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The Authentic Eclectic
I was Fired for Wanting a Higher Wage
Employers in the USA are never going to learn the value of a good worker.
When I was a single mother in my thirties, I briefly returned to the USA with my two infant children to escape their Dad and his drunken outbursts. I was willing to do just about anything to survive if it meant gaining financial independence from that madman. So I took an office job I was lucky to get by word of mouth referral. It was a part-time front desk gig at a small software development firm.
It felt surreal to be minding this glass and brick monstrosity full of fake people, fake smells, and corporate madness after having been literally at the end of the road in rural Wales for years. Just the noise of a city around me was overwhelming. I am a sociable person, so it was not hard to find my balance after a month or so of saying hello to every person I met. I felt like a useful part of the operation.
I worked for the man who owned the whole building and also some of the businesses inside of it. In total, I helped him manage the Quickbooks, basic correspondence, and most ordering for all five of his companies under that umbrella. His CFO left for greener pastures and I took on more bookkeeping. I also added plants to the office, helped the…