When it rains, it pours

This morning, I had the job interview in Detroit. It went well. They were already impressed with my credentials, based on the "reader's digest" version of my resume in the Michigan Job Bank. Today, I came prepared to talk about my accomplishments, but I also brought the detailed CV that had been prepared for and maintained by my previous employer. That impressed them even more, because it gave them a detailed picture of the breadth of my experience and a comprehensive list of the clients I have serviced. The only touchy time came when they asked me how much money I was looking for. I didn't want to price myself out of the market, but also didn't want to sell my talents short.

My answer was prefaced by a caveat: that if I accepted a salary that was inordinately low, I may start to look elsewhere when the economy improved. Perhaps to help me along, they asked what I had been earning. When I told them, they just about fell off their chairs. They said they couldn't come anywhere near that number, but they countered with a number that was higher than I had expected. I indicated that I would work for that figure, but that they would need to monitor my progress and adjust the salary in a timely fashion if they were pleased with my performance.

It was pretty exciting, so I called my wife from the car as soon as I got out of the meeting.

When she answered the phone, she was excited - and I hadn't even broken the news yet.

She was excited because a company who had offered to hire me away from my previous employer several years ago had heard I was available, and was calling to find out whether I was still interested in working for them. I have an interview this afternoon.

And I'm still waiting to hear back about the Vancouver job.

The plan now is to go through with the sale of our house. Whether or not I accept an offer for the Vancouver employment opportunity, we will move to a smaller house. If we stay local, we can save a ton of money by moving, and get all our debts paid off in the process. And if we have to pick up and move, well then, so be it.