It's hard to say goodbye

This post is long overdue, but better late than never. Now that I finally have internet at my new home, I've got a lot of catching up to do. In case you haven't heard, I have moved to Colorado, and Isaac will join me here, hopefully shortly, once my townhouse sells (anyone wanna buy a nice townhome conveniently located near Taft Corners). I have taken a new job with LSI in Fort Collins, and I am excited, scared, overwhelmed, and optimistic all at the same time.

Getting here has been quite the journey. Every step along the way was filled with agonizing decisions and a lot of work. Should I pursue the interviewing opportunities that came my way? 'Yes' to this one means lots of prep work and travel. Should I accept one of the job offers? Deciding this one was the hardest. I loved my job and cherished my colleagues. My job was challenging, fun, and satisfying. It was the type of job where I regularly learned new things and could see how my contributions made a difference. My colleagues were the best I have have worked with. It just about felt like a family because we all got along so well and contributed in our own special way. So why did I decide to leave? Good question. Sometimes I wonder myself, but I've made the decision and here I am in Colorado. There is so much about Vermont that I will miss, but I also look forward to new experiences here in Colorado.

Saying 'goodbye' to everyone has been really hard. It was great to have several luncheons, dinners, and breakfasts, but each of those smile-filled events came with tears behind the scenes. Needless to say, I will miss everyone so very, very much.

Here are some of the pics from several of my goodbye events.

Goodbye dinner with friends Joe, Carl,
May-Hung, and Christina (holding Autumn)

I was so touched when May-Hung invited Isaac and me to dinner. It was really great to get to see them all before I left, not to mention eat at Joyce's Noodle House ... I can't get enough! I'll admit it, I almost broke down as we were wrapping up dinner and lingering in the entry area of the restaurant - then I totally lost it in the car.

Goodbye luncheon with the ladies from work:
Kathy, Rashmi, Suzanne, Sue, Meg, and Della

It was also great to go out to lunch with the ladies from work. A couple of years ago, we used to go out to the perfect ladies lunch spot - The Duchess Tea Room. It was the type of place where men were afraid to go, and we could escape work have a great lunch out with the ladies. We're all engineers, so lunch out with the ladies was always a special event. Even though the Duchess has closed, we still got out from time to time. This time, at the Asia Bistro.

Some of my many fine colleagues:
Essi, Eric, Charlie, Jim, Ed, and Andy

More of my many fine colleagues:
Asad, Janak, John, Don, and Dave

A different view of my many fine colleagues:
Dave, Don, Me, John, Janak, Asad

Yet another view of my many fine colleagues:
Andy, Ed, Jim, Charlie, Eric, Essi

Of course, there was the Departmental goodbye luncheon. I don't even know where to begin to discuss how special they all are and how wonderful it has been to work with all of them. Each one brilliant and a true character - they will certainly be missed.