Too Many Possibilites, Too Many Unknowns

As my husband approaches the end of his program here in the UK and the job hunt changes from merely daunting to border-line scary, I am left living in a state of what-ifs. 

It is similar to the in-between state that we lived in before moving here almost two years ago, but not fraught with the same fear of the unknown that plagued me then. 

This time around, it is just a matter of starting to plan for the various roads that we might travel and trying to live with the unsettled feeling of not knowing for sure where we'll be living in four months time.  And don't get me started on the fact the "four months" is a terrifyingly short amount of time! My heart skips a beat every time I think about it. 

So what are the options?

The first one is that we stay here for a job, but the current economy of England and the difficulty of obtaining a work visa complicate that matter. Nonetheless, I am hunting for rentals in the village that the kids go to school in, so we have some options to at least consider. I have CC signed up for secondary school (no mean feat over here!) and am continuing to attend the PTA meetings that are now concentrating on events that will take place next school year.

The second is that we move back to the States. But where? We could move back to Madison... shoot, we could move right back into our old house! It is right there, waiting for us, easy as pie.  But what will my husband do? Will he have squandered his time going back to school for this degree in yacht design if we move back? Madison isn't exactly known for its boat-yards, after all. My husband has always had his own business, so I'm sure he could make something work, but it wasn't exactly what we planned when we set out on this adventure.

There's a third option, too, that involves moving to an area that is likely to have lots of jobs in the boating industry and make it work. Think Annapolis or boating-heavy areas in New York, Rhode Island or Maine. Or west coast Seattle, San Juan Islands area.  I know, after this move to England, that I can be happy anywhere and will be able to re-settle our family wherever we land, but honestly, the heart palpitations are real when we start talking about moving to an unknown part of the US.

And, I hate this part the most, but my health situation makes being self-employed a much different scenario than it was in the past.  Health insurance from an employer is going to be a necessity, not just a bonus. I might be able to get into a state high-risk pool for people with pre-existing conditions, but it isn't guaranteed. And until we know what state we are moving to, I can't really do anything besides research the possibilities. 

This post isn't really finished but I am posting anyway....