It’s no secret to those who know me that I haven’t been happy with my job since, well, ever.  But I promised myself that I’d give it at least two years, or the amount of time I figured it would take to really learn what I was doing, as well as get settled into a new community.

Six months in, I was sure I didn’t want to do this forever.  It was tedious, boring, and utterly (in my case) unfulfilling work.  The bosses were great, the coworkers were good, and the compensation was subpar (which, since we’re not talking golf, was a bad thing).  I anxiously awaited the two year mark, hoping that something would come along before then that would change my mind.  More responsibility, more autonomy, or a big fat raise.

But no luck.  So at the 20 month period, I started quietly putting out feelers for a new job.  I didn’t want to leave Lafayette, since I had a brand spanking new mortgage and I didn’t want to move.  I also didn’t want to stay in the same field, because the problems I had with the job were inherent, as far as I could tell.

I considered going back to school and getting a Masters, or another B.S., or even going to law school (and I have stories about my LSAT adventures which I may or may not publish in this blog at some point).  But I decided that I’d rather those be fallback plans; I’d first try to find something else related to my degree (though not my current field) and see if I liked it any better.

I wasn’t looking for the perfect job, or anything so quaint as that.  I just wanted something that would pay better and that I wouldn’t loathe.  I put my updated resume on monster.com, and got some interest, but all in the same field I was trying to get out of.  No doubt a change of scenery would have made me temporarily happy, but I was looking for something bigger.

Finally, after a few months, I stumbled onto something that sounded promising.  It was a controls job in New Orleans that I heard about through a friend of a friend of a friend (you know how that stuff happens).  I asked around, talked to the guy I knew over there, went and interviewed, met some people, and decided it seemed like a great situation.  Good company, but bigger than my current one.  Still good bosses (a very important job consideration), and though I would have to sell my house and move I thought it’d be a good move for me, professionally and personally.

Even though I had little practicable experience in this particular facet of electrical engineering, they offered me the job (along with a sizeable raise).  I took it, and am now in the interim between the old job and the new job.  I have a few weeks to move all my worldly possessions from my house in Lafayette, get it ready to sell, put it on the market, move back to Hammond (into my parents’ new house — temporarily, I swear), and figure out how long I can commute before I go something something.  If my house in Lafayette doesn’t sell quickly, I’ll have to look at renting it out so I can rent an apartment in Mandeville (small suburn of New Orleans, located north of the city across Lake Ponchartrain — where I plan on living).

Until I get a place in Mandeville, I’m looking at two hours daily travel time, minimum.  And I’m the guy who takes whatever steps possible to minimize his commute, so this could be rough.  I can handle it for a few months, I’m confident.  Hell, I can go a few months without hearing the same song twice on my ipod.  But anything more than that and I’m worried I’ll develop a nervous twitch.

I’m excited about new opportunities and challenges, and especially about the possibility of going offshore to do some down and dirty troubleshooting.  I’m nervous about getting everything done that needs to be done prior to my start date, and I feel a little guilty about leaving my (soon-to-be) old bosses, because they’re great guys.  I’m also a little worried that jumping jobs is just another manifestation of my well documented two-year itch.  But mostly, I’m excited.