Closure.

Today was my last day at Allurent.  I don't know what to expect of the company itself, so I'll withhold judgment on that.

I’m now laid off and unemployed.  And I'm happy about that, just in case anyone freaks out upon reading that sentence.

It’s been an amazing four and a half years.  I've learned and been given the opportunity to do more than I would ever have expected.  I've worked with the smartest, most professional, most badass people in this city.  I've been given the opportunity to grow and expand my career.  I've been given responsibility and trust by people for whom I have enormous respect.  I've been treated as well as I can imagine being treated at a job.

I traveled to Ann Arbor, Philadelphia, San Diego, Baltimore, and Little Rock for Allurent.  I worked with Alltel, Borders, Urban Outfitters and Anthropologie, Intuit, Kodak, New Balance, Seven For All Mankind, Sephora, Under Armour, Reebok, Sears, Kmart, Charlotte Russe, Kohls, Carhartt, Nicole Miller, Guess, Living Proof, Land Of Nod, Demandware, MyGofer, and presumably others I can't even think of, along with many of their partners.  (Edit for posterity of other live-and-non-live customers the company worked with: Baby Cottons, Carpet One, Room Store, Leon's, Flooring America, C&C California, FTD, Loccitane, Spiegel, Newport News, and Victoria's Secret)

With this under my belt, I feel more or less like I can do anything in this industry.  I'm thrilled for the day I decide to sit down and re-write my resume, cause I think it'll be kickass, but I'm hoping I don't have to bother to do that for a while.

So, all that said, I think I'm going to be taking some time off.  Like, months.  At least.

I want to take the time to figure out what I should be doing with myself, and how I want to live.  I've had a lot of thoughts over the years, and been struck by wanderlust on more than one occasion, but I've never been able to pull myself away to do it in all this time.  I've never been able to properly think about the alternative ways that I could be working and living and spending my time.  

Getting laid off is, in a way, perfect.  Having someone else pull the trigger for you isn't something you can usually expect, but sometimes it's nice when it actually happens.

So I'm standing here on the precipice; this big, freaky, exciting cliff.  I'm pretty sure that's a wonderful thing, and I think I've been well prepared for it.

Thanks, everybody.