So, apparently, when you get up and move halfway across the country, things don't go the way you planned. I'm living in a hotel, eating out every meal, drinking about 4 cups of coffee a day, no job, no teaching certification, and no real plan for what I'm going to do next. My husband is at work all day and I am lost. I am in a whole new city with a whole new life. Everything is new and different.
I've never been good at change. I'm not very good at adjusting to new things. I want to write about it, I want to get back into blogging, but I don't even know where to begin. I'm just struggling to avoid getting fat, broke, and depressed. If anyone has any advice on where to begin finding a direction for my life, please contribute.
I would be overwhelmed, too. So, start small. Go to the library and read. Talk to the employees there and get ideas for neighborhoods to live in. Take a walk. Volunteer. Any hobbies? When I moved I was at a loss until I joined a local quilt guild. It gave me a circle of friends. Make a goal of looking at a 2-3 neighborhoods a week. Does your husband's work have a relocation specialist to work with you? Is there a welcome wagon? A food bank you could work at?
ReplyDeleteIt was hard going from f/t work to just being at home - I felt like I needed to be doing something all the time.
Don't worry - you will eventually come to a point of comfort.
Maybe you could change hotels to one that provides a kitchen and you could eat some/most meals in?
Sorry for the rambling email - just writing as I remember it from moving almost 10 years ago!
Susan
I agree with Susan, I'd be overwhelmed too. Volunteering in the community is a great way to test the water, so to speak.
ReplyDeleteI don't have any other ideas (maybe get a visistor pass for a local gym or the YMCA or get a part time job in a field that interests you and you'd like to know more about...until you begin to feel more grounded) but I wanted to throw a bit of support your way!
Hang in there!
Leilani
Man I feel your pain. We left our hometown in January after 45 years in the same city and 8 years self-employed for me to take a corporate job. We relocated to a new state, city and culture. We left both our children and both our grandchildren behind.
ReplyDeleteA psychologist friend of mine counseled us (informally, I'm not his patient...yet) to take it slow and, if it's at all possible, be careful about making big decisions for at least a year. He said we were going to be very high on the Life Events Stress scale.
He got that right.
Take it easy on yourself. Life is long. The time you give yourself to follow the suggestions from the anonymous posters above is not going to steal your life away. You have time. Napoleon Hill says most successful people don't hit their stride until they're in their 40s and when they do, success comes faster than they imagined.
Cori and I take walks, and workout. Some days we're up early and going like crazy all day, some nights we watch movies or old episodes of Seinfeld until 1 am and sleep late. She bakes and we give the stuff away. I sing and record my podcasts.
Actually I just blogged about what I'm feeling in my podcast "Mule Sense."
If we're all gentle with ourselves we'll make it through.
And the experience will make us stronger and better able to serve and help those around us.
"Vitality shows not only in the ability to persist, but the ability to start over." - F. Scott Fitzgerald
Thank you all. I can't even say how much this support means to me. It's nice to just know that other people have been here.
ReplyDeleteI wondered where you were!
ReplyDeleteMaster of moves here! WE moved once every 18 months for 16 years!!!
Do you want to teach? How about subbing. I have gotten more positions that way than any other. All of the schools are desprate because of the flu and many districts hire at Christmas.
How about the local library to work?
As far as eating at a hotel? We lived in one for six weeks with two children. Whew! Get a fridge (if you don't have one) and buy milk, cereal, bread and fixings. A few bowls and cups to make it your own.
I have lots more ideas- but remember you are not alone. I miss reading your things (even though I am usually pretty quiet!)
God's speed!