Currently Listening Back to Bedlam By James Blunt see related

The New Job Rocks!

Things are going very well!  I'm finally settled in PG again and enjoying it.  It feels good to be home and although I'm a bit envious of all my traveling friends, I'm living vicariously through them and trying to remember that my time will come - eventually.  Work in amazing.  It's all I expected and more.  I have my own case load - which screams responsibility!  People are sure interesting and I have enjoyed working with them, on the most part.  Some people are simply mind boggling!  What the heck!  I love my staff.  We're continually laughing and there's always someone in the office that has your back.  There's a lot of similar personality types - we're all very choleric. 

I finally moved out of my mom's.  I love her but was more then ready to jet.  I think we're both really happy with this new change.  I'm living with my buddy Ava in a basement suite.  Good time to be had!  This is going to be a great summer.  I'm enjoying having every weekend off - yeah! 

My grandpa is really sick right now so that's occupying a lot of my thoughts these days.  I should be going down to Saskatchewan sometime soon.

More Change...

So some more things have happened.  The new news is that my 2nd place has allowed my to secure a job in Prince George.  I am so thrilled about all of this.  I gave my 2 weeks notice in Charlottes and they were pleasant and understanding about it.  They decided that I didn't need to work for those two weeks so I was stoked about that and planned on exploring the islands even more....but then my car broke down - again.  The starter that I just had replaced a couple days before was faulty so I ended up spending 10 days on the islands just chilling out doing absolutely nothing and it was great.  Mom had bought me a laptop for my grad present so I had fun on that too - until it exploded.....seriously, there was smoke billowing out of the keyboard!  Crap! 

It was an adventure trying yo get off the islands.  I was booked to take the first ferry off which meant that I would sail on the 18th (and I was hoping my car would be fixed by then!) but then the ferry was rescheduled and I couldn't sail until the 24th (my first day of work).  Thankfully it all worked out.  BC Ferries flew me to Rupert and then I caught the bus to PG and got in bright and early this morning.  Within the next couple of weeks I'll be heading down to Rupert to go pick up my car.  Does anyone want to join me in a road trip? 

Needless to say, these last couple of months have been filled with me planning and all of my plans being changed.  Do you think God is trying to teach me something?

So work starts on Monday and I'm excited and nervous about it.  I'm still not too sure which team I'll be working with - I'll be sure to let you all know when I know. 

I'm also moving out of mom's - finally - and in with a friend.  I am so excited about that!  Can't wait to finally be settled in somewhere and have a roomie to come home to.  Lots of changes coming my way...and I think I have learned my lesson.... NO PLANNING!

Cheers!

Change...

So things are crazy right now because my life is in this crazy changing phase. 

I had the pleasure of taking 2 weeks off from the Queen Charlotte Islands and coming to Prince George.  That whole process alone was a feet of it's own.  The day we flew into Rupert, I was busy craming for my panel.  They had made great acceptions for me and thankfully to my prof and other supports, the panel accepted my application weeks after the application was due and alowed to to panel via teleconference.  BC Ferries flew us to Rupert and I panelled 1 hour after we arrived.  My nerves were shot and I know I did horrible.  It took me 2 days to get over my pride and come to the realization and acceptance of the fact that I had done so horribly.  I barely touched on the stuff I had studied so hard for!  So mom and I chilled out in a hostel for a couple of days until we could catch a ride to PG with a couple of my classmates.  I made my Friday class and it was a great closure.  Everybody else felt they had done horrible on their panel as well.  That made me feel a bit better.  A bunch of us went out that night and we had a blast dancing up a storm.  The rest of the week has been filled up with dentist appointments, shopping and friends.  I was able to attend an incredible concert - how I love the acoustic guitar! I also got to attend church so I was super filled.    Mom bought me a laptop for my grad present and I have yet to play with it! I had coffee with one of my MCFD supervisors and that was great to catch up and I went to Quesnel to visit a friend.  I also visited with a friend and we made some plans regarding working in England starting in September.  I'm so excited about this opportunity but at the same time it has filled my weeks with many questions and no answers!  I am planing on going back to Queen Charlottes for 2 months to do the temporary job as an assistant to the social workers however, I'm unsure of what I'm going to do come June, July and August!  How am I going to make some money?  Oh, boy.  But it's all in God's hands right! 

So last night mom and I watched Memoirs of a Geshia and in the middle of the movie I get a call from one of my classmates who informs me that she placed first in the panel and that she thinks I placed second!    What!  I totally freaked and wanted to know how she knew all of this!  One of the MCFD social workers called me Thursday night and left a message but I couldn't reach her all of Friday and I wont be able to reach her until Monday morning so it the meantime I'm hanging here waiting for everything to be confirmed.  But in the meantime, my classmate informed me that the social worker had told my classmate who placed 3rd that she had left a message with the person who placed 2nd.  So in my anticipation and unwillingness to wait, I phone my supervisor (who was one of my references) from Queen Charlottes at home.  The rumour around class was that if you did not do well on your panel, they didn't bother to phone your references.  My supervisor was schoked that I did not 'know yet" and she had a good laugh at me....then she preceeded to tell me that I came in 2nd in the panel.  I still can not believe it!  I know I did horrible but whatever!  So this leaves me with more questions.  Needless to say, I tossed and turned a lot last night b/c of a couple of things:

1) If I take a child protection job with MCFD, what does this mean for my England plans?  I really want to go to England and do child protection there but this is an amazing opportunity!  Do I want to take this child protection job?  For how long?

2) I'm supposed to be working in Haida Gwaii for the next 2 months...do I give my 2 weeks notice as soon as I get there on Monday?  (The 3 week training starts in a couple of weeks anyway!)

3) Because there was only one position to be filled in PG and the classmate that placed first gets first dibs about where she wants to be placed....she picked PG. That means that i have a couple of choices if I choose to ditch England for a bit.  Quesnel or Mackenzie?

So many questions and so few answers and still nothing has been 100% confirmed.  So if you think of it, please pray for me.  I can not believe God has brought me to this place.  He must have been whispering sweet-somethings into they're ears when I was paneling - did they hear what I said and how many mistakes I made and things I missed?  It definitely all is God!  So, with no decisions made yet, I'll update you when I know.  Life changes fast.  I'll now what direction my life is taking within the next week!  AHHHH!  Cheers!

So the ship sank!

Yes, as life would have it...the ferry sank!  I am now on this island wondering when my next chance to get off of it will come.  Oh dear!  Word around town is that by Tuesday we should have a barge running from Prince Rupert to the island.  This is good news.  It means we will have food in the grocery stores.  By 10 am Wednesday morning, there was no milk left to be found anywhere in the stores.  People were a bit panicky....not too bad b/c we usually run out of milk by Friday anyway. 

The latest update with me and my life - I will not be able to make it to my manditory class in PG for March 31st.  I am sad about this fact b/c I wanted to see my classmates together for one last time.  I am missing home so I'm hoping to get back some time in early April for a visit.  I'm longing for some loving. With my professor's blessings, I am able to skip the manditory class which relieves a bit of the pressure.  Mom's still here with me as well so together we'll figure out how to get off the island.  Flying is way too expensive!

My car is still in the shop and hopefully it will be fixed when i get home tonight. Oh, and I found my ring.....yup, I had lost my ring on Saturday and thought it was gone forever.  As I was pondering if I was going to tell my mother about this fact it dropped right in front of me.  It had been caught in one of my scrubbies.  Craziness. 

Oh, and good news.  I am going to be panelling for an auxiliary position.  It's on the 28th so send good thoughts to me!  This means that if I pass this interview, I'll have a job with the Ministry of Childrebn and Family's from June until whenever I want.  Happy thoughts!  Well, I need to go but I will post later!  I need your prayers for this interview.  Apparently it is really difficult. Love you all. 

Life on Queen Charlottes

So, it has been a while!  The Queen Charlotte Islands have treated me good and it looks like they'll keep treating me that way.  A week ago I got offered a temporary job here.  I am excited about the opportunity and a little nervous about the transition from practicum student to employee.  So come April 10th, I'll be the new social workers assistant here in the office.  It should go well though and I am looking forward to sticking around long enough to see the whales in April and hopefully do some fishing.  It is scallop season here right now on the north coast.  Apparently you have to go at the right time in order to collect them....the wind needs to be blowing in a certain direction and you need hip-waders.  I don't have any.  I was talking to the potter in Masset though and she said she went out the other day an in 2 hours got 110 scallops.  They are so big that 110 basically fills a garbage can - or in other words, the meat's a little smaller than a hockey puck.  Enough about fish....

Mom is coming to visit on Monday.  I am so thrilled and it will be a great opportunity to catch up with her and just chill out.  She caught the train this morning and will take the over night ferry Sunday and be here Monday morning bright and early.  I was hoping to lend her my car for the days that I am in the office but as my luck has it, it broke down yesterday.  Is it me or does it seem like every time I'm blogging, my car's breaking down?   So my wish for this week is that I'll have my car fixed in time to drive it on and off the ferry and hopefully the hole way back to PG.  I was planning on having my mechanic look at it anyway...just more issues to deal with now. 

So yeah, I'm going back to PG for approximately 10 days and I am so excited about it.  In all my travels, I don't think I have been as homesick as I have on this journey.  I am looking forward to hanging out with young adults and a community that understands and loves me.  I am also looking forward to being anonymous.  I find that on the island, I can't go anywhere without people knowing who I am, wondering who I am or wondering where I'm going.  I can't wait till people don't care! 

Well, that's it for now.  I can not believe school is almost done.  One more assignment to complete and one more class to attend and then that's it for me!  Cheers Everyone!  Hope all is well!