Away we go

Let me back up a little.

A few weeks ago, T and I enacted our own miniature version of the film Away We Go. In the movie, a young couple, Burt and Verona, finding themselves expecting a baby and having no reason to continue living where they are, visit several cities in North America to try to find the right place to raise their child.

We felt a bit like Burt and Verona as we boarded a plane to begin a trip that would take us to Kodiak, Alaska, but we also knew there were some significant differences between us and them. First of all, the movie couple--conveniently enough--both have jobs that they can easily perform long distance. They also appear to have no concerns whatsoever about health insurance or finding and paying for prenatal and delivery care for their baby. Because they don't need to look for jobs and have no obvious financial concerns, Burt and Verona are able to consider several cities as possible new homes.

T and I, on the other hand, were limited to places where at least he could get a job. He was invited to Kodiak for a job interview, and I tagged along so I could check out the town and decide if it might be the place for our growing family. While T sweated in his interview suit, I had one day to get a sense of Kodiak's people, landscape, and options for shopping, health care, housing, and my future career.

Near the end of Away We Go, Burt and Verona seem to realize that they've been looking too hard, and too far away from themselves, than they need to. Again, very conveniently, Verona happens to have access to the old house in which she grew up in Mississippi. When she returns to the house as an adult, bringing Burt with her, they realize it's the perfect place to raise their child.

T and I have no such luxury as a free-for-the-taking large family house surrounded by old oak trees and sitting on the water. But in some ways, I guess, our story is turning out a bit like Burt and Verona's. We have decided to relocate to Alaska (although we'll move a few months after the baby's born). T grew up in Alaska. He's never lived on Kodiak Island, but he did spend a good chunk of his childhood on another Alaskan island.

So maybe this time we will be--more than we have any other time--going home.

Maybe.