Back to the beach

What do you do when plan's fall through? What if those plan's had been made when one was not in the proper mindset/emotional state to make said decision?

a) Stay the course and hope things will work out
b) Regroup and look at all your options

The answer was b.

The decision did not come easily as we had invested a quite a lot to move out here with the full intention of staying.  Money, family stuff, money, jobs, and overall long term happiness were weighed very carefully. Pro's and cons lists were made. Sleep was lost. Stressful times. In the end SF and I weighed our options and kept coming back to one thing; moving back to Long Beach. Crazy right?!
We are both very excited and can't wait to get started on our journey back. We are in the midst of packing up everything we own for the second time in a year for another cross country move. As of today I am sitting surrounded by boxes, packing tape and bubble wrap trying to tie up any loose ends while working out what is needed when we get out to the LBC. SF was able to convince her job to allow her to telecommute which is amazing since we really need the $$ as this year was extremely difficult financially as well as emotionally for us.
We battled and battled but never seemed to be able to get proper footing here in Philly. From job leads that led nowhere to false promises of opportunities it was a constant beat down emotionally. It has taken it's toll. Somehow SF was able to motivate herself to get the dissertation monkey off her back and finish her Phd. Amazing accomplishment for anyone but for her to be able to get it done under these circumstances is beyond belief. Plus it was so good the idea of it being turned into a book is an option in the future. She also has been offered a full time teaching gig at Cal State Fullerton where she has previously been teaching. Great potential for the future as those jobs just do not come long everyday.
We were able to get an apartment in our old complex. Perfect as we loved the complex, had great neighbors and were in an amazing area of Long Beach.
There will be some challenges along the way as expected but in the end I believe we made the right decision for us to have long term happiness.
Lot's to look forward to though; Hole Mole, Cherry Park sessions, the weather, close proximity to the beach, and above all the cultural atmosphere of Long Beach. Home sweet home!