A new job for real, and another new car!

Happy belated Thanksgiving, everyone! I made a lovely intimate dinner last night, and while the pie was a failure (don't put blackstrap molasses and dark corn syrup into the same pecan pie), the rest of it was delish.

But I know you don't want to hear about that. You want to hear about the new job! Well, a couple of weeks ago, MIT informed me that they were opening my position up to other applicants. Which, as you might imagine, distressed me. I was temp-to-perm, but I was assured at the beginning that was "merely a formality." So the fact that I was going to have to apply for my own job, again, did not give me a warm fuzzy feeling about my job security.

Fortunately, a microchip company that I'd interviewed with weeks ago came to the rescue. They called me back in for a final round of interviews, and on Wednesday, offered me the job! So: a real job (not temping), making more money, with great benefits, and I'd get paid vacation for Christmas (instead of unpaid, since I was hourly at MIT). Plus the company is in the next town over, meaning my commute would shrink to 5 miles.

The downside? We'd have to buy another car.

While there's a wealth of public transportation options into Boston, there are none--NONE--between suburbs around Boston. Not even a bus. And while I could bike 5 miles in the summer, I certainly can't in the winter. So, I crunched the numbers. And while I hate having to spend the money on a second car, at least we can technically afford it (though I'd much rather be able to walk, and spend all that money on something more useful).

Well, you know my feelings about the 'burbs. I'll spare you the rant about lack of public transportation options that my husband got. We went car shopping yesterday, and came home with a new Prius. At 51 mpg, my hubby will be taking the Prius on his long commute, and I'll use our current car for the 5 mile-commute. Meaning our gas bill will stay about the same, even with an additional car.

It's a lot zippier than I thought it would be. And very space-age. And you can actually fit four full-size adults in it. We may actually take it on our long-haul Christmas travels this year, to save on gas. When we pick it up on Tuesday, I'll post pictures. And I'm hoping to start the new job in a week or so; I'll keep you updated on that, as well.

Otherwise: finishing up Christmas shopping, and eagerly awaiting the arrival of my parents, with more furniture, in a couple of weeks.