My Omaha Friend Base is Hemorrhaging

A guy I used to date caught up with me on AOL messenger. He said he was in New York now. He sent his resume to a recruiting firm. A few weeks later, a company hired him to manage a few high-profile Web sites. He had to pretty much pack whatever he could into his car - and the rest was gone. I couldn't be more proud of him - after a few rough weeks of brutal commutes and long-ass hours, he's settling into his routine.

A year ago, my roommate - a brilliant, sullen, intense, introverted chef took a job at a resort in Alaska. He's considering moving back to Nebraska to go to school at UNL and possibly earn a degree in chemistry to combine with his food expertise. Still, if he can help it, he's not coming back.

This afternoon, I was CD shopping and I bumped into another good friend of mine. She told me she was packing up and moving to Austin. She has family there and she said she would stay with family for awhile and then take any job - Starbucks if need be.

My roommate and ex had jobs to go to - and that was a big factor in their move. My other friend has been talking for ages about getting out of Omaha. She just got tired of talking and decided to do something about it. Me...I'm still looking. I've tried to keep my bitching about Omaha to a minimum until I can actually find a better option. Still, as more and more of my friends are falling into the 'outside of Omaha' column, the more restless I am to do the same.