anthro game

You decide it's best to have Tom stay home with Sam while you go to your interview. Since Tom's not at work he won't make any money but it'll be ok, you feel great about the interview so the risk is worth the payoff. Unfortunately Tom's boss doesn't feel the same way you and Tom do. He says there's plenty of people that can do the job and he'll happily find someone else. Tom is fired on the spot leaving you both unemployed. As you leave for your interview Tom says "good luck babe. I know you can do this, we need this." [[The Interview]] [[Back to Start]]

You and Tom wake up in the early morning. It's time to wake up Caleb for school. The phone rings and it's Tom's boss. He needs Tom to come in for a job, but he also has to take care of Sam today. The easy solution is to have Tom decline the work so you can go to your interview. He's been a good employee, they won't fire him for one occurance. But it's hard to turn down guaranteed income. On the other hand if he goes to work they have to find someone to watch Sam. Should Tom [[Stay Home With Sam]]? [[Have Tom go to work]]? [[Back to Start]]

You decide it's best to have Tom go in to work. Even though his hours are unreliable right now, he has a job. If he loses his job you're both out of work. The only problem is someone needs to stay home and watch Sam. Typically you stay home with him but you have the interview, a babysitter is expensive and money is very tight. Do you [[Stay home with Sam]]? [[Call a babysitter]]? [[Back to Start]]

You decide that the cost of a babysitter is just more than you can afford. You call Joann with ACME to reschedule the interview. This does NOT go over well. Joann says you've already rescheduled once. They're looking to have the position filled immediately and if you can't even make it to the interview, how are they supposed to count on you to come into work every day? It's a hard reality. You can stay home with Sam to save the cost of a babysitter or pay a babysitter and hope the interview goes perfect. Do you [[Stay with Sam regardless]]? [[Call a babysitter]]? [[Back to Start]]

You decide it's best to stay home with Sam. Joann thought otherwise. She is unwilling to reschedule your job interview again. She's upset but polite and says "good luck, I really hope everything works out for you and your family." There's a hint of pity in her voice. Luckily Tom still has his job so you're not completely out of luck. And you do have another interview later today. Now it's just a matter of making that work. You're running out of options at this point. Rescheduling your first interview didn't work out so well. Because of this you decide to call a babysitter. [[Babysitter to the rescue]] [[Back to Start]]

You go to your interview and knock it out of the park. Joann says you'll hear from her soon so you are beaming. On top of that you have another intervew scheduled for later that day! When you leave the interview there's three missed calls on your phone, all from Caleb's school. Caleb got in a fight and punched another boy in the nose causing a lot of bleeding. The principal says someone needs to come get Caleb and have a conference with the school. If you go get Caleb now you will have to reschedule your interview. On the other hand you could probably let Caleb stay at school for a bit while you go to your interview. Do you [[Go get Caleb from school]]? [[Go to your second interview]]? [[Back to Start]]

You go to your interview and knock it out of the park. Joann says you'll hear from her soon so you are beaming. On top of that you have another intervew scheduled for later that day! When you leave the interview there's three missed calls on your phone, all from Tom. He says that Sam was playing outside on the swingset and had an accident. He was swinging too high, jumped off, hit his face and broke a tooth. Tom tells you it's not too bad and he thinks it's just cosmetic. But you know Tom, he coud break his leg and claim he can walk it off. Normally it would be an easy decision as Tom's job had great insurance. Since Tom got fired this morning it's not so easy. Do you [[Go straight to the dentist]]? [[Trust Tom and wait]]? [[Back to Start]]

You trust your instincts which in this case mean NOT trusting Tom's. He's made decisions like this before and ended up costing you guys more money in the long run. You make Tom take Sam to the dentist to get the tooth taken care of. This was the right call. The dentist tells you that the tooth is broken in half and will need to be removed. Luckily it's a baby tooth so there won't be any long term effects of removing his tooth. While you're lucky you got the tooth taken care of before it became a major issue there's still the issue of the bill. The dentist is willing to work with you on a payment plan to help spread the cost. It's still a bill you hadn't budgeted for. [[Back home]] [[Back to Start]]

You decide to trust Tom's instincts. He is Sam's father after all and you have another interview to get to. You go to your second interview and absolutely crush it! You head home for the day feeling energized. It was a rough day with Sam's accident but Tom handled it and you had two great interviews. Things are really looking up. [[The next day]] [[Back to Start]]

You're back at home after the dentist. You're doing you best to put that whole episode behind you. Tom is supportive but can't help feeling like the situation is his fault. It's causing a lot of tension in the house nd everyone feels it. What's going to happen to your family? What if neither job comes through, leaving both of you out of work with a dentist bill to pay? You decide to reach out to your food pantry. They have a program called "leap forward" that you kept hearing about for families when things got really bad. If ever there was a time you could use a hand it's right now. You speak with the director of the pantry, Jeremy. He's a great guy. You give him the rundown on everything that's happening and he says not to worry. He happens to be friends with people at both companies you interviewed with and offers to put in a good word. He also recommends a legal company that can help with the dentist. They're very good at helping set up payment plans that are affordable. [[Great News!]] [[Back to Start]]

You get to the dentist and they go to work on him immediately. The tooth was broken in half down to the root. It also developed an infection overnight affecting some of the teeth next to it. The surgery is very involved and expensive. Here you sit, two unemployed parents with two young boys. On top of that you're staring down the barrel of a monster dentist bill. You always wondered what rock bottom felt like. Things can always get worse you thought. Although at this point you really hope that things can't get worse. [[Back home]] [[Back to Start]]

caleb was in trouble for fighting. he's suspended for a few days. [[anyways]]

Luckily some people you met at the food pantry have older, responsible kids. You've asked them to babysit in the past and it's always worked out well. Having a support network was not something you expected the first time you went into the food pantry. But times like this you're sure glad you did. As your finishing getting ready the phone rings. The babysitter is already there so she happily answers. It's the principal at Caleb's school. Caleb got in a fight and punched another boy in the nose causing a lot of bleeding. The principal says someone needs to come get Caleb and have a conference with the school. If you go get Caleb now you will have to reschedule your interview. On the other hand you could probably let Caleb stay at school for a bit while you go to your interview. Do you: [[Get Caleb from school]] [[Go to your interview]] [[Back to Start]]

Gina can't. have to get caleb. lose interview [[anyways]]

You arrive at Caleb's school to see him sitting in the hallway outside the principal's office. He has his head down in shame and barely looks up to make eye contact. You're furious with him but can't help noticing something different in Caleb's face. You can't place it but it almost seems like he's embaressed. You go in to meet with the principal. It turns out one of Caleb's friends was making fun of him. The boy was calling Caleb poor and telling the other kids that they don't have any food at home. Caleb simply couldn't take it anymore and hit the other boy. Regardless of the reason, fighting is fighting and Caleb will be suspended from school for three days. To top it off you were unable to reschedule your interview. They're looking to have the position filled immediately. Their exact words are "If you can't even make it to the interview, how are we supposed to count on you to come into work every day?" Hearing that phrase for the second time today makes you start to believe it. [[The future]] [[Back to Start]]

You get on the phone with the principal. He's a reasonable person. You explain that you have a job interview scheduled. It shouldn't take long and you'll get Caleb as soon as you're done. The principal won't budge. He says you have to come immediately to get Caleb. He mentions that under most circumstances he'd be happy to accommodate but Caleb broke the other boy's nose, causing him to go to the hospital. [[Get Caleb from school]] [[Back to Start]]

since caleb has been suspended, someone will have to watch him. tom has to work and gina starts her part-time job today. they can't get a babysitter. who watches him? [[tom?]] [[gina?]]

tom has to work [[gina?]]

gina will watch the boys. she starts her new job tomorrow and needs to find a sitter to watch them. [[the next day]]

gina found a sitter to watch the boys. she heads off to her first day at her new job. halfway through her shift, she receives a call from the sitter. something has gone wrong. gina tells the sitter to call one of the boys' grandparents. luckily they answer and are able to help.

Thanks to Jeremy's help, you get calls back from both companies with great job offers. On top of that, one company offers you a choice of a management position or the entry level position you applied for. The management job pays more but you do the math and figure you can make more money by taking both entry level jobs. Which route do you take? Do you [[Take the management position]]? [[Take both jobs]]? [[Back to Start]]

You decide it's in your best interest to take the management position. Although Tom is out of work and you'd love the short term reward of more money now, this feels like the best long term option. The new position starts in 10 days, this feels like an eternity away. You do the math in your head and realize that you won't get your first paycheck for almost three weeks. On top of that it will only be half of the size since you're starting in the middle of the pay period. With everything going on you don't know how or if this is going to work. Luckily you have your support system in place. Tom had an interview and landed a new job. He starts work in a week as well. Jeremy at the food pantry said to keep coming as long as you like, he only wants to see you back on your feet. It's funny how you can go from the darkest of dark times to a bright shining sky in a matter of days. If it wasn't for Jeremy you're certain you would have lost your home and possibly your family. [[Back to Start]]

You decide it's in your best interest to take the both jobs. With Tom out of work you decide the added income is what you need right now. When Tom gets back to work you can always try for a promotion if the position is available. Both jobs start in about 10 days, this feels like an eternity away. You do the math in your head and realize that you won't get your first paychecks for almost three weeks. On top of that it will only be half of the size since you're starting in the middle of the pay period. With everything going on you don't know how or if this is going to work. Luckily you have your support system in place. Jeremy at the food pantry said to keep coming as long as you like, he only wants to see you back on your feet. It's funny how you can go from the darkest of dark times to a bright shining sky in a matter of days. If it wasn't for Jeremy you're certain you would have lost your home and possibly your family. [[Back to Start]]

The next day you wake up feeling hopeful. Your interviews went great and you figure it's just a matter of time before you're working. Tom has a few leads on a new job as well. Your coffee tastes extra good today because everything feels like it's coming together. You're suddenly startled out of your daydream by screaming. It's coming from the boys' room, it sounds like Sam. You get into his room to find him kneeling on his bed with his pillow covered in blood. His face is swollen. It looks like Tom was wrong and the tooth needed to be taken care of. You scoop Sam up in your arms and rush him to the dentist. [[Rush to the dentist]] [[Back to Start]]

You are a happily married mother of two young boys. Your oldest son Caleb is 8 and goes to school during the day. Your youngest is Sam, at 3 years old he's home with you. Your husband Tom works in construction. Unfortunately due to the weather the work is not steady at this time. You're trying to find a job so you can stop living paycheck to paycheck and start to get ahead. Sleep is tough most nights because you know you're just one accident, one surprise bill away from losing your home. You're certain that if you can just find a job things will work out. You hear other parents whisper, "why doesn't she just get a job?" It's not easy to find a job while trying to take care of two young boys. They are your world afterall. One of the things keeping you going is the food pantry. There are weeks where you just can't stretch the money any further. It's hard having to choose between paying the mortgage and having food in the cupboard. But things are looking up. You have a few interviews today that that you feel great about. The phone interview last week went great, now you just have to impress them in person and you're in. [[The Phone Rings]]

You arrive at Caleb's school to see him sitting in the hallway outside the principal's office. He has his head down in shame and barely looks up to make eye contact. You're furious with him but can't help noticing something different in Caleb's face. You can't place it but it almost seems like he's embarassed. You go in to meet with the principal. It turns out one of Caleb's friends was making fun of him. The boy was calling Caleb poor and telling the other kids that they don't have any food at home. Caleb simply couldn't take it anymore and hit the other boy. Regardless of the reason, fighting is fighting and Caleb will be suspended from school for three days. To top it off you were unable to reschedule your interview. They're looking to have the position filled immediately. Their exact words are "If you can't even make it to the interview, how are we supposed to count on you to come into work every day?" [[Back at home]] [[Back to Start]]

Today was not your best day. Two interviews scheduled and you couldn't make it to either one. Sleep won't come easy tonight. The same thoughts keep swirling in your head: "How will I feed my boys?" "How can we afford to keep the house?" "Should I even try to keep looking for a job?" "What does Tom really think of me?" "What are we going to do?" Around 5:00am you finally drift off into sleep. The one comfort you have is knowing the food pantry is there to support you. The place is so much more than canned goods and bread. The people there that support you and help you with anything they can. They are your safety net. You fall asleep feeling defeated yet strangely hopeful. Tomorrow is a new day. [[Back to Start]]

Sitting around the dinner table that night there is an uneasiness in the room. You went to one of your two interviews and it went great. However you did miss one due to Caleb getting in a fight at school. You can't help but feel that it's partly your fault he was fighting. Being a kid is hard, you feel like you're making it harder on Caleb by your inability to find work. The phone rings. It's Joann, she has great news! You're the top candidate for the job and they want to hire you! The new position starts in 10 days, this feels like an eternity away. You do the math in your head and realize that you won't get your first paycheck for almost three weeks. On top of that it will only be half of the size since you're starting in the middle of the pay period. With everything going on you don't know how or if this is going to work. Luckily you have your support system in place. Jeremy at the food pantry said to keep coming as long as you like, he only wants to see you back on your feet. The future looks bright. Both you and Tom are working full-time and you get to spend some time with both of your boys before you start. With the help of the food pantry keeping you going things are working out. [[Back to Start]]