Wednesday, October 8, 2014

SiscoVanilla Is Going On Hiatus

This is going to be my last post on this blog for the foreseeable future. It has been a trying time during the last three month since I was fired from my job. You all know where I worked so there is no need to give them any free press by naming them. Am I bitter? Well, yes. Yes I am. Whatever gave you that impression. The job search has been exhausting and quite barren.

In three months of hitting the pavement, dropping off and emailing hundreds of resumes and trying to tap into the non-existing bar "friends" and connections that I thought I had, I've had three unsuccessful interviews. That's right. THREE!!!! One I chalk up to an owner who is hard to please through a good friend of mine tried his best to get me the job. I hold no ill will to that interview though it was so close I swear I could taste it. The second one was through an employment agency who tried to find me a job in a new bar in a Latino neighborhood that obviously only hires women bartenders. The third was for a chain restaurant. How pitiful is it that I can't even find a job as a bartender in a chain restaurant.

What about those non-existing bar "friends" and connections I refer to above? Well, in working twelve years in one location (almost 20 years in the NYC bar business) and meeting a multitude of service industry individuals, I thought that I had made enough connections (and helped others make connections in the business) that when I needed a hand it would be there. All I found were unreturned voicemails, text messages and ignored/disregarded Facebook direct messages. For the record, I know those direct messages were seen and either ignored or disregarded since FB tells you when the message is seen. So thank you very much for nothing folks.

Couple that with my wife recovering from major surgery and you have the scene set for a doozy of a situation. Luckily for us, I was smart enough to save money when I was making it not spending it on trivial things. In other words, I am hard on a dollar. That has been our salvation. Thankfully I have been able to rely on Unemployment benefits to supplement my wife's income but to be honest I would rather be working...if I could find a job. But enough of my bitching. Why am I going on hiatus.

I don't want to drink. Period. If I have a booze blog, drinking is a big part of it. I could drink at home, but I don't want to. I don't want to be that guy drinking in front of the TV, wallowing in my sorrow. I need to keep my mind clear and focused. My family needs me to be that way. When I drink, it affects my state of mind. It makes me want to go out and spend money that I can't afford to spend at the moment. Sure I know places I can go to and "get hooked up". But in reality, if I can't show thanks by properly tipping those who do take care of me then I am not going to go out. I won't disrespect those who would take care of me and I am not going to embarrass myself looking for freebies like a moocher. That's not my style.

Some of you might say that I could continue with the movie posts. True, but to be honest, I haven't been watching many movies as of late. I've been real busy trying to improve my mind. I've been real busy with my HistorySisco tumblr page and the extra time has really allowed me to devote time to my BaseballSisco blogpage. Give those pages a look if you can. I'm sure that I will continue to post the occasional article and recipe that I come across online to my SiscoVanilla Facebook and my SiscoVanilla Google+ pages. My @SiscoVanilla twitter feed will also remain active

I thank everyone who HAS been there for me with your words of encouragement, support and suggestions. You'll never know how much it all means to me. Know that in me you'll always have a friend for life. Will I return to this blog? Perhaps. But to be honest, I need a fresh start in a new industry. The consolation to not working in the bar business is that I have left the negativity, the stressors, the lack of creativity and fulfilment that came along with working at my former job behind. I know I am going through a rough time now. But I will persevere.

Not to worry, I'll be back with the cocktails before you know it. Now whether it is as a server or a patron remains to be seen. Good luck to you all. Salud!

Until Then Happy Drinking,
SiscoVanilla
#siscovanilla
#siscovanillaatthemovies