Goodbye to Southern Utah (for now)

Originally posted: September 01, 2007

Hey everyone! I don't even know who will take the time to read this, but I thought I'd do a quick blog about my life (and Reese's) right now, as well as issue a fond farewell to southern Utah (for now ;) ).

The short:

What: We're moving to Utah county/SLC area.
When: This coming Monday.
Why: Details below, but work and family should be two good enough reasons. ;)

The slightly longer:

This probably comes as a shock to many people because it is so sudden, but it is true that Sharise and I are moving up north to Utah county. I currently have my job application/resume in with Simmons Media, as well as EA Games and a haunted house in Salt Lake (seasonal, but I'll miss the Sigma Nu Haunted Hospital this year in part). Basically, Sharise and I decided that it's where we need to be right now. Once the decision was made final we're wasting no time in acting on it.

First, there have been very few decent jobs for someone in my position (4 year marketing degree, lots of experience in retail sales, office work, and radio but still lacking in actual marketing/management) in southern Utah. I've been looking since April, when I found out I was getting laid off from my last job at Landfill Service Corp. I've tried Kohl's, Zion H-D, Stephen Wade Powersports, as well as a whole slew of others that I don't even recall anymore.

The second big reason is my family. When I went to the MTC and then boarded that plane to San Diego, I was actually relieved to be spending time in a different state for a few years. I love my family, but I was excited to see new places. When I returned from Cali, I spent two months at home before moving to Logan, and that's the last I've ever been a considerable amount of time at home.

Many of you know by now that my Grandma Haskell passed away a year ago last month, and my sister Jill passed away two months later. To complicate matters, my Grandpa got re-married in April and filed for divorce last month. His soon-to-be ex has been a real *insert nastiest word you can think of here* about it, and the whole family and the police have been involved. I know, put us on Jerry Springer. All I can say is she was the one living in the trailer before and is living in one now. Then my Dad had to get run over by a different kind of trailer, the construction kind behind trucks, in June while on his mountain bike (he's doing great, by the way, thank you to everyone for the prayers and well-wishes!). He still has to wear a brace around the house and struggles with things like getting yard work done.

I'm the only child my parents have left. With the anniversaries of these deaths recently passed and soon to come, along with the holiday season, Reese and I feel that my parents will really need us now.

I've lived in southern Utah for five years now, first in Cedar City and then in St. George for the last year. I've come to think of it as another home. Some people have questioned if we're moving because I'm tired of it here; I admit that it's not as much fun without a Jeep, but it's still good. It's a different pace of life than what we're moving back to.

On a good note, we'll be closer to my family, closer to my best friend Jay and his wife, as well as my other friends from high school that I still keep in contact with; closer to many of the Sigma Nu alumni, and I have the chance to get a career in something I want to do and with a real future, not just a job. Sure, Reese has a great job with great benefits now, but we're currently working on starting our own family, so it's more important for me to be the one with the great job and benefits now.

I think that's about it. Feel free to come visit us! You can always message me for phone numbers and addresses. Our numbers will be staying the same for a little while, and I'll try to make a bulletin when that changes.

The only other announcement I have right now is that my personal webspace has been re-updated with a lot of my own original writing. You can view it all here.

It's been fun southern Utah!