Dilemma

So, having survived a whole year in the workforce and more than 4 months in my tiny, little town in rural PA, I’ve started to think about where my last assignment will be. From when I accepted the job, I have always been vocal about wanting to spend time abroad. Yes, I spent a semester in Mexico, but studying isn’t the same as working. Yes, I spent time working in Spain, but the vocabulary for being an au pair and being an engineer are completely different (floaties anyone?). So, I’ve been thinking about spending my last 8 month assignment at the plant in Mexico, to work on my Spanish and continue work on my current project. I’ve told both my supervisors this, as well as my actual boss at HQ, the Mexican engineers on the project, and the project leader for my current project. Everyone knows I want to go to Mexico.

Unfortunately, after saying it for so long, I’m not really certain if that’s what I want. There are several reasons for this uncertainty, the foremost being that I’m bored. I don’t want to dwell too much on this point, but I wonder if I’m bored now, will the project become any less boring in another country, or will I still be spending my days surfing the internet? Second, I’m wondering how being an expat might affect my grad school savings. I’m working hard to save money and honestly don’t even have an idea how much an apartment might cost in Mexico, or how much it could cost to get myself (and my things) back to the states afterwards. Further, if I stay in the states, I would be eligible for a second job, while I’m not quite confident enough to pull that in Mexico. Third, the adventure of new experiences is starting to wear me down; sometimes I really do need to recharge with something familiar. I could request a placement in Manchester near Simon and share an apartment with him and Eric. The comforting idea of familiarity somehow elicits thoughts of curling up with a book on a rainy day. It’s so tempting I occasionally crave it. I really don’t know what to do, or what I want to do.

Mexico – Pros	New Hampshire - Pros
Continue current project (expert!)	Equipment design (robots!)
International Experience	New (engineering) skills
Low Cost-of-Living	Can supplement income
Language proficiency	Familiarity
Possible Expat Stipend	Less moving hassle
Mexico- Cons	New Hampshire – Cons
Language Anxiety	Less useful for future career
Could end up screwed on relocation	Probably need to keep car
Project may be boring	Possible v. awkward breakup
Plant is chaotic (at best)	Not an adventure
Sexism/classism	Cold/Snowy (I am not shoveling)

I’m sure there are more on both sides, but it's basically comfort vs. career. How career driven am I?