I means...

...not to bitch or anything but this really isn't the way I saw this going.

Gru's job has become extremely toxic and volatile since the new Executive Director arrived a year ago. You know how people are like, "Oh I hate my boss, he's such a jerk"?

Yeah, this guy gives a whole new level of Asshole for future bosses (or Satan) to work toward. Without going into all the details I will say that he is extremely mentally abusive and being the supportive wife I usually am I would normally say, "Really? Pull your shit together, no one like their boss, really. Buck up, little camper"

But it's bad. Like people who have been there forever making this well-oiled machine run are bailing. People who haven't bailed yet are working on it. People who don't normally talk to each other are finding each other positions and sending them to each other so they can all get out. It's kinda like this...

I can't go into all the details but it would make the worst boss ever look like a saint. He pits people against each other, demands expectations that he himself doesn't adhere to and my favorite was his one piece of positive feedback during Gru's mid-year evaulation, "Well, you are working on sending emails after hours and on the weekends."

Rut rus that, Scoob? Uh yeah, that's your positive? That he's busting his ass off of work time to meet your shitastic requests? Like instead of maintaining a balance of work and family? Yeah, as it turns out you're a giant douche.

Anyway so we've been looking...a lot...at jobs, cities, houses, whatever to get a move on getting the fuck out of here. I like looking at houses and learning about other real estate markets. One,it's interesting and helps determine exactly how much of a pay cut we'll be able to manage (because yes, Virginia, there will be a pay cut and a HUGE one at that) and it also keeps me off of Facebook for a few hours a day while I think about what kind of house we might buy and how I can change it (because people in this day and age still insist on oak cabinets and putting in formal living rooms and dining rooms for completely wasted real estate that can't be used on a daily basis...I hate wasted space).

As it turns out, late fall and the holidays aren't the best times to be searching for a job.

That said, there are many applications, phone calls, interviews and such in the works but here's been our Official List of Places that We Would Like to Call Home Next:
DFW, TX (major learning point...Dallas and Fort Worth are two different cities...people always say, "I"m up in DallasFortWorth this week!" so I just assumed it was one city. Nope, sure isn't...they're not even really that close...like if you live in a northern 'burb of Dallas and work in Fort Worth that could be like a 45 minute commute...hmmm...now I know)

Atlanta, GA

Columbia, SC

Charlotte and Winston-Salem (which unlike DFW DOES appear to be one city), NC

Nashville, TN

Austin, TX (but not really...I'm not sure I can go 'home' again, like they say...price of living is WAY higher than it was when we left, traffic is supposed to be nightmarish...and they didn't post the job that they were going to so then, you know, there's THAT...like no income...)

And the latest contender...Minneapolis, MN

I'm sorry. Come again? What the FUCK did you just say? It sound like Minnesota?

I know...I'm not pleased either but desperate times call for desperate measures and Gru is one unhappy camper these days. Back when we started looking for a new place to call home I would have put my foot down but I need my husband back and if it means moving the the frozen north I guess I'll do it? I mean...wow. Let's just hope it doesn't come to that.

Now I've wasted another half an hour while I should have been working on Christmas presents for the wee little ones. I want so badly to vent on Facebook and chat (like we used to chat back in the day in the Blogosphere) but if word gets out to certain people that Gru is looking at leaving things could get worse than they already are.

Gru and I have a very simple wish on our Christmas List this year. We're pretty sure it will benefit many people and give happiness city-wide here. Our simple wish will cost nothing. We truly hope that his Asshole Boss gets hit by a bus. The guy is divorced (weird, right? he's SUCH a peach, I can't imagine what he did to his wife behind closed doors if he pulls the shit he does on public employees) so we're not harming a loving, surviving spouse and it would bring peace and happiness to many. It's a simple wish and extremely generous on many levels.

SS, who would enjoy the true spirit of Christmas for all in the organization who are being tormented by A-hole Boss if this one little wish could be granted...