Moving off to Kansas City MO
Here's the email I recently sent out to my co-workers at O'Reilly:
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Hola O'Reilly-ites!

Friday the 12th is my last day at O'Reilly. I'm moving off to Kansas City MO, land of cow parades and an affordable cost of living. I've learned alot in the 5 years I've been here and it has been great working with the whole lot of you.

I will always be a huge fan O'Reilly books, conferences, Safari Books Online, etc. I will never get over the habit of mentally red marking content problems in competitor's books. I guess I'll be O'Reilly's second biggest fan. (Andy Lester gets the number one distinction. AndyLester= tech reviewer, perl guru, persistent submitter of errata.)

And if you ever want to reach me:
http://www.kevinbingham.com/
email: me at kevinbingham dot com
ICQ: 92274042
AIM: NegatorGM
Orkut.com: Kevin "Bynk" Bingham

It's been real, it's been fun, and it's been real fun.

Thanks for everything,
-Kevin Bingham

me at kevinbingham dot com



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THE KEVIN FAQ:

Q: Why are you leaving?
Cost of living is reasonable, and I'll be able to afford a house. Also it was time to rattle my cage a bit. I've briefly pondered moving north to Oregon or Washington for the last year. KC won out.

Q: Why Kansas City MO?
I have friends there. For the last 2 years I've been listening to the shoutcast radio station Ampedout (http://www.ampedout.net/). On Friday nights Stoicite (owner) and his friend DrunkJeff have a live show (lewd, rude, funny, and fun). Listeners chat with them and make hilarious comments. In September 2003, I travelled to KC to meet them and 13+ other Ampers. A fun time was had by all. I returned to visit for New Years 2003/2004 and decided I liked the place enough to move.
http://www.ampedout.net/
http://www.ampedout.net/chat.php
http://www.ampedout.net/liveshows.php?show=Dopamine

Q: What is the cost of living in KC?
Example:
1950's ranch style house, 3 bedrooms in CA = $400k+
1950's ranch style house, 3 bedrooms, with basement in KC = $80k+
'Nuff said.

Q: When are you actually leaving?
I hop in the Budget truck on the 22nd. I was thinking of buying a van and towing my car, since I only have a few large household items. But cost and reliability turned me to renting.

Q: Do you have a place to live?
Not yet. Though there are vacancies in KC, unlike CA. And I'll spend a few days with my Ampedout friends while looking for a place. (Trying to find a place 1800 miles away doesn't work very well.)

Q: Do you have a job? What will you be doing there?
I'm on the job hunt. I'll probably be spending April job hunting, visiting my father in Texas, learning new tech, and "catching up on my technical journals"(1).

Q: Isn't it hot/cold/humid/windy, etc?
Yes, it's a place with more than two seasons. Amazing. No more two-season California. I've always lived in northern California, so it will be an adjustment. (Answer to the cynic: Yes it is, and humans do live and thrive there.)

Q: What about the user groups you host in Sebastopol?
Greg Dickerson is the new host for the North Bay Linux User's group. Sonoma Perl Mongers has found other places to meet. And yes, I'll be joining the Perl and Linux groups in KC.

Q: What about family?
I am leaving family behind (2 sisters, niece, nephew, mother). Though I'll be within a day's drive of a cousin (Detroit), my father (Texas), and many other cousins and aunts and uncles (South Carolina and Tennessee).

Q: Are you taking any O'Reilly books with you?
But of course!

(1) Quote from Scotty in Classic Star Trek episode, "Trouble with Tribbles".