I Love Jamaica

I love Jamaica already. I am so excited and eager to get there.  Everyone that I have encountered via phone and email have been so helpful.  They have gone above and beyond to help me get things in order. All of the troubles I was having in my last post have all been resolved.  Everyone there (one person at the US Embassy in particular) have been so helpful and generally concerned about my situation and helped things come together in plenty of time.  I will be purchasing my tickets tomorrow and then the countdown officially begins (because tomorrow is my official last day of school). Will post again soon!

PS

I forgot to mention the great article the was written up at WU on behalf of me receiving a Fulbright. I'm most appreciative of this recognition.

WU Article: Anthropology Instructor Selected for Core Fulbright Scholar Study in Jamaica

Time to Buy the Plane Tickets… But Wait…

Before I get into the details of our Fulbright experience I have to say in my “go me, go me” cheering voice that I SURVIVED MY FIRST SEMESTER OF THE PHD PROGRAM!!!  My last day of class was on Wednesday (though I still have one class left next week during finals period). It was a rough ride but I’m so glad I did it.  In these short 16 weeks (I can say that now that now that it is over lol) I have learned so much academically, professionally and personally.  I certainly look forward to having the next semester off to go to Jamaica, but I am definitely eager to keep this grad school ball rolling and successfully completing my remaining two semesters of coursework.

Ok… On to Fulbright! The check arrived in the mail yesterday from CIES for our upcoming move to Jamaica (Thank you CIES).   It feels surreal… I have spent the last seven months thinking and planning for this trip and now the time has finally come to take action.  I plan to have our tickets purchased by the end of next week as this will give us time to make final decisions about when we will leave and when we will return and who will be traveling with us (as well as clear up some issues I will talk about below). I also plan to start purchasing items we need to take with us but don’t have on hand, like mosquito nets and a small portable coffee makerJ… you know the essentials lol!!!  How we will get all of our stuff plus all of these items to Jamaica is still a question though.  I just learned that the airline we chose has a one bag restriction. When did that change? I always thought you could put two bags under the plane at no charge.  Goes to show how often I fly!! So for the next week I will be scouring the internet trying to find the best flight deals as well as the best deals on the items I need to get. But wait…

Where will this flight be taking us?  Well we know for sure we are going to Kingston Jamaica, but that is all we know right now.  On Wednesday we found out that there are some issues with assigning me housing and defining exactly what my role will be at the university.  It is a strange situation about my status and I am not sure how it developed (though I have my suspicions).  So while I know we are going to Kingston I do not know where we will be living just yet.  My contact at the US Embassy as well as the department chair (I do not want to post names for privacy reasons but a HUGE THANK YOU to you both) have gone above and beyond in helping me get everything straightened out.  On last word, the decision making powers recognized what had happened and are working to fix everything.  I am in full confidence we will know something more definite by the end of next week. This definitely does not lessen my excitement about our trip.  In fact it makes me more excited seeing how wonderful people have been in trying to help us get everything sorted out. I will keep you posted J

Happy Thanksgiving... and the future!

Happy Thanksgiving!  I am so extremely grateful for so much that I couldn't even begin to list them all here.  A few (obvious ones) are I'm thankful for my family both close and not so close.  I'm thankful for my friends who are true and dear to me.  I'm thankful for Winthrop and the job I have and absolutely love there.  I'm thankful for my grad school experience and all of the many wonderful people I have met this semester.  The list goes on and on!  

We are very excited to eat turkey and all of the other great stuff involved in the holiday.  We are even more excited to do so with family and friends in Tennessee.  We will be spending this holiday saying goodbye to family as we make final preparations to move to Jamaica.

The countdown continues with only 55 days until we leave. We are still waiting on confirmation of housing and a work permit, so our leave date may actually be postponed, but until we hear otherwise we are preparing to leave in the middle of January.  Some great news is that my mom may be traveling with us and spending those four months in beautiful Jamaica with us.  We are still working out the details and have to wait and see if her retirement date will be approved, but if that happens, I can’t begin to tell you how happy we will be.

What is crazy, however, is actually thinking about life post Jamaica.  At Winthrop it is time to start thinking about what classes we would like to offer in the Fall of 2012.  I am now trying to determine what my schedule will be then.  I have spent these last eight months anticipating this trip to Jamaica that I have not been able to think about our life once we return.  What I do know so far is that we will be packing up and moving closure to my job (and ultimately closer to my school) next summer, once we return… Yay! I know what preschool Nay will be attending next school year… aaaannnndddd that’s about it.  That’s all I know… I don’t know which or how many classes I will be taking at USC, I don’t know what my schedule of classes will be for the ones I will be teaching at WU.  I don’t exactly know what will be going on with my older kids (to enroll them in school or to not enroll them in school… that is the question). So, that is where I stand… excitedly preparing to leave and not knowing what the future holds J

As always, thanks for reading!!!!

Updates and finalizations

With less than 90 days before we head to Jamaica we have officially started our countdown.  It is becoming more and more real to the kids… and to me!  We are starting to nail down final arrangements as we get all of our paperwork in order.  There was a little bit of confusion on my role at the university but I believe that has all been sorted out and I have finally received word on what classes I will be assisting with.  I am extremely lucky in that I get to put a heavy emphasis on my research while I am there.  While I certainly would love a more hands-on role in the class room I am EXTREMELY grateful for the time I will get to spend in the field (and with my children exploring a beautiful country).  My time there (as of right now) will consist of me guest lecturing and focusing on my cemetery research.

We have had some changes in our plans and our friends will not be traveling to Jamaica with us to hang out with the kids while I am working.  I am not sure what I will do with the kids while I am working now.  I am considering enrolling them into school in Jamaica.  As homeschoolers here in North Carolina, however, they have never been in a school setting and I do not want to overwhelm them either (especially being so far away from home).  I think we will just make the final decision once we arrive and are able to get acquainted with our new surroundings.

As I have been emphasizing, (which I can’t seem to emphasize enough) we are VERY excited about our upcoming trip.  

Only a few months now...

Well we are about three months away from our move to Jamaica. Excitement and extreme nervousness is in the air.  I’m about to reignite me efforts to collect things such as batteries, candles, etc to add to our Jamaica box.  I’ve been fortunate in that the last several months have keep me pretty busy, and even the summer before that, so I have not had time to just sit and think about Jamaica.  Well, things are slowing down now and I have plenty of time to think about Jamaica.

My first semester in the PhD program is brutal going well!  I didn’t anticipate the amount of work it would require, so I of course thought it would be a piece of cake to juggle homeschooling, a full time teaching job and being a PhD student.  I am now learning that I am far from being Super Woman, and that’s ok.  This semester has showed me that I need to start setting realistic goals and that will start in Jamaica *smile*. Speaking of goals I have come a long way in my research.  Finishing up at one site and getting ready to start another.  Researchers in my field have been so generous with information that it is almost overwhelming.  I will have to a lot to do when I return from Jamaica.  I’m looking forward to seeing how data I collect from Jamaica will tie in, but I suspect it will all tie in nicely providing a broader more well rounded picture.

So now that things seem to be slowing a bit I will make more of an effort to keep this blog updated.  This will be my lifeline to family and friends once we leave (this and FB) so I want to keep it active.  Thank you to whoever is out there reading it now! Peace.

Catching Our Breath

Well it’s been several weeks since I last posted.  I can’t believe it’s September already.  We will be in Jamaica before we know it.  All is well here. Today I sent mailed $25 and a note to the superior courts of Charlotte asking for a background clearance.  This is my first step in gathering what I need to obtain my work permit for Jamaica.  I hear it is a long process so I am excited to be starting early.

The kids and I are finally starting to get used to our new schedule this semester.  I started in a PhD program two weeks ago and my new FT NTN position at Winthrop a week ago.  The kids started back to “school” a week ago as well.  It has certainly been an adjustment but I think we are doing well. Fortunately we are flexible and just roll with the punches (the kids a bit better than I do) so I’m confident in our adjustment just like I’m confident in our ability to thrive in Jamaica for several months.

Life is crazy, busy and exhausting but so enjoyable right now.  We are still just as excited to go to Jamaica as ever (although a bit more nervous as time draws nearer).  More later!