(The names and details have been changed to protect the guilty.)
Today is a hard day.
My wife Bonnie and I are mourning the anniversary of suicide of her brother, a man consumed and shit out by Capitalism.
Johnny worked every day he could, but he out-drank his usefulness. When Johnny's older brother RK killed himself, Johnny had to use his bereavement time, his vacation time, even sick time, to try to grieve and get better. But he got sick, dropping to under 20hr/week at work, losing his insurance. He wasn't going to make rent. He couldn't pay his bills. He couldn't ask for help. So he drank the last of his money and hung himself in his closet.
But this isn't about Johnny.
Bonnie has been calling her sisters and remaining brother all morning, grieving and sharing. Kaitlyn, Bonnie's younger sister, mentions she has been working 12 hour days for two weeks straight. She's having a shit day because she hasn't had time mourn. Bonnie asks why is she working so many hours? (She is a payday/title loan-collector and loves to mention how easy her job is and how much money she makes). Kaitlyn responds tritely that "Brad was fired because his wife died so I have to do all his work too".
"WHAT THE FUCK?!" goes Bonnie - she has been volunteering in mental health advocacy since Johnny's suicide.
Kaitlyn continues "Well, not really. His wife got COVID in December then died in January and he just hasn't come back from it. Brad kept coming in, doing a half-assed job, grouching at people. I wish he had just taken unpaid leave. Anyway, we had to let him go."
Brad tried to be loyal to his DEBT COLLECTION company instead of mourning for his wife and recovering his health. For a reward, he was fired.
Kaitlyn doesn't actually make a lot of money. She does get a commission on debts collected from vulnerable populations, so that's nice I guess.
