For you Losties out there, don’t get excited. Despite the title and lead image, this post isn’t actually about LOST. (Maybe another time.) This post is about dharma and how following it can make your life easier.
Back in December, when Bill was laid off, my first thought was that it was a sign from the Universe that we should move back to the Midwest. I’ve maintained that belief ever since. So why the hell have we stayed in Stepford until nearly June, you ask? Talk to Bill. I can’t go there.
Since December, we’ve heard about job after job, and nothing’s panned out. We came down to the wire as far as funds go. At one point, I was pretty sure that our stuff was going to live in a storage facility here in Stepford while we lived in the Midwest. We were really getting to that point.
Before I go further, I want to point out that we have been blessed through all of this. We’ve never done without anything. We’ve never had to make a choice between paying the utilities or feeding our kids. The prospect of living in our car has never loomed large…it’s never loomed at all, to tell you the truth. Our biggest worry was going to be where to store all the crap we have. That? Is a pretty small damn worry in the grand scheme of things. But back to my point.
Bill and I had waited on a job that never did pan out. I’d given up on it in April but figured out a way for us to stay until (nearly) the end of school. I figured yanking the kids out of a school a mere month before it was over wasn’t going to be a good idea. Bill was still holding out for this gig, though. He still had this secret hope that this job was going to come through. And things kept going badly.
A couple of weeks ago, Bill and I sat down and had a talk. A long talk about ignoring my gut instincts and how that hasn’t been working out for us. I reiterated my belief that we’re supposed to be moving back to the Midwest. Bill, at long last, conceded that maybe his logical, rational approach wasn’t working out so well for us and agreed that we were moving back to the Midwest. Period. That’s it, that’s all.
Since then, problems have been solved with relative ease. Our stuff? Oh, no big. Because Bill is a displaced textile worker, our move (done by PROFESSIONALS, people!) is covered. There are several job prospects awaiting him once we move back. Aside from job prospects, we’ve talked about him going back to school to be a teacher while I (finally) finish college to do…whatever I figure out. Things have just gotten brighter. I’d insert a corny line about how I gotta wear shades, but yeah. Corny.
Anyway, there was one last thing that we saw no way around. Tricia in the car. Tricia hates the car for anything but the shortest of trips. This wasn’t going to be a short car trip. East Coast to Midwest? That was going to be hell on Earth with Tricia. It seemed insurmountable. We were going to be stuck with that because we surely couldn’t afford to fly the kids and one of us adults out there.
Since our move is now covered, we have a bit of extra cash from my gig. Bill told me to go ahead and just look at flights. We figured it couldn’t hurt, right? I wound up scoring a flight for me and the kids for $555. No, not each. TOTAL. Yep, total. WITH TAXES AND FEES.
I think Bill will listen next time I say my gut says we oughtta follow a particular course of action.
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10 responses so far ↓
1 kendra // May 22, 2008 at 9:44 am
WOw, this is big news. It certainly seems like you intuition was right. Aren’t most women’s intuition right anyway?? Congrats on the finality of your decision and the great deal on the flight tickets.
2 Steph // May 22, 2008 at 9:57 am
Kendra - Thanks. This has been an ongoing argument here, so it’s nice that I get to be like, “SEE?!? SEE?!? I TOLD YOU, FUCKER!!” :grin:
3 d // May 22, 2008 at 2:02 pm
Well see, we always knew that your instincts were correct. It’s kinda a bummer that you didn’t move sooner since your instincts were correct *kicks bill’s bottom* but I sincerely believe that everything happens when it’s supposed to. So you’re moving now because you’re supposed to be moving now.
And I’m so glad that you’re able to make this move with minimal amount of stress. You have movers, you’re flying with the kids instead of driving and you have a little bit of cash to get yourself settled. Good news all the way around.
And as always, you have tons of support around you to help you in any way. You’re blessed with a great network of friends and family and *that* is always teh awesome!
I’m so excited for you move for you! SQUEE!
4 Deb // May 22, 2008 at 5:05 pm
I wish my husband would do the same when it came to listening to my gut.
It’s always seemed to work out well for me, but he’s so dang black and white.
But this is about YOU. I’m so glad to hear all is sunny in not-going-to-be-Stephford-much-longer Land!
You deserve all that’s good.
Where in the midwest where you be?
Deb
5 Jane // May 22, 2008 at 8:08 pm
Wow! Well, you know what, if you were able to make it to the end of the school year, that probably *was the best thing for now. And at least everyone’s on board with the move and YAY! for getting a great deal on the flight!!! And my god, just think how close you’ll be to MOI!
6 Steph // May 22, 2008 at 10:29 pm
d - Once we stayed past Christmas Break, though, it was good we could stay ’til the end of the school year. Otherwise, it would have been way too hard on the kids. But as it is, they get to finish and say goodbye to their friends and stuff before we go. So, that’s good. :)
Deb - Bill is not this way - he trusts logic and reason way more than gut instinct. Hence why we stayed six months longer than I wanted. LOL. We’ll be near Kansas City, MO. :)
Jane - My friend, I know EXACTLY how close I’ll be to you. SQUEE!!
7 matteroffactmommy // May 23, 2008 at 8:55 am
awesome for you. and isn’t it weird how shit always seems to just fall together? i mean, life is a series of ups and downs. we just hope that there are more ups than downs, and that the downs are quick and the ups last a lot longer than the downs.
ugh. see what happens when i wax philosophical?
KC, MO, eh? with my socal roots, and having lived in the nation’s capital for the past 13yrs, there’s no way i could move to the midwest. unless, of course it meant certain death to NOT move there. honestly, i can’t live any further north, west, east or south than where we live right now… unless we moved about 3,000 miles west. that would be okay.
best of luck with the move… love yous.
8 Steph // May 23, 2008 at 12:18 pm
MoFM - We’ve had a loooonnnnnng down this time. LOL. I’m hoping we’re on our way back up at last. :grin:
The Midwest isn’t awful, but I have to admit - I’m going to miss living so close to the coast. No beaches for me. That is not awesome.
Love you.
9 Lindsey // May 23, 2008 at 6:18 pm
I’m a Midwest girl, born and raised. Now I live in Washington State, where they couldn’t make a damn Italian Beef if their lives depended on it. Sigh. How I miss Chicago food.
On another note, how in the BLUE HELL did you find such a kick-ass flight deal? Damn. I need to find the same kind of thing so that I can fly back to Illinois and show my mother-in-law her grandkids every once in awhile. Maybe then she’ll stop with the vodoo dolls bearing my likeness.
10 Steph // May 23, 2008 at 7:08 pm
Lindsey - See, that’s EXACTLY how we feel about finally being around “real” barbecue again. LOL. Carolina BBQ and KC BBQ? Not the same thing at all, not even close.
Pure luck, but man was I thrilled. I just plugged in all the info at expedia.com, and bam. There those glorious tickets were.