Well let’s just say I’d have to change my location to 33 degrees North…
My wife has recently been offered a really wonderful position in Arizona. We both went to Grad school out there and we own a home out there, but we live in CT full time. I’m a teacher at a small Lib Arts College and fairly comfortable in my job. I have put thousands of hours into our house, yard, tree house, barn etc…etc… and really love our property.
However, I really love the wide open spaces and picturesque views AZ has to offer, and our home is quite nice out there. I would need to leave my position at this school and most likely consult for a while before I find something else in AZ.
This is a bit of a risk, as we would not be keeping our home in CT, and we would be full time in AZ. I do love my job but I certainly feel like I could move and enjoy AZ living… I don’t mind the heat, and I am a very outdoorsy type person. So I could get used to that all over again…but this is a rather abrupt move…We’re talking I would need to give my notice now, and literally be gone over winter break.
Anyone take a life changing risk and have it be a wonderful experience? How about the converse? Anyone take a risk and regret it?
Has anyone had an established life somewhere and up-rooted themselves to have it pan out for the positive?
We’re 35 years old and do not have children…but plan to.
2 years ago, Mr. Athena and I moved from the Boulder, CO area and moved back to my hometown in northern Michigan. He’d lived in Boulder for 20 years; I’d been there for 11. I was 32 at the time, he was 45. No kids.
We’ve been here for 2 years, and we mostly love it. We’ve both had our moments of wondering if we did the right thing, but overall neither of us have regretted the move.
Really, it’s not nearly as big a risk as you think it might be. You can always move back if you truly hate it. It’s not like having a kid - once you do THAT you can’t decide 2 years in that you don’t like it any more and give the kid back! That’s the true “life changing risk” IMO - moving ain’t nuthin’ you can’t undo.
When I was a kid, my Dad was in the military so we got used to moving frequently. When I grew up and left home, I kept it up for a while (moved from Ft Worth to Eden Prairie; back to Ft. Worth; to Galveston; to Austin; to Salt Lake City; to Buena Park California; to Salt Lake City; to Anaheim California; and back to Salt Lake City.
I got married just after the last time I moved to Salt Lake City. We moved to Ft. Worth 2 years later. It was a big change–my husband was from Buffalo and had never lived in the south before. I do have a little family out here, so that helped a little bit. We’ve both done well, and have lived in the same area for 11 years now.
Me, I’ve got itchy feet and I’d love nothing better than to pack up and move cross country again. My husband likes it here, so it wouldn’t surprise me if we live here for a lot longer.
The advantages of moving cross country are many. You get exposed to a new climate & culture. You get to make new friends while keeping in touch with the old. It keeps things from becoming stagnant. It’s not necessarily something I’d recommend for people with children; moving every year or two while I was in school was really traumatic. It wasn’t until I got out on my own that I began enjoying it myself.
Yes, and it’s not a small boat either. It would most likely come with us, for trips to Lake Havasu, lake powell etc…etc… This is a huge decision…I’ll miss my tree house.
Ha! Moving across the country is nothing! My wife and I anre in our 50s, and we moved from Australia to the United States in pursuit of my career. It has drawbacks (like our 4 grown-up children all being back in Australia), but it also exposes us to a whole range of things we would not have experienced otherwise. Just do it! If it doesn’t work out, you can always go back.
We did all that, and at about the same age. (AR, Europe, LA, TX, WA, AZ, TX) It was almost all good. We liked Arizona a lot, but you don’t need to bring your boat. (IIRC, you’ve got a boat up there, right?)
My vote is to go ahead. If kids come along later, it’ll make it more difficult (that’s why we finally picked a spot and settled for awhile)
For me. it’s been an adventure I enjoy. But as someone else said, the important thing is asking youself, “if I don’t try this, will I regret it?”
I was a Native Southern Californian, and everyone figured I’d live my life happily at the beach absorbed in the So Cal culture, which I did love. I wasn’t really looking for a new job, but one found me. It offered exposure to a facet of my career I’d yet delved into. With one week’s notice I left a company I loved, and moved to Atlanta, knowing exactly 1 person in the state of Georgia. Last year I moved up one state to TN, but over the past 8 years have no come to think of Atlanta as Home.
Right now I’ve got another company courting me with a job I did not go looking for (funny how they keep your info in their database for nearly 10 years), the decision is tougher, but the bottom line for me, always comes back to “If I don’t try this, will I regret it,” often my answer is yes.
I moved from Central Indiana to Tidewater Virginia, to take a dream job following a 6 month layoff. I’d do it again in a heartbeat, provided I liked the target area.
I don’t have advice on AZ. If you do go, things will work out.
On a more serious note, I say YES.
But only after consulting a kitty physcologist to see how Moo Goo Gai Pan whatever will do with the move.
Won’t some one think of the pussies?
The way she’s been behaving as of late - she’ll be lucky if we don’t feed her to the bloody vogs. Seriously, Min mai will fly with momma to phoenix, whilst dad drives new RV.
Do it. During the second AT&T break up I took the voluntary package, and moved to California from New Jsersey. I still don’t like California, but it was the right thing to do. I’ve visited my old place, and I think a lot of them wished they had left. (A lot of people in my department did leave, almost all happily.) And good luck to you.
Nine and a half years ago my mom and step-dad quit their respective jobs with the State of Alaska and moved to Texas so that he could go to law school. Around the time of the move my mom developed an interest in massage therapy, so once the got settled in Texas she went to school and got her massage license. After Step-dad finished law school they moved to Salem, Oregon, and started their new careers.
They’ve been in Salem for about five years, and now they’re talking about moving again.
They were both in their early 50s when they “started over.”
I say you and the missus take the plunge. And good luck to you both.
The long story is, well, long, but the short version is that 8 years ago I dropped out of grad school in Pennsylvania and moved to Seattle with no job and a few thousand in savings. Now I have a new (though related) career and absolutely no regrets at all about the move.
I have moved across the country several times. Florida to Arizona to California to Ohio and I am moving to Dallas next month. It is worth it. I’ve learned a lot about the country and met many interesting people. The only place I didn’t like was Ohio. I’m sure a lot of that has to do with the miserable economy here in Ohio.
If you’re moving to Arizona, you may wish to check out the about.com Phoenix website. This site has an amazing amount of information and is geared to those relocating there.
I enjoyed Phoenix and my boyfriend and I have discussed moving there eventually. However, his job keeps him in Dallas and thus that is where I will be.
psssst… Shirley, I grew up here. I’m a NATIVE Yooper.
Mr. Athena, on the other hand, is working on Yooperfication. According to my Dad, he hasn’t even reached Appleknocker status. I’m not quite sure what Appleknocker status is, but I think it’s a sub-category of Troll. Although Mr. Athena has fully embraced pasties and whitefish, he’s yet to go to deer camp or buy a pickup, and is still dubious over whether 250 inches of snow a year is a thing to desire.
Still, he’s not ready to leave yet. We’ll see what he says come February.
I wasn’t as established as yourself and your wife, but earlier this year I uprooted myself from Australia and moved to the UK. I gave up my job and career path on a whim, left the guys I’d grown up with and flew 9000 miles to go where I knew no one.
It’s without a doubt the single best decision I’ve ever made. I was perfectly comfortable in my old life, but the change in circumstance has broadened my horizons beyond expectations. Whereas at home I’d be happy sticking to my regular bunch of mates, moving overseas has forced me to make an effort meeting people and forming friendships. I was similarly happy in my old job, but throwing myself into the market again has forced me to reassess my career choices. On the relationships side, I’ve have some awesome friends I’d never had otherwise met and on the employment side, I’ve changed my field of work to something I honestly find myself enjoying.
And as an unexpected bonus, I met and fell in love with my SO.
I have absolutely no regets on making my move. I hope you and your wife whichever is the right choice for yourselves.
Okay, maybe one regret. I had to leave my sail boat in Australia.
