The Last Day at Hawaiian Telcom

January 25, 2008, was my last day of employment at Hawaiian Telcom. But it was yesterday that almost 50 management people were processed and removed from the premises. I will admit it was a very strange day. When I arrived in the morning we had heard that our boss was already let go the evening before. For the rest of the morning it was a waiting game to see if you would be summoned to HR for an exit interview. It was like a cattle call to see, one by one, people being escorted down to the first floor to be processed out. This was the layoff that was pending since November of last year. I was chatting with one of my cohorts wondering who would be next. Sure enough as soon as my friend left my office, I was asked to grab my pager and cell phone head downstairs. The entrance to the exit interview room was lined with people, presumably HR and security personnel. There were a few that looked like bouncers, just in case people got out of hand I assume. Once in the room I noticed the windows were papered shut. That way people could not look inside at the distraught expressions. The exit interview lasted about 2 minutes where one of the VPs reassured me that this was not a performance issue. They must have had to say that because Ron Mizutani, the HT spokesperson reiterated that point to the media. Once done there I did a quick review with HR on what the severance package consisted of and was shown which door to exit. I had never been to the bowels of this side of the building and wasn't sure where I was exiting. I came out on Adams Lane out of a very unassuming doorway. Once out it all seemed like a dream, perhaps some might say a nightmare, had finally ended. Change and transitions are always unsettling but that is the nature of life. I like to get philosophical at times like these. Personally, I have been here before and look forward to much brighter days. As I told another friend of mine, I am not exactly sure what I am going to do but one thing is for sure, I am going to aim squarely at quality of life.