less than 36 hours left...

...until I'm back in the corporate world. So many mixed feelings. The largest dark-spot will be being away from Leona for that many hours every day. I know we will both be fine, of course, but oh how I will miss her! These past nine months of spending 24/7 with her has had its rough times, sure, but overall it's been oh so blessedly wonderful.

However, I knew this day was coming. I mean, one of the reasons we're here in Norway, of course, is for more family time. For the past 3.5 months we've had TONS of that. As in all the time. And even with me going to work we will have way more of that then we did with Judge working in Taiwan. Way, way more.

Another benefit I was looking forward to was Judge being able to be a stay-at-home dad, to share in the amazingness that being able to be with your baby all day brings with it. Seeing all the big and minuscule developments as they happen. But him getting to enjoy it means of course that I will miss it.

Beyond this, I'm also curious to see what this position will pan out to be. The company is a pretty large one here in Norway (and is spread internationally), a support-line to the oil and gas industry, and just setting up shop here in Tromsø. Currently I may be the only hire, apart from my boss (though there may be a few more of us that I don't know of yet...I'll get back to you on that after Wednesday).

Though I'm grossly overqualified for the position (according to my sister - and I have to agree with her), I for several reasons couldn't get myself to pass it over. 1) The job market within accounting/finance is quite limited up here; 2) We've been here 2 months already and our funds are limited. Add 1 and 2 together - taking into consideration our funds were earned in Taiwan and are being spent in the cost-of-living penthouse that is Norway, and it equals a major motivation to 'settle for less' in terms of potential salary, title, and challenges that best fit my current skill-set.

That being said, the position also has great potential. I am the admin assistant to the regional manager. Not 100% sure of all my responsibilities yet of course, but I will be an integral part of setting up the office here, both in terms of implementing the corporate systems, developing a comfortable culture, and then the 'nitty-gritty' bits of ordering and keeping office inventory, welcoming guests, filtering calls, some translation, helping new-hires with the logistics of getting settled up here, participating in Board or management meetings (as the minute-taker hehehe) etc etc.

So as can be seen, the tasks will be super diverse, and I will have to interact with a huge variety of people, both internal and external. And that, my friends, is what I need. Why? Because I am in a new culture here, both in terms of business and in general, and so I will learn so much more about how to survive and thrive in this culture than if I had a middle-level accounting position, for example (and I'm not ready for a top-level position for several reasons).

Sure, I'm Norwegian, as you, I am sure, are thinking. But I have only lived a total of 7 out of 32 years here, and for the past half of my life it's all (minus 6 months) been lived far, far away, so I am in fact not so familiar with even the academic/professional/business language, nor the aforementioned cultures.

And, in the coming years, Judge and I may start up a business here related to his dad's shindig, and at that time I will need all those network- and people-managing skills I can gain from this position.

At least, coming around full circle, I do not have to worry about Leona's eating nor about having to pump enough to keep her filled while I'm at work. She is an awesome eater, eats some solids (and LOVES cheese), will have whatever I am able to pump at work from a bottle, and also man-made-baby-milk if and when necessary - which she accepted and gulped down on the first offer. (The latter also gives Judge much more freedom to head out the door, as it is a lot easier to bring and prep than pumped mother's milk.)

Right at this very moment of tiredness and mixed feelings I'm torn - should I go to bed early to try and get my sleep schedule on track for work, or should I stay up so I can see the amazing aurora borealis pictures Judge and our two visitors from Taiwan are taking right now. ~~They are experiencing amazing shows (as I just saw a great show from our window and balcony, despite the city lights - and they are on an aurora hunt in the pitch black of the between-islands on the long-distance ferry heading back to Tromsø - so I know what they are seeing must be out of this world).

[The three of them on our ice-adventure at a local pond/lake yesterday]

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