Wow, I cannot believe that this time before I leave for staging is going by so fast! Even though I knew it was going to, it never ceases to amaze me that one minute you have a few months, then the next it's only a few days! I'm in Livermore now, with the Bean (my koshka) at my Mom's house until I leave. It still feels like I'm just visiting and I will go back to my apartment in Chico in a few days. With all my stuff. But it's all gone! (Yes, I donated most of it...4 truckloads of donations to ARC) Moving out of the apartment was a whirlwind, and it still seems like I dreamt it. Even with all of the fun adventures ahead, I know I will miss Chico, my apartment view of the creek, the crazy boys (and Nicole) in my apartment complex, the Johnnie's crew, my TIL classmates... But this is the way things go. So now I'm busy in Livermore tying up all the loose ends: bank stuff, power of attorney, my phone, final packing, selling my truck...and getting to spend time with my awesome family before I leave. Each day has been (and according to my calendar, will continue to be) packed full of things to do! Today is a fun one though; I will be leaving to go to Santa Cruz to visit my sister Lindy in a few hours. I'm looking forward to being away from all the business stuff and to have a little Chilean Funk dance party.
I'm feeling sad that I haven't made time for language learning yet. It's pretty overwhelming with everything else that's going on. I know that I will have plenty of time to study and learn in a few weeks, but I can't help but feel like I'm slacking on that a little. My Dad gave me some audio CDs, maybe I'll check 'em out on the drive to Santa Cruz. On a more positive note, I was able to complete the TEFL pre-departure training course before the deadline (yeay me), and think about what I will do on the first day of class. I am still struggling with grasping how to plan lesson plans for students who I have no idea about what their levels of proficiency are. At this point, I don't want to insult them on the first day with a lesson that is way too easy, or confuse them with one that is too difficult. I suppose that erring on the side of easier and adapting as necessary is the way to go for now.
So, June 29th I fly to LA for staging in the early morning, then off to China on the 30th in the early afternoon. We will be spending the night in Bangkok, which we have all expressed concerns about on our China 18s Facebook group. To be determined if we are just spending the night in the airport or not. :) Then it's off to Chengdu, to settle in with my host family and start the crazy schedule of being a PC trainee. After training (until August) I will be interviewed and find out my official post, and be sworn in as a Peace Corps Volunteer. I'm sure there will be many more blog entries during this time, but I figured I'd give you all a glimpse of what's to come. I am feeling the typical range of emotions: excited, scared, nervous, anxious....they all come and go. It's a crazy roller coaster ride! But I am inspired by Cindy Kennedy's spirit to keep pushing through these emotions, and to GET IT DONE. Even though I wish I could talk to her now about all this crazy stuff (and get some of her AWESOME advice), I know that she is with me and helping me tackle the things I need to do. I hope to make her proud, and I know she will be.
So I suppose that's it for now, much, MUCH more to come in the upcoming weeks with the preparations and travel stories. And then I'll be there...in China...hooray! I can't wait to get there!
Peace.
