I know most of you have probably noticed that Sparkle and I haven’t been around the blogosphere much lately.
Life’s always busy, of course, but it’s been particularly so lately, and with some big implications for our life. Good ones, but still big ones.
Many of you know I’ve been looking for a new job for some time now.
Honestly, I took my current job mostly out of convenience in the first place, knowing from the start I’d probably not enjoy it. Before the princess was born, I had a job that I thoroughly enjoyed, but which took me away from home at least two weeks per month. Definitely not conducive to a new child in the house. I tried to find another position with the same company that didn’t involve so much travel, but it wasn’t in the cards at the time. So, when a friend and professional colleague of mine (who’s now my boss) told me his company was looking for someone, I took it. During the interview (strange process when you’ve known most everyone on the panel for several years) they even told me they were concerned I wouldn’t find the job “sexy” enough given my past experience.
Over the past three years, it’s proven to be true.
Now, of course, a job isn’t about having fun per se. Most of us would much rather not work than the alternative. But I’ve always been a proponent of finding a job that you actually do enjoy, and for the most part, I’ve enjoyed my jobs. I’ve even enjoyed parts of the current one: working from home has definite perks, and the benefits are quite good. But in the overall balance, I haven’t enjoyed this job. I don’t like the company’s philosophies (which I reflected on a bit in a previous entry), I’ve always felt somewhat alienated from the main office (being a home-based employee) and the work itself is not challenging.
So, I’ve been looking for a new job, actually for a bit over a year now. And this week, I was offered and accepted one that, quite simply, is about as close to my dream job as I ever expect to get.
Basically, I’m being hired into a sworn staff position with a paid fire department, and as a Captain no less. It’s primarily a desk job, but with some very interesting professional duties and the possibility of some emergency response work. In other words, I’ll still get to ride on a fire engine occasionally, but probably less than I do now as a volunteer firefighter.
That’s a big change, but it’s not the biggest one.
The biggest change is that we’re going to be moving to a different part of the state. That may not be a big change for some (after all, this is the third different state Sparkle’s lived in), but when you consider the fact that I’ve lived in the same 5 square mile radius my entire life or the fact that the princess was born in the same hospital as both me and my mother, it becomes a bigger deal.
As a result, I may not be around much for awhile, and Sparkle may not be either. I’m starting the new job in April, so I’m trying to wrap up some things here, both with work and with my personal life (including the volunteer fire department). Because of Sparkle’s job, she and the princess will be staying here for a few months, so I’ll be working during the week and then coming back here on the weekends to see them. Obviously, I need to find someplace to live, both temporarily while I’m a weeknight bachelor and permanently once we all relocate together. Heck, I don’t even have a computer I can take, since my current one is actually provided by my employer and will have to be returned when I leave this job.
But crazy as it will be, it’s going to be a really good change for us. The new area is a great place to raise a family, and we’ll probably be able to afford a larger house. There will be plenty to do on the weekends and lot’s of new territory to explore. And, hopefully, I’ll enjoy my job again.
Wish us luck.
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