Just in case people follow this board like a soap opera I will be cancelling my planned birthday/anniversary trip to San Francisco and coast. Now that the reality of my husband loosing his job has begun to set in and we have no clue what life holds for us in the next few months, it is just too scary to throw caution to the wind and go away. It breaks my heart, I just got the brochures from The Sir Francis Drake and Vagabond Inn where I had made reservations. I will loose some on airline ( but one was a freq flyer ticket). Anyway, maybe next year for our tenth anniversary .... In the meantime anyone know of senior level jobs in transportation /logistics. We will relocate!!! I know , I know , this is a travel board but you gotta network!

Collette,

Sorry to hear that you have to cancel your trip.

I couldn't relax on a vacation if I knew I didn't have a job to come home to and pay for what fun I was having. You did the right thing.

I hope you find a new and better job soon. Next year you will enjoy the trip much better if you're financial world is secure.

Utahtea

I do recall your concerns. Sorry to hear it happened to your husband. I agree wait till next year, you will appreciate and enjoy it so much more. Keep your chin up, I know it is not much consolation to you but I know many are in your same situation. Best of luck to you.

Collette I am so sorry that you are having to cancel. I think you are smart in the long run for obvious reasons. I live in Dallas Texas and I know that it is not pretty like California but we have a diverse economy. Our cost of living is way cheaper than California. We have lots of people from all over. Is Transportation Logistics in the trucking industry? I have heard about the massive layoffs at Consolidated Freight. Southwest Airlines is hiring maybe you could consider them (if it was the airline industry).
Again I am sorry. If it makes you feel any better my husband has over 800000 miles on American and we never have the time to use them. Also since he is a Consultant he can't just leave a client for two weeks and take a vacation. Everytime a job has ended he has been fortunate enough to find other work. He has many friends out of work. I have read (and am no Economics expert) that if we go to war with Iraq this will put the US in a recession and possible inflation will ensue. My husband and I have been reviewing how we spend our money and we have been making a lot of budget cuts. So BELIEVE ME I REALLY UNDERSTAND. Hang in there and know that you are not alone.

Collette: You and your husband have made a wise decision. I empathize with you as I wrote previous to your first inquiry that my husband and I also decided to cancel a planned vacation ... and we were glad as he was out of work for a long time and eventually had to take a job with a greatly reduced salary. (He is still looking for something better.) We also lost a little on canceling the airfare, but saved a great deal more by not going; and I'm sure glad to have that extra money in the bank now. Look for something local and inexpensive maybe for a couple days just so you don't feel like you have no vacation. We ended up going camping for a couple of days, and while I admit it was now where near the vacation we planned, we had a nice time and it was nice to get away. Sometimes even a night at a nice hotel in your city and a nice dinner will help. Good luck.

Carol: It's nice to be nice to the nice.

Thanks to all for your empathy and encouragement. Yes, Logistics is sort of a part of the transportation field. My husband was not with Consolidated Freight but another company. He should be working and paid ( with severance) throu November but I know it might take LOTS more time for him to get a comparable management position. Meeting with realtors this weekend as we will most likely need to sell the house. I know there are lots of people in the same boat. Thanks again for the support.

Collette,

As a headhunter myself, I would suggest your husband get in touch with local and national search firms that specialize in his area of expertise.

(Sorry, but it's not my area, I do Sales Recruiting in the office technology industry.)

Right now the market is pretty tight for job hunters, so you will probably have to be a bit flexible on location.

Another idea is to hit the online recruiting services, like www.headhunter.net.

Good luck with your search.

tweedy

Collette--I was one of the people voting for you to go, but you've done what you've felt comfortable doing and that's what counts. Hope his job hunt is successful. And who knows? Maybe this could be the start of a whole new adventure for you--sometimes these things do work out for the best.

Sorry I can't help on the job front. Too bad he's not an accountant.

Colette, you are not alone. To be honest I'm not sure why I'm here right now. Habit, I guess. I just lost my job Monday, and while we're lucky that mine was a part time job that paid for the "extras" (like travel, clothes, dinners out, my new car, in short, everything fun), I have been unbelievably depressed about it. It was a job that I loved and that paid really well.

I was in the midst of planning a family trip to Europe. I was searching high and low for a good fare for a very long time and as fate would have it I found one, just after I lost the job.

If it makes you feel any better I think you did the right thing. I put all travel out of my mind and plans on hold. I even returned some recent purchases that I haven't opened yet! I cancelled my gym membership, my cell phone and my cleaning lady. My husband tells me not to go into panic mode and that we're fine, but I can't believe how this has affected me. I even decided not to buy cold cuts or steak at the grocery store today!

It's a scary, depressing thing being out of work. I think you have to do what feels right, like conserve, and know that you aren't spending frivolously, just in case it does take longer than expected to find a new job.

The Airline Transportation industry could certainly use a few rational, intellegent and reasonable people. They don't have any now.

Collette, my Dad retired years ago as a senior executive in the field that your husband is in. You might have your husband check into positions with major retailers, as freight has to move from the retailers' distribution centers to the stores. Large manufacturers might be another industry to look into.

Also, your husband might want to post his resume on the Monster Board.

A few hr directors have advised me against posting my resume on Monster or other jobsites. They indicate that it kind of "cheapens" your resume. Really the only people who contacted me while I was posted were some bad recruiters. I've had much better luck searching monster (w/o a posting) and also networking.

Collette,
I'm sorry your family is going through the pain of a job loss. For those who mock you and say 'just get another job' I'd tell them not to judge until they walk a mile in your shoes. My husband's Fortune 500 company went bankrupt in the spring and his job was threatened. It hurts--especially since he's been with them for 20 years--since college graduation. The months of uncertainty were hard--it's not easy replacing a low 6 figure income without relocating. We were prepared to sell our house and buy something smaller in town to eliminate uprooting our teenagers from the school and town that we all love. After all, being together and having our health is the main thing--the rest is just gravy. He just started a great job with a new company this Monday, though, and we're thinking maybe this all happened for a reason. Chin up--there are a lot of us hoping things turn out well for you and your husband. Here's to better days ahead and lots of traveling for us all!

Collette, So sorry to about your husband's job loss.Is it really wise to sell your house now, not knowing where his next job will be? Where will you go when it sells?

Try www.sysco.com, they have a big logistics department. HQ is Houston but they have offices all over the country.

And just to make this travel related - Fodors please don't delete this, the sooner we all get back to work, the sooner we get back to traveling, which would make all your sponsers very happy!

OH-I voted for you to go...guess I lost, too!

Take one day at a time and you'll get through this. Many of us have faced adversity. Me for example..my husband took a better paying job out of state. It broke my heart to go...then I found myself with an unplanned pregnancy on top of it..this all happened last year. I cried every day for those 9 months. I got through it. If I can do all of that, I can do anything. You will find yourself saying the same thing one year from now. Trust me! Been there----done that!

To I feel your pain... I'm sorry about your job loss but you have class and will survive. I'm sorry that jerky guy/gal... "Get a life" flammed you but I agree with those who reminded him of Karma.... he will get his.

To all who helped with kind words or ideas... thanks... hubby is doing lots of networking and checking all relevant websites... will telll him about the leads you gave.

Today is our anniversary and I wrote on the card... next year, Paris! here's hoping all of the unemployed find decent jobs soon.

Collette, oh that is so nice what you wrote on the card. So sweet. You sound like a special couple, and I know next year will be a good one for you. Again, best of luck. Happy Anniversary, my wish for you both is that your husband finds a better job. All things happen for a reason,and sometimes when we look back on a dark moment, we are thankful for how something turned out after all. Again, my best to you both.