Checking in on the 'New Jobless'

Diana Mackey's first job after high school was working as a telephone operator at Ohio Bell. The company wanted to hire her full-time, but she opted for college and a long career as a human resources executive. Now she's come full circle: Following a series of mergers and layoffs, she's joined AT&T -- as a customer service assistant in its new Reno call center. At $13.11 an hour, it's a job that might once have seemed beneath her, but today she feels lucky to be there, especially when she thinks about the 5000 applicants for the 280 available jobs. Plus, she says, it feels good to help people with a vexing technical issue. "I really like to solve problems," she says.

Mackey won't be able to resume her old comfortable lifestyle anytime soon, but she says that her salary combined with her decision to collect Social Security early means that she'll be just fine -- unlike many others in her state. "There is no sense of things getting better," she says. "But we've adjusted. We've changed our lifestyle to align with our incomes."

NEXT: Adam Schulz: From camo to white collar