Reflections

So... as of yesterday, I closed a huge chapter in my life.  Fresh out of college, I sent out applications and went on a few interviews, got a job offer at the Pennsylvania School for the Deaf.  Before that time, I had never visited Philadelphia nor did I want to live on the east coast.  After some consideration (and waiting for jobs on the west coast), I decided to accept that job and move to a city that I had never visited.  I wanted to find an apartment before I moved there, so I spent lots of time looking online for an apartment and found one. I paid for it before I even saw the apartment and the location.  I felt nervous, but kept on thinking positive.  It turned out to be a decent apartment in a good location.  I am very relieved that it all worked out after living in Philadelphia and seeing the different sections of the city.

I originally moved to Philadelphia to become their Early Intervention teacher, teaching part time in the 2 year old playgroup and conducting home visits the rest of the time.  Over my 8 years, I continued to work at PSD as a classroom teacher for children between 3 to 5 years old, and then later as an American Sign Language specialist working with young children to develop their ASL skills.

I had no set plans for the future when it came to how long I wanted to live in Philadelphia, or where else I wanted to live.  I just lived life one day at a time.

Fast forward 8 years later, I am a different person now than I was at 26 years old.  I went through good times, bad times, happy times, sad times and in between times.  I went on my first overseas trip to Sweden to visit Linda that first Thanksgiving break, and have been hooked on traveling since then.

There has been several changes in my family:  births, marriages, divorces, health issues, deaths, and moves (both locally and long distance).  There has also been changes in my personal life: moves (both locally and long distance), friends coming in and out, life partner entering and leaving, job changes, development of confidence in running and of course finances.

I would like to thank PSD for having faith in me as a young 26 years old graduate fresh out of college and allowing me to grow professionally and personally.  I would like to thank my co-workers at PSD who kept me sane with interesting conversations.  I would also like to thank my family for all their support, wise advice and standing by me over the years.  I know I will always have my family by my side, no matter what decision I make.

I would never trade the past 8 years of my life for anything else.  It made me who I am today, ready to embark on another adventure in the Marshall Islands.

“The biggest adventure you can ever take is to live the life of your dreams.”  - Oprah Winfrey

Second farewell party

Another department at psd threw me a small farewell party... I will definitely miss working with them and the kiddos!  

Farewell party

The department I work with threw me a small farewell/good luck party... They ordered pizza and gave me cake... I will miss working with them!

Precautions

My vaccination site!

Today I went see a travel medicine doctor for a "consultation" and to get a vaccination.  The doctor was very nice and answered many of my questions, and for those he did not know, he looked it up and gave me the answer.  I got a vaccination for Typhoid, so now I am 65% protected against Typhoid.  (No one wants to get Typhoid Fever... CDC-Typhoid Fever)  I also got a vaccination for Hepatitis A and tetanus last month.  I need to go back to get my second dose of Hepatitis A vaccination, which is in 6 months (November)... I will be on the island.  The doctor said that I may be able to get the second dose on the island, I will need to find out.  He also gave me an antibiotic for traveler's diarrhea.  Traveler's diarrhea typically happens for 1 week, and with the antibiotic, it will go down to 1 day, yay! :)

I went to Target to get one thing that I need for my home (file box) and thought I would use the opportunity to check out some of the items that I need for the Island.  I left Target $150 poorer, without the file box, LOL!  (They did not have what I wanted).  I thought that I would have to spend the money anyways eventually, so I got a lot of what I need.  I used the Cartwheel App on my phone and got things on sale, so I saved a lot of money.

I am going crazy trying to finish things at work, pack my stuff here at home and trying not to worry about if everything will fit in my car.  Only one more week of work left!

I set up a fundraising page to raise money for books and DVDs related to books for the children in Marshall Islands.  I have raised $435 so far!  If you are interested in checking out the fundraiser, please go to Suzy's Donation Page.

Checking my list once... twice... thrice... so on...

I have been buying a lot of stuff lately, mostly maxi skirts.  I have a long list of stuff that I need to buy, YIKES!

This is from World Teach... Their suggested list of items to bring... (I crossed out the items that I already have).. I hope everything will fit in my bags...

*Flip flop, sandals or crocs
*Sneakers (if you plan to run, if not , don’t bother) (HECK YES I AM GOING TO RUN)
*Enough underwear for 10 days
*Women – skirts that cover knees and shirts that cover shoulders for teaching
*Men and Women you will have to cover up for swimming (sun protection for men and sun protection and cultural reasons for woman) Boards shorts and tshirts for men and boards shorts and t shirts for woman to wear under a guam ($6-12 dollars each) that you can purchase on Majuro.
*Snorkel gear if you plan to snorkel its sometimes hard to find here in the RMI
*rain jacket
*Hat for sun
*long sleeve shirt (you may get cold if classrooms during Orientation have A/C)
*towels ( quick dry or regular)
*Pillow (If you have room, if not you can buy here for about $20-30)
*T-Shirts – you will wear lots of them and they get dirty fast.
*Sunglasses
*flashlight (batteries)
*watch or alarm clock
*water bottles (Nalgene)
*Swiss army knife
*calendar
*journal
*vitamins, medicines and first aid kit (very necessary)
*Neosporin, creams for rashes and mosquito bites
*mosquito coils (can be bought at outdoor stores)
*Mosquito Netting
*envelopes ( DO NOT BRING STAMPS, THEY CANNOT BE USED IN THE RMI, you will have to purchase when you arrive)
*Electronics - Ipod, Camera and computer like devices (at your own risk, most placements will have a place you can charges these items, but how often you can charge will be up to the owner of the battery or solar unit)
*Insect repellent with Deet (you will get bit by mosquitos)
*Sunscreen (lots of it, you are very close to the equator)
*Glasses (bring an extra pair if you were glasses)
1 pillowcase
2 towels
1 set of bed sheets (Full for sleep mats, Twin for dorm dwellers and queen for Kwajalein vols)
1 small, compact blanket if you are placed on an air-conditioned site
Medications that you commonly use, including aspirin
Basic antibiotics
Pepto-Bismol
Waterless hand sanitizer
Medication for hay fever and other allergies
Cold/cough medications
Water purification tablets
A thermometer
A simple first-aid kit, including Band-Aids, gauze and tape
Motion-sickness tablets
Hydrocortisone creams
Feminine hygiene products (can be purchased on Majuro)
Dehydration tablets or salts
6 passport photos
Extra batteries (alkaline last longer than regular) or battery charger
A cheap watch with alarm or alarm clock
A water bottle (bring 2 or have one sent ½ way through year)
A small case to carry passport and money close to your body
Spending money in cash and traveler’s checks
A calendar
A pocket calculator
A combination lock
USB flash drive
ESL materials, classroom decoration – see Teaching Supplies below for more
Pictures of your friends and family to show people
Books, Books,Books for free time reading


Volunteer suggestions

*A list of items this years volunteers wish they brought:

• Instrument
• Ipod
• Journal
• Underwater camera
• Kindle
• Family Photos
• Back pack
• Women – leggings and long basketball shorts for under short guams
• Scissors
• Extra pair of sandals
• Raid
• Playing cards
• Sudoko
• Tablet and Hard Drive
• Movies – DVDs
• Solar power charger
• Small mirror
• Many razors

Things that this years volunteers wish they had know ahead of time:

• How much discipline I had to instill
• Taxi rates for Majuro? (.75 cents to $2.00 btwn. Rita and Airport each way)
• How long Majuro Really is? (33 miles long Rita to Laura)
• To bring a knife
• How high cost of living is on Majuro
• Electricity is never a guarantee 100% time on Majuro
• How much free time they would have
• How strong the sun really is
• Too many ants, mosquitos and cockroaches
• Classroom management issues
• Lack of school materials
• High School placements have internet access, even on outer islands
• Bring multiple watches
• Bring plenty headphones
• The need to bring more than one pair of sandals

The cat is out of the bag...

I finally told my co-workers this week about my upcoming adventure.  Most of them were thrilled for me and understandably had lots of questions.. Some popular ones that I have had to answer again and again are:

• Where is it?  North of Australia, near the Equator
• How long will I be gone??  About a year
• What will I be doing there?  Teaching Deaf and Hard of Hearing children between 3 to 5 years old and establishing an Early Intervention program
• Will you come back to PSD?  I have no idea.  Who knows what the future holds for each of us.
• What is included?  Room, board, travel and health insurance
• What language do they use?  English and Marshallese for spoken language, think they have their own Sign Language... They are researching that now. 
• What money do they use?  American Dollar

People I have talked to about my swimwear for Marshall Islands have loved the fact that I have to swim in a muumuu type of thing.... They demand that I post a selfie of myself with the muumuu.. :)

I think that is all so far.... If any more questions pop up, I will post them! I also mentioned that I plan to fundraise for books for the children there.

So it begins...

So it's been about a week since I got accepted to volunteer in the Marshall Islands with the World Deaf Teach organization. I have confirmed my intent to volunteer, and am going through so much right now with different doctor appointments (to get physical, vaccinations, etc.) and trying to pack up my apartment. I am hoping that everything that I want to keep will fit in my car after two trips. I plan to leave my stuff at my dad's home, so I will drive there around end of June, and then again right before I go.

I also have so many questions and know part of what to expect, but there are still a lot of unknown parts of my volunteer experience.  I guess I will learn more when I actually go there and live it on a daily basis. 

I have not gotten confirmation of when I will depart. Hopefully that will happen this week so I can get started planning for my trip out west. I have to get to LAX somehow, then the organization will pick up my travel arrangements to Majuro from there.

While I am in the Marshall Islands, I will be teaching young Deaf and Hard of Hearing children between the ages of 3 to 5, and establishing an Early Intervention program. I am looking forward to the adventure to come!

The Deaf school there was established about 4 years ago by World Deaf Teach volunteers. Prior to that, Deaf people did not get an education at all, so the school is still new.

 I am planning to fundraise to buy school supplies and books (and maybe some ASL DVDs if possible) for the Deaf school there to have. Please keep posted!

I will try to update this blog periodically while I am over there so my beloved family and friends can keep up with my life.