This article is a really good read actually – it shows what people are facing in these economic times. It’s not easy to find a job, and even those who are hustling and not being lazy are still on tough times. Still, the zinger from this lady’s mom made the article. I’ve posted excerpts below.

Sukhraj Beasla, 30, was earning up to $70,000 a year before she was laid off two years ago.

(CNN) — Sukhraj Beasla’s parents boast that their successful daughter works at a bank. The problem is that it’s all a lie — she was laid off more than two years ago.

The tentacles of this lie taunt her, adding to mounting familial pressure to get it together.

When Beasla visits her parents in Northern California and they go out to dinner or their temple, they brag right along with the other parents. Beasla has no choice but to play along with the lie.

“I have to go there and tell them I was able to get my next promotion and that I’m on track and that there’s no way the company would let me go because I’m such a valuable asset and all this bulls***,” Beasla said. …

She earned an annual salary between $65,000 to $70,000 and was about to be promoted to an assistant vice president, but layoffs came instead.

Now she’s making roughly $1,200 in a bad month and $2,000 when times are good. Her estimated yearly income will be from $15,000 to $25,000 this year…..

Beasla is still earning enough to keep her above the official national poverty line, which is $11,139 a year for an individual.

But her income barely covers her living expenses in Orange County, where the cost-of-living index is higher than the state or national average.

…

She’s online all day promoting various clients for a social media marketing agency. Babysitting, dog walking, tutoring and a collection of random jobs occupy her nights and weekends.

It’s enough to give her 40 to 50 hours of work every week, including weekends, but it’s not always enough to cover the rent.

….

Beasla, who holds a degree in marketing, took control of her situation shortly after she was laid off in 2009 and launched her own social media business.

After a year, her business went under.

She had a heart-to-heart talk with her father one night over dinner about how her business had hit a rut.

The words that came out of his mouth stung, she said.

“‘God, you’re 30 years old and I really expected you to be somewhere right now,’” he told her disappointedly, she recalled.

Her mother jumped in with a solution: Marry a doctor and she’d be set.

….

Beasla sends out 30 to 50 resumes each day via networking site LinkedIn but wonders if they get sucked into a “black hole.”

She’s targeting marketing and social media work, but has also applied for jobs in the automotive and manufacturing industries, where she held previous positions.

She has also tried the retail and reception desk routes, but she’s been shot down for these minimum-wage jobs because she’s overqualified.

“I’ve been to Starbucks, Nordstrom or places in the mall like Yankee Candle, and they’ll look at my resume. ‘You’ve done all these different things. Why would you want to work here? Will you actually want to stay here?’” they ask.