Planes, Trains, and Running Shoes

I knew long before I actually moved to DC that I wanted to move to DC. This wasn't a matter of if, it was a matter of when.

When I finally got the call that I had been offered a job, I was ecstatic. It was two weeks before Christmas and I threw myself into the big move.

Three weeks into said job, I knew I didn't like it. I was happy enough, but I knew it wasn't a good fit for me. By April, I was miserable. I threw myself into the job search and waited. I went on a few different interviews and none of them panned out.

I woke up one morning in August and realized that I was absolutely miserable. I was so unbelievably unhappy. I had gotten engaged three weeks before, and I still had this cloud hanging over my head. This was supposed to be the best and happiest time of my life, and I was coming home from work, nearly (and very often) in tears almost every day because of what was going on at work.

Something needed to change. My dad always taught me that if you aren't happy, do whatever you can to change your situation. The problem was, I couldn't just quit my job and nothing was panning out for me. Here I was, applying to at least a dozen jobs a week, and nothing was working out. I reached my breaking point at the beginning of September at my job and put in an application to work as a manager at a running store here in DC. Three weeks later, I put in my resignation.

It was terrifying. The retail job paid significantly more money than what I was making at my other job...which should give you an indication about that position...but I was absolutely terrified that I was committing career suicide. Retail was supposed to be temporary, but what if it wasn't? Here I am, paying off thousands of dollars in student loans for a Master's degree that I wasn't putting to use. It was all incredibly stressful and terrifying, but at the end of the day, I just couldn't be that unhappy anymore.

I started at the running store in October and was offered an interview that same week, for the job I'm now at. Part of the reason I'm still working retail is because I didn't want to leave them without a manager going into the holidays and they were more than happy to be flexible with my schedule, not to mention that the extra cash is nice this time of year.

So why am I telling you all of this? Well, for starters, this post was supposed to be about how I've completely fallen off the workout wagon in a way I never have and it's affecting my mood and I need some motivation...somehow it turned into this. The bottom line though...if you aren't happy, change your situation. If your situation is so bad, that it's affecting your ability to be happy in your life outside of the 9-5, then it isn't worth it because eventually, that negativity is going to spill over into the good things in your life, and then you're really in trouble.

I've been at my new job for two weeks now and I absolutely love it...everything about it and it feels so, so good. I love the people I work with, I love what I'm doing and I love that I can be happy outside of work because I don't have this dark shadow hanging over me anymore. It's a wonderful feeling. It came out of a lot of stress and a lot of tears, and a lot of big, scary things, but it's all turned out just fine...it always does, doesn't it?