. . .hello Arizona!

Yup, I'm moving. It's a work-related move. Unfortunately, the market in Southern California has slowed down so much, and in some cases, disappeared that my corporate office has decided to "restructure" my branch. Without going into too much detail, my entire staff is losing their jobs at the end of the month and I'm being retained within the company with the stipulation that I relocate to Phoenix.

It's been a difficult week at work because we've had to make the unfortunate announcement to the staff. Everyone's kind of in "shell shock" mode. We have a small staff of seven employees at our branch, and the small size makes it feel somewhat like a family. Work will always be work, but it's the people you work with that can make all the difference in the world. It's hard saying goodbye to not only coworkers, but friends, as well.

So, on one hand I'm excited about the move, but also very sad about leaving my friends and family behind. I've lived in California my entire life and it will be a period of adjustment getting used to another environment and locale.

My only hope is that the faltering economy doesn't follow me over to Phoenix. My branch in California has historically been one of the top performers in the past, but these last couple of years has been an unstoppable slide to the bottom of the barrel. It's a helpless feeling.

Anyway, onward and upward. I look forward to getting to know Arizona and my air conditioning in the summertime!

That sucks about the upheaval, but it's a little exciting, too. Hopefully the adjustment goes smoothly and you're able to feel like it was a beneficial move. I would have real trouble leaving everything I know. I hope you find a good new home for your gear in Phoenix. Good luck, Sean!

Best of luck, Sean. One thing that you might look forward to in Phoenix is visiting Dean and having him demonstrate the benefits of an upside-down M80 center on the TV!

Sorry to hear about your situation it’s never easy to give that sort of news to people you’ve worked with, but I’m glad your being taken care of…sort-of. It’s a good time to buy a house in Phoenix. Our market is in the top 3 for falling housing prices and I don’t see that turning around for at least 6 months maybe more. Lot’s of places are for rent if you want to find a temporary place while you search for a house. Where is your office located?

Unfortunately my main HT is torn down so no M80 centers above the TV. But who knows what I might come up with in the next place.

Yours is turning into a very common story. There’s been a flood of Californians coming here for the last few years. I think there’s a ballot initiative going around to change the name from “Little Mexico” to “Little California” what are your politicians doing to that place over there?

We’ll have to hook up when you get here.


Just remember it’s a “dry heat”

Go n'éirí an t-ádh leat
Dean

It's like living in an oven and your lungs shrink due to moisture loss

Sorry to hear it Sean, on the bright side you still have a job and you lose the threat of earthquakes.

Maybe Sean will keep a journal like this for us:

http://phoenix.about.com/cs/wacky/a/azdiaryjoke.htm

Wow, Sean, big news. I have a tinge of regret that I never got to visit you in <cool announcer voice>Rancho Cucamonga</cool announcer voice>. Now I'll just have to add Phoenix to my list of travel destinations.

Good Luck!

Best of luck with your job and the move.

Good luck Sean, I'm sure everything will turn out well.

Sean, I always thought your South Park avatar looked like David Spade. Did you make it on a generator to approximate yourself, or were you going for the David Spade look?

Wow Sean, It will be tough at first but Arizona Imo is a very nice state as long as you don't mind temps in excess of 120
As Dean mentioned many California folks are migrating there for many different reasons, some of our best freinds just moved there and love it. Good luck!

Maybe Dean can go ahead and give the concerned citizens of Phoenix a heads up.

Good luck with your future job endeavors and with your move to Phoenix Sean!

Best of luck Sean, sorry to hear about the layoffs at your company. I can relate, have lost a lot of good friends at my company this last few months.

It must be a mixed blessing, Sean. You are valued enough that they want to keep you on, but you're losing your peeps and your home. A tough pickle all the way around.

On the plus side, my "little" (he's almost 19 and id 6'5") brother is a freshman at Arizona State, so the likelihood of me being in your area in the next four years is high.

I'm glad to hear you still have a job, but it must have been a rough week!

I still remember sitting in the shade at the bottom of the Grand Canyon as temps. crept up to 110. I was very glad they had an airconditioned bar at the 'ranch' nearby.

I feel your pain. I am flying down (from Iowa) at Atlanta on Monday for a formal interview within my own company to see if I can get a promotion that would allow me to stay employed. If not, I am going to be out of a job for who know how long with the economy in its current state. I am fine with the move (as much as moving from family and friends sucks, plus the whole moving hassle), but my wife isn't big on the idea, and when we talk to the kids about it this weekend, I know that they are going to be impacted the most for the first 6 months or so while we adjust.

So definitely a mixed bag, but at this point I would take the move vs. being unemployed so I feel your pain.

Nick, I talked to my wife yesterday. She said you should just move down there for a month or whatever (apartment), to see if your going to like it, that way you don't have to uproot your family if you don't like things, you can always come back.

That all depends on *if* I can find a job around here. At some point we will have to "cut loose" and start the transition (again, *if* I even get offered the job *if* it gets approved), but knowing when to give up on the Des Moines area and when to focus on moving is a fine line. For me, if I do get the job, the move won't come soon enough, but for my family any day will seem too soon.

But, we have taken Sean's thread off topic. Imagine that!

At least topics are related. It's not really a hijack as much as a merger.

Best wishes, Sean. Take solace in the fact that you are valued by your employer. You can't improve without change.

Good Luck Sean! As a former resident of RC, I can sympathize. My move was somewhat different in that I bit on a dangling carrot from the company. Overall it's been a good move. However there are certain things we miss. Mostly, particular restaurants and the relatives that are still there. My parents followed us to Slidell, but the rest of the family is still there. If I can offer any advice it would be to take in as much of what you call "comfort things" and find a source to have those things delivered as often as practical. For instance, we REALLY miss El Merendero Restaurant Mexican food (La Verne), so we have a dozen or so burritos made, frozen, and FedEx'd from time to time. We miss opening the front door and seeing Baldy, Ontario and Cucamonga peaks, so we have pics sent from time to time - a rare, clear winter day in particular. There's no way to ship sushi and have it arrive fresh, but we can pretend we're at Tommy's (Tustin); OK there really isn't anything here that comes close. For the things that aren't moveable, you gotta go back.

Good luck with the move, hope it all works for the best.

Scott

Speaking of which, we just had a fairly sizable one just roll through!!! I'm getting out just in time!

Just watch out for falling bullits in Phoenix. On the 4th people like to shoot guns straight up into the air.

Thanks for the support and kind words everyone, I really appreciate it. Bear with me for a sec, I need to go back through the thread and respond to everyone. . .

Dean, my new office will be in Phoenix. Right now, I'm looking at cities west of there as I don't want to commute through the heart of the city every morning. I've had enough of traffic and commuting in Southern California.

Definitely, once I get settled in we'll have to meet up!

Nope, I just built it from scratch. I tried to make him look like me. My hair used to be longer. Maybe I secretly channeled David Spade?

Oh, and you're right, Rancho Cucamonga IS fun to say!

Yeah, I'm not looking forward to the summertime, but I think I'll adjust. It's pretty dry and hot in California, it'll just be drier and hotter out there.

It is a little bittersweet, I feel good my company wants to keep me and give me an opportunity to further my career with them, but it's hard saying goodbye to everyone else.

Shoot me a PM when you plan on being in the area. Promise I won't take up too much family time. Well, it'd just be easier if you adopted me.

Scott, you got it right--I am going to miss looking at the mountains all the time. I've lived in this valley almost my entire life and have grown quite accustomed to seeing mountains (and smog, which often hides the mountains) every which way I turn. I did take a pic a few weeks ago of the first snow we had on those mountains. I'll have to hang onto it now.

Good luck, Sean. That's gotta be pretty tough.

Thanks, Ken. I'm trying to look at it as a new beginning and am actually looking forward to it.

I'll have to think of a reason to visit Phoenix sometime. I still feel I didn't really get to put your system through its paces. Plus, I'm sure they have an Outback there.

Absolutely! Hopefully I'll have a better set up in my own place. I'm thinking a separate HT and two channel rig like I used to have. Ah, those were the days. . .

Yes, but the Outback work a little different in Arizona. During the summer they just put the steaks out on the sidewalk to cook.

Just walk your cow along one city block and it should be done by the time you reach the end, right?

You'll be closer to the Grand Canyon. Only been there once, but it is definitely on my list of places to get back to.

I hope you enjoy Arizona. Maybe you'll get to see the Grand Canyon every once and a while! There are some great national parks in the area with tons to see, I'm sure you'll enjoy seeing those. As mentioned earlier Grand Canyon is awesome.

Bryce canyon is really unique too, if you're already making a trek up north definitely go see that as well.

Sean, you misspelled "Beer".

Tom, maybe you should chillax about the typo's and just knock back a few ;-)

chillax may be the worst word EVAR.

Yes, I think that one almost beats "hella"

Yes, I hated the word "hella" back when I was in college, too.

Although nothing beats the word "hecka"

Chillax: a chilli flavoured laxative. Probably tastes best washed down with a good beer.

Chillax: keeps you regular, but Ohhhh, the burn!

lol...how quickly I forgot threads can get derailed here on Axiom.

You mean your brain derails as fast as the threads?

There is no "rail" to my thinking process....

Tom, I don't know what I was thinking.

Best of luck on the new Adventure Shaun!