Take Two.....

After about 3 weeks at Kansas City and not much hope of a paid position in my field we decided to pack up the camp and move again to the original destination.... Denver.

We came with good intentions and high hopes to Kansas City.

Arriving in the weeks before Sandy's passing, we temporarily set-up shop at Danny and Sharons house and started applying for work in the Kansas City area. Initially we came up with a couple of really good leads and looked like one especially was really gonna take off and give us a great opportunity at a company called Ellerbe Beckett.

In terms of career, this office would have been superb. In 5 years, I could have gained the experience here to take me anywhere. Unfortunately, due to the tussle between head office and the local office it was not to be. Head office would not cough up the funds to employee the newbie (ie. me). As it stands the local office is still trying to get funding but being resisted so we had to look at other options.

Out of the many, many applications I sent in the Kansas City area I only had the one tete-a-tete interview. everything else was either a no response or a quick phone call in response to the email.

We thank Dee's brother Danny and sister-in-law Sharon for their hospitality and sharing their house for the time we were with them and hope to reciprocate that one day soon when we finally get settled with our own place again.

A beautiful Sunday in Idaho

In the midst, of all the effort and turmoil of life right now with job searching and family crises we had a nice little outing to Sheila's folks place in the Owyhee Mountains. We hope you enjoy the pictures we took that day......

Emergency detour......

Unfortunately as many of you are already aware, Dee's sister Sandy is very ill with cancer. After I made the last post we got the call to come visit Sandy, ASAP.

So we hired a van and loaded our stuff (which surprisingly fit...thankyou God) and hit the road. Mapquest, google and yahoo maps estimated the trip to be 18 hrs and about 20 mins...... 26 hours later we rolled into Quentin and Sandy's.

The road across Kansas was the worst and to boot I had to fight a cross wind the entire drive across Kansas. Simply put, the amount of petrol we used to get across Kansas was outrageous b/c of the wind.

Sandy was in good spirits but nonetheless is in very poor health and we are just praying that God reaches down and brings a miracle to his glory.

When you think of them, pray for Sandy, Quentin and their 5 children going through this valley of the shadow. All your prayers are gladly received and appreciated.

Next Stop ....... Denver

As the sun broke on another glorious Idaho day we made the decision to move on to Denver where it seems the jobs are in more abundance.

While still in Australia, there seemed to be some good jobs on offer here in Boise but on arrival the job market changed and while jobs are plentiful there don't seem to be the Drafting jobs we had hoped for. Short of actually going door to door with resume in hand and hoping to fall into someone's good graces, I have applied to as many jobs as I could find here.

Having now applied to positions all over the USA, inclusive of Casper WY, Hobe Sound FL, Portland OR, Vancouver WA and several places in Colorado. It seems the job market in the USA is very much about being in the locale of the job. In Australia, it doesn't matter so much. By applying for a job out of state or further away, it automatically indicates that you're prepared to move or relocate.

The perception I am getting here in the US is that, even if you tell people that you are prepared to move they would still prefer to hire someone in the locale area even if the out-of-towner is more experienced, b/c it becomes a hassle to relocate the individual or wait for them to relocate.

Anyhow, we are on the move again.

During our stay here in the Nampa / Boise area, I have met many good folks and Dee has caught up with many folk that she has not seen in many years. We have enjoyed the bible study group we got involved in and the ministry that we received at BOISE FIRST church.

Duane and Sheila Taylor kindly opened up their home to us for the 2 1/2 weeks we have been here. Ashley their eldest daughter, gave up her room so that we had a place to all bunk down for the night. We fully appreciate the kindness we have been shown by the Taylors and everyone else too, inviting us to visit or eat with them.

I went to my first college football game between Boise State and the New Mexico Aggies. I was a complete stomping by BSU at 57 - 0. After having been to the game I think I came away with a better understanding of American Football but I still prefer Aussie rules because it moves faster and the game has more potential of a higher score, more action, thrills and spills. Besides this I would rate soccer over American football too.

Also I was lucky enough to be in town when the christian music group, Casting Crowns were performing. Duane, Terry, Mark, myself and several others went and had a really good, blessed time. As one of the others mentioned, their songs are sermons in and of themselves and I think that's why so many people like their music. They are to the point and don't pull any punches but at the same time they don't point the finger, they simply highlight the issue and then let the Spirit work on your heart via the music.