Hey everyone.
Things have been pretty crazy for me lately, but I've been keeping in touch with a few other members outside of the board and I thought I'd stop by and catch everyone else up.
Last we spoke, I was still interviewing for work, had sold the 'Cuda, and was a few weeks away from being completely broke.
Well, a few weeks ago I was contacted by a Project Controls consultant in Hanover, MD - southern tip of Baltimore. Within a few days I was called in for an interview, and less than a week later was offered a job. The catch? It's in Washington, D.C. After luring me in with a signing bonus, and after some LONG chats with the wife, I took it.
I've been working for 3 weeks in Hanover at the main office, waiting for confirmation from the Government and completion of a preliminary background check. The confirmation came Friday afternoon. I will be the Lead Project Planner for a major upgrade project with the Anti Trust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice.
So, in one week, my wife and I pack up our apartment here in Camp Hill and head south to Hagerstown, MD. We would have tried to move closer to D.C, but my wife also received a significant promotion about a month ago, and we can't pull her away from her job in Harrisburg. So for the foreseeable future, we will both be enjoying roughly 90-minute one-way commutes. I actually only have about 50 miles to drive, and then a 40-minute ride on the subway around D.C.
We actually found a GREAT place in Hagerstown. We're moving from a roughly 1,000 square foot apartment in Camp Hill to 2,000+ sq. ft. house Northwest of Hagerstown, two floors, 2 bedrooms, office, gameroom, large living/dining space, huge, two-tiered deck, and 2 car garage, all sitting on 2.9 acres of property. We're still going to rent - we want to make sure we can handle this, and maybe give my wife time to gain some experience before finding her a new job in MD.
So anyways, that's my story. The money is going to be pretty good, but a good fraction of it is going to go to commuting costs alone, even though some of mine are reimbursed by my company. So the E-body might have to wait another year, but the good news is, I've got a good roof ready to put a 'Cuda under when the time comes.
So 20-minutes becomes 50-minutes, give-or-take... I was really hoping to get a nice place near Harrisburg and having the club over for dinner during Carlisle. That probably won't happen now. But anytime you're rolling through western Maryland, give me a holler.
I won't be back around for at least a few weeks - I'm going to be moving to the new house tomorrow to make my commute to DC a little easier. Driving through Baltimore is horrible. Then in two weeks, my wife and I are going on a one-week vacation for our anniversary. We won't have internet set up until the week after we get back.
Hope all is going well for all of you. Take care and I'll chat with y'all later.
Jeff
P.S. I checked last week, and "VPRMAN" is available to put on a MD vanity tag.
