Seeking new employment

[Guest guest]

A little background first. I'm currently 31 years old. I used to be a

graphic designer and copy editor for an advertising firm in Mankato,

MN. I went through the usual hell for the 5 months leading up to

diagnosis and the first successful treatment of symptoms with the

first ERCP in September 2002. Gallbladder removed in February 2003.

Daughter born Jan. 17, 2004 and depression forced me to leave my

job in April of 2004 to pursue a " less intellectually demanding "

position. January 16, 2005, the day before my daughter's 1st birthday

we were in a very major car accident. A gal drove 60mph through a

stop sign and we hit them, totally destroying both vehicles, killing

one of their passengers and breaking my right leg about as bad as you

can break it without losing it. What sucks is I was feeling pretty

good about myself the day the accident happened. Since then I've had

to battle some pretty nasty demons. April 2005, back to the liver

doctor because of our favorites, jaundice, itching, fatigue. They

basically put me in emergency ERCP to dilate the bile duct.

Prognosis, 3-5 years to transplant, tops. Great... They DISCHARGED me

that day. Pancreatitis sets in on the ride home. Oh my god give me a

gun so I can end it now. Immediately hospitalized for a week. This

time they even had to put a tube in my stomach to get everything out

to get the pancreas to shut down to heal, Oh yeah, did I mention I'm

still on crutches at this point with a rod and 4 screws in my leg?

Back to work in July 2005. December 2005, still wincing in pain when

I walk, I decide to lose 25 pounds to take some impact off my leg.

Running, biking, lifting, dieting. The weight comes off, now I'm down

to a svelte 165 pounds and feeling great. May 2006 back in the

hospital with zombie eyes and the most god-awful bowel movements

ever. 2 colonoscopies for them to tell me what I already knew, UC. At

least no cancer. Current employer, less than understanding. Being

that I had no vacation time or sick time available thanks to that

F$* & ing accident, I get written up for poor attendance, even though

they knew I was in the hospital. F$*K them! I absolutely hate coming

here every day, what's worse? I absolutely can't take any sort of

personal time off, like a vacation, or they have legal recourse to

terminate me, because my poor attendance ( 8 days missed this year:

hospital, lawsuit deposition, ). I am ready to join a more

professional, creative, environment. If anyone in Minnesota has any

good contacts, I have 6 years of post-secondary education, I've

managed restaurants(don't want to go back to that, though), worked in

advertising, and currently do in-process quality control in an

Aluminum die casting company. I really enjoy graphic design and I

feel like I could fit in in any creative endeavour, whether it's

advertising, web design, interior design, marketing, IT, anything

that's more professional and less stinky than this noisy, dirty

factory. I think I'm done battling the demons. My health is pretty

good right now. I would really appreciate any input.

You can contact me at ericman375@...

Thank you