<p>Some of you may recall that DH and I had to decide whether to relocate from where we live in CT (for my job currently in NYC) to suburban Atlanta. On Friday and Saturday, DH and I visited the prospective area and had a great time (thanks, in part, to jym626 and binx!). But while we were away, we had the opportunity to assess the three factors it came down to:</p>
<li>Are we ready – and is the family ready – to leave the town where we’ve lived for the last 21 years, and the area where we’ve lived (the NorthEast) for our entire lives?</li>
<li>Is this company solid enough and this job secure enough for us to make this big big change?</li>
<li>Can we see ourselves comfortable and happy in the new location?</li>
</ol>
<p>Long story short, the answers to # 1 and #2 were no; the answer to #3 was yes.</p>
<p>Now, of course, a little fear, a little remorse. Some co-workers are very upset with me. My boss was surprised that I’m not coming. Will I get another job? (That is, a job that pays me comparable amounts and that is in my field and in this CT/NYC location?) A little scarey.</p>
<p>But I’m glad #3 was a yes, at least. H and I enjoyed meeting up with you (even if we can never go back to that restaurant now that we’ve been disgraced…)</p>
<p>I am sure you’ll be waffling back and forth still for awhile about whether you did the right thing. That’s because there was good and bad on both sides. A bit flattering that some of your coworkers are upset. I have no jobs for you, but wish you the best of luck!</p>
<p>Double bummer. It sounded during lunch that the “nos” were outweighing the “yes’s” as you pondered your options. This is a great place to live and to retire to, but if you aren’t ready, and if the job isn’t what you want for long term, or if the company isn’t solid (that’s scary-- they own the dealership I deal with!) then now isn’t the right time. </p>
<p>And binx, we only moderately screwed up, and the restaurant won’t remember us… I hope. Here’s a thought–we can meet again for lunch soon and rectify our snafoo! </p>
<p>(Ok everyone… not to keep you in suspense. We apparently need an SAT math tutorial refresher course, as we felt we should have tipped more than we did. Oh dear… did the xiggi method fail us?? The answer should have been “B”). Somehow, spending $10 in gas to go over and give the waitress an extra buck or two is a little hard to justify. Besides, she made the boo boo in the first place that caused us to miscalculate. Oh well… time to stop our self- flaggelation!</p>
<p>Oh, I was hoping to hear that some dancing on tables occurred.</p>
<p>Veryhappy–I’m sure you’ll get another job; especially if the people you work for are so bummed.</p>
<p>Story: When i as about 10, my dad’s company relocated to another state . Because of much campaigning on the part of us kids, he didn’t go (I suspect mom was against it, too.) Was out of work a long time (mini-recession). OTOH, many of the relocated folks were laid off the next year. At least we dealt wth the economic issues in a place we knew, with family nearby. I can’t imagine what it was like for those who moved.</p>
<p>Good luck; I’m sure you’ll come out fine in the end.</p>
<p>I have a better idea, jym - let’s meet for dessert, skip the lunch! We’ll enjoy it more, and we’ll be able to finish it this time. Seems like there are a couple other Atlanta folk who mentioned wanting to be included next time. We can have a party! (Maybe separate checks.)</p>
<p>VeryHappy - I agree that the stable company is critical. It’s something we are also discussing, if H’s new opportunity should prove to be something we want to pursue. We don’t want to jump ship, only to have the new ship sink!</p>
<p>Any chance they’ll come back with a more enticing offer? How long will you get to stay on where you’re at?</p>
<p>VH, last week H found out that his boss’s boss and two members of his group (of 4) were being laid off. He’s safe, at least for now. His former department was client-facing, and no one in that area was laid off, so he’s keeping his eye open for a client-facing position he could return to. But in the mean time, the subject of moving came up (if a client-facing position in another city arose). We decided that at this point, we would do all we could do to stay in our home. D is a rising 11th grader, and S is entering soph year in college. We’re not moving until D graduates, and even then I would greatly prefer NOT to move. I have no illusions that this is the best place in the country to live - I know there are places with much better weather, and lower costs of living. We are 4 hours from my in-laws and 1000 miles from my family. But we’ve been here 22 years. It’s the only hometown our kids have known. The thought of re-establishing a social network for me, without the links that kids and their activities provides, is overwhelming. Plus I’m secretly hoping that our kids end up with jobs and families near us, even though DH and I moved away from our families. I can’t see the kids ending up near us if we move far from the only hometown they’ve ever known.</p>
<p>We can’t predict the future, but I think your reasons for choosing not to move are valid.</p>
<p>My job exists here through January 31. If I assist with the “transition” (presumably to a new person in the new location) and the transition ends before January 31, I’m still paid through January 31. And then I get a significant severance.</p>
<p>As for a “more enticing offer” – in terms of money, I would have already been overpaid for the Atlanta market for what I do (so I figured I’d never get another raise!). If they offer me the opportunity to work from home and hop down to Atlanta once a month or whatever, I would consider that. But I genuinely don’t think that’s going to happen.</p>
<p>My husband keeps encouraging me to open my own business and be a consultant. But I’m so risk-averse that that’s not on my top-twenty list. While I would enjoy the projects, I wouldn’t enjoy the marketing and the constant worry about where the next project is coming from.</p>
<p>Hey binx: If you guys are going back to The Cheesecake Factory for dessert, tell me when!! I’ll try to make it down by arranging some “transition” time on that date!</p>
<p>I think it would be easier for us to work around YOUR schedule! Let us know when you’re coming. If it’s a weekday, I know jym prefers Fridays. I’m flexible.</p>
<p>It’s nice that you have a few month’s leeway to find another job. And a nice severance package to boot - great! Your hubby may have a point - you have time to set up a consulting business, since you don’t need the paycheck from it next week. But I would be right with you on the marketing aspects. I’ve never been any good at the self-sell stuff.</p>
<p>Yes, please let us know when you plan to return to our fair city.
My h has been doing some consulting as well as his new salaried position. Keep in mind consulting may have a 60, 90 or even 120 day reimbursement turnaround , so cash flow is unpredictable.</p>
<p>That’s one of the reasons I wouldn’t want to rely on it on significant income. I like getting paid on the 15th and the 30th, without fail!</p>
<p>I’m eager to discuss “transition” with my boss, since the sooner my job is transitioned, the sooner I can get out of here (but continue to be paid). My boss is out all this week and was apparently totally surprised that I’m not going. Se he hasn’t begun to think about “transition” at all. </p>
<p>Doncha love “corporate-speak”? “Transition” really means “hire someone else to do my job and make sure VeryHappy teaches the new person everything she knows.”</p>
<p>Now wishing to highjack the thread…but we have a Cheesecake Factory near us too…and I’d meet someone there:) When I took DD to college in CA, I actually met two CC folks at a Cheesecake Factory there!! Seems like a perfect CC meeting spot and we also had a great time!!!</p>
<p>VeryHappy, this is a great time of year to start looking for a new job, and you are in an area that has many of them. I’d suggest that you consider broadening your search to include such related fields as recruiting. Also, this may seem obvious, but if you’ve been living in CT and working in NYC, don’t forget to turn your attention in the other direction. As a Fairfield County resident, I went from commuting 50 miles into NYC, to commuting 50 miles towards the center of CT. I would never have thought of looking for a job there. </p>
<p>But what I’ve really been wondering, is what happened with the driveway?</p>
<p>VeryHappy, I just want to wish you all the luck in the world on your job search. Consolation’s advice sounds pretty reasonable - about looking in CT as well as NYC. And yes, whatever happened with the driveway?</p>
<p>Oh yes, CT definitely. My dream is to commute five miles to the middle of my town. Yeah, like that’s going to happen . . . .</p>
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<p>It was the entire road, not the driveway.</p>
<p>Our nice neighbor wrote the neighbor who’s soliciting funds for the road a nice letter telling him basically that he wasn’t going to pay the $2300 that had been requested but was only going to pay the $1000 that he would have paid had we simply repaired the bottom of the road. </p>
<p>DH and I haven’t yet decided what we’re going to do. Benign neglect. I frankly haven’t been thinking about it; too much else going on.</p>
<p>We used to live in one of the towns bordering Norwalk, and my husband–who hated commuting into NYC–found a job in one of those big corporate buildings on Rte 7 in Norwalk, about 10 minutes from our house. </p>
<p>Unfortunately, it turned out that he hated the company and most of his coworkers, then the company was bought out and moved to Texas, so eventually he ended up back in Manhattan! :)</p>
<p>I’ve had two stints of employment in Fairfield County, close to home. In both cases, the best thing about the jobs was that – they were in Fairfield County! Other than that, my New York jobs have always been much better jobs.</p>