So, why are we moving again?
The short version is Jay didn't get approved for "continuing faculty status" (their version of "tenure") at BYU.
We were really surprised.
He far surpassed all their outlined requirements but those pesky politics... I think Jay was advocating for too much change too soon, and it didn't sit will with those folks.
Anyway, we lucked out because when Jay started the application process last fall, Vassar was one of his top 2 choices, so we feel extremely blessed.
It felt like SUCH a LONG 7 months of waiting to figure out where we would be going (or if we would be going at all... BYU allows an extra year to find another job before letting you go) and for a long while, I was making plans to move to Moscow, Russia.
For reals.
We waited through agonizing months of getting response emails, phone interviews, flying out interviews, and then a most painful time where we heard NOTHING when we were expecting to have heard SOMETHING... over and over I had to tell concerned neighbors that "there is no update... we're still just waiting to hear back." Let me tell you, this made the initial shock and sadness about moving away from all we had built here all so so much worse. Feeling like we'd have nowhere to move to!
And then when we'd almost lost all hope, in mid-May when we assumed all jobs had surely been given away by then, Vassar - Jay's top choice who he never heard a lick from - offered him a 2-year visiting position with an invitation to apply for their tenure-track opening next fall.
Now that all the waiting and mourning is over, I'm pumped and ready to move on.
We're still not sure where we'll be living, despite my countless hours spent perusing homes for sale in Poughkeepsie. I've finally decided that I just can't make any meaningful decisions until we actually show up there. Luckily for us, Jay's parents have so generously offered their summer home in central Massachusetts to us to live in until we know what's going on. It's about 3 hours from Poughkeepsie, so we're hoping that's close enough to make a few day-trips and check out the homes.
Right now, I'm sort of leaning more towards renting for the first year, just to make sure we will actually be staying there (because if it ends up being only a 2-year deal, I don't think real estate will be a good investment) and to make sure what area I want to end up in as well.
It will be an adjustment going from an awesome house with tons of space and storage and a beautiful yard and awesome neighbors (who I know all of because they all go to church with me...) to a small rental home/apt/condo/who knows? surrounded by strangers, but I think it could be really fun too. (and I will spend a LOT less time cleaning/fixing/weeding/caring for a home)
A nice experiment. I do love a good experiment...
We will not have as much space, most likely, and will have to sell things/put things in storage. It will be good to prove I can live more simply with less stuff.
There is a little part of me that wants to try my hand at home renovations. Our home here had already been fabulously updated and I didn't need to do much more than paint a few things. (and really I didn't NEED to do that. I just wanted to...) I did install 2 faucets (while very pregnant, I might add...) and a built in microwave (while VEEERRRRRYYYYY pregnant. like T minus 1 week pregnant...) and I must admit there is a corner of me that wants to find an awesome fixer-upper to try and learn how to fix up, hoping that even if we only stay for 2 years, we won't loose money on our investment. (though, the property taxes are YEEESHly high and that may deter me...)
Anyway, it's weird having no definite plans and knowing I can't make any for almost a month! I'm trying to throw myself into moving plans, but it's not nearly as fun as house hunting.
I have never had to move anywhere with a lot of furniture because when we moved into this house we were coming from a fully-furnished dorm at Stanford, so this will be my first big-time move. AND it's slightly complicated because we will be putting almost all of our stuff directly into storage while living at the lake house, and then later will move most of it out, but probably not all...
I guess what I'm saying is, what do you wish you knew before you moved?
4 comments:
What a fun adventure! We used PODS for our recent move from TX to UT...so far we've loved it but it is all still being stored. It was SO nice to have more time to load it up at our leisure and great that we could just store it until we need it. Good luck with the move and house-hunting!
that's exciting. nice you'll be closer to jay's family.
I have no moving advice for you. I had several international moves, but no children, so I think that negates any difficulty. well, I take that back. be sure to de-junk BEFORE you pack and move. go through and make a big DI run, and for every thing you decide to keep, imagining carrying that item up a flight of stairs, then back down a flight of stairs, and possibly not seeing it for a year. then toss it.
I used Uhaul's version of PODS - the U-Box - when moving to Michigan. But I didn't have much furniture so that might not be the way to go. Because you will be storing your stuff and then potentially not unpacking it all when you move-in to your NY house, I recommend writing on the boxes exactly what you put in them. It'll make finding things much easier. I wrote generic things like "kitchen" and then had no idea what that meant so I had to unpack everything to find what I needed then repack everything. Good luck!!
Wow! I love everyone else's comments. We just moved a year ago, so I should have great advice, but I don't. All of our stuff has been acquired while renting, so we haven't had to deal with storage. I've heard good things about pods before too, but we used movers. They did fine. I agree about putting more specific labels on things. So helpful! Good luck! I bet Jay's family is looking forward to having you closer.
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