Brave

Just thought I'd share this song by Sara Bareilles:

Fantastic message. Did you know that she wrote this song to help her friend come out? Spending a month in Europe comes with a tiny bit of fear... This song eliminates that feeling! Thanks, Sara! I wanna learn the dance, too...

11 days and still planning...

...and that's OK! Fellow solo travelers, I must ask: Isn't it a blast planning your itinerary without the involvement of another individual a blast? It is for me. I'm thrilled to be traveling by myself. Oh, the places I'll see, the people I'll meet, and the alcohol I'll drink. The main idea behind this trip to Europe is to experience new people and to gain more knowledge. Another idea is to hopefully give back to the world a piece of my own soul through conversation, a nice gesture, a smile, paying for someone's beer, traveling with a fellow traveling stranger, placing my hand on someone's if they're crying, and many more. The possibilities are endless. Come with me through this blog!

Current love affairs: Rhoda from The Mary Tyler-Moore Show, Liverpool, Skype, old blog posts, campfires, my family, identity, Calvin Klein underwear, the Isle of Man, new car smell, white glasses, "Skinny Love," and conquering old memories. 

Oh, the places you'll work!

Many times over conversations with people, I'll start a story with something like, "I used to work at this_____." Usually within a month and half a dozen similar situations, they say, "Jeeze, you've worked everywhere!" It's been a while since I sat down and attempted to compile list of places I've worked at since the ripe age of 11. This may scream child labor. Some I'll give descriptions. Let's begin.

1. Furniture Grunt Farmer--3 houses down from our house. I was 11 tears old, visiting the neighbors and their upholstery shop when the wife asked my sister and I to stay for an hour or two to assist with removing fabric from a couch. She offered money. We both looked at each other and said, "Sure!" We apparently had nothing better to do. No schoolwork, no chores, no babysitting, nothing. Apparently. So began my first real job--taking apart furniture, harvesting and grading eggs, stamping egg cartons, and babysitting the neighbor boy on an average of 25-30 hours per week ALL while trying to keep up with school, church chit, (some) sports, home chores, home projects, babysitting siblings, and participating in daily hour-long (sometimes more) home Bible studies. Some positives about these experiences: every time I look at furniture I immediately formulate a plan and connive the best way to take it apart. This went on until job # 2. Finally, a little more freedom.

2. Greasy Cashier--My older sister paved the way for this fast-food failure once she left for college. I started working after I got my license until shortly before I graduated HS. This job was my first real exposure to the secular world. God, was I a naive, happy-go-lucky little Christain boy hoping to change one per day life for Christ. I didn't make many deep friendships here. I was too innocent and preachy in the "nice" way. I always nicely asked people to stop swearing around me and encouraged people to stop smoking because it could lead to sin. God, why!?!? I was so oblivious to being real with people. Never did I hang out outside of work with anyone there. My regret. Truly.

3. Real-Estate Gopher/House-Sitter--This job was supposed to be inside working on website design, answering phones, and filing papers. But it turned out to be the assistant to the owner's wife. She had me do EVERYTHING--file papers, upload website real estate pictures, vacuum offices, wash windows, mow the company's massive lawn, haul trash, distribute brochures, run grocery, bank, and gas errands, babysit her twin boys, clean her house, housesit, and feed the dogs. Again, I was so naive but this time to the opportunity I had in front of me. I hated most of what the job but I do believe it instilled a busy and strong work ethic. Same with the chicken chit furniture job. Work ethic. Can't buy it. I learned how to work hard at a young age. However, I really did miss out on some key education in HS and friendships. I was pressured to make money--everything that my friends did, I couldn't do unless the funding came out of my pocket. This typically starts late in HS, but for me, it started when I was 11 years old.

4. In-Between Jobs--My mom always recruited work for her kids--home chores/projects (renovating the basement with dad, building the garage, getting firewood, painting, etc...) or paying jobs. We usually did both to survive--home chores/projects because we had to earn our keep and paying jobs to get away from home to be with people other than family. It sucks that I had to pay to hang out with friends. The in-between jobs I had were raking, mowing lawns, baling hay, dog-sitting, babysitting, and many more countless wrecks. One time I volunteered at Habitat for Humanity--but not building houses. No, I made pointless phone calls to pissed-off church pastors creating awareness for the Habitat organization. I hated making those calls--I believe that has instilled a fear of phone sales in me.

5. Golf Course Clerk (summer position)

Post-HS/Undergraduate years:
6. College Work Study (2 school years)
7. Math/Writing Tutor (2 school years)

Mackinac Island Summer Gigs:
8. Carriage Tour Driver (2009)
9. Moonlight Hotel Pianist (2009-10)
10. Bike Shop Renter (2009-10)
11. Fudge Shop Cashier (2009-10)
12. Sailboat Deckhand (2010)

Grand Rapids:
13. Macy's Associate (2 months)
14. Family Video Associate (4 months)
15. Bridal Show Sales Position (terrible 1 month... it was really a scam for future couples :[ )
16. Dog Daycare Handler (3 months until they randomly stopped scheduling their workers)
17. Server/Bartender/Assistant Bouncer (7 months)
18. Bridal Boutique Intern (3 months)

Chicago/NYC:
19. Unofficial Merchandise Mart Intern for Ebel Inc. (6 months)
20. Model (one-time gig)
21. Showroom Assistant/Visual Merchandiser--India Handicrafts Inc. (seasonal in Chicago and NYC)

Home:
22. Substitute Teacher (8 months)
23. Institutional Advancement Intern (9 months)

I'm sure this list will continue to grow. I constantly yearn for growth. Hopefully the teaching assistantship will be a grand experience.

Thanks for reading!

Current love affairs: NYC, France, dusting, Oberhofer, neurology, cells, twitter, instagram, photography, Harbor Springs, cheese, The London Candy Company, and memories.

Europe

The idea of visiting Ireland has been in my heart for about 4 years. 4 summers ago, I was ---><--- this close to hitting the "send" button to confirm a flight from Chicago to Dublin for $450 round trip. Including taxes. I was naive for not doing so. Finally, I'm gathering a plan to make the trip to not only Ireland, but also Paris, Edinburgh, London, and (hopefully) Stockholm. The targeted dates are late May to late June. Summer classes begin on the 18th, so I hope to make it back by around then. On the right side of this thread is my ideal and extremely hopeful itinerary.

Thanks for reading! Next post, I'll go into detail on what I hope to accomplish in each location. I also have more pictures of the apartment! It's quite extraordinary. Cannot wait to move in officially!

Applications: Part 2

TA training starts on the 27th. Ugh, I'd love to ramble on chit that's been going down around here with the nasties, but grad tips must go on!

1. Deadlines. Don't get behind! Like I mentioned earlier, have everything prepared--recommendation letters need to be the first.
2. Teaching assistantships--find out if the program has any offered and apply for them even if you don't feel like you want to teach. The stipends can be up to $16,000 per school year. My stipend is covering everything except some of tuition. 

Post-Applying:

1. Relax. Celebrate with wine, movies, and friends to get your mind off of the apps!

Applying for grad school can be a cake walk--especially compared to applying for med school! If you're qualified with a good GPA, average or SPECTACULAR GRE scores, killer letters of recommendation,fantastic and compelling writing samples and personal statement, you'll do fine.

Thanks for reading!

Current love affairs: NYC, France, molecules, ukuleles, Sia, skiing in Sweden, the periodic table of elements, swimming, Shameless, wine, cadavers, John Hopkins, and swell memories.

Applications: Part 1

Time to talk grad school applications!

Each program/school is different. My process of applying began after getting my GRE scores. That way I knew which schools I qualified for. However, some schools will take a low GRE score if your GPA, recommendation letters, or resume are outstanding. I was fortunate enough to ask an prior professor who attended there--her mother also used to teach there. Reason for getting in? Possibly. Here were my stats for getting into a Communication Studies graduate program at a state university:

GPA--3.04
GRE--Q: 145, V: 144, AW: 3
Letters: College professor and president of a college
3 weeks before the deadline
Solid personal statement
Writing samples

Like I said, everything I submitted was low... sometimes I think the school accepted me because there wasn't a great pool to choose from :/ Meh, at least I'm accepted. This will be the ultimate test to get (next to) perfect grades. I mean, I'm hoping a 4.0 Master's degree with teaching experience at the university level will be a great weight on my med school applications..?

There isn't much you can do about your old GPA and GRE scores (unless you take it again). So work heavily on getting a great letter of recommendation. The owner of a large and well-known company you worked for or the president of a college. Before you ask, assume that they'll say "yes" and have a folder with a list of things you want them to say in the letter--specifics on what the program is looking for that you possess. I was applying for a teaching assistant and had my "recommendors" mention that I substituted for a school district and community college for a year and also worked at a college.


Here are some general tips of advice:

1. Setting an EARLY enough goal. Find out those deadlines and submit the application as soon as you can afford the application fee. (I'm saying that because I applied right after graduating and didn't have much money...! !)
2. Find out WHAT the application wants you to send. Do they provide writing prompts or a sample? Are there personal statement questions or do you BS it? Transcripts? Sometimes the school wants double of everything sent to Records and Registration AND the division. 
3. Call the program director and establish an interest. Better yet, VISIT. Ask EVERYTHING about the application and coursework. I say coursework because that gives you a better feel for their program outside of what the website tells you. I was dead set on attending one school, but once I started talking about the coursework, it didn't feel right for me. I'm glad I visited.

That's it for now. Thanks so much for reading!

Current love affairs: NYC, France (Je t'amie!), Ella, beer, graduate school, hospitals, MDs, weddings, pianos, Broadway, and memories.

Apartment

I must brag a bit about my new apartment... The lease starts on July 15th. I'm moving in officially on the 25th of August--2 days before TA training and a day after the NYC trip--a perfect amount of time to get settled! Prior to NYC, I'm moving my boxes/bed...
I've already started to collect various pieces of great furniture for the space such as a tall, skinny bench that I'm painting a charcoal gray and an old Carnegie library bookshelf I'm painting the same color. I'm putting the bench along the exposed brick for guests (and myself) to put coats on, take boots off, etc... I'd like to use the mini bar area as my desk/bill pay area. So excited!

Entry

Granite?

This place will be the anchor of grad school--a haven to come back to without dealing with roommates, their better halves, and all of the added friends. Did that, 'twas fun for a while, learned a lot, I highly recommend it during undergrad, but for grad school, get a place you feel very comfortable at. I opted for a 1-bedroom close to campus. For this apartment (located within a mile from campus, a block from downtown, and close to the library), I decided to increase my housing budget to have it ($650/month + around $70 in utilities/month). I haven't decided on whether I should get cable/dish. I never had "TV" (except VHS/DVD movies) growing up unless it was at grandma's or relative's/friend's. I guess the need to have "my show!" never struck me. Hold on. There is one show I'm in love with. Shameless on Showtime. It's a knockoff of the UK version... I think it's JUST as good, if not, better. Emmy Rossum, William H. Macy, and Joan Cusack are in it among many other talented individuals. Look it up. It's a ballin' show. That's the only thing I'll watch next to the Discovery channel, Spongebob, and the news. Is cable worth it for $90/month (including internet)? I can afford it, but that money could be put towards other needs...? We'll see.

Thanks for reading :-] The next post will entail grad school applications.

Current love affairs: NYC, France (Je t'amie!), Neurology, Oliver Sacks, David S. Goodsell, coffee, weddings (I've played piano for 2 this week!), Grand Rapids...?, EMT training, and memories.