I’m writing from the airport, yet again. This time, I boarded my flight and got all settled in. Then they made an announcement; there’s a mechanical problem, a new part has to be flown in, and we’re stuck for at least four or five hours.  I have two options; pay for another flight and get a refund for this one, or hang out with my meal voucher and my lap top.

Since there were no flights available, I’m still here: writing to you while I should be on a plane heading east.

At the beginning of this break, I realized it would be the last time that I’d be able to spend this long at home over the holidays. It’s unrealistic to think that an employer will give me two weeks off, especially at a hospital. That just won’t happen. They run 24  hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year.  I wouldn’t choose that job without weighing the consequences. But if it’s what you want to do, then that’s that.

However, when I do accept a job, there is one other thing I have control over – where I live. At the moment, that’s the hardest decision to make.

I moved to the East coast for college because I thought of it as an adventure. Why not go somewhere new, somewhere different, and somewhere unfamiliar? If I don’t like it right away, I’ll adapt. And if I don’t adapt after four years, then I’ll move again. Simple, right?

Hmm. Not so much.

I’ve never thought of myself as a city girl, and yet for this year….I’m living right between two of them. And I like it. There are opportunities here that I wouldn’t have anywhere else. There are always things to do, museums to be explored, shows to be seen, restaurants to taste, and shopping to be done.   Jobs are abundant, and there is the possibility of walking to work (or riding the Metro, but I’ll go ahead and avoid that). Why not stay? If just for a few more years….

Right when I think I have it all figured out, traveling hands me a day like this. I drive three hours to the nearest big airport, just so I can spend another four hours sitting in it, waiting, while somebody else decides if I get back or not. I stress out about missing work tomorrow, finishing a research paper by Friday, getting unpacked, etc.  And really, I chose it. Instead I could live closer, drive home and drive back on my time. Whew, wouldn’t that be nice?

Here I thought deciding what to do for work would be the hard choice, not where to do it.

I guess it’s a good thing I have six months to ponder this; going back and forth between the pros and cons of each. But location is definitely a big factor.

Posted by Mary Ellen Nunes at 01/07/2009 10:50:15 AM |