Death by Power Point

I kid you not, I think it could be an actual medical diagnosis. I have spent a solid week and a half it seems just being shown power point presentations on how things are done at my new job. Oh and I have now seen every security video and seen countless power point slide shows about knowing every measure I need to take both when traveling as well as just living out in the community to identify a terrorist. I really never knew that I would be come a CIA agent instead of nurse here, boy am I surprised!! (FYI this is all in good humor...or so I think)

I am being funny here...well only a little bit. I really do think that the Government should take out stock in Power Point ie Windows office. I have as of yet not worked a single hour as a nurse in my two and a half weeks here (though my neighbor has been her two weeks longer than me.....).

What I DO have to show for my time is an id card, health insurance, a ration card (no joke they DO exists), passed my health exams (hearing, sight and physical), passed a drug test (or so I think), I also have a drivers licence and a few more piece of knowledge on how to spot a terrorist.

It is not all bad really. I did get to look at apartments today, and have an idea on what kind of car to buy etc.

For all those wonderful friends and family that check this little blog I do what to let you know I am not homesick yet, though at times I do wonder what I have gotten myself into!! Those moment are fewer these days since I have gotten most of my computer training done (getting this computer training done has really become a milestone in my life. It is on some of the most ridiculous stuff I have ever come across!! but any who) which as now led my bosses to the conclusion that I can now....dun dun dun............WORK!!!!

Yes folks your read it right I get to actually work as a NURSE come Tuesday Sept the 30th in the year of our Lord 2008!!!!! I have to be there at 0630 (yeah that one hurts me to read too!!) and get my scrubs on and get report at 0645. I know that the excitement I am currently feeling will wear off by 0631 once I truly realize how early I had to wake up but for now I am pretty excited.

I will try to take a few more pic this coming week so y'all can have more to look at then my poor excuse for writing!

Just to let y'all know I am doing well, loving this new adventure and do miss each and everyone of you!!

Love ya!
Rachel

Oh what a swim!!

Sooooooooooooooooooooo here I am in Germany!!! It was a long long long flight but I made it! Sorry it has taken me so long to write y'all the internet here just sucks! Here is a pic of me at Baltomore before I got on my flight to Germany...I was soooo tired and hot at this point!!

My sponsor Michelle was at waiting for me once I got my baggage and we then proceeded to drop my belongings off in my room and then started a long line of paperwork at different offices. I had to swear in with the flag to defend the constatution, that was fun. I may have to re-enact it so I can take some pictures!! Any way about the paperwork, I must say they do ask some strange questions! For example one questions is weather I can move and think simutanulusly.....ok then. Well I managed to get through a few more questions before I totally went looney from lack of sleep!! We then did a small tour of the base and then headed over to the grocery story ie the commessary. Over all not a bad first day!

Day two: I slept as much as I could, though I kept waking up every few hours, oh well. I got to meet one of my "neighbors" (he is in the hotel room next to mine), whom is also going to be a nurse in the ICU, and we went to lunch. It was raining most of the day so not too much to do. We did get to the libary, I got to buy some calling cards that WORKED, etc!!!!!! Yeah I tried to call my family on Friday but the dang cards would not work, oh well porblem solved now. Over all not too bad a day.

Day three: The sun was out and so I planned to do the same!! Its Germany here folks so every thing is closed on Sundays so Jack, the neighbor, and I drove to a city that is pretty close and walked around to see the train station, buses, what the local shopping was like etc.

Here is where I will be living till I get a place

I have spent the last few days working on paperwork, meeting some of my new co-workers and getting stuff done. For example today I got my badge, was inproccesed, had a hearing test, and got my drug test done. Really this is a lot by the standards around here!!! It seems to take FOREVER to get the simplest things done. Oh well its my new life and I am going to roll with it. I did get a cell and will be working on getting my skype downloaded, will let you know how it goes.

Love ya,

Rachel

BTW I cannot get the spell check to work sooooooo sorry about that!!

Bare cubbard

So they came, they packed and then they loaded it all into a plywood crate and sealed it up. Yep the first part of moving is done and all my worldly goods are headed for a little trip across the pond. It all went far smoother than I ever thought possible, gives me a wee bit more confidence in this whole move thing. I now get to look forward to unpacking everything when I get my apartment in Germany!!!! Oh the fun I will have, or at least that is what I am telling myself, every little bit helps.

The count down is in the single numbers so I am pretty excited and am just ready to start this adventure.

Will keep y'all updated!

Love ya,
Rachel

Friends

As this process unfolds I have come to realized that I have been especially blessed with friends who are the best!! I was very happy that I got to hang out with two of them today. Bud is moving also in the near future so I wish her the very best these next few months!! Lindsay is on a new journey already with her new husband and cute dog!! I adore them both and am thankful for the time I got to spend with them today!!

Love ya ladies!

Rachel

Moving right along!

So today was D-day, moving day. I have been spending the last week working on getting my stuff ready for the big move, packing, sorting and the like. Well first off I never realized I had some many pieces of clothing, so I first got that all sorted out. I then decided to be all "organized" by getting the kitchen items divided to one area, den items to another, bathroom, bedroom etc, you get the idea. I took pictures of everything..... well I think it is just supposed to be expensive items but this helped me make a more complete inventory if I could refer to a pic for each item listed, wow this makes me sound really anal retentive huh!!! So the whole making a list and taking pictures took some time too, about a day really.

It seemed to be quite a drag, not to mention I went down memory lane WAAAYYYYYY too much when I was going through my room. Oh and on a side note thank you Kate for helping me clean out my room over a year ago or this would have been a HORRIBLE process!!!! In the end though I think I am thankful I went this extra step since it did make everything go very smoothly this morning when the movers came. FYI they all asked how many times I had done this since I seemed like a pro! *blush and mental high five*

So now here I am with most of my worldly possessions all boxed up and ready to be moved in the am. This is a huge relief and it kinda makes me think that I can take on this whole move by myself, quite a feet! Over the last week as I have been packing I have honestly had my doubts, it just seems like too huge a project/life change to be doing all alone and with no prior experience at something like this *waves around*. Amazingly today calmed my nerves just by how smooth it all went and how well I had been able to prepare on my own, by just reading up and finding resources with the information I needed.

Thank you to everyone who has helped me find the information I needed, answered all my annoying questions, calmed my irrational fears and have just otherwise "been there" for me.

Love ya!!!