It's Been A While...

Wow. I haven't posted since last year!!! What am I doing with my life!? I guess that's where I'll start... what I'm doing with my life.

I am now officially Dr. Megan Tucker. BOOM! It happened. :)
I got back from Italy last summer and dove headlong into my dissertation and work. And it's been quite a journey! However, I must say that I am a little proud of myself for sticking with it and pushing for my goal of finishing the paper in a year and by having a  PhD before I turn 30. Well it's July 16th... one month and one week until my 30th. But it did really take up a ton of time.

This past Spring kind of flew by but at the same time it took forever! I defended in early April and spent the rest of the month editing and re-editing. In the meantime I was up to my ears in job applications. I think I became the master of the interview this year. I ended up doing upwards of 16 interviews or follow-ups. But of course, as fate would have it, a job I didn't apply for was the one I got. My dear friend LaKesha works for the National Communication Association in DC. They were looking for someone with a background in Comm, but with a degree or experience in Higher Ed. Ummm.. Hi. My name is Meg. Let me be your girl.

So on the way to another interview... on I-95, I get a call from her about setting up an interview for this job. One week later I was reading my offer letter and squealing. It's a temporary position, so I'll be back to the grind  next year, looking for another job. But for now it's where I am testing out this new, fancy degree. I even have a name plaque on my desk. Super grown up. ;)

The only drawback to the job is that I have a tremendous commute into DC every day, and I'm still balancing working part-time at GMU and NVCC Woodbridge. And I live in Centreville. So every week I get to do this:

It's about an hour and a half into the city and about two hours to get home. I drive to the Metro, take the train in, and then get off near the White House and walk almost a mile north to Dupont. It's exhausting. But so far I love the work I'm doing, I get to share an office with LaKesha, and I have some good co-workers who have taken well to me (I think).

And now, I am house-hunting. You'd think I'd look closer to the city... but you'd be wrong. I still like Centreville. I'm looking elsewhere as well, but I'm not straying too far from what I know. You guys know I hate change. It's a dreadful thing.

Oh yeah. And Joe is finally moving out here. Like, it's officially official. He had a job interview today and his last day of work is tomorrow. By early August, he will be a Virginia resident. So cheers to starting a new adventure!

My point of this update is also to introduce a new part of this blog. I'm going to document my year working in the city. I feel like this is one of those experiences that I'll want to look back on since it's not something I ever intended on doing. So if you are interested in looking at my year in DC, check back soon.

To new beginnings,

Meg