Closing A Chapter

WOW. Where to start. Today I closed a chapter in my life. I have so many mixed feelings and emotions. I didn't think I would cry, but I am almost did. Today I quit my job and said goodbye to many friends. It was bittersweet. Let me take you back to the beginning of this story. Nearly two years ago (June 2009) Cody and I packed up our Uhaul, turned in keys to our apartment, said goodbye to our families, and drove 1200 miles to Oklahoma. While it was exciting to be moving away and being on our own I was scared and a little sad. For me, I new I was going back to Utah and soon because I had plane tickets already booked to go back. I had already worked out an arrangement with my employer in Utah to continue working for them. I would alternate one week working from home in Oklahoma, and then fly back to Utah and work one week in the office (which they agreed to pay for--I was lucky). I flew back and forth for over 3 months. It was hard and it got harder with each flight. I kept thinking how much I wanted to quit my job and be in Oklahoma with my husband. I hated saying goodbye every other Sunday night. Mid October I was finally able to quit and move to Oklahoma...for good. I said goodbye to a lot of friends that day with whom I had worked with for 3 years (some longer).

I wasn't quite sure what I would do in Oklahoma. Cody was busy with school and studying all the time. I didn't have any responsibility for the first time since probably highschool. I thought I was looking forward to doing...well...nothing. I found out that doing nothing was really, really boring. The days seemed to drag by. I casually looked for a job but never came across anything really promising. A friend of mine knew I was looking for a job and gave me the contact information for a lady in her parents ward who could possibly help me with finding a job. She contacted me for an interview and ended up offering me a position at her and her husbands medical practice as a receptionist. I was ecstatic. After 3 weeks of boredom I was thrilled at the prospect of having a reason to get out of bed again! After working a stressful job in Utah, I was looking forward to something lower key and relatively easy I guess you could say.

I met some of the most amazing people at my job. Friends that I will have for life! We worked, laughed, stressed, and joked together. We knew how to have fun and work at the same time. I will miss them terribly. I am so thankful for the opportunity I had to work with these ladies and become friends.

Now a year and half later I chose to quit and take another job. A job I am really excited about. A job that will provide me with invaluable experience as Cody finishes school and we move on with our lives. Tuesday next week I will start working in a Dental practice. Here I hope to learn anything and everything I can so that one day, when we own a practice ourselves, I will have an idea of how to run things. Although that day is nearly 7 years away (2 more school years, 1 yr residency Airforce, 4 years as dentist in Airforce to repay for school), I am sure it will come soon enough.

As a goodbye present my favorite co-workers decided I needed a little surprise for my last day with them. They were pretty darn sneaky. After I got back from lunch I was working like usual. Two of the other girls go to lunch right after I get back. Well they did some fine artwork on my car as displayed in the picture below! Of course I didn't know this yet because I was in working. Well one of the patients came to check in at the clinic and said, so whose car is getting toilet papered out there?? (I was oblivious to this all and didn't hear a thing). They quickly shushed the patient cause they didn't want me to find out. Then about 3pm I get a phone call from a patient who had just left our clinic. She said she couldn't find her prescriptions for her pain pills anywhere, I looked around and couldn't find them either. She suggested that maybe they blew out of her purse. So OF COURSE I run outside to see if I can see any prescriptions flying around. Only to find my trashed car!! We all had a pretty good laugh about it--even though I discovered it earlier than I should have due to the patient thinking her scripts might be blowing around outside!

Ashley and Jana do fine work!

After work I recruited Jana to help me take all the crap off my car so I could drive it home. So I stopped and posed for a picture. The girls were highly creative in this windshield design for the front of my car. I am not going to lie, I was embarrassed driving home!! I had my windows rolled down to hide some of the writing and a guy in a car next to me was starring at my car and smiling. It was weird.

Again I will miss all of my good friends I made, but am looking forward to the future and my new job!