One blog post ago I officially declared my life plans of moving to Charleston, SC for a new job. Well... things have changed. Several months ago a good graduate school friend of mine who worked at the Palmetto Health Richland Hospital informed me that he would be moving with his family back to his home state. As a result an opening would be made available at the hospital... along with another opening. I talked with my friend about how I could get in on that gig (as I new my beloved ARC job was coming to a close). He gave me excellent advice which I followed to the letter. I had my coworker ... who happens to be an expert in forensic pediatrics and closely affiliated with the Children's Hospital at Richland.. extend a recommendation to Ms. Decision Maker at the hospital. She promptly contacted me requesting my resume.... which I sent back. Then the wait began. She contacted me letting me know of a position opening in the heart hospital and questioned my interest since the population would be primarily adults and primarily case management... a break from my work of the past four years.
Side note: I've wanted to work in the hospital system for some years now but it is next to impossible to get in unless you know someone or interned with them. I wanted to work in either the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) or the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU).
Back to the story... I told Ms. Decision Maker that I would be delighted to do case management with adults. No problem. She informed me they would contact me once interviews would be scheduled. Great. I waited. And waited. And waited. I contacted Ms. Decision Maker again and she informed me that the position had not been filled but that the hospital board was discussing financing the position and she would contact me when interviews were being scheduled. And so I waited. And waited. And waited so long that I could no longer wait and informed the Charleston job I would accept their offer (after much drawn out negotiation) but that I would need at least 6 weeks before I could start. They were none to happy about that but I didn't feel I could be ready faster than that.
Nothing about moving to Charleston seemed to be working out. I couldn't find housing. I wasn't sleeping. My stomach was in knots. About two 1/2 weeks before Charleston I got a phone call from the hospital informing me they would like to do an interview with me. I said "YES!!!!" I went and interviewed immediately and I got a call back to see if I could come in the following week for second interviews. That was 10 days before my start date. I asked how many sets of interviews normally happened and they said 4. Four!??!!!?? They knew about my Charleston gig and said they could piggyback interview 2 & 3 together.
So I went in for the 2nd interview and the 3rd. The 3rd happened to be with Ms. Decision Maker herself. During our interview she went back to the whole "you've only worked with kids the past four years" issue and I inwardly groaned. And then she said the most magical words I've ever heard "We have been thinking that since you have a strong background with children you would be a good fit for our NICU. We have an opening and we haven't posted it yet. Would that interest you?" I of course almost wept and kissed her feet but I restrained myself to merely sighing a dramatic "Oh, I would love that." The NICU!!!! Where I wanted to go originally. I figured if I could at least get in then I could move around once positions became available. She promptly brought the NICU team in and I interviewed with them. Then they took me on a tour of the NICU. I met with director (interview #4) and waited for a call back. I got the official offer that Thursday ... a much better offer than I had ever before received... I spent a brief time ensuring that this was the right thing for me and called back to accept the offer. Then I called Charleston shortly thereafter. Charleston was none to pleased and their reaction to my decision to stay in Columbia only solidified to me that I had made the right choice.
So, that's a really long detailed story to say, "Man, that was a close one." In the process of it all I learned a greater level of trust in God and finally have been able to establish some personal goals ... as I have felt lost about my future... not having any personal goals to work on or areas to develop. I have gained clarity and feel certain that for now this is what I need to do at this time in my life. And I am happy. For those of you who have listened to my frantic rants or repetitive worries... Thank you. Your support helped me through the past 6 months. I am grateful to have you in my life.
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Chucktown.
Goodbye Columbia:
Many of you know that my job at the ARC... my beloved and the world's best job is coming to end. I am a grant funded employee and the State has decided not to fund a full time position or the 4 hours of monthly psychiatry time required for a therapist (which if they would agree to this we could have applied for/received another grant to fund my position)... so the entire treatment position will be no more. It's a shame since the ARC is a specialty clinic and I have spent the last four years treating children and adolescent victims of abuse... a job I love. But I will vent no more. Consequently I have spent the last few months searching for jobs and the past few weeks trying to make a decision.
I am happy to announce...Decision made. I will be moving to Charleston in June to start a job with the National Crime Victims Center at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC). I will continue doing counseling for trauma victims but with a different population. Fifty percent of my job with be working with women and children in the Hispanic community who are traumatized by intimate partner violence. The other fifty percent will be working with families traumatized by homicide in the urban community. I will be working as an outreach therapist so I will meet my clients in safe places in the community.
Pros: Close to the beach. More money. Close to the beach. Professional development. Close to the beach. Improve my Spanish. Close to the beach.
Cons: I will miss my Columbia peeps and my job at the ARC.
Secret shame: I don't particularly like change unless it is on my terms and this is not on my terms... but I am learning to come to terms with it. I'm learning. The beach is helping.
Hello Beach:
Come visit.
Many of you know that my job at the ARC... my beloved and the world's best job is coming to end. I am a grant funded employee and the State has decided not to fund a full time position or the 4 hours of monthly psychiatry time required for a therapist (which if they would agree to this we could have applied for/received another grant to fund my position)... so the entire treatment position will be no more. It's a shame since the ARC is a specialty clinic and I have spent the last four years treating children and adolescent victims of abuse... a job I love. But I will vent no more. Consequently I have spent the last few months searching for jobs and the past few weeks trying to make a decision.
I am happy to announce...Decision made. I will be moving to Charleston in June to start a job with the National Crime Victims Center at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC). I will continue doing counseling for trauma victims but with a different population. Fifty percent of my job with be working with women and children in the Hispanic community who are traumatized by intimate partner violence. The other fifty percent will be working with families traumatized by homicide in the urban community. I will be working as an outreach therapist so I will meet my clients in safe places in the community.
Pros: Close to the beach. More money. Close to the beach. Professional development. Close to the beach. Improve my Spanish. Close to the beach.
Cons: I will miss my Columbia peeps and my job at the ARC.
Secret shame: I don't particularly like change unless it is on my terms and this is not on my terms... but I am learning to come to terms with it. I'm learning. The beach is helping.
Hello Beach:
Come visit.
Sunday, April 17, 2011
T.N.T.
I think it's time for another roommate post. This here post is about my lovely sister Dinahmite. We are not biological sisters ... more like sistas from another mista'... and another motha'. Heh heh. Dinahmite was my saving grace at BYU. I used to sing AC / DC to her all the time "She's TNT... she's Dinahmite!" and she stayed friends with me... so I knew she was a keeper. I met Dinahmite as a freshman and lived with her my second semester, my sophomore and part of my junior year as well as part of my senior year. Our first night as roommates we stayed up talking until the sun came up. It was like we had been friends our whole lives and were just getting reacquainted. So here are my top 13 reasons Dinahmite is every bit of TNT...
1. Dinahmite is super patient. I gave her plenty of reasons to be mad or annoyed with me but Dinahmite always treated met with loving patience.
2. Dinahmite is the epitome of poise. If you looked up the word in the dictionary her picture will be listed. Seriously. Go check it out on Wiki.
3. Dinahmite is every bit a homemaker. It is from her I learned that people besides my mom ... like girls my age... do things like clean and keep an orderly house. Or plan meals for dinner.
4. Speaking of dinner, Dinahmite loved to cook and I to eat so it worked out well for me. The summer after my sophomore year I spent my time swimming in the pool and taking two classes: English and bowling. When I got home from class Dinahmite would have dinner on the table. If I had been a boy I would have married her just for that!
5. Dinahmite is honest and sincere. That quality alone makes her one of the most successful salesperson I have ever seen. You always know you can trust her.
6. Dinahmite makes me laugh so hard. I love to laugh. She is one funny girl.
7. Dinahmite makes others feel safe. When you are with her your emotional safety is not even a question. Your name is safe. Your worries are safe. Dinahmite is not critical or a gossip.
8. Dinahmite knows how to diffuse a tense situation. There was an incident once in our apartment of four girls where emotions were tense and at a critical stage. Dinahmite called everyone together and before engaging in a discussion of the issues, she asked us to kneel and pray together. It was the quickest resolution to a problem I have experienced to date.
9. Dinahmite walks into a room and commands attention... just because she's drop dead gorgeous. I'm not kidding. Oh, and everyone knows her even if she doesn't know them. But she doesn't let that get to her head. I think the majority of the time she's clueless to the fact.
10. Dinahmite is like a vault. Your secret is safe with her... especially if you talk to her in the middle of the night when she's sleeping... cause she'll talk to you like she's awake but won't remember it in the morning. ;)
11. Dinahmite has an amazing testimony. Amazing.
12. Dinahmite has great style.
13. Dinahmite made me want to be a better person. She was like a big sister and role model to me as a entered into the adult world. I still look to her for that example.
Love you Dinahmite. Mwah!
1. Dinahmite is super patient. I gave her plenty of reasons to be mad or annoyed with me but Dinahmite always treated met with loving patience.
2. Dinahmite is the epitome of poise. If you looked up the word in the dictionary her picture will be listed. Seriously. Go check it out on Wiki.
3. Dinahmite is every bit a homemaker. It is from her I learned that people besides my mom ... like girls my age... do things like clean and keep an orderly house. Or plan meals for dinner.
4. Speaking of dinner, Dinahmite loved to cook and I to eat so it worked out well for me. The summer after my sophomore year I spent my time swimming in the pool and taking two classes: English and bowling. When I got home from class Dinahmite would have dinner on the table. If I had been a boy I would have married her just for that!
5. Dinahmite is honest and sincere. That quality alone makes her one of the most successful salesperson I have ever seen. You always know you can trust her.
6. Dinahmite makes me laugh so hard. I love to laugh. She is one funny girl.
7. Dinahmite makes others feel safe. When you are with her your emotional safety is not even a question. Your name is safe. Your worries are safe. Dinahmite is not critical or a gossip.
8. Dinahmite knows how to diffuse a tense situation. There was an incident once in our apartment of four girls where emotions were tense and at a critical stage. Dinahmite called everyone together and before engaging in a discussion of the issues, she asked us to kneel and pray together. It was the quickest resolution to a problem I have experienced to date.
9. Dinahmite walks into a room and commands attention... just because she's drop dead gorgeous. I'm not kidding. Oh, and everyone knows her even if she doesn't know them. But she doesn't let that get to her head. I think the majority of the time she's clueless to the fact.
10. Dinahmite is like a vault. Your secret is safe with her... especially if you talk to her in the middle of the night when she's sleeping... cause she'll talk to you like she's awake but won't remember it in the morning. ;)
11. Dinahmite has an amazing testimony. Amazing.
12. Dinahmite has great style.
13. Dinahmite made me want to be a better person. She was like a big sister and role model to me as a entered into the adult world. I still look to her for that example.
Love you Dinahmite. Mwah!
Friday, April 8, 2011
Banana.
For a while I've had the thought that I need to do a segment on my roommates, what they've taught me and how my life has been made better by knowing them. In order to maintain some semblance of privacy on their behalf I am using only the nicknames that I have for them. Muwahahahaa. Additionally I will try to keep my favorite qualities/lessons learned about each contained in the "dirty dozen".
I have decided to start with Banana... for two reasons. One, she has been on my mind the past couple of days and ... Two, because it is her birthday weekend and I am ALL about celebrating birthdays. Here are my top 12 reasons for loving Banana's wee little guts:
1. Banana brought to remembrance how much I love classic works like Pride & Prejudice; Sense and Sensibility; Jane Eyre; etc.
2. Banana introduced me to all sorts of really cool film adaptions of classic works. Bleak House anybody? Jane Eyre with Toby Stephens. Yowzas!
3. Banana also introduced me to and instilled in me a love of Masterpiece Classics on Sunday evenings. I don't know what my life was like before that. Seriously. And, they only come on for like 4 months in the year. The other 8 months are like torture. I stalk the PBS website frequently to see if just by chance they post a list of next years showings. It's getting a little out of control.
4. Banana knows how to pamper herself and shares my love of yummy smelling lotions and crazy colors for nail polish.
5. Banana inspires me to crochet. The girl can whip out a scarf like it is nobody's business.
6. Banana likes to veg. A girl after my own heart. She graciously spent whole days doing nothing but watching back to back episodes of movies / tv shows with me.
7. Banana likes vanilla diet coke as much as I do.
8. Banana has an amazing capacity to be super animated about the little things. Always makes me feel so good.
9. Banana is hilarious... which is good, because I like to laugh.
10. I covet Banana's hair and wish I could pull off her look. Simply amazing.
11. Banana is a P.H.E.N.O.M.E.N.A.L. teacher. I could listen to her for hours. Her brain is crazy cool.
12. Banana is thoughtful and I have watched her as she has quietly sought out the one... the one who is missing or distant or just needs a vote of encouragement. She has an amazing capacity to identify people who may just need someone to notice them or reach out to them and she does it all on her own. I love about her.
13. Ok, if this dirty dozen were a baker's dozen then you would have thirteen, right? So, Banana knows how to ponder. I'm not really good at that but Banana has got mad ponder skills.
Thanks for being such a great roommie Banana. Happy Birthday!! Love your guts.
-Mee
I have decided to start with Banana... for two reasons. One, she has been on my mind the past couple of days and ... Two, because it is her birthday weekend and I am ALL about celebrating birthdays. Here are my top 12 reasons for loving Banana's wee little guts:
1. Banana brought to remembrance how much I love classic works like Pride & Prejudice; Sense and Sensibility; Jane Eyre; etc.
2. Banana introduced me to all sorts of really cool film adaptions of classic works. Bleak House anybody? Jane Eyre with Toby Stephens. Yowzas!
3. Banana also introduced me to and instilled in me a love of Masterpiece Classics on Sunday evenings. I don't know what my life was like before that. Seriously. And, they only come on for like 4 months in the year. The other 8 months are like torture. I stalk the PBS website frequently to see if just by chance they post a list of next years showings. It's getting a little out of control.
4. Banana knows how to pamper herself and shares my love of yummy smelling lotions and crazy colors for nail polish.
5. Banana inspires me to crochet. The girl can whip out a scarf like it is nobody's business.
6. Banana likes to veg. A girl after my own heart. She graciously spent whole days doing nothing but watching back to back episodes of movies / tv shows with me.
7. Banana likes vanilla diet coke as much as I do.
8. Banana has an amazing capacity to be super animated about the little things. Always makes me feel so good.
9. Banana is hilarious... which is good, because I like to laugh.
10. I covet Banana's hair and wish I could pull off her look. Simply amazing.
11. Banana is a P.H.E.N.O.M.E.N.A.L. teacher. I could listen to her for hours. Her brain is crazy cool.
12. Banana is thoughtful and I have watched her as she has quietly sought out the one... the one who is missing or distant or just needs a vote of encouragement. She has an amazing capacity to identify people who may just need someone to notice them or reach out to them and she does it all on her own. I love about her.
13. Ok, if this dirty dozen were a baker's dozen then you would have thirteen, right? So, Banana knows how to ponder. I'm not really good at that but Banana has got mad ponder skills.
Thanks for being such a great roommie Banana. Happy Birthday!! Love your guts.
-Mee
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