All Good Things...

Friends & Colleagues,

Forgive me, but I’m awful at goodbyes -- today is my last day with Alcatel-Lucent. (18-Sep)

It’s been a long journey from my first days at AT&T in Skokie, a stretch at Little Rock and finally here at Lisle-Naperville.

I appreciate your support and your friendship. The recent years have been unpleasant for all us who saw better days in our company – yet it has remained a pleasure for me working with each of you.

For those who remain, I hope there are better times for you with ALU, for everyone I trust you will find new and more rewarding opportunities in life after ALU.

If there’s one thing, I learned, we do live in a small world – perhaps our paths may yet cross again in the future, I would find fortune to be in your company again.

Please stay in touch.

Cheers & Warm Regards,
John Van Norman

Incoming...

Incoming..., originally uploaded by jjvannorman.

It occurred to me last night that my experience of losing my job, is not unlike my week in Jamaica for Hurricane Ivan. It’s not the best comparison in the sense one is a life threatening event but there are some similarities. It’s not something anyone in their right mind would volunteer for, but to go through this process you get an opportunity to see and experience things you would not normally encounter. Part of life is encountering the unknown.

Just some background -- our Corporate policy for job reductions is not to announce to anyone specifically when they have been identified for an “exit, stage left”. To me, this is an overkill reaction to the tiny handful of folks who may act unprofessionally or out of spite in their remaining days.

A lot of managers, most being human beings, have been known to “bend the rules” -- I am thankful that my manager treated me as a professional and I have acted as such not only in the best interest in the company but for myself. If I'm gonna go, I'm gonna do it with class.

I imagine there are some folks who prefer to not know in advance they may lose their job. Get the bad news all in one shot. I can see the Pro’s and Con’s of both positions, but for me I am grateful for the time to bear with the emotional churn of dealing with a career change.

As I am aware of my future, or lack of it -- I can appreciate the unintended humor of what I am doing this week.

Here I am cleaning my desk, packing so that I can be moved to my new office on Tuesday -- two days before being fired.

For three or so years I was in exile in my current office – in a damned near empty building, the only thing missing -- the cricket sounds, a hooting owl, and maybe a coyote yelp. It was rather unpleasant to come in, seeing the empty offices of friends and colleagues who were fired over the previous years.

So...in the grand tradition countless bone-headed decisions...the month they decide to do this corporate purge, and when I get tagged, I will finally get an office next to my remaining colleagues in the other building.

For two days!!! It’s funny and sad at the same time. Will someone please, just shoot me.

The office cleanup has been a bitter-sweet experience in itself, which I save for a future post (and a photo).

Colony Theatre-1

Colony Theatre-1, originally uploaded by jjvannorman.

A nod to some of my family memories

While I was growing up I heard often about my friends families talking of their Irish heritage. Having a last name of Van Norman set me a little different from the Murphy’s, Sullivan’s and Devlin’s of the Irish neighborhood I grew up in. Of course my Irish credentials were validated by Mother’s side of the family and some Irish form the mutt mix on the Father’s side of the tree – as if I needed validation with the Irish beak in the middle of my face.

According to my Dad, discussions on details were often rebuffed as either irrelevant or more accurately not wishing to be discussed. I know little other than my Great-Grandfather hit the road, and left my Grandfather with his parents’ family to take care of and his own family. All this and the Great Depression – my granddad had a hard life. I tend to remind myself of this when I catch myself occasionally wallowing in self-pity over my own recent awkward circumstances.
One day my Dad told me of Granddad’s rum running days.

Dear lord…were like the Kennedy’s. A dark hidden past – who knew? Where are the yachts and our home(s) on Martha’s Vineyard?

Got to make ends meet and it was that simple.

Growing up it had occasionally occurred to me who were these Doherty’s that were at the occasional funerals/wakes. I knew who my cousins were, my aunts and uncles but I didn’t connect the dots to the Dohertys. Later I learned the details. The Doherty’s were my Grandfather’s cousins (note the italics). The bloodline may have simply their forefathers came off the same boat from Ireland.

The Doherty’s were part of the Westies O’Donnell gang. I’m sure a fun bunch you could invite to parties. There a wealth of books and stuff on the web on the gangland wars in Chicago. Walking through the material you can see how extensive it was. My Granddad helped run the rum (and beer etc.) during the years of prohibition. It was lucrative for the times but dangerous. As it turns out one of the Doherty brothers was killed by Capone’s gang, along with an assistant prosecutor at the time.

Shortly thereafter my Granddad was told he was working for them (Capone). My Granddad being a wise man, he knew enough you don’t refuse, but said OK but he expected to make the same amount of money he was making with the O’Donnell gang. Fortunately for all concerned his feigned greed got himself uninvited to the rum running business intact and unharmed.

Sometimes an exit, stage right can be a very good thing.

Catch me if you can...

Catch me if you can..., originally uploaded by jjvannorman.

I miss having a dog around.

I'm still embracing my denial having two cats...I'M A DOG PERSON who happens to share a home with two cats.

It's so tempting to peruse rescue sites, but I have to admit life is easier with cats. I still feel guilty when I am on vacation but less so when it's the cats at home entertaining each other.

I suppose I should say I am fortunate I don't live on a ranch or in a rural area. The constraints of the city have kept me from pulling in every stray that ever crossed my path.. Heck, I'd wind up with a pet goat, antelope, a horse whatever.

I know when I rescued Annie off the street, she must have read the words "sucker" clearly written on my forehead. Suddenly I was a dog and cat owner. Since my dog was up there in years, I brilliantly decided to get a playmate for Annie, then I was a 2 cat/dog owner.

All the problems involved, I do miss the joy of watching dog on a beach, or splashing in the water or simple joy when you get home from work.

Day at the Beach

Day at the Beach-1-1, originally uploaded by jjvannorman.

Labor Day seems to have always been a day that was bitter sweet for me.

When I was younger it signaled to me the end of summer and the beginning of school year. Of course the anticipation was always worse than the reality. School was never really that bad and to be honest it served me well.

With the end of summer, Autumn is here which has been my favorite season at least when I got older and something I really adore about Chicago. The metaphors are apparent and are aching to be written in light of my current career circumstances but that's too predictable and I'll have more to say on that as that reality unfolds.

For now it's another opporunity for photography, for change and to move forward.