Hello, Redmond.
A snow globe? I like the analogy, so please give me a little license. You see, my life is every bit a snow globe. Calm for a while and then *shooka* *shooka* *shooka* things suddenly pick up and spins everything into a whirlwind. Always shaken – never stirred. The other day, I looked up, and noticed the palm of a large hand just about to grip the dome above my world.
Yes, I meant that too, by the way: Hello, Redmond. This June, I’m moving to Washington. After living here all this time in CT, I realized that over the last thirty years I’ve moved twice, and yet I still live within 15 minutes of where I was born, 20 minutes from where I grew up, and under 1/2 a mile from my nearest relative. Nothing wrong with that, but I never stopped to noticed it until recently. Unemployment gives you far too much time to think.
Earlier this year I interviewed for a job that placed me in my old boss’ office, from when I was working at my first “real” job; there’s only so many office buildings around the CT suburban area. It was eerie to think that I had the “home field” advantage, when I was interviewing for a new job – they even had the same Fort Knox sign on their server room that we put up there ten years ago. Suffice to say that this was when I realized that I had become a creature of habit, and while that sorta suited me for a while… Now I find myself wanting something different.
So I’m moving. Who will I be working for, you ask? I’ll be dealing in bits, not beans, contrary to popular opinion. When asked, where do you want to work, I said MSDN: I’ll be working at Microsoft.
This decision has actually spawned a whole lot of eBay auctions, the selling of a few “I hate to part with this, but it’s so big” items, and a realization that I’ve amassed a lot of crap in my place over five years… and while this site will have no downtime, I might have some downtime, so postings might spread out a bit. Even so, you’re all coming along with me, so enjoy the ride as much as I think I’m going to!
“It is dangerous business, stepping into the Road: if you don’t keep your feet, you might be swept to unknown” – Tolkien
Misty Moutains, indeed.
Absolutely flipping awesome!!!
I’m incredibly happy for you. I kept seeing you posting at JobsBlog hoping something would work out. You’re an incredibly talented developer and I hope MS is all you hope for!
About freaking time.
@Jeremy – thanks! I’m looking forward to the whole thing, but man, does moving suck. I’m just going through the “throwing out if I haven’t seen it in 5 years” process and I’m wiped out. Aging sucks, too, but moving sucks worse.
@Steve – Pft! Had to sign the bloody offer letter before it was “official” in my world :D
Randy, I just moved 3000 miles. It’ll be the twelfth time in my life. Doing it so often has a curse: you never really buy anything big ;-)
Just the same, I’m hoping I can land a gig at Microsoft as well. Love to do lunch sometime!
Congrats and prepare for excitement that change always brings. Think of it as a good dose of Quik in your milk. Got to give it a good shake occasionally to get all the good stuff.
Congrats and prepare for excitement that change always brings. Think of it as a good dose of Quik in your milk. Got to give it a good shake occasionally to get all the good stuff.
@Jeremy – Good luck to ya on the job search – I know that I’ll not only have to stop by HR to pay homage to Zoe and Gretchen but I’ll also have to be nice to the FurryGoat for a while longer (as he grilled me the day before, as practice).
@James – I think the vodka in the martini shaker might be a better analogy, given my previous times in Seattle.. but I agree – the excitement that the change is bringing is well worth the upheaval… I’m just amazed at the amount of crap I have.
Fraiser leaves Seattle as Randy prepares to arrive…
Awesome! Best wishes for enjoyment and success.
Soon, I’m sure, you’ll wonder why you never left CT sooner. We’ve been out for almost 5 years now and wish we’d done it years ago. As long as you are landing where you want to be, it always works out great. Being near da goatmeister will be cool, too.
Moving is always a bitch. It’ll be over soon enough – then the fun really begins!
Enjoy!
Randy,
You deserve it! You will do great. One of the biggest benefits for you is….One word Starbucks!
Good luck at your new job. If you can, give us an idea of MS inner-workings.
I bet they have people working for them that watch their employee’s blogs. :P I swear, MS is like a small country compared to most companies.
Actually, from what I’ve heard, it’ll take me several months to figure out where I am :) Like you said, it’s a small country… but I’ll be happy to share what I can. I can also tell you this: I’ve learned a lot from the HR blog site – they have a pretty good read on things and interview other employees that have been there for a while… it helps you get a good feel for what the company is looking for from their employees…
Hey, congratulations on joining Microsoft! I’ve been there for a little over three years now, and I’ve had a blast. It’s a great place to be :)
Thanks! I’m looking forward to getting out there actually – less than two weeks to go!