Bust
Remember a few months ago when we announced The Asheville Plan? It was well thought out and strategically decided upon. It was foolproof and sure to work out perfectly. Right? Wrong. I am the queen of bad decisions, and like all the others before it, this one–the Asheville plan–was a wrong decision. We said “Asheville or bust,” and bust we did indeed. It was a number of things really. A number of circumstances that compounded to destroy what we thought was a totally smart plan. First, finding a job in Asheville is difficult, even when you’re as smart and cute as Addison. We had no connections in Asheville–no resources from which to draw. And Asheville’s a small mountain town, not a bustling city full of opportunity. It’s tough to find a job all over the country, but it’s especially tough in small towns that can’t support the existing population, much less newcomers to the area. Second, selling a house is even more difficult than finding a job, as many of you know. Of course, we knew it too. We knew that our house would be a tough sell, but as soon as we moved out of it (me first, followed by Addison), it got even tougher than expected. Houses all around us came on the market, increasing competition. We got bad news from our real estate agent, followed by bad news from the IRS. In short, our house wasn’t going anywhere fast. And as long as we had our house in Columbia to pay for, we couldn’t afford to pay to live in Asheville. Third, the core of the Asheville plan, when we formulated it, was that we’d be able to live for practically nothing since we were moving into Addison’s mother’s house. This living arrangement would allow us the time to sell our Columbia house and get on our feet financially in a new place. Unfortunately, this living situation didn’t work. I won’t bore you with the long, gory story, but we lost our free place to stay. This was the biggest wrinkle in our plan. If the other factors were headaches, this was like brain surgery. It took us out. Fortunately, after all of this happened, things became clear pretty quickly, thanks to some sage advice from my mom and dad and Addison’s dad and stepmom. They all suggested that we return to Columbia–to our house and to a place where we have connections that would help both Addison and me find jobs. Once we heard the advice, we were sold. It didn’t just make financial sense and practical sense, it made emotional sense, too. Almost as soon as Addison and I left, we missed Columbia. Because it’s home. We certainly didn’t realize it, but it is. While we were looking outward, trying to figure out where we wanted to move to and settle, Columbia snuck up behind us and became home. As soon as we left it, we felt like we had lost something. And we had. We lost being close to my sister, my brother-in-law, and our nephews. We lost our friends. We lost our house (though it isn’t perfect or in the greatest neighborhood, we love it). We lost our sense of belonging. It was an awful lot to lose. So we have returned. We are now back in Columbia for good. Of course, I no longer have a job. But that’s okay. My job in Asheville was fine, but it wasn’t a dream come true or anything. It was solid and nice, and I could have done it well. But all the signs were pointing us home. So we followed them, and I think we’re going to be happier than we ever imagined we could be. -Jess
