When I made the decision to take the new job in Virginia, I did my best to angle for a November 30th start date. We had a lot to get done to prepare the house to market, I had my responsilities in the bishopric to wind down, and we with Thanksgiving and our pending move, my grandparents wanted to host dinner as not just the traditional holiday feast but also as a send off for Amanda, me and the kids. The best I could do was mid-November... and now I understand why (I'll get to a report on the new job down the list a bit).
My first two weeks here were solo. Amanda willingly stayed behind to help wrap things up at the house, and I missed her and the kids. Our household of stuff caught up to me on my 2nd day here, and I had time to get enough unpacked and set up that everyone could sleep in their own beds upon arrival (I had to "rough" it my first two nights... which was rough! No fun sleeping on the floor). The only fun part about those two weeks was that I had a fun set of wheels with which to explore Richmond. When I got to the rental counter late on the 15th, they told me they were all out of the economy sized cars that I had requested, and that I could have my pick. The options were a Dodge Caliber, a minivan, a Ford Edge, a Dodge Magnum, and "a Ford Mustang--I think it's even a convertible." Uh, hello?! Heck yes! Since it would just be me for 2 weeks, it was an easy decision. "I'll take that one," I said emphatically. Here's a photo--poor resolution (taken with my phone in the work parking lot--I became a convert. Mustangs are just sharp looking cars!):
Thanksgiving. So, I caught a 6 a.m. flight on Thanksgiving day, fortunately had a smooth flight through Chicago with a minimal layover, and was back in the 801 by 1 p.m. Amanda picked me up, and it was so good to see her at the airport. We had enough time to stop by the Kenwood house so I could see the new carpet in the basement, then it was to M&D's house before heading to Nana & Papa's. We had a great Thanksgiving dinner, celebrated Christmas early with my immediate family afterward, and then crashed. I ventured out with the crazies on Black Friday at o'dark hundred to pick up Amanda's b-day gift for half price:
The trip home to VA with everyone was quite a journey. Two adults, two toddlers, a lap-riding baby, 4 large pieces of luggage, and my carry-on: Pepper! Everyone did quite well, in retrospect. But it was a long day. We arrived in Richmond about 10:30 p.m. Looking back, I'm glad we didn't linger in Utah as we really needed a couple of days in VA together for the fam to get adjusted. We spent the weekend enjoying a couple of drives around the area, going to church, and just being together.The new ward has been awesome. It is a really interesting, well-balanced mix of people. There are a number of folks who have been in the ward since the chapel was built in 1960; there are many other settled families who at one point in time were transplants; there are also a lot of young families here with moms, dads or both either going to medical or dental school or doing residencies. It really makes for enjoyable Sunday school lessons with a lot of different perspectives and a generally high level of thought behind the comments.
Work has been Nuts (notice the capital "N"), but it's been the good kind of crazy. My first day on the job, I had a package on my desk awaiting me when I pulled in from orientation! And we technically were not slated to launch the program until December 2nd. The lenders at SunTrust have been very excited for the 7(a) program to get here.
From my experience--having done it six times now in 7 years--changing jobs always requires adjustment and offers challenges which, while often welcome, can be overwhelming. I've felt this range of emotions while here--a dedication to the cause, frustration with learning new programs and basically re-learning the function I've come here to fulfill, wanting to institute my own "touch" and way of doing things, even working willingly 50-60 hour weeks in effort to get up to speed. I've been in at 6 a.m., I've gone back after dinner and stayed until the lights go out, and beyond; I even went to work for a couple of hours last night after the ward Christmas party. These challenges, however, have already afforded me great opportunities to stretch to meet my capacity more than I'd been required to previously, and I've managed to find that time to do so outside of family time.
On a final note for now (this post is too long already), the wild weather! My first morning here, I came out of orientation at noon and it was 74 degrees and beautiful--in mid-November! Talk about perfect weather to have a convertible! But, being Virginia, there is at least 1 or 2 days each week when it must rain... like a mandatory rule of nature here or something. Well, we've learned that the house we are renting doesn't have very good drainage! Check these pics out!
There’s a pond in the front yard:
… and a lake in the back!
(Look along the back fence, on the right... )
Crazy! We’ve thought of our family and loved ones in much colder and snowy locations. Not complaining here. Just sharing the view of our wet world!
So, all is well as we begin our next chapter of life. I am ever grateful for wonderful family and established friends, in spite of the new distance; and I'm happy to report that we've quickly began making wonderful associations to add to our individual tapestries of life!
Love from VA,
Justin
Love from VA,
Justin
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