Tithing

I've mentioned on this blog before that I pay tithing, and that I feel that I receive a lot of blessings as a result.  Here's the most recent:

Every now and then, my previous employer will call me up and ask me to do small jobs for them.  Shortly after we moved into our new house, he called me up and asked if I could do a project.  It was a fairly good-sized project, and I told him my estimate would be $1500-$2000, but I ended up turning it down because I wanted to spend my few free evening hours working on my novel rather than programming.

Well, the next day, we got a visit from the water company.  Apparently our house was using 15,000 gallons of water a day.  We called a plumber who discovered there was actually a couple leaks--one of them underneath the concrete slab that our house was built on.  The estimate?  $1590.

Well, since we had just bought a house, we had no money left.  Without the side-job from my previous employer, we would have been in trouble.  I called up my old boss, told him I'd do it, and spent the next couple weeks of evenings working on it. 

The final bill was $1725, which after I paid tithing, covered all but $40 of the plumbing bill.

Big News!

It's official, so I can post it on my blog now. I've accepted a position at a robotics startup in Idaho called 5D Robotics (motto: "Two Ds better than reality!").

There were a lot of things to weigh while considering taking the job. My current job had great pay, and I just got a raise at the beginning of the year. As a matter-of-fact, I'll be taking a fairly significant pay cut to go to this new job.

In addition, my current job allows me to work from home 4 days a week, with the flexibility to take off whenever I want. At my new job, I assume I'll be working in the office every day, 9 to 5.

I also really like my current coworkers, and I know the company is going to go big (it already is).

However, my decision was based more on my long-term interest. At my current job, I build real-estate websites. I really enjoy web-programming, and working in real-estate was fine, but I got my Masters Degree in robotics. I think working with robotics has more potential to keep me interested and sharp. (Plus, my Masters advisor will be happy to know I'm finally using my education.)

In addition, from the brief meeting I had with my new coworkers, I think they'll be easy to get along with as well. They seem pretty committed and experienced.

I told my current bosses today at work. We had a full day of interviews scheduled for a new programmer, so basically I told them to start looking for two new candidates instead of just one. They said they were sorry to see me leaving, but they wished me the best. I'll miss the company too.

I also told our landlord, since we'll need to get out of the last few months of our contract. He was understanding as well.

The last person I need to tell is the Bishop. I was just called as the new ward clerk two weeks ago, and the Bishop said, "I look forward to years of good service from you!" Um, would you be satisfied with a month?

Anyway, things are going smoothly, so we're down to packing everything up now. My goal is to pack everything that's small enough into banana boxes, so our moving truck is nothing both furniture and neat stacks of identical boxes. I think Child is catching my vision as far as that goes...

Y esta la vida!