Relocation Question Again

Last summer, when I was visiting the Orlando area for work, the subject of relocation arose. It has come up again, in a much more tangible way. In essence, most of my group is facing consolidation with our HQ, which is in Heathrow, a few miles north of Orlando. That of course includes me!

First was an announcement and general meeting. Afterwards, we met individually with a senior level manager and a representative from HR, to discuss any questions. My meeting went well - the HR representative handed me a folder with common information and a letter covering my specifics, which was the relocation offer. Outside of these individual meetings, we all had hushed discussions in the hallway, nobody sure what to think. The news will take a while to settle in.

The relocation package looks pretty comprehensive. What is intimidating is the enormity of moving across the country, should I decide to relocate - details like cancelling utilities, to house hunting in the new location, to backing out of clubs and activities, to making new friends, and so forth.

Another option is to look for another job within the company, and try to remain here in the Seattle area. I'm not sure how easy it would be to stay in this area, as most open positions are actually at company HQ in Mountain View, CA. That would require finding a group willing to let me work at a remote site. Bottom line - finding another job within the company would likely involve a relocation anyway. The last option is to find another job altogether... which I am reluctant to do: I'm not sure how good the job market is, and besides, I do like my job.

I am supposed to go to Whistler this weekend to snowboard/ski with friends, but now I'm thinking I'll just skip it and send them a check to cover my part of the condo rental and food, and veg out instead. I need to contemplate the future. My company wants an answer about relocation in a month, and would like to have the relocation completed in two months. However, I think I could get a few extra weeks leeway on the final move, just because of all the work involved in putting a house on the market. So there is time, but not too much.