December 2000

Dear Family and Friends

Happy Holidays to you and your loved ones this joyous holiday season! Well, another year has come and gone and we hope that this greeting finds you healthy and prosperous. This has been quite a momentous year in the Shouse household. As some of you noticed, this letter is coming to you post marked from Minnesota. No, your eyes are not deceiving you. We have indeed moved to the land of 10,000 lakes!

We have been re-evaluating our lives and we determined that the quality of living in Southern California was no longer satisfactory for us. We were both tired of fighting the problems of rapid population growth and everything else that is inherent to living in Southern California. While there is much to offer in Southern California, we decided that we needed a slower pace of life and a more value rich environment. Why Minnesota? While after researching different cities, Minnesota consistently ranked among the top 10 in whatever survey you happened to be reading. The fact that both of us have family here was also a deciding factor.

Denise gladly quit her job in August and enjoyed a much-needed relief from her stressful job. George quit his job in September, which was tough after 11 years at the same company. In October, we packed up far too many boxes, said some very tearful good-byes and loaded up the car. We then proceeded to drive 2,000 miles through some beautiful country and arrived at our temporary home in Anoka, MN. We are staying with Denise’s parents until we find a house of our own. George has a contract through the end of year in Hopkins about a 45-minute commute from Anoka. So far, he has not had to endure the commute in the middle of a snowstorm! He has good prospects for a permanent position; it is just a matter of landing one.

Denise does not have a job at this point in time. Once we find a house and get ourselves settled, then she’ll start looking for a full time position. Right now, she’s been busy working on craft projects, educating herself on the Internet and playing outside in the snow with our dog, Snickers. Yes, we brought her with us on our new adventure in spite of the fact that she was very reluctant to leave the only home she has known. But, she loves playing in the snow and has found rabbits and squirrels quite fascinating even if she can’t understand why she is not allowed off the leash to chase after those furry creatures.

So, as a team we are off on a new adventure. It’s a great opportunity to expand our horizons and challenge ourselves to learn new ways of living, both physically and emotionally. While we have both had moments of homesickness and both deeply miss our family and friends that are in California, we are looking forward to meeting new people and forging new friendships. We are tentatively looking at a visit to California in March and look forward to seeing all of you then.

Until then, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!