HUGE news!

Those that know us even a little bit know that our plans for the future have included an eventual move to Shangri La.  Recent and quickly moving events have shifted that timetable up BIG TIME.

My manager very recently sent out a broadcast e-mail announcement. A req had been approved for a position similar to mine, but in Michigan. I immediately sent him an e-mail, with a map of MI attached with the location of the house marked. I asked him if it would be possible for the position to be located "HERE".

We talked a bit on the phone, and he said he would look into it. The next day my manager and his manager were scheduled to be in town. They pulled me into the conference room and told me that, if I am serious, the position is mine.  "Yes, I am serious!".

As for timing, I am slated to move into the new position at the beginning of the year. How's this for an awesome place to work?  They're going to allow me to handle the Michigan accounts from Ohio until after our youngest son Kyle graduates! We'll then put the house in Ohio on the market and begin our move north. We'll be able to slowly move some things up there over the course of the next ten months.

I can't begin to tell you how excited Shelly and I are. But, the move will have its downside. The foremost concern for us is leaving Kyle in Ohio. He's made his plans for after high school. He'll be attending ITT for a degree in networking, majoring in IT security. I wonder what that's like...knowing what you want to be when you grow up.  God knows I'm still trying to figure it out.  :)  So, after the house sells we'll be putting him up in an apartment while he attends school. We're also considering the possibility of refinancing the house and having Kyle stay in it with some friends, and then selling it in a few years when the market improves.  You know...at first I felt like we would be completely abandoning him.  I keep telling myself that it's no different than him going away to school, and really...it isn't. Is it?

Our oldest son Michael is weighing his options, and a move with us to Michigan is a possibility.  He's making big strides in recovering from a rough time of it this past year, and a fresh start in a new place could be just the ticket to get him completely over the hump.

Moving further away from our closest friends will cause us no small amount of pain. Thankfully, the world is much smaller than it used to be.  That, and we will officially be putting ourselves out there as a Vacation Destination!

So, in the foreseeable future updates here will include info not only on the continuing efforts to fix the old place up.  They'll include updates on...OUR MOVE TO SHANGRI LA!