Congratulate me: 10 Years!

March 1999. I had just survived a crappy marriage and an even crappier post-marriage-rebound-relationship. I had been living in Rochester, Minnesota, but I couldn't find a decent job. At the time I was working for Rochester Armored Car transporting large amounts of cash for less than $7 an hour. Yeah, they gave me a gun and a badge and put me in charge of up to $10 million at a time and thought $6.40 was a decent wage. So, looking for a change, I decided to move to the Twin Cities.

Some friends said I wouldn't stay long. When you are from a small town of 1200 people, a large metro area like Minneapolis - St. Paul definitely can be less than ideal. While it's true I hated the traffic up in the Cities as much as the next Southeast Minnesotan hates it, I took a chance on a sales job and headed north.

Since then I've never looked back. My life is so different now that it sometimes feels strange to go "home" and see family and friends from my past. Meals used to happen when I pulled up to a drivethru menu and ordered by number. Now I'm shopping at the Farmers' Market and cooking with cilantro, limes, and pasture raised meats. Entertainmet used to be limited to renting a DVD or going out to a movie. Now I frequently enjoy going to the ballet, live theater, the Renaissance Festival, and art musuems. Trips used to mean driving. Now they are just as likely to involve flying, sometimes even to Europe.

This isn't to say I don't enjoy some of the things from my old life. I still enjoy heading to Austin to see stockcar races at the Chateau Speedway. I still enjoy hunting with Tim. And I still, every once in awhile, sneak a trip through the drivethru. The fact is, though, you are more likely these days to see me ordering sushi than Sbarros.

I have changed a great deal during the last 10 years. It's impossible to say exactly how much is because of the move and how much is just the natural progression of my life. However, I believe that much good has come from taking that chance in March 1999. At this moment in life I can say it and really mean it: change is good.