Rant #1,574: I'm Movin' Out

No, I am not, but someone I know is.

A co-worker of mine, someone I have worked with for the past 16 years, is picking up and moving out of state.

He and his family--including one child of school age--are moving to Maine, I think right outside of Portland. They will be renting a house as they try to sell the one they have here.

His wife has found a job there, he will be looking for one, but continuing to work for us in the meantime online, which I have to say surprised the heck out of me; not that this couldn't be done, but that my company actually is allowing him to do this. They usually aren't this far sighted.

No one knows how long this arrangement will last--he will be looking for a job there--but I am sure they worked the whole thing out to everyone's satisfaction, and that is good for everyone involved.

But that really isn't what I wanted to talk about here.

When he told us that he was leaving, I just wondered to myself--could my family and I do the same thing, just pick ourselves up on very, very short notice and move to the wilds of somewhere that we know little to nothing about?

He is a bit younger than me, maybe by at least 10 years, if not a little more. I think that when you are younger, you have more of a pioneer spirit, ready to venture out into the wild and the unknown.

I think when you get older, you are very, very set in your ways, and any U-turn might throw you off a bit.

My wife has often spoke about moving to a warmer climate if we ever move from where we are on Long Island. She hates the snow--as I do--but the cold really, really gets to her, so a move to Maine would never do.

She would like to eventually move down south, to Florida, and although I am very set in my ways, I could entertain such thoughts, I guess.

But let's be honest about it, talk is very cheap. Saying and doing are two different things, and boy, I know it would be hard to move from New York after living here my entire life.

Heck, it was very, very difficult moving to the wilds of Long Island after having lived in New York City my entire life. It was only maybe 40 miles further east that we moved, but the difference between where I lived and my then new home were astounding, whether you are talking about the neighborhood, its people, the schools, etc.

And this fellow's kid is middle school age, and will be moving right in the middle of sixth or seventh grade (I don't remember which). That is hard, very hard to do, and I feel for the kid.

When we moved to Long Island, it was right before high school was to begin for me, and let me tell you, going to a new school and not knowing a soul is one of the most difficult things I ever had to do in my life.

It literally took me four years to fully adjust, and that is why my high school years really aren't very memorable for me.

So I do feel for the kid. It will be rough for him, especially right away, being dumped into a school where he doesn't know a soul, in a brand new state for him and his family.

At 58 years old, a move such as this is doable, but certainly not doable right now. So many things would have to be in place before my wife, my son and I could do this.

Our families are here, and it would be real tough to leave, it really would be.

People I know have moved out of state, and even out of the country. But they generally did it when they were younger, when they didn't have their feet so firmly planted, as I do, in where I am.

But again, just to conclude this Rant, I guess if push came to shove, I could do it.

But the older I get, the harder it would be.

But it is doable.

I wished my comrade well, and I am sure he and his family will find that life is good in Maine, maybe a little slower and cheaper than it is on Long Island, and I hope they find what they are looking for there.

Speak to you next week.