I didn’t think I would be publishing another Life Update so soon (granted, I wrote the last one in October, published it in November, then launched the blog last week). However, a major life event has happened that has upended my routine and left me in confusion and sadness.
Towards the end of November, myself and the rest of the cinema workers received an email that told us that the movie theater was closing at the beginning of December, when the last day we’d be serving customers would be, and if we wanted to transfer then we should let our general manager know.
The movie theater that I had worked at for three summers was closing. Myself and several other workers would be out of a job. And right before Christmas too.
Now, for those of you who know me you, know that I had been planning to leave that job at the end of next summer. I had made plans, even wrote a small note to myself that I stashed in my journal.
I think that’s where the first bit of anger and sadness comes in—when I was supposed to leave was beyond my control; it wasn’t in the way I planned it.
I was also sad to leave my coworkers, who, in the last five months, I had begun to consider them my friends, even close friends. It was the first time I was hanging out with people outside of work, going to Build-a-Bear workshop and Escape Rooms together. In the previous summers I worked there, I wasn’t able to make friends there as quickly, because, before I knew it, I was going back to college and wouldn’t be able to work past September. This time was different, as I didn’t have school to come back to thanks to graduating, and I was planning on staying there for a while.
Now, you might be thinking, “Well, you were talking about leaving! And you had said that the work was getting tiring and overwhelming! And you’ll see your coworkers again, aren’t you planning on hanging out with them soon?”
Yeah, you’re right, about all those things. However, like I said, I wasn’t leaving on my own accord. And I know I’m still going to see my coworkers again—we’re even planning a holiday party soon. There’s just this ache in my heart, knowing that we won’t be goofing off behind concessions again, or playing hide and seek during an after-work party. Or sitting at the tables at the end of a long shift, talking smack about the customers or sharing memes, or just being in each other’s presence, the mask of customer service fallen and all that’s left are tired eyes, worn bodies, and slightly crushed souls.
Yet we still found joy.
Often, one of the closers would put a campfire video on her phone, and we would “sit around the campfire” and just talk, the quiet crackling making the conversation flow easier. Another time, myself and two other coworkers decided to get a late night snack at a local restaurant, wanting to burn a few tips and gossip about our day. Or even another time when a customer just GAVE one of our coworkers a watermelon. Just, a small watermelon. He GAVE it to him. We made rubber band slingshots, comforted each other while we cried, and found ways to make the slow days interesting, like creating interesting soda combinations or creating our secret menu of theater food.
We’re not going to have those kinds of experiences again. That’s what’s been making me so sad. But that’s what makes them so special in the first place.
A few months ago, I was having a conversation with my friend Bekah, and they were telling me about the Multiverse theory. How they explained it was, there are infinite possibilities and alternate realities, and, say you want something in this universe, you probably have it in another universe (I might not have explained that so well, but I think you get what I’m saying. It’s like Everything Everywhere All At Once). On the night of my last shift, I texted the work group chat, telling them about the Multiverse theory. I told them that, in another universe, our movie theater isn’t closed for good, and that we’re all cracking jokes between rushes. That’s been giving me a bit of solace, that somewhere things are a bit different, that things are all right.
While we’re on the subject of universes, I did make the choice to not transfer to another theater. I felt that this was a sign from the universe to move on, to find other work, stuff that aligns more with what I want to do and what I’m good at. Filing for unemployment has been a hassle (the automated voice on the phone line has hung up on me more than once), but good news is, I finally found a form I can fill out and fax (fax?!) it to the unemployment office.
That all being said, I am out of a job. If you know anyone who’s looking for writers (of ANY kind), stage managers, stage hands, assistants (also of any kind), or any PA film work, I’m your pal!
Now don’t worry, I’ll be posting different types of writing soon, not just Life Updates. Right now, my plan is: reposting content from my time at my university’s student newspaper, writing a few reviews, and maybe some creative non-fiction soon? We’ll see…
Until then,
Ms. Em
E. A. Young Writes 