No pics or recipes this time

Hi All,

So many twists and turns in the last year of our lives. As Katie is off at law school today, I am sitting here getting ready for my new job. When Katie and I first got together, one of the first things that we talked about was the fact that we were not going to be in Iowa forever. We both talked about moving somewhere, possibly the Eastern US but also maybe further. As time wore on Katie's choice of going to law school became more fixed and the options somewhat narrowed on where to go, most places being out east. Oddly enough, as I made my way through grad school, I knew I had to do something different. School was no longer making me happy. I decided to try to utilize my undergrad education degree and I applied for many teaching jobs in the Washington DC area, eventually having some offered to me. That brings me to about three weeks ago. I was informed by an instructor at the University of Iowa about a position open at NASM, or the National Association of Schools of Music in Reston, Virginia, just a short drive outside DC. I thought, well, one last try at something different. After a week of very thorough interviews, I was offered a job as the assistant to the executive director. The decision to take this job was not an easy one for us because this offered very different perks and limitations than public school teaching did. After a weekend of hard thought, we decided to take it.

While I am very excited to be doing something so different than I have previously done, I am still nervous and surprised that this is what I will be doing. I will be wearing a suit every day, going to an office and doing various things such as handling business, writing, working with publications, policy and other matters associated with NASM as well as other organizations that work with art, dance and theater schools. I am sure with this job, as with all jobs, there will be things I do not like doing. That is what one gets paid for-to do the shit work that no one likes to do. Alternatively, with this job I get to work with people from all across the country, be involved in materials that shape collegiate arts education, and to learn about administration, writing, policy and many other things that I do not even know about yet.

I am very optimistic that this job will add to the already wonderful life that Katie and I have together. I feel that it is with renewed vigor that we meet the world-ready to make change in places that it is needed while enjoying our lives together. I am personally enjoying not having a TV. We have been reading, talking, playing music together, cooking and seeing the city. While we go through hard times from time to time, our life is always interesting. So that is what's up with us today.