Just (in)sane enough to work for the Peace Corps!

First things first, I misread my nomination. I was nominated to serve in Asia as a secondary English teacher, but my tentative departure date is between late July and late August (not just July). So, after checking out the timeline, it looks like it may either be Cambodia or the Philippines. I’ve looked up Cambodia quite a bit and I would be very happy to go to Cambodia. I’ve been throwing in “I’m moving to Cambodia” into conversations whenever I can, just to get a feel for how that sounds and I like it! If it’s Cambodia, I’d be one of the first teams to go there, which would be so awesome! So I’m kind of hoping it will be Cambodia. I haven’t looked up the Philippines quite so much, but I will start to do so more. I wanna see if I enjoy saying “I’m moving to the Philippines” as much as the other one.

            And as of January 3rd, the craziness of filling out the medical forms has begun! There is so much to do, and I really feel pressed for time, partially because I want to get it in to the placement officer as soon as possible and also because when I start student teaching on Tuesday the 18^th, I will have NO TIME for doctors appointments. So the next two weeks should be very exciting..

            One of the questions in the initial medical health survey asks whether or not you have had mental health counseling in the past ten years. I have, so I checked yes. In my medical packet, there was a large section of paperwork for me to take back to my old counselor. I also had to write a personal statement of my own. I had counseling for a few months back in 2008 after a bad break up of an even worse relationship. I was in pretty bad shape at the time, and I suffered bad anxiety and depression, so I was pretty nervous going back to my counselor and seeing what she would write on my forms. However once I got there, I realized I had NOTHING to worry about. My counselor was so excited! She spent a good half hour just talking to me and seeing what I have been up to and she was so impressed. I guess I really am some sort of a success story for her. She couldn’t get over all the greater things that I have gone on to do since she last saw me. It felt pretty good being given the opportunity to brag! She is going to fill out the forms (with wonderful things, she says) and mail them back to me. I also finished my personal statement. It’s very basic, but it makes it clear that my depression was purely situational and that my experiences have only made me stronger. So the first one is done! I guess I have been deemed sane enough to do the Peace Corps. Although, I think a certain amount of insanity is still necessary.

            Now for some not good news. Without giving you too much detail, my bloodwork is all screwed up. If anything was going to cause me medically to not be accepted, this would be it. I really hope the Peace Corps can accommodate this.

            I took a trip to my regular doctor as well. I had a physical back in September, so I figured that would be recent enough. I hope. So I just gave the office my packet, and got a prescription for some additional blood tests. Hepatitis and HIV (never thought I’d ever get tested for HIV). Then I had to go to 2 different labs to find a lab that takes my insurance, waited for almost two hours, and finally got the blood test.

            Now I have a break from Doctors’ visits for a few days, which I am very glad about. For some reason, everywhere I went, besides to my psychologist, medical professionals were yelling at me and talking down to me. I think it’s all a conspiracy with the doctors, receptionists, and the Peace Corps to force me to practice patience and develop a thick skin.

            I mentioned in my last post that I am not really qualified for the job I was nominated for. I have to get 30+ hours of tutoring experience ASAP. I have been looking everywhere and have found two options, and I hope that will be enough. First, I got in touch with someone at my college, who says when next semester starts she can try to team me up with an asian exchange student to help them with their homework and practice their English. I also found a non-profit organization called Literacy Nassau. This one is perfect because you have to go through a 15 hour training period, and then they team you up with a student in your area. Quite frankly, I need the training! I’ll admit I don’t know what I’m doing. So I’m signed up for two training days in a month, and then hopefully I can start with a student soon after that.

            I’m back to work this week after the holidays, so things are starting to pick up again. I am a music teacher at a private music studio. I’ve started working on finding a replacement for me when/if I leave. This is so important to me because I really care about my students and I don’t want them to have just any old teacher. Many of them I’ve taken so far in the last 3 years and I don’t want to just flat leave them. I’m going to miss teaching them, but I think I’ve found a replacement that I feel comfortable with.

 And so, it is now 2011. The year I student teach. The year I graduate college. The year my performing ensembles in school go on tour to Italy. The year I turn 22. And, more than anything, I hope its the year that I start my Peace Corps service.