This job was not in the stars for me

simplyfiredstories submitted 509 days ago

Back in the early 80s, when I was in college, I had a work-study job in a typing pool. The supervisor was a whacky middle-aged lady who'd arrive at work each day with 4 or 5 newspapers spread out on her desk and opened to the horoscope page. Sometimes she would call in sick with the actual excuse that her horoscope predicted a bad day. One day one of her star typists quit. She had gotten a better paying job. The supervisor insulted her over and over, interspersing the dress down with phrases like "I should have known better than to hire a Libra. You're all flaky." Then, in my presence, she added the kicker, "Thank God Marcia is Taurus. At least I can rely on her."

And in a moment of true brilliance, I piped in, "But I'm not a Taurus. I'm an Aquarius!"

Two days later she fired me.

I've had a stable, successful professional career for the past 20 years, but when the last job app I filled out asked, "Have you ever been fired for cause?" I simply answered, "No." How could I get into a straight-faced conversation with any potential employer about Mrs. xxx and her horoscopes? This job just wasn't in the stars for me.