A Love Story, Part 1: Prelude to a Job Search

I have been trying to figure out what to do with my life for months now. I left my job at Williams Chevrolet in March, packed all my belongings into storage and left Traverse City all together in April.

Why'd I leave my job? Working for my last employer was like being in a relationship with a bipolar boyfriend. Also, I was planning on moving out of the state, back to Idaho, by the summer. And, I had decided I was going to focus on my own digital marketing business.

My son Ezekiel, right, with our younger cousins Nicole & Robin.

Luckily, I have wonderful family members -- my cousin Laura and her family -- who took in me and my 19-year-old son as I prepared to back to Idaho and worked for myself. Making Grand Rapids, Michigan, my launching pad, another cousin, Dawn, offered me a job at the restaurant she manages to earn some gas and food money. Meanwhile, my son took a paid position, thanks to the recommendation of yet more of our cousins, at a summer camp, where he gained valuable experience and made friends. We've had the opportunity to see a lot of our family, including my dad, over these past few months -- anniversary, graduation and birthday parties, holiday get-togethers and movie dates.

In regards to moving back to Idaho, nothing seemed to come together. The stars were simply not aligning for this mission. By the end of the summer, my son had decided he was happy to stay in Grand Rapids and make it his home. He talked about getting roommates. Since the resources to move out of state failed to make an appearance -- and leaving my son to move 2,500 miles away didn't make much sense -- I decided to follow his lead. After all, Grand Rapids is great place to live. It's the second largest city in Michigan, it's affordable to live here and most of my family -- who have proved to be a marvelous support system -- live in West Michigan. Plus, I can't deny the pull of the Great Lakes. I love being near the water.

Ultimately, through some soul searching and values developing, I decided I was DONE being a gypsy -- picking up and starting a whole new life so far from people who love me. Afterall, I'm not in my 20s anymore. I'm not even in my 30s for goodness sake! I'm at a point in my life where I am truly craving to plant deep roots, call one community my home and maybe even find the love of my life.

My cousin, Dawn, the one who manages the restaurant, and I decided to become housemates and are renting a large 4-bedroom home close to downtown. My son, Ezekiel, is our third housemate. He works at a screen printing business and happily lives in the attic room.

Now, as the leaves begin to turn vibrant colors, I'm looking for a job -- maybe it's a part-time job that allows me to build my business on the side. Or maybe it's a whole new career in which I can grow and retire. More on that later.

But for now, what I've learned over the summer, is that I really love my family and I'm very blessed to have them in my life -- my son, my father, aunts, uncles and cousins. I need them, and I think they need me. And before finding that love of my life I mentioned earlier, I'm determined to find the career of my life. So let it begin...