Rant #2,360: Reality

Reality finally set in this weekend.

Out of work for five long months--as of tomorrow--and with no real light at the end of the tunnel, I had to do something to finally accept the fact that I am not going to be getting anything substantial in the near future, or perhaps ever.

Not that I haven't thought about that for quite a while, but the reality that I am going through--with mounting medical bills that I am having a real tough time paying--finally put me on the right course, at least for someone who has been so desperate to find work since I was let go when the company I worked for went out of business on my personal doomsday, October 10, 2019.

On Saturday morning, I was one of the first people on line at Bethpage Ballpark in Central Islip, New York, to get a part-time seasonal position with the minor league Long Island Ducks baseball organization.

The job would probably last from about May through September, and if I get this minimum wage position, it will bring some needed money into my pocket while I transition from looking for a full-time job to retirement and Social Security.

Let me tell you, my dignity has gone out the window as I get more and more bills in the mail. My family's health insurance was once very good, but since Obamacare, it has gone into the garbage pail, and what was once a very good plan is--and we had to learn this the hard way--just a plan to make us legal in the eyes of the law, because the law says you have to have health insurance.

Yes, it is that bad.

And my mounting health care bills, mainly from my sciatica and spinal stenosis escapade, are killing me financially, forcing me to go into my already meager savings and depleting what little is in there.

I have no other place to go financially. I was managing the first four and half months of this prolonged period of not working, but the last two or three weeks have been killers. And add that to an out of this world car bill and tax bill that I just got, and I am barely afloat financially.

So I had to do something.

That is not knocking the Ducks at all. This is an excellent organization, showing that a good nugget of an idea can spring into something incredible when put into the right hands.

About 20 years ago or so, businessman Frank Boulton saw a need for some type of different family entertainment for Long Islanders. He also saw an incredible void in the area, and he set upon to fill that with a kernel of an idea.

Both of New York's major league baseball teams, the Yankees and the Mets, had struck out trying to create minot league teams for their respective organizations on Long Island, pretty much canceling each other out by blocking the others try to set up something in the area.

Minor league baseball was a booming enterprise at the time, with many well-heeled people pouring millions of dollars into owning teams around the country, teams that were directly affiliated with major league teams.

Boulton saw that route was not going to happen on Long Island, because if the Yankees and Mets had blocked each others ventures onto the Island, then each team would certainly block any other major league team who had any interest in setting up shop in either Nassau or Suffolk counties.

So what did he do? He literally created, from the ground up, a brand new minor league baseball league, the Atlantic League, and he and several other big-pocket people bought into the idea, setting up teams along the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, in pockets that were conducive to minor league baseball.

The league was made up of players who had played in the major leagues and were perhaps looking for one last shot, former minor leaguers, players who never had the chance to play pro baseball before, and castoffs who had no chance to make the major leagues, but were doing this almost as a side job.

The Ducks were born as the league was born, and it clicked with the public. The 6,000 or some seat Bethpage Ballpark drew thousands of fans is first years--including many sellouts--and people would not just come for one game, they would come for multiple games, and after a short while, the league became a major success story.

For the Ducks, the team and the stadium became a destination for families with young children, in particular, and alternative to driving long distances to see the Yankees and Mets--who by the way, have since set up their own respective minor league operations in Staten Island and Coney Island, respectively.

The Ducks have probably been the most successful of the Atlantic League franchises, winning several championships with a yearly mix of rag tag players and those looking for one last chance at the Show. The team's success has allowed the league to spread beyond the confines of the Atlantic coast, the the Atlantic League now boasts teams as far west as Texas.

Along with players, the stadiums in the league needed hundreds of support people, and that is where everything from ushers to ticket takers to people working the food stands came in, and each of these teams employed dozens of support people to make their enterprise grow.

So here I am, greatly in need of something, and I found myself among about 1,000 people who looked to be employed by the Ducks for the 2020 baseball season.

As I said, I was one of the first people on line, a line that snaked around the stadium and grew by leaps and bounds by the 10 a.m. interview time. I would say about two-thirds of the people on the line were 50 years of age and older, and I found that everyone has a story, and yes, I did speak with others who were in the exact same boat as I am, unable to get a regular position and willing to do just about anything to bring some money into their coffers.

Being one of the first people there had its benefits as I froze my butt off this cold morning. I was one of the first people interviewed, and yes, this was not a cursory meeting--I actually received a real, honest to goodness interview, going over my application and resume with a fine-tooth comb.

I learned that although several positions were listed as being open--including ticket taker and other back office staff positions--the Ducks were mostly looking for food people, employees who would handle the food concessions at the stadium.

I told the interviewer that although I would prefer a back office position, yes, I would gladly take one of these positions, and he marked that on my application, that I was basically open to anything that they had available.

And based on coronavirus fears, there were signs throughout the interview area that there would be no handshakes at these one-on-one interviews. So I asked the interviewer if we could do an elbow pump, he agreed, and that is how we left it as I exited the cold ballpark and walked back to my car.

Let me tell you, I was quite impressed with how the Ducks handled the interviews. The interview I received was as good as any interview I have ever gotten, and they went over everything thoroughly. The interviewer was cordial and respectful, and I left there with a sense of encouragement.

I left there with a feeling that maybe I am down now, but I am not out, and if a seasonal position is in my trajectory toward retirement, so be it.

Even if they do not contact me, I was very impressed with what went on there, and I will always remember when I applied for this job.

But the fact of the matter is that I need something to give me some direction as I continue to head into the unknown and uncharted waters I am trying to swim in.

Right now, I am simply treading that water, but perhaps this Ducks job will allow me to do a breast stroke to some good tidings.

I need it, I really need it.