Will you say sorry if I learn how to say I am unemployed?

The most unusual letter - a rejection letter - came to this household.

Unfortunately, it is the letter and not the rejection that is unusual in a household where three people have sought jobs in the last eight months Why is that? Why is it that potential employers can't, don't or won't take the time to even say "Thank you for applying. We have filled the job."

If I have applied online, how difficult is it to send me an email? If you had me come in, I'd be happy to get a postcard. You can even slip it in with your paper application, I'll address it and you can check the appropriate line:

___ We filled the position with someone else
___ We decided we can't afford to fill the position

The silence is especially perplexing to me if we have had a past relationship. I don't expect that just because we have worked together before means I will get the job. A simple "we found someone" would be so polite when we've worked together, served on committees, shared projects and pasts.

Instead, I learn of rejection via LinkedIn, Twitter, press releases and news stories. At least I know to stop waiting in hope of a positive response.

This post from JibberJobber Learn How To Say You Are Unemployed talks about a friend who is in a job search. The friend is mad, hurt, wounded, depressed, sad, and feels incompetent.

But really, he's MAD - mad at the people responsible for his need to seek a job. That could make his search difficult, dimming his chance for success, the writer says

JibberJobber explains how to talk about being unemployed, the last job and why you were let go:

• Be concise.
• Be positive as you tell "your side" of the story and talk about your former boss..
• Make an impression about YOU.

That's my summary of the JibberJobber post in a blog I have found helpful in this change of life.

Fortunately, I am surrounded with family and friends. A lively discussion on the radio recently started when a woman revealed a first date went flat when she learned the engineer was laid off.

She was careful to say he was upbeat, good looking, and more. But unemployment wiped out all of the pluses despite the fact that this. couple lived in Michigan, unemployment capitol of the nation. She had no interest in sticking around to see if he found a new job, got called back or could live on his assets without a job.

I wondered if he should have waited to say he was laid off - I have watched the sparkle leave a person's eyes when they learn you are not collecting a regular paycheck. But I admire his honesty. I am what I am what I am.

Still, after reading "how to say I am unemployed" I wondered if he had been "concise, positive, and focused" on who he is besides unemployed. Oh well, at least he did not read of his rejection online. I hope he didn't have the radio on.