…happily, I can say that there is truth in the saying, “be careful what you wish for.”

On December 22, 2007, I was living in Brooklyn with a majority of my stuff in storage. Beavis was with my friend Christine and I was working as a private consultant. Now, from the moment I woke up on January 1, 2008, my whole life has completely changed – and all at once. I am working as a Contractor for the U.S. Army, I live in New Jersey, my stuff is out of storage and in my brand new home – and most importantly – Beavis is back with me once again.

I have to tell you that it is quite overwhelming when every single aspect of your life changes all at once. Truth be told, the only thing that is the same is my name and Social Security Number. But my home address, work address, and even my City and State have changed. One thing that has not is my belief that if you wish, hope and pray for something to come your way, and you go through life as a decent person who truly cares about his fellow man – the good Lord will answer your prayers – and that is just what He did for me.

Believe it or not, this is not the first time I have had my entire life change in less than a week. In October of 1996, my first wife Elisabeth and I got divorced. That week, in less than five days, I moved out of our apartment to a new one on Brigham Street, got a job as Editor-In-Chief of The Brooklyn Baron, and had to change my marital status from married to divorced. So for the second time in my life – I woke up in a brand new home and had to get ready to start a brand new job – all in the same morning.

While it may be overwhelming, changing your life all at once brings – at least to me – a huge sense of excitement. Meeting new people, discovering new local hot spots, meeting your neighbors, putting your home together a little each day – and realizing that you have everything you need, want and love in the same home with you really is a good feeling – and one I have not felt in a long, long time.

Of all the change I have experienced lately, probably the weirdest part is the fact that I now live in New Jersey – the last place I ever thought I would live in my life. If you would have told me ten years ago that I would be living in New Jersey when I was thirty-six years old – I would have laughed in your face. No offense to my newly adopted home state – but I don’t think anyone has made fun of New Jersey more than I have. But I must say that the part of New Jersey that I live in is very quaint and quite lovely, with wonderful restaurants, great shops, and exciting nightlife. The people are all very friendly and the neighborhood is clean – a far cry from what I thought New Jersey was – and for that matter – the neighborhood I left behind.

Over the last few years, I was considering the possibility of leaving New York. I thought of Alaska at first, followed by California, and even Maryland, but I never considered New Jersey. I always said that it would take the best job of my life for me to even consider a move to the Garden State…

…be careful what you wish for.