So, as luck would have it, the slowness of the dial-up my aunt and uncle have at their house did not allow my last blog to be posted. This is annoying, as there was a ton of stuff in there that I do not now remember so I'll just have to update the most recent things that have happened.
First of all, my "friend" Neal and I are now dating and have been for a couple of weeks. We chose not to post it on Facebook because, really, in the grand scheme of things, what does it matter? We know we're official so there's no point in announcing it to the world at large just so I can be bombarded with questions. We have a ridiculous amount of things in common, we think on the same wavelength, and his family is abnormally like mine...
As of yesterday (6/9/09) we at Verizon moved from training to transition. On Monday we spent the morning taking our final assessment, followed by a raucous party for which we had a potluck. My Sunday was spent at Neal's house watching him make pasta salad as I slaved over my potato salad (which turned out relatively well). There was a ridiculous amount of food at our party and we invited anyone who wanted some to feel free to help themselves. That afternoon we were given our scores and our ratings. The rating was merely for the sake of shift bids. For example, I got a 92% on the final assessment which ranked me 6 of 23. Last week we were given a list of possible shifts for once transition is over (Aug 30th) and we were to number the list from what we wanted most to what we wanted least. The person who was number 1 in the class got first pick and so on. Due to being 6th I had a very high chance of getting the shift I wanted (which I did, but more on that later). We had "graduation" and then we took all of our stuff upstairs to our assigned desks and spent the remainder of the day setting up email and the printer and so on. On Tuesday we began the evening shift, the 3-11:30pm shift. It's a bear, especially when you're in the classroom most of the time. For now we are taking the time to review specific procedures and policies that we will need once we take calls... which is from 3-6:15pm tomorrow. *PANIC*
Aside from my job, which I know bores many people (though please feel free to bombard me with technical questions because it helps me learn and helps you), I finally moved into my own apartment! Two weekends ago, the last weekend in May, my dad came up with the remainder of my belongings and he, my grandfather, Neal and I moved everything into my new studio apartment a mere fifteen minutes from Verizon. Dad spent the weekend, came to church with me, and got to meet Neal (whom I had begun to officially date the previous Monday). Since Dad and Neal are both Red Sox fans neither can complain about the other. Plus Dad friended Neal on Facebook, which is always a good sign. As of now the apartment is mostly set up, but I'm in the market for a large bookshelf and searching for material with which to make curtains for the oddly sized windows. Once all of that has been taken care of and everything is unpacked I will take pictures of my apartment and post them here for all to see.
All in all, I'm loving Connecticut. When I first moved here I wasn't so fond, but the longer I'm here, the more people I meet, the more I like it. This does not mean that I intend to stay here for the rest of my life, but it'll do for now. My apartment is cozy and clean and has a balcony and a hanging plant gifted to me by my aunt and uncle and I have healthy food and will have plenty of money in order to live. Just Tuesday I got cable tv and high speed internet, for which I am exceptionally thankful. After a month or more of dial-up or the library I'm on cloud nine. The longer I'm here the more I believe this is really where God wants me to be. The apartment never felt alien to me, even though I hadn't lived here before. I feel safe, and I love living on my own. I found the most amazing church, have a date for lunch next Tuesday with a new friend, was invited and went to a Memorial Day picnic (which was described in the last blog that didn't post), have a boyfriend, love my job, and have been ordered to visit my grandparents once a month no matter what. Though I miss my friends in Ohio (one of whom defriended me on facebook without warning or reason) I am happy and content to be here.
With one exception.
The shift I was given is Wednesday - Sunday, 3:00-11:30pm. I know from my research that Christmas is on a Friday this year. Vacation time is impossible to get when it comes to holidays, so for the moment I am unable to go to Ohio for Christmas this year. However, from what I understand our next shift bid happens in October and goes into effect in November so I still have a fighting chance. If I'm still unable to get home I was invited to spend Christmas at Neal's... but it's just not the same. Neal's family doesn't have the traditions that my family does. I have never once missed Christmas with my family because I always lived at home and I always assumed I'd be able to go home for the holiday but it just isn't so. So my new prayer is that my next shift bid will give me Thursday and Saturday off so that no vacation time is needed. However, one of my TAs told me that I could do a shift swap with someone and change two of my shifts to different days. Though with it being Christmas the likelyhood of that happening is slim to none.
Beyond that one depressing fact, I love Connecticut and am thankful to be here. It's strange to look around and realize that this is the world I live in now, that New Concord is no longer my home... but it's a fact of life. All kinds of changes will happen in my life that are bigger and stranger than this transition, but at least when that happens I'll be ready for it.
