What to do now.

  After I got laid off I drove home in a daze, still not believing what happened. My boss took my badge and escorted me out the door, not even allowing me to say goodbye to my fellow workers, whom I've worked with for the last decade. Once I got home I immediately called unemployment to open my claim. I then called a friend of mine, who was downsized from the same place two months earlier also due to a reduction in workforce. He is almost 60 years old and doubts he'll ever get hired at his trade again. He had fifteen years of service at the same company. Once again, seniority took a back seat to cheap labor! He told me what to expect from unemployment, heath insurance etc. I wasn't too happy about my prospects for the immediate future. I started looking at employment websites to see what's out there and while there's jobs to be found there is none that I can see that will pay me anything close to what I was making. I'm thinking of going back to school, or to re-invent myself as a entrepreneur but I have to see if I can get some funds (grants, loans etc.) as I'll need my savings to help pay my mortgage. Thanks for letting me vent as this helps me put all this into proper perspective. I'll get back to you all soon.