I haven't really talked about it much because quite frankly, it was embarrassing but in October of 2025 my contract expired and I wasn't placed on a new contract within the company. It was due to a multiftude of factors. DOGE requiring federal employees back to the office also meant that contractors were expected back into the office as well (of which there aren't many around Chattanooga and I am in a lease so I can't relocate) The company I was working for had just be acquired by an international firm and we were just a portfolio of resumes for their next bid, the government shutdown, etc. All that to say, at the end of the day, I lost the sense of tribe that I had when I first moved back to DC and became disposable and eventually disposed of unceremoniously.
I was able to keep myself afloat through the holidays and then some before I really started looking at options but the job market here is pretty bleak.
I ended up getting picked up by a staffing/temp agency and took a data entry role for much less that I was used to making, but hey, whatever keeps the rent paid, the fridge full and the lights on, right?
I was entering lab data and then I figured I would ask if I could apply for a lab tech role if one became available. The lab manager liked me and said "sure" and told me to apply. I got selected for that role. A little bit better pay, but not by much but at least I wasn't a temp anymore.
Fast forward a few months... I just signed my second offer letter for them and starting Monday, I am the Senior Manager of Customer Relations overseeing all Department of War contracts for a company that is distancing themselves from the commercial market and focusing solely on the aerospace industry for all things that go zoom or boom. Additionally, the facility is only 6 minutes away from my apartment.
