So I've finished staging! It was basically a general training on peace corps itself and safety and such. But very informative. We still haven't gotten much information on the country itself but I'm sure we will when we get there! I'm sitting in the airport right now waiting for the flight. Only 2 1/2 hours left, ha ha. I sure hope I can sleep on the plane. If not, tomorrow is going to be a very long day. I'm really enjoying this group of people so far. We are all a little different but we are all here for the same reasons. I've gotten along really well with everyone.
So far there are only two things I've regretted not bringing: a watch and a guitar. I'm sure I'll be able to get a watch there or get one sent to me. The guitar though, I think I'm SOL. Unless my family comes to visit and I can persuade them to bring it to me. We'll see I guess :)
Well I'm gonna skype Chris now, so long!
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Monday, January 30, 2012
Day 1
So I've begun my Peace Corps journey! Mostly I've just been on planes but it's still been an adventure. Once in Philly, I met a lot of the other volunteers. We all went out to dinner and had a great time getting to know one another. I also got to skype my family and Chris. It was really good to see them. I know this is short, but I'm exhausted and need some sleep!
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Peace Corps, here I come!
Friday, August 26, 2011
Big news!!!
My peace corps account has been updated and they are finished with my medical! Which means I most likely passed! I'm just waiting now to hear more information. Hopefully I'll have things in the mail soon!
Friday, August 12, 2011
Goodness gracious
my sleep schedule is so off right now!
This summer has been immensely busy! I think since I can't sleep now may be a good time for an update :)
Camp Lotsafun: I was a camp counselor at a camp for people with special needs for a week. I was paired with a teenage boy with MR and ADHD. He certainly was a handful but I enjoyed every minute (even if I was pulling my hair out at certain times). It was a great experience and I'm so excited to go back for another round next week. I will be working with girls this time though, so we'll see how that goes!
Las Vegas: Holly P and Kyle went down to Vegas to stay at Kyle's dad's house for a while and invited me to go along. I have never really had the over 21 experience in Vegas before and it was quite fun, if not a bit crazy! Holly had been to Vegas recently and knew a really good place for sandwiches. They were delicious. And we shared a berry crepe after. And the house had a pool which we spent a large amount of time in. It was a very relaxing trip and I'm very grateful Holly and Kyle brought me along.
Elko/Jarbidge: After Vegas my brother Jake and I headed to Elko to hang out with our cousins. It was a fun trip and it was really good to see Heather (and her bunS in her oven! I say buns plural because Jake and I are betting on twins!) and Ashley. Then we drove the rest of the way up into Jarbidge where we met my dad and Tami. I gotta say, Jarbidge is one of my favorite places in the whole world. It is so secluded and just naturally beautiful. We went on quad rides everyday, which is another reason why I enjoy Jarbidge so much. I wish it weren't so far away, I'd love to get up there more often. There is rumor of going up to see my niece for her 1st birthday which is very close to Jarbidge so hopefully!
This summer has been a whirlwind of adventures. I have hardly worked this summer but I think I deserved a break after finally finishing college. As soon as I get back from camp next week I'll start subbing as much as possible and going back to being a responsible adult.
Peace Corps update: I got my dental clearance!!!!! Woot! They requested a few more things for my medical which I'm waiting on my doctor to get back to me but then that will hopefully be all taken care of as well! I still have about 6 months until my estimated departure time but I have a feeling that is going to fly by.
This summer has been immensely busy! I think since I can't sleep now may be a good time for an update :)
Camp Lotsafun: I was a camp counselor at a camp for people with special needs for a week. I was paired with a teenage boy with MR and ADHD. He certainly was a handful but I enjoyed every minute (even if I was pulling my hair out at certain times). It was a great experience and I'm so excited to go back for another round next week. I will be working with girls this time though, so we'll see how that goes!
Las Vegas: Holly P and Kyle went down to Vegas to stay at Kyle's dad's house for a while and invited me to go along. I have never really had the over 21 experience in Vegas before and it was quite fun, if not a bit crazy! Holly had been to Vegas recently and knew a really good place for sandwiches. They were delicious. And we shared a berry crepe after. And the house had a pool which we spent a large amount of time in. It was a very relaxing trip and I'm very grateful Holly and Kyle brought me along.
Elko/Jarbidge: After Vegas my brother Jake and I headed to Elko to hang out with our cousins. It was a fun trip and it was really good to see Heather (and her bunS in her oven! I say buns plural because Jake and I are betting on twins!) and Ashley. Then we drove the rest of the way up into Jarbidge where we met my dad and Tami. I gotta say, Jarbidge is one of my favorite places in the whole world. It is so secluded and just naturally beautiful. We went on quad rides everyday, which is another reason why I enjoy Jarbidge so much. I wish it weren't so far away, I'd love to get up there more often. There is rumor of going up to see my niece for her 1st birthday which is very close to Jarbidge so hopefully!
This summer has been a whirlwind of adventures. I have hardly worked this summer but I think I deserved a break after finally finishing college. As soon as I get back from camp next week I'll start subbing as much as possible and going back to being a responsible adult.
Peace Corps update: I got my dental clearance!!!!! Woot! They requested a few more things for my medical which I'm waiting on my doctor to get back to me but then that will hopefully be all taken care of as well! I still have about 6 months until my estimated departure time but I have a feeling that is going to fly by.
Friday, June 10, 2011
No more pencils, no more books! No more teacher's dirty looks!
I'm officially done with student teaching!!!!!!!! Woooohoooooo!
Holly P's family is in town and it's her sister's birthday so we are making dinner tonight. It smells delicious and I'm pretty excited. We have been working on getting everything ready for our hoedown party tomorrow all week. I still need boots and a hat so I should probably get on that. Tami dropped off some bales of hay just now and they are in the backyard. We are really pulling out all the stops with this one. We're gonna have some food, including pigs in a blanket and lots of drinks. I even popped a hole in a watermelon and stuck a bottle of vodka in it. It's been three days and it's almost empty, ha ha. Should be a lot of fun!
So I posted on facebook that I will be looking for a new place to live soon. A couple people responded, one of which was my cousin, Alisha. She just bought a house with her fiance and they said I could rent out the extra room. I think that this will probably be my best choice. I'm going to go check out their house and everything later this week. It's just exciting to have some options and maybe know what I'm going to be doing for the next six months.
I'm bent on learning the guitar. I borrowed one of my brother's and went and got it re-stringed. I've started playing around with some videos on youtube to learn a thing or two but I really want to take lessons. My brother Jake said he was interested too so when he gets back from Ireland in a week I'll have to bug him about it.
I leave you with this: Never take life seriously. Nobody gets out alive anyway - Anon
Holly P's family is in town and it's her sister's birthday so we are making dinner tonight. It smells delicious and I'm pretty excited. We have been working on getting everything ready for our hoedown party tomorrow all week. I still need boots and a hat so I should probably get on that. Tami dropped off some bales of hay just now and they are in the backyard. We are really pulling out all the stops with this one. We're gonna have some food, including pigs in a blanket and lots of drinks. I even popped a hole in a watermelon and stuck a bottle of vodka in it. It's been three days and it's almost empty, ha ha. Should be a lot of fun!
So I posted on facebook that I will be looking for a new place to live soon. A couple people responded, one of which was my cousin, Alisha. She just bought a house with her fiance and they said I could rent out the extra room. I think that this will probably be my best choice. I'm going to go check out their house and everything later this week. It's just exciting to have some options and maybe know what I'm going to be doing for the next six months.
I'm bent on learning the guitar. I borrowed one of my brother's and went and got it re-stringed. I've started playing around with some videos on youtube to learn a thing or two but I really want to take lessons. My brother Jake said he was interested too so when he gets back from Ireland in a week I'll have to bug him about it.
I leave you with this: Never take life seriously. Nobody gets out alive anyway - Anon
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Only two days of working out
and I feel like I've been run over by a truck. I didn't think I was in that bad of shape but boy was I wrong! Holly P's been pushing me and it's amazing. I just have no self-motivation (which I definitely need to work on) and I'm glad she's been getting me to get up and challenge myself. On the note of amazing roomies, Katie made me a period mix (watch No Strings Attached. Hilarious.) which includes:
Speaking of moving out, I have no idea what I'm going to do with my life for the next 7 months. As of now I am scheduled to leave in February for the Peace Corps, which may or may not change, but if it were to change it would more likely be moved back than forward. Which means if I were to sign a lease somewhere I could only do a 6 month lease. I've contemplated moving back home but I'm not sure I could do that for 7 months. I'd like to find a place for 6 months and then after that I'll stay at home until I leave. However, I don't know where to live or what to do while I'm waiting to maybe leave for the Peace Corps. I could live in Reno and keep subbing and working at Jimmy Beans or I could live in Fallon and sub there. Living in Reno would be good because I could continue to work at Jimmy Beans and still hang out with all my friends all the time without making the trip. Living in Fallon would most likely be cheaper though and I would be closer to my family. Also, I would get paid more to sub in Fallon than Reno. I have applied to sub in Fallon already so even if I stay in Reno, I can always go down to Fallon for a bit to hang out and sub. What it really comes down to is how much money I want to spend on rent. I would prefer not to pay anything, but like I said that puts me in my dad's house and I'm not sure I want to do that for that long. I guess I'll just keep my eyes open for cheap places. I don't really want to live alone, however it's not very fair to ask someone to live with me when I can only commit to 6 months. Hmmm, well I guess I'll just have to stay open minded and see where life takes me.
As for a Peace Corps update, I am currently working on getting all of my medical and dental paperwork done. My goal is to have everything done and sent by the end of June. I just hope this works with my doctors. I have heard that it takes about 5 months for all of the medical paperwork to get processed so that puts me about about November when I might be receiving my final invitation (as long as everything goes smoothly, fingers crossed!). When I first started this whole process, the most difficult thing was deciding if I really did want to commit to it. Now that I have decided this is what I want to do, the hard this is just waiting. The reason I'm so flustered about what I am going to do with my life now is that I don't want to just be waiting around, wondering when my life will begin. I've been hearing from friends from school how they have gotten teaching jobs or are going to all sorts of interviews. I know that what I am doing is a big thing too and I'm very excited about it, it's just going to take a bit longer to get started and in the meanwhile I feel like I'm getting left behind. I'd like to find something that I can do that makes me happy and will keep me busy before I go off to the Peace Corps, rather than just sitting around waiting for it. I've taken a few steps towards this; I'm going to be a camp counselor for Camp Lotsafun again this summer and I've also applied to tutor ESL Adults as a volunteer. I have been thinking that volunteering for more things may be what I could do to make me feel more useful with my life. I might look into big brother big sister, or the adaptive recreation program. But first I need to decide where I'm going to live. Bleh. I wish I was better at making decisions. I stress so much but usually when I finally decide, I feel immensely better. When I was thinking about the Peace Corps, I initially decided not to do it. But I knew that I let others sway my decision and it just didn't feel right. When I finally made the decision for me, I felt much better.
I really should write more often. Just writing all this down and thinking through it is already making me feel better. Well, the weather is decent so I'm gonna go take advantage of it!
P.S. Only two more days of student teaching and then I'm done FOREVER!!!!!!!!!!
- Waterfalls - TLC
- Red Rain - Peter Gabriel
- Red Tide - Neko Case
- Everybody Hurts - R.E.M.
- Muddy Water - Daniel Jenkins
- I Love You, Period - Dan Baird
- Sunday, Bloody Sunday - U2
- Even Flow - Pearl Jam
- Just a Girl - No Doubt
- Red, Red Wine - UB40
- Red, Red Rose - The Weepies
- Bleeding Love - Leona Lewis
- Time to Flow - D-Nice
- Here Comes the Flood - Peter Gabriel
- Here Comes the Rain Again - Eurythmics
- I've Got the World on a String - Frank Sinatra
- Why Does it Always Rain on Me - Travis
- Tide is High - Blondie
Speaking of moving out, I have no idea what I'm going to do with my life for the next 7 months. As of now I am scheduled to leave in February for the Peace Corps, which may or may not change, but if it were to change it would more likely be moved back than forward. Which means if I were to sign a lease somewhere I could only do a 6 month lease. I've contemplated moving back home but I'm not sure I could do that for 7 months. I'd like to find a place for 6 months and then after that I'll stay at home until I leave. However, I don't know where to live or what to do while I'm waiting to maybe leave for the Peace Corps. I could live in Reno and keep subbing and working at Jimmy Beans or I could live in Fallon and sub there. Living in Reno would be good because I could continue to work at Jimmy Beans and still hang out with all my friends all the time without making the trip. Living in Fallon would most likely be cheaper though and I would be closer to my family. Also, I would get paid more to sub in Fallon than Reno. I have applied to sub in Fallon already so even if I stay in Reno, I can always go down to Fallon for a bit to hang out and sub. What it really comes down to is how much money I want to spend on rent. I would prefer not to pay anything, but like I said that puts me in my dad's house and I'm not sure I want to do that for that long. I guess I'll just keep my eyes open for cheap places. I don't really want to live alone, however it's not very fair to ask someone to live with me when I can only commit to 6 months. Hmmm, well I guess I'll just have to stay open minded and see where life takes me.
As for a Peace Corps update, I am currently working on getting all of my medical and dental paperwork done. My goal is to have everything done and sent by the end of June. I just hope this works with my doctors. I have heard that it takes about 5 months for all of the medical paperwork to get processed so that puts me about about November when I might be receiving my final invitation (as long as everything goes smoothly, fingers crossed!). When I first started this whole process, the most difficult thing was deciding if I really did want to commit to it. Now that I have decided this is what I want to do, the hard this is just waiting. The reason I'm so flustered about what I am going to do with my life now is that I don't want to just be waiting around, wondering when my life will begin. I've been hearing from friends from school how they have gotten teaching jobs or are going to all sorts of interviews. I know that what I am doing is a big thing too and I'm very excited about it, it's just going to take a bit longer to get started and in the meanwhile I feel like I'm getting left behind. I'd like to find something that I can do that makes me happy and will keep me busy before I go off to the Peace Corps, rather than just sitting around waiting for it. I've taken a few steps towards this; I'm going to be a camp counselor for Camp Lotsafun again this summer and I've also applied to tutor ESL Adults as a volunteer. I have been thinking that volunteering for more things may be what I could do to make me feel more useful with my life. I might look into big brother big sister, or the adaptive recreation program. But first I need to decide where I'm going to live. Bleh. I wish I was better at making decisions. I stress so much but usually when I finally decide, I feel immensely better. When I was thinking about the Peace Corps, I initially decided not to do it. But I knew that I let others sway my decision and it just didn't feel right. When I finally made the decision for me, I felt much better.
I really should write more often. Just writing all this down and thinking through it is already making me feel better. Well, the weather is decent so I'm gonna go take advantage of it!
P.S. Only two more days of student teaching and then I'm done FOREVER!!!!!!!!!!
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