Reset

This, some pundits tell us, is the Age of the Reset: The Obama administration is seeking to make a clean break with the Bush administration's arrogant, unilateralist foreign policy and its laissez-faire economic and regulatory practices (though to date that last break has been slow and messy).

A lot of individuals and businesses are in reset mode now as well, trying to recover from foreclosure, bankruptcy, layoffs, or restructuring. This includes the Shupac household.

As I reported back in January, my wife lost the job she'd held at a graphic design firm for nearly ten years. A personal referral gave her the one interview she's had to date, though no job offer came of it. Since then, no suitable job for her has been advertised on Monster, Michigan Works!, the local papers, or on sites of businesses or universities. None of her contacts in the business have turned up openings for her either. She's sent blind resumes to several local design shops, but heard nothing back.

So lately she's wondered if the time has come to investigate different kinds of opportunities. If perhaps it's time for a reset.

Over the years Kristine has voiced a wish occasionally that she could do "hands on" work of some kind, crafting things instead of images. It looks like she may set out to do that. She's applying to interior design programs at some colleges in this area. She enjoyed remodeling our kitchen recently, and is proud of her work rebuilding the porch a few years ago and constructing cabinets in our basement. (I was there too...but she was responsible for the detail work. I'm just muscle.) She's always been interested in furnishings, home layouts, colors and textures. She has a formidable spatial intelligence (which did serve her well as a graphic designer). It's a logical, even astute move for her.

Of course it's going to be a difficult one. Part time study isn't an option. Tuition is expensive, and while in school it's unlikely she'd earn even half of what she was making in her last job. Once she finishes, she may have to relocate to find a job--God knows where I'd find another one. Thing is...I think she could be a star in this business. I don't mean having a national reputation or a show on HGTV; just that she could be very, very good at it.

So I guess we'll be taking the plunge. We can only hope to land on our feet.



On a more cheerful note, I heard spring peepers for the first time yesterday. The world truly is waking up.