for reals this time...

When I was deciding about this job "crisis," I decided to talk to my current CFO and my former controller about my respective concerns and see who I got the warmest fuzzies from. My new boss was open to my concerns, but we couldn't agree on a perfect solution. He said he believed in me and wanted me to stay, but the fact remains I'm not sure I like the way this company is run or trust its direction. My old controller heard me out and was able to make me feel a little bit better, and did stress they'd love to have me back. So, neither conversation made me 100% sure either way which I had been hoping would happen.
All emotions and fears aside, the biggest factor remains the type and path of each company. I believe in what my old company does (energy conservation, green buildings, etc) and their business is booming. I have a deep-rooted faith in the CFO and CEO of that company, and they are in absolutely no danger of having any problems in this type of economy. They do believe I will go far there, even if it takes a little longer than I would sometimes like.
My current company sells batteries, so though that market is always in somewhat of a demand, the economy is affecting us somewhat. It's mostly affecting our customers' ability to pay us, but that could prove problematic. The big cheeses are 4 friends that have worked together at various places for decades, and I'm not always confident they have the business' best interests at heart. They make me nervous, and piss a lot of people off. We've had some bad months, and it's possible this new company could suck all the old profits dry, but those 4 guys would all just move right on to the next place. The CFO also sees me going really far and it seems like it would happen just as fast as I could handle it, but that could all just be talk. It would be a bit of a gamble to stay here, though it would do wonders for my resume.
I've never had big dreams of being a high-level corporate career kind of woman, so maybe it's enough for me to be happy and occasionally challenged at a place I believe in. It's the kind of place where people are routinely there for 1-3 decades at a time, so I could stay there until I had the kind of resume I wanted to shop around, then I could leave with no real damage done. If I never get there, I'll just stay put until I decide to have kids or become a housewife. It does seem safer and easier than staying here, though that path rarely gets one incredibly far in life.
Right now, I feel drawn to the company I can trust for that reason. There will be problems, but there are everywhere. They do pay $5K less but have much better vacation time, so I guess I can handle that trade-off. I am going to think on it this weekend, then decide once and for all on Monday. I will update with my decision, but hopefully that will be the last time I ever have to spend more than a moment's thought on my career!!! Woot!