When I was finishing high school, I couldn't wait to get going and start my life in the big city. I don't think I ever thought about it, but I wanted to live where there was a plethora of activities and opportunity. Since I was accepted to UT in Austin, I went there and before I knew it, I learned to be comfortable in the city. Upon graduation, I could have moved back home, I am sure my mom would have loved that, but I also felt incomplete, like I was going to miss something greater that was awaiting just around the corner. Maybe it was all in my head, but I felt like I belonged there, so after graduation and becoming a parent and marrying Wife, we stuck around, waiting to see what would transpire.
It wasn't a good start, my first job was at a warehouse driving a forklift, I am sure my mom wished I would just cut the shit and go home, but after a year of this, I took a chance and quit. This lead to my next job as a chemist with LCRA, that is what I had a degree in, so it made sense, but I didn't like getting paid $8/hr and waiting to be made a permanent employee, so after two months, I quit and looked for a better opportunity. This is when I randomly saw the smokestacks from Ben White and went and applied at AMD. This got my life going in a good direction, eventually I was hired as an night shift engineer and I was happy with the direction and pay I was getting.
After more than 25 years, I have had a few different positions, from operator to sustaining engineer, to materials analyst, to most recently a chemist, it has been a good career, but am I happy? It felt weird, this weekend driving around Crystal City after the funeral, I felt peace, like if we settled here it would be okay. Wife has had a good job close by here, and if I could find something that paid me what I make, I think I could adjust to the slower pace of life here. Maybe I just feel this way because we had just gotten out of a funeral.
The reality is that Baby A is in the middle of high school, it wouldn't make sense to change school for him right now. Boy has a good job so I also like that he works in town with the notion that he will eventually buy a house hopefully close by so we can see him regularly. My life is centered around providing my two boys the best experiences I can so they can achieve as much as they can with the skills they have. Boy has a job that seems perfect for him, on paper. He might complain a bit, but he would be an idiot to quit, this is the company that drives technology in that sector.
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