Last day at work

Medical clearance achieved!

That vague online message I received was followed the next day by a letter in the mail saying that I have cleared medical and am now waiting to be placed. Also, I need to get another pair of glasses. I have 2 pairs, but one of them was $180 and I am NOT taking those to Africa with me. I will be taking my $20 pair and ordering another pair just like it from Zenni.

The letter also cautioned against making any drastic career moves quite yet, like leaving my job, which brings me to my next topic,

I'm leaving my job!

Today was my last day at work, and it was emotional turmoil. I have been here for a year now and I am going to miss all these kids and their parents and my colleagues SO MUCH. They are all really special and fantastic and make every day worth it.

The Peace Corps advises you to wait to leave your job until you have received an invitation, and it's a bit or a risk that I'm leaving without that. But I'm fairly certain that I will receive one, and even if I don't, it's time to move on. As much as I love these kids, and as much fun as my job can be sometimes, it's not a great career move. I worked my butt off at Rice and I want more from life than being a receptionist. It was fun while it lasted, it was great experience, and I made some really good contacts, but I am ready to move on with my life.

Some of the mom and dads at work were so considerate and kind though -- in addition to a whole slew of really nice cards and letters, they gave me all kinds of helpful gifts and goodies for Africa -- like a journal, a dopp kit, a safari hat, a head wrap, wind-up flashlight and lots (LOTS!) of gift cards.

Can't wait to hear from Placement!

Note to self: You have a limited amount of luggage space. Remember!

Paperwork! Polio! Progress!

Things are moving along! I got my polio shot on Tuesday (fuuuuuun stuff!) and faxed the records in right away. The next morning, I got an e-mail saying they had received my fax and that the papers had been added to my file. A couple days later, my on-line account was updated to where the medical section says: "A decision has been reached regarding your medical review. Please look for a letter in the mail." It's odd how everything else was so slow, but this is going super fast.

It sounds so ominous, and for a while I had myself convinced that their message was so vague and non-committal because they had decided that I was not fit to serve and I would receive a sad, small envelope in the mail. But I looked up that exact quote ("A decision has been reached...blah blah") And I found that everyone gets that. Since I don't actually have any health problems except my allergies, I think I'll be OK.

The hard part comes next. Placement. With the downturn of the economy, they have a lot more applicants than they do spaces, along with a smaller budget. Even though all of us have been nominated, not all of us will be placed. I am a fairly competitive applicant, since I have both English teaching experience, college training in ESL, and experience abroad, but I don't know if my hiatus from application or the fact that (due to misunderstanding) it took me a long time to get my medical paperwork in are going to count against me. I hope not, but I guess we'll see. I'm not so naive as to think that everything will be perfect. Yes, I want to be placed in Mozambique or another Portuguese speaking country (like... well, really only Mozambique seeing as they don't have programs in any other Portuguese-speaking countries) but it's very likely that they could place me elsewhere -- maybe not even in Africa, which would mean I'd have to think up a new blog name. Rumor has it they ask for an updated resume after medical clearance, so hopefully my year of working at a school (and my fantastic letters of recommendation from there) will give me even more of an edge. There's no use in dwelling on it now, since there's absolutely nothing I can do except wait.

And so I wait.

Shots! Shots! Shots Shots! Shots Shots!

LMFAO and Lil John may think shots are fun but I certainly do not. And I have definitely had my fill of them in my lifetime -- after living in Brazil, traveling to South Africa... I thought I would never need any more. But it turns out, I DO! Oh goody.

This also explains why my medical review was taking so long. Considering I reactivated my application in March and hadn't heard anything, I called up Peace Corps Medical (despite the email that said "please do not call us") and I inquired about my application status. Turns out they had mailed me something to my old college address but I never received it because I no longer reside there. Well, I'm glad I ignored their no-calling advice! Looks like I need a polio booster shot and a urinalysis. FUN STUFF. I get to be stuck with a needle and pee in a cup.

I am eager to get this show on the road and find out my placement, so I went ahead and scheduled those things for tomorrow. My lack of a doctor made things more complicated, but after some googling I scheduled an appointment at the University of Texas Medical Center. You know what I learned? Shots are PRICEY! So are Doctors. I'm just glad that the Peace Corps reimburses me for some of this stuff.

And so it begins...

 I've been thinking about starting this blog for so long, and now that I've finally done it, I don't quite know what to say or where to start. Although my journey hasn't actually started, it doesn't feel like that at all. Peace Corps has been a part of my life for almost 2 years at this point - it all started in May 2010, when the first wave of my friends graduated from Rice and started doing awesome things with their lives -- including the Peace Corps. During my senior year, the application process for me went really smoothly -- I was thrilled! Now, after taking a break for a year, I'm back on track to begin my service and I'm both incredibly excited and completely terrified.

Don't get my wrong, I love knowing for certain what I'm going to do for the next two years and where I am going to be -- I hated being in limbo for a year -- but I have no idea how it will change me, or if I will be the same person coming out than I am now. Hopefully any changes will be for the better, but who knows? Will I have the same career aspirations when I get out? Will I gain skills and experience that will help me get an edge to get into the Foreign Service? Will I still want to join the foreign service when I get out? Will I want it more? Will I long to go back to school? Will I even finish the two years? What if I hate it? What if I love it and don't want to leave? What if, what if, what if?

I guess at this point all I can do is sit back and enjoy my life right now. I'm winding down my last few days at work and then I face a summer of who-knows-what. I am going to try to do the things in Texas that I have never had the chance to before -- like hiking in Big Bend, driving around Hill Country, etc. I'll get my fill of the States (and my family) before I have to go without both for 27 months.

And now, I am forced to use those essential PCV skills of "patience and flexibility" while I wait for them to clear me medically. Only then will I find out what region and/or country I'll be in. That's when the real adventure begins. Until then... it's a test of my patience. And maybe my sanity.

P.S A note on the name of this blog:

There's this great British sitcom that my family used to watch called As Time Goes By. One of the main characters, Lionel, writes a memoir about his (rather dull) life in Kenya. Several times throughout the series, this conversation happens:
Lionel: I wrote a book.
Person: What's it called?
Lionel: My life in Kenya.
Person: What's it about?
Lionel: My life in Kenya.
Everyone always laughs, but there's a kind of sanity to that. People spend eons trying to come up with clever titles. I spent several weeks trying to think of a clever Reddit username. I failed, by the way. So I figured I'd take the Lionel Hardcastle No-Nonsense Approach. 
Though one would hope that my life would not be as dull as his.