Saying Goodbyes
6 hours till our plane lifts off and I’m still waiting for the gravity of the step we are taking to kick in.
While the physical journey is about to start, the journey started one year ago to the day when I flew up to West Palm Beach to meet with HedgeCo for the first time. At that time I had been working with HedgeCo for over a year as a consultant on various projects, and I went to FL to try and iron out some issues with a massive internal project which we had been working on for quite a while.
As anyone who has worked remotely knows, there is nothing like working in the same office with people who you have only communicated via Skype/phone/email. I really enjoyed my initial 2 week stay, and we were able to bang out a lot of projects as well as lay the foundation for future work.
HedgeCo also offered me a full time position at the company. The position would be as the project manager of a spin-off technology branch of the company.
The standard freelance-consultant joke is “Why spend 8 hours a day working for someone else when you can spend 14 hours a day working for yourself.” Working from Germany for companies in Germany as well as on the East and West coast of the US is physically exhausting. I was working till midnight every night, and both my family life, community interaction, and social life was severely suffering. On a personal basis, I couldn’t keep it up any longer.
So, I accepted the job, and Stella and I began the long process of closing up shop, working out all our paperwork, packing our stuff and moving over to the US.
As with everything, the process of moving was far more complex and expensive then we imagined. From having to deal with mobile phone providers who refused to end your contract (eplus sucks by the way), to changing magazine subscription options, to getting Stella a greencard (which was a grueling process on its own), finding a place/car in FL, etc. All of this while trying to wrap up projects and stay on top of the projects that you are working on.
But now we finally come to the end of the German phase of this move, and I wanted to thank Stella more then anyone else for all the effort that she put into this move. She put her life on hold for the entire year, and put in most of the effort organizing and preparing everything for the move. Thank you, we couldn’t have done it without you!
So this will be my last blog entry as a resident of Germany, being in the US I probably won’t be able to hit as many of the European-based PHP conferences as I have in the past, but hopefully I will have more time to get back into the community and hope to catch as many US based conferences as I can.
See you on the other side of the pond!
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Good luck Aaron and Stella, I wish you all the best on the other side! Don’t forget us over here.
[...] Kurz notiert: Aaron sitzt zwar wahrscheinlich noch im Flugzeug aber die Katze ist schon aus dem Sack: Das 1. PHPUG Treffen in Palm Beach ist bereits in der Pipe. Wir werden weiter berichten. Alles Gute Aaron! [...]
Yes I believe you had a very hard time.
All the best for your (re?)migration.
Have a good journey.
I hope to see you again at some conferences anyhow.
But before you start “communiting”, you should rest a bit and have time with your family to regain some energy :).
Moving country one of the most grueling experiences I’ve had, but also one of the best choices I’ve ever made. I hope that less of the former and more of the latter apply to you
Wishing you all the best with your move, and continued success!
Aaron,
I hope your move to the US is welcoming and that you find happiness here. Good luck!
Let me be the first to welcome you to Palm Beach County, Florida!
Current weather:
MOSTLY SUNNY BECOMING PARTLY SUNNY. HIGHS IN THE MID 80S.
SOUTHEAST WINDS 5 TO 10 MPH BECOMING EAST 10 TO 15 MPH IN THE
AFTERNOON.
If you want to know about local things to do, places to eat, etc… check out southflorida.com.
It will be more difficult to hit the European PHP circuit but at least you’ve got php|tek in Chicago this May (I’ll be there) and Zend Con in California in October.
If you’re looking to build a team when you get here, let me know. I’m looking for more challenging work.
By the way, now is a good time to buy a home down here, the housing market is tanking.
Have a good flight!
Larry
I will miss visiting you and your family in Frankfurt! Best of luck buddy, see you in the states
Good luck to you and your family!
Hopefully you’re not swimming here
Seriously, now that you’ll be here in the US, you just need to venture a couple thousand more miles to the West coast so we can have a drink
And my wife speaks a bit of german (she was born in Cologne), so she might understand what the hell you’re talking about
Good luck and God Speed!
Wir werden euch hier vermissen. Ich wünsche Dir und Deiner Familie alles Gute und mehr Zeit für “Those cute little kids”.
Welcome to the club! Hope to see you around at conferences on this side of the world.
Thanks for all the comments! It was great logging in after 20 hours of traveling to see the comments.
We had a 4 hour delay in Charlotte but other than frayed nerves (and sleep deprived bodies) we made it through just fine
Congratulations you guys, I hope we get to meet up for Disney one of these days. WPB is a great place to call home. Hope you all settle in well…let us know if you need anything.
Good luck bro, say hi to the girls for me. Now I have a reason to visit the south again.
Sis
I wish you guys lots of luck!! I know how difficult it must have been. I have been through the same and its very rough to pack up and leave to a new country and start all over. Especially if you guys have family and friends in Germany. But life goes on. I am sure the whole family will enjoy the Sunshine State! Hopefully everyone is prepared for a new beginning! Mwazzzzz
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