Long story short

My computer crashed and lost the post I wrote detailing everything that "went down" with the whole Phoenix thing. I have no desire to type it all again, so here is the condensed version:

San Diego = good
Phoenix = bad

Neil and I decided we'd need certain things to keep us sane (living on a golf course in a big house with a pool so we could see the green course and blue water and ignore the hellish wasteland we were really living in) and the necessary salary to do so. We decided if the offer was right, we'd go. The "offer" (if you can call it that) was presented over the phone as an ultimatum. They asked Neil if he was willing to move before they would give any details about the salary or the relocation package. Neil was preparing to negotiate and said it would have to be a really good offer because we'd be giving up so much. That was pretty much it - they said they didn't have time to draw up an offer for someone who wasn't really interested and they didn't want to have to talk someone into doing something they didn't want to do. So, we are off the hook. We're happy but also confused - Neil was the best candidate and they sure didn't try very hard to get him. Little did they know we would have gone if they would have just started the negotiations. They ended up giving the position to a guy who was like number six out of nine on the list after doing all the interviews, but he just happens to already live in Phoenix, the poor bastard...

So, now I can start eating and sleeping again and I can stop crying every time I see a green lawn or think about the ocean. Yay San Diego!