” on my own.

The events and course of things that have happened within the last week, I hope that my parents will one day understand and know that I don’t just slack off and spend most of my time on the internet doing nothing, which can easily be their perception. They don’t really know what I do anymore, and I admit that I stopped letting them know. I guess this happened due to repeated dinners with my mom when I’d try to tell a little about my day and it would be overshadowed by her own issues and problems. I stopped being communicative with them when they reverted in treating me like I was still in high school.

Anyway, today, they were very respective and supportive of my decision. Yeah, it’s really not that big of a deal since I’ve mostly been living here most of the time anyway (I’m statistically Brent’s roommate!), but I know to them it is. I anticipate that this will allow me to be friends with my parents again, or at least be on better terms with them.

I feel like this last week was a reawakening of new ideas, putting the problems and challenges of the past behind me. I feel like this dude right now:

Liggghhhttt ouuurrr darrkkkkeeesssst hooouuurrrrrr!!!

Take THAT, Unicron swine!!!

Taking Yama’s advice, I decided that this information should be posted somewhere, also to ensure that folks can easily access this info.

Per my previous post, I started an email thread with some of my former colleagues yesterday, the day after we all got laid off, so that we could keep in contact with each other, while also pooling our unemployment resources and knowledge together. Here are some things we’ve done and discussed:

1. File for Unemployment IMMEDIATELY

CA Unemployment Webpage: http://www.edd.ca.gov/Unemployment/default.htm

Per batz’s suggestion, it’s important to file for unemployment immediately because it may take a while to process. This takes at least 30 minutes, and wasn’t too difficult to understand/fill out.

Former part-timers: YES, you are eligible for unemployment insurance and you should file ASAP.

One of the questions I got kinda stuck on: Question 33d about the “Wages Earned” for my previous positions. I found my answer here. Since Embark pays out twice a month, I wasn’t sure whether to calculate per week or month. As long as the numbers match, I don’t think it makes a difference.

2. Finding Insurance Coverage

This is different for everyone. So far, it seems like COBRA is extremely expensive for us to afford (I’ve heard that it would be around $300/month for some folks to continue our previous insurance coverage).

One of us was able to find a “temporary” insurance for now with Blue Shield:

Blue Shield was pretty good to me on insurance. I got a plan that has a moderate deductible and high coinsurance BUT allows a few Doctor visits a year for a small copay. Perfect for those without major health ailments in case you want to go to the doctor every so often and be covered in case of an accident. I got Value 900 plan (and the fact that you already HAVE insurance via Embark currently for 2 more days through them could help you get accepted).

Also, regarding paying cash for medical visits:

As for purchasing individual insurance, in my personal experience it actually turns out cheaper to pay cash. Many medical providers have substantial discounts for cash patients.
For instance, [this clinic has] this plan: http://marinermedical.com/vip.htm
There is also this place, although I have never dealt with them: http://www.quickhealth.com/faq.htm

When I was a part-timer, btw, I had insurance with Blue Cross/Shield(?) that was the minimal life insurance that would pay for any emergency hospital fees, but it didn’t include coverage for any doctor visits or medication. That was $62/mo for me, but I’m unsure of the pricing for the plan anymore these days. Also, my dad was able to find this via an agent, so I’m unsure if this is a publicly available plan somewhere.

For the ladies: I was concerned about birth control coverage and someone suggested:

If you go to a free clinic and when filling out the paperwork you just have to indicate that you would like to keep your files confidential and so you would qualify for Health Access Program card. Basically this would cover your prescription costs since the state would pay for it all.

Also regarding birth control coverage: I was talking to another friend regarding birthcontrol coverage, and she reminded me about Planned Parenthood: http://www.plannedparenthood.org. Planned Parenthood is all about providing services to uninsured folks, or at lower prices. (I think I’m gonna find general insurance coverage, and then go to Planned Parenthood for the extra stuff.)

Edit (02/02/09): It is BEST to apply for new insurance so that there are no breaks in-between; applying for continuous insurance coverage may be key to even getting the coverage. Per Scott’s comment below:

If you have any long term conditions that you may need treatment for in the future (and have received treatment for in the past) you should NEVER allow any gaps in insurance. i.e. do not rely on paying cash for medical visits.

If you are ever uninsured for a period however brief, when you apply for insurance in the future, the insurance companies are able to label some things as pre-existing conditions, meaning they will not cover them. They cannot do that if you have continuous coverage.

3. Figuring Out the Severance Package

(Former Part-Timers: we did not get severance packages)

I’ve read this all over the place, and this seems to be one of those huge things to really consider and think through before signing anything.

If you have not seen a separation agreement before, I urge you to read it carefully. There are important rights you are giving up if you sign it. It is very beneficial to Embark for you to sign, thus you should be properly compensated for that. You have 21 days by law to consider your agreement and 7 days AFTER you sign it to re-consider.

A bunch of folks are pooling resources together to visit a labor attorney to help navigate through the separation/severance packages. Former colleagues, if you’re interested in joining us, PLEASE let us know. It will cost a nominal amount if we’re a group.

* Article: Employment Separation Agreements: Should I Take the Bribe to Sign My Employment Separation Agreement?

4. Saving Money

To try to save/make some money, I’ve been researching which have the best interest rate return and found this site: http://www.mymoneyblog.com/online-savings-accounts-and-comparisons

I’m planning to open a savings account with ETRADE for their current 3.01% APY rate, plus they seem to have pretty good reviews. As advised by former colleague:

I use etrade for my savings. Great rate, total liquidity, thumbs up. Only downer is if you need money fast, it takes a few days to transfer out of etrade to your bank (which could be helpful actually for impulsive shopping trips or drunk nights). – so you need to plan ahead of time when you need the money.

Response from another:

Another high interest bank is INGDirect.com – been using them for checking, savings, AND my mortgage… been very happy with their service and rates. They don’t beat ETRADE’s current saving’s account rate though – but have no minimums – and if you’re looking for a high interest checking account, you can’t go wrong with them.

Let me know if anyone’s interested and I can send you a referral email – you’ll get $25 for free for opening an account of at least $250 and I’ll score $10 for referring you.

BTW – having internet banks, while great for interest rates, is not that practical – especially if you need to write out checks (ing only has echecks) or make a bank deposit. I still keep a local free bank account open to work with them for deposits at times that I just later move into my higher interest rate internet bank via their website.

This was helpful for me in deciding.

5. Finding a Job

NETWORK!

* Here’s my LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/estellatse If you’re not sure what LinkedIn is, I recommend it–it’s like a social network site but with your resume, connecting to people you’ve worked with before. People can write recommendations for you there, and it’s otherwise a good resource to see if you know people who know people in places you want to work at.

* Find job fairs in your area – Anyone have a link I can provide here?

* Going to school? Try checking the student center to see if there’s any employment opportunities there that are right for you.

Edit (02/02/09): Sites I learned about from the She’s Geeky event on 01/31/09:

* http://novaworks.org/ — might be geared more towards the Silicon Valley area. Some lady at the session kept stressing this site.

* http://www.indeed.com/ — this apparently searches for results on all the Craigslist, Monster, etc etc. sites AND on the companies’ own job pages. This sounded skeptical to me, that a job search engine would be able to pick up the content from the employers’ sites. It seems like it does (or it just links to their jobs pages). Either way, doesn’t hurt to help searching on this, imo.

* http://startuply.com/ — directory of startup companies, if this is where you want to be.

(More of my commentary about what to do while you’re job-hunting per my comment below: VOLUNTEER!)

6. Interesting and Links I Found Useful

* What to do if you are laid off…
* Got Laid Off? What To Do When You Lose Your Job
* Laid-Off 101: What to do once you’ve been handed a pink slip

* Jobs in a Recession Survey Results 1: Recent Hires Got Jobs Via Referral from Friends, Colleagues, Alumni, or Family
* New Legislative Efforts to Aid Unemployed Californians

Events:
* She’s Geeky: http://shesgeeky.org/
January 30-31, 2009 in Mountain View
Check the website to find out more info about this. Geeky tech women! w00t!

* Peninsula Job Fair – (Gov’t Jobs?) http://sfbay.craigslist.org/pen/gov/1011802508.html
February 3, 2009: 10am – 3pm
Please see link for more info.

* LaidOffCampSF: http://laidoffcamp.com/
Tue, March 3 in SF
LaidOffCampSF is like BarCamp, where basically a bunch of people get together and talk and gather together to talk about topics/sessions that are created that morning. It’s like a day-conference where the attendees create the agenda and topics that they want for the day.

Phew! Hopefully I was able to capture most everything we discussed in the thread. PLEASE continue the thread via comments here–I think it would be helpful not just for us, but for any visitors during this downtime to use this info too. (Also, this is easier than adding people to the email thread, kakaka)

If comment thread goes well, I’ll keep the above updated!

Goodluck and THANKS everyone for all your help! <3

I was walking down the street Wednesday night, from the office to Montgomery BART station. I was crossing the street at Battery and Bush, where I made eye contact with a man holding an Iron Mountain file storage box. I thought to myself, “Is he one too?” We crossed our ways and I carried my ridiculously heavy Nor-Cal moving box the rest of the way down to BART.

I mean, it really wouldn’t have been so heavy if I took stuff home every so often, but nooooo. Pictures, toys, gadgets, pads and tampons, snacks, Taco Bell hot sauce (??), running shoes (?!?), 40lbs (no exaggeration) of red and pink color paper used to make LAST year’s Valentine’s Day baskets–okay seriously, I really should have brought that paper home a LONG time ago. Either way, with only one box handle left, I lugged it back to Brent’s place on my own.

Wednesday night, I got laid off from my 1 year 4ish months at Embark.

Actually, almost everyone got laid off from Embark. It’s not a question of who got released, but who is actually still left. Ops is down to like 10 people; Product is Janelle and Patson; and slimmed all across the board. Shocked and in disbelief, the bulk of us packed our stuff, teary eyed, blue separation package folders in hand.

The thought that struck me the most is that Embark will never be the same. Our casual and startup-like culture really brought us together like a true family. It hits home to realize that these people I’ve grown to love, I’ll never see and interact with them the same way on a daily basis anymore. SKim was on his way out with a smirk on his face (jerk, hahah), and I have to admit that it broke my heart a little to know that I won’t get to see his Nacho Cheese face as often anymore, if even at all. I hugged him and didn’t let go.

I needed to get out of there so I wouldn’t have to endure every exit. On my way out, I saw Kasia with a blue folder, and Mary, and Christine too. I needed to leave before knowing who else got blue folders.

So, I lugged my box home.

I didn’t cry.

I anticipated something like this would happen, and since my return from Hong Kong (recap to come soon), I had already ran through my mind all the things I needed to do to prepare IF I were to get laid off. It was partially a joke on my return on Monday that I’d push off any meetings until I made all the photocopies, printed all docs, saved all my logs/personal emails/files before meeting with Eric and Brent for my check-in. I did all that, and because my conversion from Full-Time to Part-Time employee was this week, I already did all my errands early in the week to use up the rest of my insurance coverage, which goes until Jan 31st. I got lucky in mentally preparing for all this.

At 8PMish, Brent came back, and he was more down than me. I’d imagine that the folks that remain at Embark feel guilty for some reason, but… this wasn’t any of our fault. This wasn’t our call, nor was it in any of our control. It was a long trying day, and we passed out (after watching LOST, of course).

Yesterday morning came, and it really hit me hard. I’m dumb. If I stayed a Full-Timer, I know I would have been one of them to stay; if not, I would at least have severance. If I could stay, I would have insurance to cover for my prescriptions, which cost 3x as much without insurance. But Brent consoled me, assuring that it’s not better staying–there’s a huge increase of work and responsibilities for each person, and I wouldn’t be able to do my artwork.

It’s true. I’d rather concentrate on my art.
I’m 2 weeks behind in my art classes and I need to catch up.
I need to concentrate on my art classes so I can build up my foundational knowledge and skills; I need this to be where I want to be for web designing and anything else I want to do beyond.

First thing I did yesterday morning, Day 1 of Unemployment, I started an email thread with some folks who were laid off. I didn’t have everyone’s personal email addresses, and only started the thread with about 5 people, sharing with them some of my resources and information. The thread grew, and each of us are still sharing our daily finds–how to file for unemployment, different insurance finds, best place to put our money to get interest back, and where to search for jobs. This was extremely helpful for a lot of us, and I’ll post the info up soon.

I’m not sure if the guy holding a box at Montgomery and Bush was laid off too, carrying his box of belongings home too. All I know is that there’s hundreds of people getting laid off every day now, and this has finally hit home for us at Embark.

This is a tough and trying time, but this is NOT impossible.

There’s SO much work to do now, but I’m taking this as an opportunity to do what I truly want to do. My main goal is to focus on my art classes as my 1st priority; then to finish my website revamp -_-; then to find web design/maintenance projects to work on as a part-time (please let me know if you know of any!)

On September 21st, 1996, the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) was signed into federal law. DOMA, wrote discrimination into the Constitution with two strict regulations:

1. No state (or other political subdivision within the United States) need treat a relationship between persons of the same sex as a marriage, even if the relationship is considered a marriage in another state.
2. The Federal Government may not treat same-sex relationships as marriages for any purpose, even if concluded or recognized by one of the states.

On Saturday, January 10th, 2009 we will come together as one UNITED FRONT asking the LGBTQ community to join us in signing an Open Letter to President Barack Obama, during a NATIONAL DOMA PROTEST.

This letter will remind President Elect Barack Obama of the promises he made to us.
It will also serve as a pledge from our community that we will hold him to his promises and help him achieve them.

Cities across the United States will be coming together on Saturday, January 10th to a Nationwide DOMA Protest, collecting over 1,000,000 signatures to attach to an official open letter from Join the Impact to President-Elect Barack Obama asking him to Repeal DOMA.

NATIONWIDE GOAL: Collect 1,000,000 Signatures

Find the Nationwide DOMA Event near you: Join the Impact

Even Bob Barr, the author of DOMA, says Obama is right, and agrees that this law should be repealed. Below is his op-ed from the LA Times (my own bold emphases included):

No defending the Defense of Marriage Act

By Bob Barr
January 5, 2009

In 1996, as a freshman member of the House of Representatives, I wrote the Defense of Marriage Act, better known by its shorthand acronym, DOMA, than its legal title. The law has been a flash-point for those arguing for or against same-sex marriage ever since President Clinton signed it into law. Even President-elect Barack Obama has grappled with its language, meaning and impact.

I can sympathize with the incoming commander in chief. And, after long and careful consideration, I have come to agree with him that the law should be repealed.

The left now decries DOMA as the barrier to federal recognition and benefits for married gay couples. At the other end of the political spectrum, however, DOMA has been lambasted for subverting the political momentum for a U.S. constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage. In truth, the language of the legislation — like that of most federal laws — was a compromise.

DOMA was indeed designed to thwart the then-nascent move in a few state courts and legislatures to afford partial or full recognition to same-sex couples. The Hawaii court case Baehr vs. Lewin, still active while DOMA was being considered by Congress in mid-1996, provided the immediate impetus.

The Hawaii court was clearly leaning toward legalizing same-sex marriages. So the first part of DOMA was crafted to prevent the U.S. Constitution’s “full faith and credit” clause — which normally would require State B to recognize any lawful marriage performed in State A — from being used to extend one state’s recognition of same-sex marriage to other states whose citizens chose not to recognize such a union.

Contrary to the wishes of a number of my Republican colleagues, I crafted the legislation so it wasn’t a hammer the federal government could use to force states to recognize only unions between a man and a woman. Congress deliberately chose not to establish a single, nationwide definition of marriage.

However, we did incorporate into DOMA’s second part a definition of marriage that comported with the historic — and, at the time, widely accepted — view of the institution as being between a man and a woman only. But this definition was to be used solely to interpret provisions of federal law related to spouses.

The first part of DOMA, then, is a partial bow to principles of federalism, protecting the power of each state to determine its definition of marriage. The second part sets a legal definition of marriage only for purposes of federal law, but not for the states. That was the theory.

I’ve wrestled with this issue for the last several years and come to the conclusion that DOMA is not working out as planned. In testifying before Congress against a federal marriage amendment, and more recently while making my case to skeptical Libertarians as to why I was worthy of their support as their party’s presidential nominee, I have concluded that DOMA is neither meeting the principles of federalism it was supposed to, nor is its impact limited to federal law.

In effect, DOMA’s language reflects one-way federalism: It protects only those states that don’t want to accept a same-sex marriage granted by another state. Moreover, the heterosexual definition of marriage for purposes of federal laws — including, immigration, Social Security survivor rights and veteran’s benefits — has become a de facto club used to limit, if not thwart, the ability of a state to choose to recognize same-sex unions.

Even more so now than in 1996, I believe we need to reduce federal power over the lives of the citizenry and over the prerogatives of the states. It truly is time to get the federal government out of the marriage business. In law and policy, such decisions should be left to the people themselves.

In 2006, when then-Sen. Obama voted against the Federal Marriage Amendment, he said, “Decisions about marriage should be left to the states.” He was right then; and as I have come to realize, he is right now in concluding that DOMA has to go. If one truly believes in federalism and the primacy of state government over the federal, DOMA is simply incompatible with those notions.

Bob Barr represented the 7th District of Georgia in the House of Representatives from 1995 to 2003 and was the Libertarian Party’s 2008 nominee for president.

Read the original LA Times article here.

The above is an amazing passage, content-aside. I think it takes a lot for someone to come out and express these opinions when he could have easily done nothing at all. I respect that kind of honesty.

If you were pissed, upset, and otherwise affected by the passing of Prop 8, get off your ass and DO something about it. Find something you can do, do it, and KNOW that you’ve contributed your part in this movement for CHANGE. We need a tremendous amount of help, and we need anyone that is WILLING to help. Let me know if you need some place to be directed and I’ll find a place for you.

Don’t sit around and wait for someone else to make it happen for you–that’s what happened with Prop 8.

Continuing from last year’s Year-End Review 2007.

(Boring. Not many pics this year.)

Contine Reading More… »