I’d interviewed for a job about six weeks ago. It was for being a historian at one of the coastal forts. If you are not familiar with the coastal forts, there were quite a number of them built in the early 1800s, many of them on the gulf coast. I’ve always loved the coastal forts and their various designs, their history, and so many other things. We used to go to Ft. Pickens in Pensacola, Florida, when I was young, and I loved exploring the fort. This job was not at Ft. Pickens because it’s part of a National Park. The one I interviewed with is a state park. While being a historian at one of these forts would be a dream come true, there are too many drawbacks to the job. My vacation time, sick time, and holidays would be significantly diminished. I wouldn’t just be the historian, I’d have other jobs as well, such as working in the gift shop, manning the entrance, reenactments, firing guns from historical periods and other duties I’m not thrilled about and all in the heat of the summer. When I weighed the pros (closer to home and good retirement) against all the aforementioned cons, I ultimately can’t accept. They are supposed to get back to me today with a salary, which will be based on my current salary. I will continue to mull it over, but I think I’ll have to say no.