Questions and doubts

Ken and I have been dealing with a lot of doubt about the entire process lately. Sometimes I have moments where I'm so excited and can't wait to go, but a lot of the time I just want to say Screw it! and ditch the entire thing. We have such mixed feelings, but I really don't think we should fly half-way around the Earth not sure. I would feel awful to have the tax payer's hard earned money fly us all the way over there, and have us go "Oh, sorry! Tee hee! I kind of want to go home now". Sadly, there is a huge portion of PC volunteers that don't make it all the way through the service. Only about 2/3 of people last through the entire 27 months, and that portion is a lot higher in certain more "stressful" areas like Africa. If we are going to go all the way over there, I don't want to come home early, that would just be lame. I know that the Peace Corps would be great, but it is just such a long period of time to be away from home. Ken and I are super close with our families, and being away for 27 months is going to be freakishly hard. In some ways I think that doing just regular traveling (spending a month here and there) would be much more up our alley. On the other hand, so much of what I liked about Peace Corps was that it was totally different from our regular routine, and would really test us as people. Ken and I are just such home-based people and are really excited for Ken to go to grad school, get his teaching license, buy a house and have babies. No matter what we do, the house and babies will be a few years off, so the yelps from my uterus wont be appeased either way for quite a while, but neither of us is sure we want to tack on three additional years to the figure. I don't know what we are going to do, and neither of us are wishy-washy people. I hate being indecisive, and would really like to just make a decision already, but I guess we are going to have to think and pray on it a little more.
At this point, Ken and I are still moving forward with our applications. We've actually made distinct progress in the last two days. Ken was able to get ahold of his therapist who found his paperwork that we sent him months ago in a random box somewhere, and was going to fill it out right away. Once we get that done, it's just the statements, which wont be horribly difficult.
On other fronts, because we are unsure about Peace Corps as a whole right now, Ken is also planning to apply to the UofO teaching program that starts in June. The application is due in February, so he needs to move on it, but should be able to get it done. At this point we are moving ahead with both options, and hoping that it becomes crystal clear which way we are supposed to go. Obviously, if Ken doesn't get into the program Peace Corps it is, and vice versa. I royally doubt it will be that simple, and we will just have to decide at some point, but I would be nice if the decision was very cut and dry and basically made for us. Either way, it is a HUGE decision, and we're not taking it lightly.
Wish us luck.

Liver Panel Update

The liver panel came back normal. I know you guys were all chomping at the bit, so you can relax and breathe. My liver isn't dying yet from my TB meds. ;)

Progress after the break.

Call us slackers, call us lame, or whatever you want, but we needed a break. So we took one. Between moving, and all the crazy medical stuff going on, our Peace Corps application was put on the back burner. However, this last week we've been feeling more jazzed about the entire process and had some energy to get the ball rolling again.
Ken called his therapist to find out where that part of the application was, (as we hadn't gotten it back after two months) and come to find out, Ken had sent it to the wrong place. So his therapist never received it, and we have no idea where the paperwork went. So he had to call the DC office and request a replacement set be sent to us. So between getting it, getting it to the therapist, and getting it back, it will be a bit longer before we can send in anything.
TB update: I started the medication on December 1st (which means I can have my first drink post-INH on my birthday!) and things are going fine. I'm not having any weird side effects (beige colored stool anyone?). The biggest hurdle is remembering to take it, which really isn't that big of a deal. I saw the Infectious Disease specialist today to check up after starting the meds. He's very nice and excited for our travels in Africa. He filled out my special "I have TB paperwork" in the office which was really great, so I don't have to go back to pick it up. After my appointment with him, I had another liver panel drawn, which is never fun, but apparently necessary. I'd rather not have my liver tank out on me without my knowledge. I'll find out if things are still looking rosy tomorrow, in case any of you are panicked about it. I for one am not.
Dr Ruscheinsky finished all of the basic medical paperwork yesterday, so that is ready to go. The dental and eye exams are ready to go too. So our current to do list is we need to write our "how we deal with stress and not go crazy" statements, and get Ken's paperwork back from his therapist. Five thousand down, three to go.
Wish us luck.

Life crazines

Sorry for the post hiatus, it's been nuts around here. First it was our anniversary (Yay!) and the PC physicals (Yay!) but then everything turned to shit. TB came back positive, the doctor thought I had an enlarged thyroid, our car got smashed (it was parked, we weren't in it, and the other guy's insurance is paying for everything, so no need to worry, but it was more crap to deal with), we moved out of our apartment and had to figure out how to pack a two bedroom apartment worth of stuff into a single room, and get used to having house-mates again (GIANT HEADACHE), I had ultrasound that showed a normal sized thyroid but one with oodles of nodules (further stress ensues, doctor eventually thinks they're fine and just part of my unique Tyan-ness, but takes a couple of days to decide), my sinus infection got so horrible I thought my face was going to explode so I went to the doctor for that, had to see the disease control specialist who made me have a chest x-ray and liver panel (both were normal), started on TB antibiotics that I have to take for 9 (NINE, grrrr) months, that come to find out react poorly not only to alcohol (pout) but also to certain staple-foods like aged cheeses, sausage, soy sauce, avocados, tuna, sour cream, and lots of other delicious things (double pout) all of which I now have to avoid, then my beloved childhood kitty Jasper died unexpectedly, work has been completely insane and I've been working overtime, and then to top it off Ken's Grandma who lives in a nursing home went into a coma, and is not expected to recover.

To say the least, I've wanted to either scream, lash out at innocent bystanders, or curl up in a ball and cry for the greater part of the last two weeks.

As far as Peace Corps news, things are moving, but not horribly exciting. All of our medical stuff is nearly done, all we have left to do is for me to take my positive-TB paperwork to my disease-control-specialist doctor, and for us to write our "how we handle stress and not go off the deep-end" statements (the past few weeks have certainly been a testament to that!). Luckily, in the end, everything was normal except the TB (which is being taken care of). So I don't think the Peace Corps has anything to reject us about. I'm assuming that they will make us jump through a few more hoops regarding the medical stuff, but at least its moving and looking fine thus far.
Wish us luck

Second Dental Exam

I had my dental exam this morning, and praise Jesus, everything is fine. No cavities, no gingivitis, no nothing. I'm so glad that I don't have to deal with any sort of dental stuff on top of the TB stuff. Tomorrow the appointment line-up is a 7:30 ultrasound to check out my thyroid, an 8:45 lab appointment to do all my blood and urine tests, and I managed to squeeze in at the Infectious Disease office at 10:45, so hopefully I'll have more answers tomorrow. For my sanity, I would really just like a gameplan of what I'm going to have to do for the TB. I know I'm going to have to take a pill twice a day for months on end, but I don't know how often he's going to require me to come in to be checked out, and how often I have to do the liver panels, and if there's something else I don't know about. Knowing my luck, there will be more stuff, but I guess I'll find out tomorrow. After this last round of appointments, we should hopefully be done with everything, and be able to send off our paperwork to the Peace Corps DC office shortly. I contacted the PC office yesterday to ask about the TB stuff, and she said that as my test was positive she was going to send me paperwork to have the doctor complete regarding if it's dormant/active and what steps I'm doing to get rid of it. So I need to wait for that, and complete it before we send in everything else. My goal to have it done by the end of the month probably wont come to pass, but maybe in the first weeks of December.

TB updates

So I talked to my doctor today, and my assumption that I would just have a chest x-ray and be done with the whole "tuberculosis" thing was completely and utterly false. Apparently I'm going to have to have a 6-9 month antibiotic therapy treatment paired with routine liver panels. Party. And to top it off, during the 6+ months of therapy, I can't drink alcohol. I'm not a lush by any stretch of the imagination, but I do enjoy a glass of wine every so often. It just seems like a low blow. Maybe it's just me. Honestly, I really just don't need one more thing to deal with right now, but it is what it is. The doctor thinks I either got it from working at the After Hours Clinic or riding the city bus, I'll never know either way. Basically I have the bacteria in my lungs, but since I'm a healthy person without a suppressed immune system, my body is not letting it develop. However, if I don't have the antibiotic therapy it will live in my lungs forever and could develop if my immune system was ever suppressed. So Peace Corps or not, I really have to do the stupid therapy. The doctor sent a referral to a specialist today, so I will hopefully be able to start therapy soon.
I spoke to a person in the medical department at the Washington DC office. I was concerned that our applications would be held until I'm done with therapy, in which case we wouldn't leave for at least six months later than scheduled currently. The woman in the office said our applications should still be able to move forward as planned, and as long as I didn't have active TB, could demonstrate that I was seeking treatment, and that my therapy didn't last longer than normal, it should be fine.
Wish us luck.

Here's a little question and answer thing I found online, so hopefully it will answer any lingering questions.



If I have a positive PPD test, do I have tuberculosis?
Usually not. A person can be infected with the bacteria that causes tuberculosis but not actually have active tuberculosis. Many people are infected with the bacteria that causes tuberculosis, but only a few of these people (about 10%) go on to develop active TB.

Healthy people who get infected with the tuberculosis bacteria are often able to fight off the infection and do not develop active TB. The bacteria is dormant (inactive) in their lungs. If the body is not able to contain the infection and the bacteria continues to grow, active tuberculosis develops.

If I do not have active TB, how will my doctor treat my tuberculosis infection?
To be sure that you remain healthy, your doctor may recommend that you take an antibiotic for 6 to 9 months to kill the tuberculosis infection. If you don't take the medicine, the bacteria will remain in your lungs, and you will always be in danger of developing active tuberculosis. The medicine used to treat tuberculosis infection is isoniazid (say: eye-so-nye-ah-zid), which is also called INH. You need to take 1 pill every day for at least 6 months. If you don’t take all your medicine, the tuberculosis may come back.

It is very important that you take the medicine every day. Keep your medicine in a place where you will always see it. Take it at the same time every day. It may help to write yourself a note or set a daily alarm to remind you to take it. Ask your doctor what to do if you forget to take a pill.

People who take INH may have side effects, but these usually do not happen very often. Side effects include a skin rash, an upset stomach or liver disease. Ask your doctor about other possible side effects.

Don't drink alcohol or take acetaminophen (one brand name: Tylenol) while taking INH because this can damage your liver. Always check with your doctor before you take any other medicine because some drugs interact with INH and can cause side effects.

Your doctor may want to monitor you every month. For example you may need to visit your doctor to get another prescription of the medicine you are taking and to monitor any side effects or problems you are experiencing from the medicine. If you are feeling well, your doctor will give you a prescription for the next month.

Tuberculosis? WTF?!

So Ken and I both had to get TB tests done, and I reacted to the shot. Which could mean that I have TB. I really don't think that I have TB, but it means that I have to get a chest x-ray to prove my innocence. Annoying.

Physicals Done!

Ken and I had our physicals done on Thursday. Everything went fine. Dr. Ruscheinsky was awesome and was very aware that everything has to be filled out perfectly. To our benefit, she had another PC physical that she did just last week, so she was pretty familiar with the paperwork and all the random stuff we have to be checked for. There are so many random tests we have to have done. I don't remember the name, but we have to be checked for this certain disease that if we have it and eat fava beans we will die. We've both eaten aforementioned beans in the last few months, and no death, so I'm pretty sure that one will be fine. We have to go down to the After Hours Clinic today to get our TB tests read. One thing that Dr. Ruscheinsky was concerned about was that I have an enlarged thyroid, so I have to go have an ultrasound done on Wednesday. I hope that nothing's wrong, but if I do have a problematic thyroid, I'd rather know now before I get a goiter, cause that's not cute.
On other fronts -- we're moving out to my parent's house this weekend. Hopefully everything totally essential will fit into our new "apartment". We're used to a two bedroom townhouse, and will now be living in a 10'x12' bedroom. Needless to say, we've gotten a storage unit.

Lady-Bits Physical

Another step in this grand medical process was for me to have a gynecological check-up. It was time for me to do it anyway, so no harm there. So yesterday I went in and had my lady-bits examined and swabbed. I'm sure everything will come out dandy, just waiting for the results so I can print them out and add them to the stack of paperwork (*crap*) that we have to send back. Tomorrow, Ken and I have our physicals with our PCP (and it's also our anniversary! Four years down, a gazillion more to go!) Then on Tuesday I have my dental check up. We still need to pick up the paperwork from the eye doctor, but they have to measure the distance between our pupils for some odd reason, and that isn't a part of a regular exam so we have to each go in and get that measured. We were planning on doing that and a bunch of other stuff the last couple of days, but I've felt like complete crud, so nothing else has gotten done. Ah well. Hopefully we can still get everything done by the end of the month. On other fronts, Ken and I are moving out to my parent's house this weekend, so that we can save money. We've gotta be able to pay for our storage unit, and 27 payments is quite a bit of money. So we'll be staying out there until we leave. Adios Whiteaker!

Dental Exam #1

Ken had his teeth cleaned yesterday, and no cavities! Yay! One less thing we have to worry about. The goof forgot his paperwork, so hopefully he had everything done that he was supposed to do, and will drop off the paperwork sometime soon. Luckily, my mama is the office coordinator at our dentist's office so she'll make sure the paperwork gets done snappy. One more step completed!

Shrinking List

Had an excellent suggestion from a blog-reader to eliminate the countries that speak French. As Ken and I don't speak French (or Spanish as was determined in our shenanigans with the possible Latin American placement) the Peace Corps would not be wise, and thankfully not planning to send us to a French speaking country. That actually rules a lot of them out. Additionally, I looked more in depth at each country to see which of them have primary focus on Health Education and Agriculture. Most of the countries in Africa have HIV Health Education programs, but fewer have Agriculture programs, and even fewer have both. So here's the updated list. Of course, Peace Corps can do anything they want, so we could get sent anywhere, but if I had money to gamble, I would pick one of these countries.

Non-French Speaking, Sub-Saharan countries of Africa Currently Accepting Peace Corps Volunteers, and Whose Primary Programs are Health Education and Agriculture:

1. Gambia
2. Ghana
3. Malawi
4. Tanzania
5. Zambia

Much smaller list! :)

Potential Countries

The the most common question I get when I tell people that Ken and I are going to Africa is, "What country?"
Until now, I honestly hadn't looked up specifically what countries are included in the Sub-Saharan group, and which of those are currently hosting volunteers. So here's my list. The list of potential countries is still really long, and most of them are taking volunteers to work with both Agriculture (Ken) and HIV education (me), so that doesn't reduce the list any further, so this is the list for now.

Sub-Saharan African Countries Who Have Current Volunteers
Benin
Botswana
Burkina Faso
Cameroon
Cape Verde
Ethiopia
Gambia
Ghana
Kenya
Lesotho
Malawi
Mozambique
Namibia
Rwanda
Sierra Leone
South Africa
Swaziland
Tanzania
Togo
Uganda
Zambia

Medical/Denal/Vision/Crazy Person Paperwork

So. We got our GIANT packets in the mail on Monday. The to-do list includes:
1. Physicals with PCP and large number of blood tests - Appointments scheduled for November 19th which I find quite telling as that's our wedding anniversary.
2. Dental exams and x-rays: Ken's scheduled for November 10th, and I'm scheduled for November 24th. We're praying for no cavities as we have to have them filled before we will be cleared.
3. Eye exam paperwork. We are both up-to-date on eye exams so this afternoon I'm going to take the forms to be completed to our eye doctors.
4. Statements of our mental sanity. Shockingly enough, the Peace Corps is said to be stressful, difficult, and can cause depression, frustration, and craziness. We both have to write a statement discussing our current sanity, and how we would deal with Peace Corps induced madness.
I'm hoping to have everything completed and in the mail by the end of the month. Wish us luck!

Letter

Got a letter in the mail today welcoming us to the next step of the application process. It also lists our program as # 15510044U5. Still no word on specific country information, but Erin says that once our medical paperwork is submitted and approved, we will get that. I'm hoping we can get all that done by Christmas, but we'll see. I also got an email today that our medical paperwork has been mailed, and we should get it next week!

We're official!

Got an email from Erin Today:

Hi Tyan & Ken,
Congratulations; your nominations have been completed!

I’ll be sending you a letter in the mail that will include some more information on the next steps.
You should expect to receive the medical packets in the mail in the next few weeks.
If you have any questions, feel free to contact me.
Best wishes on the next part of the process,
Erin

Woohoo! We're officially placed!
I talked to Dr Ruscheinsky (our PCP) about all of the medical testing we have to get done. The tricky thing is that her practice is in the clinic that I work in, and I know all the gals that will be checking me in for my appointments. My concern was that if my appointment reason is "travel" which is what it should technically be, my friend the receptionist is likely to go, "Where are you going Tyan?!" And my answer can't be, "Oh, nowhere", but I also can't start telling people that I'm going to be leaving because I want to keep my job, and I don't want to just make some fake vacation up either. So Dr Ruscheinsky told me to just schedule it as a regular physical, and that would suffice on her end. She was really excited to hear about our plans, and will keep everything quiet so I don't lose my job. I'm just so happy that we are officially nominated and that everything is moving forward.

Good news from Erin

Erin finally got back to her office and I got ahold of her today. We are still definitely assigned to a post in Africa. We had kind of assumed, but she said for sure it would be sub-Sahara as we don't speak French. She needs to talk to the director to finish assigning us to our post, but she was hopeful that would be taken care of tomorrow or the next day. Basically the director of the post needs to officially "open" our spot on their computer system so that Erin can plug us into it. Easy, but it takes both of them to be in their offices at the same time and with Erin's crazy recruiting schedule, hasn't happened yet. After we are officially plugged into the spot, Erin will send us our medical packets, and the fun will really begin. I've heard the medical process is not a walk in the park and can take months, so I'm glad to get started on it.
One of the requirements of our placement for me to get 30 hours of HIV/AIDS volunteer work. I've so far done the level one training at HIV alliance here in Eugene, which is basically just a one-hour overview of their company and practices, but doesn't really qualify me to do any actual work. I'm scheduled to do two types level two trainings on November 7th which will start the process of me being approved to do certain types of volunteer work. When I met with the HIV alliance rep I was disappointed to hear that they don't do a lot of prevention work focused on the general population. I was hoping to go out the schools and do presentations and things like that, but they are much more focused on "at risk" populations, such as men who have sex with men, and needle-drug users. They run a big needle exchange program certain evenings of the week which won't interfere with my work schedule. So I'm hoping to get on board with that, and one of my trainings on Nov 7th is to specifically train me to help with that program. For those of you worried about my safety, I would never be the only person manning the needle exchange, and they do specific training on handling the needles and equipment. You don't need to worry more than absolutely necessary.
Anyhoo - I will (crossing my fingers) hopefully hear from Erin today or tomorrow that she's gotten our placement officially done.

Videos

Still no word from Erin (shocking I know, this seems to be a trend)
However....
I found a couple of cool videos on youtube. I think they are cool, and give a glimpse of what our life may be like.

The first is from Zambia which is a country that we could definitely be sent to. Plus, this couple is totally cute.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ax0bJD_ddHE

Lesotho
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pk49MYlPm4s

Madagascar
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5d9KvnMBXk&feature=related

Tanzania
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=snA-Sb0813E&feature=related

Hopefully everything is alright....

Well, the last time we talked to Erin which was 2 1/2 - 3 weeks ago, she said that she would email us with the next steps the following Monday. Like I said, that was a while ago. I know she's busy, so I'm just going to assume that everything is fine. I'm hoping. Like I said before, I'll post something when I know something.....

Paperwork submitted

To officially agree to the post in Africa, Ken and I needed to send in a bunch of forms. The program director wanted skill code sheets that list the different experiences Ken and I have already with different stuff (healthcare, agriculture, etc) The last form was for us to electronically sign and state that we agree to the post, and are willing to be sent off to the middle of nowhere to live in a mud hut for two years. All of the forms were signed and sent off yesterday afternoon. I got an email from Erin today saying that she would get everything ready on her end and submit our paperwork by early next week. Things are rolling!

Exciting news!!!

So, I finally heard back from Erin today. She called around 1:30 to talk about the Latin American program. So she got word from the program director that they weren't going to allow any sort of flexibility with the Spanish requirement, so I officially turned down that program (Ken and I had discussed this prior, don't worry). Since the Latin American program wasn't really a viable offer, she agreed to resubmit our applications for review. The next review period isn't until late November/early December so we ended our conversation with the understanding that we wouldn't hear from her for a couple of months. Cool, good, this is what I was expecting, but I was bummed that everything was going to be on hold until the holidays.

ONE HOUR LATER, she called back and left a message on my cell phone. I saw that she had called and was really confused because she had just told me that I wouldn't hear from her for months. I listened to my message, and it was her telling me that we are being considered for a program in Africa! That was quick! I don't know the country or specific region, but it is a non-French speaking country and if everything goes as planned we will be leaving in August 2010. Ken will be doing work in agriculture and I will be doing health education with a focus on HIV. To accept the proposal, we have to fill out a bunch of paperwork listing our skills/signing our life away, and are expected to email them back by Friday. I'm so excited about this offer. It is exactly what I wanted to be doing, and where I wanted to be going. I would have gone to Latin America and been excited about the program, but it just didn't feel right. This feels so right it's a little terrifying. It's one of those "Oh God this is really going to happen, do I really want to do this? If I say yes, it's really going to happen, and my entire life is going to change" kind of moments. Terrifying, but exciting and we're going to say yes. So, wish us luck. I'll obviously update with more information as soon as we get it.

A little progress....

So, we're still waiting to hear from Erin about the Spanish stuff, which is frustrating. But, Ken got ahold of someone else in the office who said he would get on her to call us back. Apparently she's been doing a bunch of travelling, recruiting and been out of the office for most of the last few weeks. So it's nice to know she just hasn't been totally ignoring our pleas for information, and good that someone else is seeing that we get out answers.

STILL waiting to hear from Erin

So, I'm getting kind of irritated. It's been two weeks since I asked Erin if we could use some sort of alternate Spanish-learning method, and I still haven't heard back. I've sent her a total of three emails about the situation and nothing. NOTHING. I just want to know either way. If it's a "no", sure I'll be disappointed because we wont get to go to that post and will have to wait for a new assignment, but I want to know. And I feel like I should have known two weeks ago. Grrrr.

Waitin' to hear from Erin

So we are still waiting to hear back from Erin about the alternative Spanish learning options, that we are hoping will be accepted by the program director about the Latin American position. I was expecting to hear back from her today, since the program director was going to be back in the office, but I'm secretly glad I didn't since it was my birthday and we are most likely going to get bad news. Realistically, they are going to want a couple who has much better Spanish skills, and they probably wont go for our Rosetta Stone idea. So when we hear from Erin it will probably be to inform us that our proposal was denied, we wont be going to wherever in Latin America that job was, and that our applications will be held for 3 months until the next review period. In some ways that would be a good thing, because Ken and I are less excited about Latin America than other places, but we really don't want our applications to be held hostage for three months, because that means three more months of waiting before we get to leave. We are already looking at next September, and I would really rather not leave too much later than that. When we first applied we assumed that we would be leaving sometime this fall/winter, not late next summer. But we have faith that whatever is supposed to happen, will happen. Maybe our location isn't ready yet and we need to wait for it. If that's the case, we will. I have so much faith that God is guiding our application process and placement, I'm not worried about it. I want to know where we are going and am impatient about that, but I've never been worried that we are going to be sent to the "wrong" place or a "bad" place. We are going to be sent exactly where we should be sent. We will learn what we are supposed to learn, and do what we are supposed to do. I've been praying a lot about our placement lately and have such a strong feeling of peace and assurance that God is with us, and will be with us wherever we go. I had "He Knows My Name" stuck in my head the other day, and it's one of my favorite church songs, and I was humming the line that goes He'll never leave me, No matter where I go, and it really made me pause. I've never been far away from home, the farthest I've ever moved was to Corvallis. I've never had to think about if God was going to be with me where I was, because I've never been far from home, where I know he's present. But wherever we go will be far, and separate from everything I've known and loved, except for God, because he will be there, just as he is with me now.
So basically, I'm glad I didn't get bad news on my birthday, and I'm glad that God has our backs with this crazy adventure we have decided to pursue.

Latin America????

Got and Email from Erin!!!


Hi Tyan and Ken,

I’ve just been informed about a potential program for you.

Before having the specifics of the program, I’ve been asked to find out the following information:

* Could you both commit to Spanish study throughout the next year? You would need to have completed Span 202, or the equivalent, by June 2010.
* Would Tyan be able to commit to 60 hours of additional elementary education or youth development work or volunteer experience by next June to be considered for this program? This could be teaching or tutoring at the elementary/middle school level, or perhaps doing work with at-risk youth in a community center setting. Those are just a couple of examples.

I believe that the program they would be considering you for is Agriculture (Ken) and Youth Development (Tyan), going to Latin America, and departing the end of June 2010.

I look forward to hearing from you.
Cheers,
Erin

Ok, so really exciting, but also terrifying. We don't speak Spanish. Neither of us in any way is blessed with extraordinary language learning abilities, and again, we don't speak Spanish. Ok, so we just take classes - but Spanish 202 is the second term, the second year, and we would potentially be leaving in 10 months. Crap. So I talked to Erin (our recruiter) who has to talk to the person who's in charge of the program. Unfortunately that person is out of the office until Tuesday, so we can't get any questions answered until then. Ken and I don't mind studying our asses off but we can't magically get all these classes done in 10 months without some rule bending. I've emailed the evening Spanish 201 teacher at Lane and pleaded our case asking if we can get her blessing to start with 201. I also asked Erin to ask the program director to see if they would accept us studying with Rosetta Stone CDs. They are apparently really good, and we can do it on our own time, and not have to wait for winter break to finish to start the next lesson. But I don't know if they would accept that, we will have to find out, and it depends on how much they want us. I was really panicked when I first got the email because normally if you say "no" to a program offer, you basically are rejected from the Peace Corps and don't get to go at all. So I asked Erin about that, and if we aren't able to get the language stuff in order, will that just screw our potential to go anywhere. Luckily, she said that because what they are asking us to do isn't really feasible using normal routes (taking Span 101, 102, etc.) that she would authorize our applications to be considered again for different programs. However, in the crappy department, our apps would be sent to the "review" pile which only gets looked at quarterly. So we would have to wait another three months before getting a new assignment. Although, the "review" pile gets looked at first (before new applicants) so we would get first dibs the next time around.

So, we may be going to Latin America, maybe not. My gut is saying that we aren't going to go, and that our apps will be held until next quarter. Honestly, I would rather go somewhere else, Latin America just seems much more accessible, and part of applying to peace corps was the desire to go somewhere that we really wouldn't go otherwise. Although I should bite my tongue, because I don't know what's going to happen.
So at this point we are waiting to hear back from the Spanish 201 professor at Lane, and the program coordinator to find out if there are any alternative methods of learning Spanish (like the cds) that would be accepted. Wish us luck.

The two weeks is almost up!

Our recruiter has said that after our paperwork was sent to DC, we should hear about our placement sometime after two weeks. It will most likely be closer to a month to two months, but at minimum two weeks. On Monday the two weeks will be up, and we could get the exciting, life-changing email anytime after that. Very cool! I'm just happy that the minimum wait time is nearly done.
On other fronts - life is good. I got a new job and am working during daytime hours which allows Ken and I to have time together which is awesome. I'm loving my job, and very happy there. Ken's still looking for a job, if anyone hears of something, anything please let us know. Anyhoo, just waiting for news and getting excited. I seriously doubt that we will hear anything for another few weeks, if not a month, but it's cool that it could come at anytime. :)

Today! Today! Today's the day!

Our paperwork is sent to DC today! WooHoo! Our crazy adventure has really officially begun! YeeHaw!

What do you do when waiting for your paperwork to be sent to DC? Backpack of course!

WooHoo! 6 more days!

Six more days until our paperwork is sent to DC! We wont find anything out for at least a couple weeks after that - but it's a step! Next Monday!

but I want to know nowwww!

Ok, I know it hasn't even been a week since we found out, and our paperwork wont be mailed to the DC office for three more weeks, but I want to know where were are going nowwww! (Be sure to include Violet's whiny voice from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) I know I need to be patient, but when I know the country I can start the majority of the planning. If you know me, you know that I take after my Mother in that I like to PLAN. I desperately yearn to make lists of things to do, and make and buy, errands to run, and injections to get. I want to cyber-stalk other people who have gone to my country and read their blogs. I want tips on packing. Do the skirts and dresses have to be to the knee, or mid-calf? Can I wear sleeveless things? What is the general climate and what types of vegetable seeds should I bring? (I plan to have a garden, which is pretty common) Should I plan for scorching heat, monsoons, or both? Am I going to be doing health education or special ed? The mental image I have of Ken and I's peace corps adventure looks a lot like us in Africa, in a mud hut, in 120 degree weather, with a mass of beautiful chocolate colored children swarming us. There is a very good chance that this is pretty accurate, but we could also get sent to Eastern Europe and be in the mountains where it's cold, and then my mental image is completely and utterly wrong. I know you can't really plan for what will happen overseas, and I wont know what I'm getting myself into, or what it will even look like until we get there, but me and my Nazi planning tendencies would like to think otherwise. I mostly just want a vague mental image. And I'm going to have to wait another two months before I get it. Pout.

We're Recommended!

We had our second interview with Erin our recruiter this morning, and she's sending our applications to DC! The process for the next few months will be as follows:

1. She'll fill out a form discussing how awesome we are, which will be sent in on August 10th (as they can only send them in once a month, on the 10th)
2. DC will start looking at programs that match our skill sets. Apparently there are going to be a bunch of new programs opening in August and September so it's less likely we'll have to wait months and months for placement.
3. DC will find an awesome program that coincides with our awesomeness, and will contact our recruiter. This will probably happen starting two weeks - 2 months following August 10th, when she'll submit the application
4. We'll accept program, and then are official Peace Corps nominees.
5. After loads of paperwork, we will leave probably between July and September 2010!

YeeHaw!

Cool PC ads

I stumbled upon these today - and I think they're cool.

2nd interview!

So I got an email from Erin today to let us know that she had received all of our paperwork, and to setup our secondary interview! The interview is scheduled for Wednesday the 15th at 10am! It will be a phone interview - so Ken, myself and Erin will have a 3-way call. Hopefully everything will go great! I'm very excited.
On the job front, things are looking pretty good. I've been able to pick up a bunch of hours at the daytime clinics, so my hours are around 35 per week, which I'm loving. Hopefully it continues, or I get some other daytime job. We'll see, I've sent out tons of applications and resumes, so hopefully something comes back, or the daytime hours stick.

Waiting...

So, we finally finished sending off the redo paperwork stuff. The last thing to send off was Ken's recommendation letter which we got in the mail from Ken's friend on Thursday, and sent it off on Friday. So now we just wait for Erin's call to schedule the second interview. Very exciting! I'm hoping we can get the call sometime this week, and the interview next week. Unfortunately, Ken will be out of town on backpacking trips quite a bit of the next week and a half, so hopefully we can arrange it around him being gone. I'm excited to get all the medical clearance paperwork, because that's something that I can control. I don't like waiting around for other people to get there stuff done, I would much rather go to appointments and get poked and prodded to the government's content.

Sent off!

Yay! Today I faxed copies of our marriage licence and official transcripts to the Seattle office. Ken and I had both emailed our resumes last week, and Ken talked to his friend Jake last night who said he had finished the recommendation, and would mail it to us today. Things are rolling baby!
On the job front, I had an interview that went really well, but the position is too many hours to keep my job at AHC, but not enough hours and not good enough benefits to replace my job at AHC. So I was in a bind, and had to tell them that it wasn't going to work. I felt bad, but had to do it. Hopefully I'll hear something from the multitude of positions I have applied for the last week. I would really like to continue at AHC, so ideally I would like a 20-24 hour daytime position to add to those hours. Hopefully something will happen, because the money is running out!

Waiting....

So I know the hope was to get all of the secondary application stuff done last week, but it so didn't happen. At this point, we have all of the other stuff done and ready to go, but we're waiting for Ken's friend Jake to rewrite his recommendation. Ken had needed a "friend" reference, but Jake had also been Ken's manager, so he wrote it from the perspective of a boss, not a friend. So Ken had to get him to rewrite it. Since it's not in our hands, we're just waiting for him to finish it at this point. If he hasn't done it by the end of the week, I may get frustrated.

Gap Year

So Ken and I have this crazy gap year between now, and when we should leave for whatever mud hut in Africa we are assigned to. It's a fickle length of time, because it's long enough to get a real job, get trained and do that for a while, but then we'd have to quit not long after. But on the other hand, a year is an entire year. Neither of us really wants to flip burgers for a year killing time. I have my job at After Hours which I'm holding on to with white knuckles, but Ken isn't so lucky. His job on campus will end at the end of September because he wont be a student anymore. So he has to find a new job before then, with a random degree (which will be applicable when he has his teaching license, but not now), and in this economy. So he's looking for a new job (if anyone knows of anything in the area - please let us know!) and I'm looking for another daytime position to add to my hours at the AHC. Ideally, some sort of part-time office work that will look reasonable on a resume, and wont be a totally foreign concept (as office stuff is what I've been doing since high school). I could technically try to get some sort of "real" "grownup" type job, but at this point I honestly don't really want to. The last two terms at school nearly killed me. I can't count the number of times I melted onto the floor and sobbed about how I was never going to pass CDS 450 and 451. I'm mentally and emotionally fried. I don't mind working hard, or working long hours, but I honestly don't want a job that is going to be very mentally difficult. I know it sounds lazy, but that's how exhausted I am at this point in my life. Unfortunately, we really can't afford for me not to have another part-time day position, so I'm on a job quest for a part-time office/receptionist/scheduling type job (again, if you know of anything - let me know). Wish us luck.

Still working on it

Well, my hope to get everything sent on by Wednesday was a no go. I've been distracted by relaxing now that I'm out of school, and my Mom's stuff. I spent most of the day on Monday at Riverbend, and all day on Wednesday with my Mom. I'm glad I did it, but it prevented me from getting other stuff done. I don't have an excuse today, as I spent nearly all day finishing up Danielle's skirt and gabbing with her. But again, I don't regret doing that. It was fun doing simple crafty stuff and gabbing without a time limit. However, I did work on my resume, which is something they wanted, and Ken requested his official transcripts. So some things are done. I think I'll take our marriage licence to work tomorrow to photocopy, so maybe I'll be able to send off the stuff tomorrow. Maybe. Probably Friday.

Buzz Kill

So we got an email from our recruiter today, and we need to resubmit a bunch of stuff because we made mistakes. Fun fun fun. This is the crap that everyone complains about. So our applications probably wont be forwarded to DC for at least two more weeks while we resend (and they process - which is the long part) our stuff. I would like to get all this done by Wednesday. That's the tentative goal anyway.
Here's the list:

• Ken – please submit a new resume that also lists your education experience (college degree stated, submit via email)
• Ken – transcript, with your name officially printed on it (I believe you may obtain these three academic advising or registrar’s office, unofficial is okay if it has the name)
• Ken – a reference from a personal friend (see instructions below on how to add a new reference. While we’ve received three, we have two from previous jobs and one from a volunteer activity. In addition to those two categories, we also request that one reference be from a friend.)
• Tyan – please submit a new resume that also lists your education experience (college degree stated, submit via email)
• Tyan - transcript, with your name officially printed on it (I believe you may obtain these three academic advising or registrar’s office, unofficial is okay if it has the name)
• Ken & Tyan – copy of your official marriage certificate

Packing

I know it's stupid, but I'm already thinking about what to pack. This is totally letting my crazy/neurotic side show, but I've already made several lists, and am planning my PC wardrobe. It's kind of exciting having to fit your entire life into 2 bags weighing no more than 80 pounds total. What to take? What's important? This has to suffice for two years away - can I live that long without cute clothes, accessories, and kitchen gadgets? My current plan is to buy/make several button down shirt-dresses. These are cute even when loose, and I feel cute in them. I own a couple dresses like that now, and always like wearing them (I wore one today). Plus, they lend themselves to layering which I am a big fan of. I know it's stupid to be fretting about this already, but I will be miserable if I'm wearing moomoos for two years. I will feel like an ugly fat cow, and will be sad and depressed. My mood is definitely dependant on how I feel about myself, and I don't want to be pissy for 27 months. Plus, let's face it, if I'm pissy, it makes Ken sad, and I don't want to make Ken sad. I've read a lot of packing lists from other PCers, which generally soothes my worries. People manage to pack a lot of stuff in that 80 lbs, which is nice to know. Luckily, Ken and I are going together (160 lbs total!) , so some things we will be able to pack one of, instead of two. So we will be able to take more stuff overall.
I definitely want to take knitting stuff. It's a pretty packable hobby, and is soothing when I'm stressed. Plus I can knit little toys for the kids, which will be fun personal gifts. I'm planning on taking cotton, which wont be hot like wool-blends, and is kid-friendly.
Other packing thoughts - I can't decide if Ken and I should take a laptop. Some of me likes the idea of being disconnected (that is some of the point right?), but the ability to play DVDs, CDs, ability to download pictures from camera, and blog writing is very alluring. But the potential for theft, or it dying from heat/humidity/dirt/bugs worries me. Still haven't decided.
A lot of PCers bring frying pans. Apparently the ones in other countries suck bigtime, and are recommended. But they are also quite bulky and heavy. It is a frying pan after all. Other kitchen things: good knives and cooking utensils. I will probably bring at least one good knife (I'm pretty picky about having good knives). I've heard that pampered chef has a knife that has a sharpener built into the cover. That would be pretty sweet.
Of course, what I pack will depend on where we go, which we wont find out for at least six months. But in general, loose clothes that breathe, comfortable shoes (chacos, danscos and dr martens can all be walked in for miles and miles), and a couple of activities to keep me happy will be the majority of what I pack.

Hello, and welcome to our blog

Hi! It's Tyan

Ken (hubby) and I applied to the Peace Corps a little over two months ago. The process thus far has moved pretty quickly, and hasn't tested our patience too much yet. Though I hear it gets horrible later. We had our interview three weeks ago, and are now waiting for the secondary "phone" interview. If all goes well, the phone interview should end with our recruiter forwarding our applications to Washington DC. As a couple, the application process is a little different as Washington handles most of it, in contrast to single applicants who are mostly handled by their recruiter. At our interview, Erin (our recruiter) said that we should expect to leave sometime next late spring/summer (May-September 2010). Based on our qualifications we are most likely going to get sent somewhere in Africa or the Pacific Islands. Ken's focus is Agriculture, and mine will either be Health Education or Special Education.

Ken and I had told a few people about applying to the Peace Corps, but had not announced it to the majority of our families. At our joint graduation party, we announced it to the family. Most people weren't thrilled. I wasn't horribly surprised, but was still saddening. The most common response was, "Why would you want to do that?", or "Why would you want to go there?". I think my Aunt Annah was the only person who didn't already know to be excited by our announcement. I think a lot of people assumed I was pregnant, and announcing that. I did gain a little weight this term (stress), and I could see how people could think it was pregnancy chub, not just LLD-stress-nearly-killed-me chub. I think that the family will think more favorably on our decision as time passes. I know it will be hard (and will be hard for me!), but this will be a great experience.

To sum it all up - we are waiting to hear if our application is being forwarded to DC, we should leave next summer, and everyone knows (even if they aren't that happy about it).