After much wailing, gnashing of teeth, worrying, crying, complaining, and generally feeling crappy about my unemployed self, I received a formal offer of employment as a Program Specialist with the Texas Department of State Health Services on July 1. With my offer letter in hand, we drove to Austin the following Tuesday, bought a car, looked at apartments, and signed a lease on a little two-bedroom unit near the Korean market, all while Brazil suffered its most humiliating loss in recent soccer history. We moved into the place the week after, just in time for husband to start his summer orientation, and I started the job last Monday.
In an interesting twist, however, I was offered two other - much better - positions, both as epidemiologists, after accepting this offer. Just for kicks (since interviews are good practice, and you never know when a new job might turn out to be a nightmare), I went on two more interviews right after we moved into the apartment, but before I started this job, and they both made me offers. The HIV epi position turned out to be the better opportunity, so I will be starting a new position (again!) as an epidemiologist toward the end of this month. I also turned down two more requests for interviews from the state (as I can't really take two and a half hours off of a brand-new job to interview for a different one). When it rains, it pours.
Here is an updated version of my "job applications" table from a previous post:
| Date | Type | Employer | Position | Sector | Result |
| April 23 (W) | In-Person | HHSC (Austin) | Program Specialist V Strategic Decision Support | State Gov't | No Response |
| April 29 (T) | In-Person | City of Austin | Public Health Program Specialist Tuberculosis | Local Gov't | Rejected |
| April 30 (W) | Phone | US Public Health Service Commissioned Corps | Commissioned Corps Officer | Federal Gov't | Approved: Professionally Boarded** |
| May 1 (R) | In-Person | DSHS (Austin) | Epidemiologist III Environmental Epi | State Gov't | Rejected |
| May 1 (R) | In-Person | DSHS (Austin) | Program Specialist III EMS/Trauma | State Gov't | Rejected |
| May 12 (M) | In-Person | DSHS (San Antonio) | Epidemiologist II HIV/STD/TB | State Gov't | No Response |
| May 29 (R) | Phone | Texans Standing Tall (Austin) | Program Coordinator Tobacco Prevention Community Coalitions | Non-Profit | Advanced to Second Interview |
| June 2 (M) | In-Person | DSHS (Austin) | Program Specialist V Medicaid | State Gov't | Rejected |
| June 5 (R) | Phone | Texans Standing Tall (Austin) | Program Coordinator Tobacco Prevention Community Coalitions | Non-Profit | No Response |
| June 23 (M) | Phone | Veteran's Health Admin. (Baltimore) | Health Science Specialist Research Compliance | Federal Gov't | No Response |
| June 23 (M) | Phone | DSHS (Houston) | Program Specialist III Regional Tobacco Coordinator | State Gov't | No Response |
| June 23 (M) | In-Person | DSHS (Austin) | Program Specialist IV Emergency Preparedness | State Gov't | Offer extended Accepted |
| June 24 (M) | In-Person | DSHS (Austin) | Program Specialist IV Healthcare Facility Data Collection | State Gov't | Rejected |
| June 26 (R) | Phone | US Coast Guard (Norfolk) | Environmental Health Officer Vessel Safety and Sanitation | Federal Gov't | Rejected |
| July 17 (R) | In-Person | City of Austin | Epidemiologist Foodborne Illness | Local Gov't | Designated as top candidate Withdrew |
| July 18 (F) | In-Person | DSHS (Austin) | Epidemiologist II HIV/AIDS | State Gov't | Offer extended Accepted |
**My PHS medical clearance is still pending, though I contacted them and they assured me that it was normal for candidates without personnel orders to have to wait up to twelve weeks to receive results. I received my fingerprint cards, got fingerprinted, and sent them back, but security clearance isn't initiated until I have a federal job offer. Meanwhile, a handful of my federal applications have been referred to a hiring manager, so I will wait and see what comes from that.
Meanwhile, my mother helped us move into our apartment. She gave us a bunch of furniture (though we did get a sleeper sofa and two lovely leather chairs from my father), drove in with us on Tuesday, helped us move our stuff up two flights of stairs (yes, the apartment is on the third floor despite my oath when leaving Cincinnati that I would never live above the ground floor again), and unpacked our kitchen. Truly, I was shamed: I played only a minor role in rolling a 100 lb. concrete table up the stairs and essentially just watched as they hauled the sofa from landing to landing up to the apartment. Don't misunderstand me - I wasn't unwilling to help at all and took up my fair share of boxes and lighter furniture - but between the three of us, I was obviously the weakest link.
On the other hand, unpacking all of our old stuff was a succession of delightful surprises. After wearing only one suitcase's worth of clothes for a year and a half, and then living out of a backpack for six months, rediscovering my old wardrobe (which I previously considered meager) makes me feel like Cher from Clueless. I literally squealed over a pair of black suede boots I forgot I had. Most of my shoes are still with my in-laws (who will be visiting from Nebraska next week), so when they bring all of our stuff I will have enough to wear to last me for the next five years. At least, that's how it feels.
Lessons learned from moving:
- I have got to save up enough money before we move next to hire movers.
- My mother, despite being twice my age, is a hoss.
- You simultaneously have way less and way more stuff than you think you do, or should.
We have pretty much returned to exactly the same state as we were in before we left. I am working full-time in my field (albeit in a more exciting position) and husband is in school (though working on his Master's degree this time). We have one car that we share between the two of us. I am excited to go back to my yoga studio once my salary normalizes, and husband has returned to his old MTG card shop. We went to Barton Springs the weekend after we moved in, and we had our friends from Georgetown over for dinner on Wednesday night. I sit by the pool in the afternoons after work. The only real difference is that this time, we are sending pictures and updates about all of it to our friends in Korea, 5,000 miles and 14 hours away.
In hindsight, our return from exile has been a walk in the park compared to many other expats that we know who have come home and tried to pick their lives back up. As frustrated as I was at being unemployed, it was only ten weeks from the first full week back in the country to when I received my first job offer, and only 14 from then until the offer for the epidemiologist position, which is an upward career move for me. Taking a short "career" vacation doesn't seem to have hindered my ability to get a job in my field again. Husband is back in school, in a prestigious Master's program with direct career opportunities, too. We're a bit short on cash, but I will be making a decent salary, so we'll bounce back relatively quickly (and have had some very generous help from family in the meantime). I can't decide if we are truly talented or just lucky, but my guess is that it is some combination of both.
So for all you expats back in the Land of the Morning Calm who have been reading my lament and despairing of coming home - don't be afraid! We made it, so I figure you've at least got a fair shake. I know that every professional field is different; you have to understand the job market and how to apply for jobs, and it takes persistence, and knowing what kind of job you want. Plus, if all else fails, you can always go back to Korea - we have known people who have done that, too, and been very happy with the decision.
And now I am faced with the decision of whether or not to retire this blog for the time being. I will definitely come back to it if I manage to get a PHS commission, or if we travel anywhere during our vacations, or maybe if we experience any major life events (there are no babies on the horizon, guys, so please don't ask). But I am not sure it will be worth it to continue writing about the day-to-day once we go back to being "normal people."
If there is a such thing.
