New Job; New Adventure; New Era

While the previous blogs were about on-demand courier work, my future ones will be related to my new position: GPS Field Researcher. What exactly does that mean? Welllll....

You know that GPS unit in your car? Most of us have them now. Ever use it to find the nearest gas station or restaurant to your position? Im the person that goes out and gets those addresses or checks to make sure they are still in business. I see if they have diesel fuel or an atm. I find out if they are 24 hour locations. Etc.

And while I signed up for it because it was a travel related position to get me back out of the house and away from home-based call center work, it is actually going to be vastly different than my previous position. For one, these people are reimbursing me for gas, hotel, parking, tolls, cell phone usage, and much more. For another, I have a set schedule. No more working around the clock and pushing myself to the extreme limits of "sit and wait forever" or "run, run, faster".

There will be a lot less showering in truck stops. Amen to that. And I will always know where I will be in a given time frame.

Good stuff. BUT. Its a very data-intense position. Doesn't seem like it will be that complicated, but the packet of info I was given is huge. With graphs.

At least 4 months will be spent on the road. Hitting the northeastern part of the US. I will be starting in Maryland and going up through Connecticut (this is my first packet of info, beyond that, not sure how far north I will be heading).

Ive been a bit hesitant about the job over the past couple of weeks. Who wouldnt be? Im leaving my husband home alone and lack of contact can be tough. My daughter and I will only be in contact all summer via email, phone and Facebook and she's in the process of turning into a full-blown teenager. Scary stuff.

But Ive committed. As a friend said: sometimes the path you are on is the path you need to travel. So tomorrow I hit the road. 8 hours to get to my hotel and location of training. Should be interesting at least. Should make ME a more interesting person. I've also set a few other goals for myself for these four months. Personal objectives to get me closer to the person I want to be. More on those later.

For now, a few last hours with the husband and home. Packing, studying, and getting mentally prepared to say goodbye to familiarity for the entire summer. Sometimes a good kick in your own pants is what is needed, and that's what Im viewing this as.