Coming this summer we are packing our bags for a summer in Redwood City, CA (40 minutes south of San Francisco). Stephen got offered a summer internship at DreamWorks Animation. This is a great career opportunity that fell into Stephen’s lap. DreamWorks contacted his academic advisor asking if he could recommend anyone for this position. He recommended Stephen. Stephen interviewed, answered a bunch of nerdy technical questions correctly and got the job.
Although this is a great opportunity, the thought of it has brought me a few days of great stress. See, Stephen was already offered a teaching position at the U this summer. The pay was good but it was just a job and not in the field of computer graphics Stephen wants a career in. In my mind I was planning on him teaching this summer and us living our regular lives in Utah.
Then this opportunity with DreamWorks came along. This position is in the exact field and type of company Stephen wants to work for when he graduates. The experience and contacts are priceless, but the pay is not so good. And since the cost of rent is sooooo high there, nearly all of his income will go toward rent. That’s the part that brings me the most stress.
Psychologically, I have to tell myself that we are going for the experience, contacts, and a fun summer in gorgeous California, “all expenses paid.” We won’t come home rich in money, but rich in experiences, new friends, and fun.
California here we come.
P.S. Anyone want to rent our house for the summer? Anyone know of someone in the Redwood City area with an inexpensive apartment to rent? If so, let us know.
2 comments:
AHHH!! So exciting! Congrats to Stephen.
Honestly, Craigslist.org is the way to go for housing. It's HQ here and EVERYONE uses it. Best to search 1 maybe 2 months max before you come out. You can search for apartments, homes, furnished, non furnished, etc. Make sure you search by neighborhood/location so you only see places outside of SF and close to where Stephen is working. Your biggest hurdle will be securing a month-to-month lease. You may need to rent a house instead of an apartment, since individual owners may be more willing to not have a year lease vs. apartment building landlords. Still apply for a place if they want a year lease: some landlords are willing to negotiate the lease.
Belmont is a city close to Redwood City, my friend rented an adorable house for her family that was month-to-month for awhile (and funny enough, she was still in the SF Stake). We drove down to Belmont to go trick-or-treating one year, very sweet neighborhoods, affordable. I also suggest looking at Foster City and San Carlos - all are very family friendly.
If you have ANY questions at all or need anything, let me know.
Again, congratulations! Very exciting summer for your family!
Congratulations!
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