zt: Life on unemployment

Jim Kelley
Jim Kelley, 44, with his wife, Suzanne, and his two children at Great Sand Dunes National Park in southeast Colorado.

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Family: Wife and two children
Former job: Marketing director
Hometown: Boulder, Colo.
"Last fall I was laid off from my position as marketing director at a Boulder, Colo.-based company. I feel I have a very strong resume, but after five months, I am still looking for my next job.

My wife is a genetic counselor working a part-time job, and her employer covers our health insurance. We just have a negative cash flow.

Thankfully, I do have my unemployment check, but at just over $400 per week, we're not making ends meet. In the years leading up to my layoff we did everything we were supposed to: We put away six months salary in savings; we bought a house within our means; and we had no credit card debt.

But as time ticks by, our savings account is disappearing. To slow the decline, we cut all unnecessary spending. Mortgage payment, food and gas. We're trying to keep our financial situation from harming my two kids as much as possible.

Our kids are our priority. Suzanne and I can, have, and will continue to make the sacrifices. We want to do the little things we can do to protect our children from the 'adult problems' of the current economic situation. We know we'll land on our feet. With our children at such a critical stage in their development, we just want to make sure they do, too." -- as told to Julianne Pepitone


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Family: Husband and two children
Former job: Mom; Husband was construction superintendent
Hometown: Boulder City, Nev.
"My husband, Ron, was a construction superintendent, and in that field you know the job is always going to end. At the end of September, they handed Ron two checks. We knew it was coming, but we just didn't expect it so soon.

With more than 1,400 people on the list at the union, it just doesn't look like any work for a while. With most of the construction sites shut down, the work is just not there. Now what? We don't know.

It's rough in Boulder City. There are no construction jobs, and even for me to go find a retail job the chances are slim. In this town, they don't look at bringing jobs in for local residents.

We get $1,500 a month from the unemployment checks, and the money is not enough to cover expenses. Our mortgage is $1,110 a month.

We've cut back to just the basics, even with groceries. We've applied for free lunches for my daughter so at least she can have a hot meal at school. We don't go into town unless we absolutely have to.

We've been racking our brains to come up with extra money. I've been working on a children's e-book, and I'd like to start selling it online soon. Ron and I might start selling motorcycle parts, and I've already sold some things on eBay. It's little opportunities, but we're trying.

We have only a couple weeks left of unemployment. After that we'll have to apply for an extension. We don't know what else to do." -- J.P.

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Jon Mikres, 26, is new to the job market.
Family: Single
Former job: IT specialist
Hometown: Woodbury, Minn.
I didn't expect to be laid off. Not at all. I graduated from college in 2006 and quickly landed my first job as an IT specialist in Woodbury, Minn. I knew the company wasn't doing as well as it had been, but I was still surprised.

The timing was awful; I had purchased a more expensive phone plan a few days prior, a new car one year ago and my first home a few months earlier.

The unemployment checks started the beginning of January, and I have to cut into my savings. I took no taxes out of the unemployment insurance benefits so I can get cash now. That means I won't have the nice tax return next year.

I'm making it work, but without my roommate paying rent I'd have defaulted on my mortgage. My savings could last me through summer, but after that I'll be cutting it close. With the salary at my last job, I couldn't save much after paying for bills and food.

I've cut back on everything. I eliminated going out for lunch and going out on the town on weekends. I go out about once every two months now. It's not the life I expected at 26.

Every day, I search for new job postings. I've had some interviews but nothing solid has come from them. It's tough. I have ups and downs. Some days I feel hopeless, but I know I have to be optimistic. --J.P.

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Jason Rohrick

Family: Wife and two children
Former job: Appraising specialist
Hometown: Eden Prairie, Minn.
"Like so many others, I sort of knew it was coming. When I was laid off in October, I figured it would take about three to six months to find another job. Initially, I felt pretty good about it. But then December and January came and went, and a lot of big corporations had hiring freezes.

Back in early 2006, my brother sent me a bunch of articles about the economic collapse that was coming. We bought gold and went into savings mode. We stayed away from the housing market and got rid of credit card debt. Unfortunately, the predictions came true.

Unemployment has allowed my family to retain a humble, but comfortable, lifestyle. We are able to pay all our bills, and we're actually netting more money than when I had a job, since we don't have to pay a small fortune for daycare. One of my daughters stays home with me and the other attends only part time now.

My wife, Michelle, works as a senior staff accountant, but we are expecting her to lose her job any quarter now. We're clipping coupons and not going out to eat so much. Michelle is from California and we used to go there three to four times a year. Now we haven't been there in months." --J.P.

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Gregory Prescott

Family: Wife and two children
Former job: Senior manager of treasury services at AOL
Hometown: Woodbridge, Va.
"When I was laid off in September from AOL [a division of CNNMoney.com parent company Time Warner], honestly, at first I wasn't too depressed. We got two months severance. I had some interviews right away, although nothing came through.

My wife, Stephanie, is a nurse and is working toward getting a graduate degree. She's been working about 50 hours a week, picking up overtime. But as she gets further into her graduate program to become a nurse practitioner, it will require her to miss more work.

I'm also a part-time DJ, and I had some jobs lined up in October and November, which helped to carry us through. But December through March are really slow months for DJs. And I started realizing that the treasury jobs just aren't there.

There are days when it really gets me down. You get 15-20 resumes sent out, and you don't hear anything back. We'd prefer to stay in the DC area, but I need to expand where I'm looking.

My unemployment kicked in--about $320 net per week--and that meets some of our bills. The rest we are letting roll through to the credit card and we're just trying not to let that balance get astronomical. We've cut back on eating out, and we get Netflix instead of renting movies. Stephanie and I didn't do anything for our anniversary, and we didn't exchange gifts at Christmas. We canceled a partial season ticket package for the Washington Nationals.

So far we've been able to pay for daughter's college bills with cash, but we might need to resort to student loans in the fall.

For me the key is to stay busy because it can be hard to stay upbeat. I found jobs around the house and painted the whole interior. While it didn't pay any bills, it sure looks a lot nicer! --J.P.


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Tim Purkis

Family: Married with four sons
Former job: Sales director at ADP
Hometown: Folsom, Calf.
"I saw it coming for six months, so I wasn't shocked when I was laid off in February. I started budgeting before D-Day: I calculated the paid time off I was owed and my stock-option plans. And I generally thought about how I would be able to support a family of six on unemployment checks.

For the first time, I put together a plan to really crunch the numbers with utilities, mortgage payments, living expenses. It was an exercise we had never done before: Where is our money really going? How much do we need to make every month to get by?

We were able to save some money that way. If you have a job now, start budgeting as if you were unemployed. The beautiful thing is that if that day doesn't come, you have additional money in your savings account!

My wife, Elanie, does not work. We've budgeted out to the penny for the next six months. It will take all of our savings.

If there's a silver lining, this has been really good for me to try to find a job that is a perfect fit. I've been doing corporate sales for 12 years and now I can ask myself: Is this what I want to do with the rest of my life?

In the meantime, we've started cooking more at home, which has saved us so much money. I was spending $200 a month on lunch just for myself. I've also started using public transportation. COBRA health insurance is an expense that can crush you when you're unemployed, so I'd recommend a lot of research if you're worried about being laid off.

I looked to my parents for advice, and it was a great eye opener to find out that something similar happened to my dad many moons ago. It seems like every generation goes through a downturn.

For others going through this, don't be embarrassed. It's happening all over the U.S., so remember it doesn't mean there's something wrong with you or your work." --J.P.



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