Cause I'm leaving on a... um... highway...

OK so leaving on a jet plane doesn't quite work as well as I'd hoped. But you get the point. Yes, I am leaving Natchez. I am coming home. At least for a few weeks. Anyone who reads this blog (test test, is this thing on?) may be going "Wait, I'm so confused!" Ok, here's the deal.

So I am still Stretch Armstrong. Stretch wants to lean towards one side. But we'll see if that one side releases Stretch or not.

Last Thursday and Friday, I went to Detroit for a face to face interview with the museum up there. We'll call it "Car". I absolutely loved it. This is basically my dream job. And yes, I know it's Detroit. Yes, I know what Detroit means. But technically, "Car" is in Grosse Pointe, a SUBURB of Detroit where the public schools are in the top 2% of the nation - make more sense?. Before you all start saying, "Wait, what is Katherine doing in a SUBURB?" it's not your typical suburb. It's more like a small town. Besides, living in the city of Detroit is VERY VERY VERY different from living in the city of St. Louis. Especially for a single white female who weighs 100 lbs. So yes, if I got the job in Detroit, I would live in a suburb. Either Grosse Pointe or another suburb where, apparently, more of the young people live. We'll see. I feel pretty good about that job. I did my absolute best in all my face to face interviews. Plus, I talked to the president on the phone, and she flat out said it sounded like we're on the same page. However, I also know that I am not the only candidate. Yes, I beat out 96-98 other people for a face to face interview. But there's still that 1-3 others that could be a better fit. But I was the first one they flew in and I think I set the bar pretty high. I really want this job to work out but I've got to stay realistic.

Then there's the other side. We'll call it "Garden". This is the job in Natchez. I had my work session with the committee and they took it to the board. The president said it looked hopeful, but didn't have much more info than I had before I went to Detroit. We'll see on that. They're thinking of calling me "Museum Consultant" and having me come on "temporarily" so the board can get used to me, with the unwritten understanding among a few of us that, unless it's just a horrible fit, after the project I was working on was done, they'd present me to the board and hire me on permanently, that way the board doesn't get scared about hiring on a full time curator. This would be a great opportunity. The pay would be less than "Car" and there are no benefits, which "Car" is offering. But they could throw in a fully furnished apartment on the 3rd floor of one of the "garden" houses which would be AWESOME. So that's another option.

So why am I coming home? Well, I don't have an answer on either of these. BUT I should know on both, definitely "Car" cause they want someone to start by the 2nd wk of September and I'd have to find a place to live, by the end of August. Since that's only 2 weeks away, I decided just to come home and wait it out. I felt like it would be cheating Melrose for me to sign up for classes, start the STEP program, then a wk to 2 wks later, "Hey I got a job, I'm out". Plus, I've worked 7 days a week all summer. Plus a few weeknights. I am EXHAUSTED. The idea of having to start classes and another job immediately, without a break, time to relax with family, time to see Bixby, or time to see friends in STL just makes me want to cry. I need some downtime. So I'm taking some.

I know that there is a very good chance that either "Car" or "Garden" will work out. If both work out, I would take "Car". More money, benefits, and the dream job, I'd be an idiot to turn it down. But if "Garden" worked out and "Car" did not, I would be thrilled. But I have to keep in mind that both of these could still go south. Should that happen, when I get home, I'm going to look into some online classes/distance learning at UMSL and Forest Park/SLCC as well as at Co-Lin. That way, I can talk to Melrose about maybe coming back as a STEP student. If they can't do it, maybe a park in STL could hire a STEP student on. I'll take it from there. But right now, I need some relaxation time with Bixby!

So if you're in STL and reading this, get excited, I'm coming home!!!