Off And Running
So here's the thing. I've been working on this blog since very early Friday morning, and I want to post it all. Just in case you prefer the Reader's Digest version, here are the cold hard facts:
- I have accepted a position with Siemens Water Technologies. I will be moving to Wisconsin sometime in the near future.
- I thought about this long and hard (and prayed a fair amount, some of which was very loud, almost-yelling "conversation") before deciding this was the best course of action.
- I'm really, genuinely psyched about this new step in life ... and not just because I finally know what's going on.
Now, if you want to delve into the mind of Ashley, read on!
Written Thursday night/Friday morning, when I was insomniacking:
Thinking about: oh, so many things ...
Listening to: Some U2, some Jars, some more Regina Spektor, and some White Stripes
Wishing for: Daylight and a little more information
I got the phone call today.
I've been getting a fair amount of random correspondence lately. Mail, some of it fun, some of it not; random Facebook "hey, be my friend" messages; a few fun visitors; phone calls that did and didn't matter ... Today, I got the phone call I have been waiting for since roughly Monday.
Unfortunately, the phone call didn't get me. He left a message. A short, call-when-you-hear-this message. That I didn't hear until past normal hours this evening.
My phone is freaking out (as mentioned in a previous post) and, as such, spends much of its time off. Today it was off for much of the afternoon (charging, but still off) and I missed the phone call.
As a result, I am doomed to spend the night awake and in my own little world. I thought I had shaken the insomnia that plagued me over the last semester, but apparently I was wrong -- it had only gone dormant, waiting for the prime opportunity to strike again. It found its opportunity this last week, and seems to have discovered its prime real estate tonight. Not that I should be surprised; my future hangs in the balance, and tomorrow I'll know. If there is anything that is going to keep me up at night, that knowledge will do it.
Now, I watch movies and wish that the Internet hadn't died. Where did it go? Why? Would it just come back? Please?
Argh.
Fine, fine, I can content myself here. Plenty to watch, plenty to read ... And this way I don't have to creep around the house. It doesn't matter that I grew up here, or that I'm "all grown up" and shouldn't be afraid of the dark -- at night, this house gets freaky. It's hard to put a finger on it, but I think it has something to do with one of the windows (lacking in a curtain or blinds and rather importunely placed). Plus it's large, empty, and weirdly creaky.
Side note: It's been asked countless times, but why does the bad guy always have an elaborate plot to kill the good guy? When will they learn that it just doesn't work that way?
Written Friday afternoon:
While I know I won't post this right away, I want to announce it: I've been offered a position in Wausau, Wisconsin. I'm pretty sure I'm going to accept it.
It's been hard. While I've been torn between a missions position and a regular chem-e position, something came to light early this week: my motivation for taking the missions position was NOT a good one.
You see, I've had my heart set on going to Russia for some time now. The problem is -- well, I was willing to do almost anything to get there. I didn't necessarily want to go to teach English. Sure, that'd be fun and all, but mostly I was interested in the free time I would have. Tea, CCX, hanging out with my girls, all that ... I didn't care why I went, just that I would go.
Now, tell me something: would you, if you were in charge of the program, want someone whose heart really wasn't into their work on the team?
I don't want to insult the people who were willing to have me on the team. I thought I had the right motivation when I interviewed, and I was pretty sure that was the direction I was headed. It took some serious, gut-wrenching reflection to figure out that I was lying -- to myself, to my potential teammates, to everybody. As much as I could see myself in the position, I didn't feel it. I was almost alarmingly unaffected.
And that's just not right.
When I went to Wisconsin for my interview, I found myself getting excited about the job. The location is pretty awesome, too (I may finally be able to take up kayaking), but the job was something I had looked for without knowing I was looking for it. Does that make sense? When I met my potential coworkers, saw the facilities, and actually heard about what I would be doing, I thought -- for the first time since I started interviewing -- "Yeah, I could do this. Heck, I could even enjoy it."
Some people find that hard to believe. It's largely a desk job, and there are parts that will bore me. But there are other parts that will be pretty awesome, and it is those parts that I'm going after.
It's crazy. Two weeks ago, I wasn't sure how long I would be living in my parents' basement. I didn't know where I was going, what I was going to do -- or what I SHOULD do -- and I really didn't know what I wanted. Heck, a year ago, I wasn't convinced I was going to find a job that I thought I would like.
Everything's different now, and it's looking good.
Saturday night/Sunday morning:
The insomnia is persistent. I think I need to be a little more forceful and go to bed. Church in the morning, after all.
I got the phone call -- THE phone call -- yesterday morning, about three and a half hours after I fell asleep. I've been offered a job. And ... I'll be taking it. Then I spent a large chunk of the day NOT talking to people, no matter how hard I tried. Frustrating!
Nerves are starting to settle in. I got my paperwork this morning (which was blessedly free of information) and suddenly things seemed more real. I'm hoping to contact a few more people tomorrow so I can post this thing ... Egads. Don't want to randomly surprise too many people, hm?
I have so much I want to say, but none of it comes out well. Maybe I should turn in.
Verdict reached. Have a good night, everybody!
Early Tuesday:
I'll be out in Rapid this weekend, if all goes as planned ... Good stuff. In particular, I'll be in town on Sunday for as much of the day as I can. Besides that, I'm getting ready to move!
It's exciting. I've been looking up apartments, churches, coffee joints, restaurants -- right now I'm just looking forward to actually being in town so I can do some exploring and figure things out.
This blog is plenty long. I think it's time it ended.
Thanks for reading, folks! Talk to y'all soon!
- I have accepted a position with Siemens Water Technologies. I will be moving to Wisconsin sometime in the near future.
- I thought about this long and hard (and prayed a fair amount, some of which was very loud, almost-yelling "conversation") before deciding this was the best course of action.
- I'm really, genuinely psyched about this new step in life ... and not just because I finally know what's going on.
Now, if you want to delve into the mind of Ashley, read on!
Written Thursday night/Friday morning, when I was insomniacking:
Thinking about: oh, so many things ...
Listening to: Some U2, some Jars, some more Regina Spektor, and some White Stripes
Wishing for: Daylight and a little more information
I got the phone call today.
I've been getting a fair amount of random correspondence lately. Mail, some of it fun, some of it not; random Facebook "hey, be my friend" messages; a few fun visitors; phone calls that did and didn't matter ... Today, I got the phone call I have been waiting for since roughly Monday.
Unfortunately, the phone call didn't get me. He left a message. A short, call-when-you-hear-this message. That I didn't hear until past normal hours this evening.
My phone is freaking out (as mentioned in a previous post) and, as such, spends much of its time off. Today it was off for much of the afternoon (charging, but still off) and I missed the phone call.
As a result, I am doomed to spend the night awake and in my own little world. I thought I had shaken the insomnia that plagued me over the last semester, but apparently I was wrong -- it had only gone dormant, waiting for the prime opportunity to strike again. It found its opportunity this last week, and seems to have discovered its prime real estate tonight. Not that I should be surprised; my future hangs in the balance, and tomorrow I'll know. If there is anything that is going to keep me up at night, that knowledge will do it.
Now, I watch movies and wish that the Internet hadn't died. Where did it go? Why? Would it just come back? Please?
Argh.
Fine, fine, I can content myself here. Plenty to watch, plenty to read ... And this way I don't have to creep around the house. It doesn't matter that I grew up here, or that I'm "all grown up" and shouldn't be afraid of the dark -- at night, this house gets freaky. It's hard to put a finger on it, but I think it has something to do with one of the windows (lacking in a curtain or blinds and rather importunely placed). Plus it's large, empty, and weirdly creaky.
Side note: It's been asked countless times, but why does the bad guy always have an elaborate plot to kill the good guy? When will they learn that it just doesn't work that way?
Written Friday afternoon:
While I know I won't post this right away, I want to announce it: I've been offered a position in Wausau, Wisconsin. I'm pretty sure I'm going to accept it.
It's been hard. While I've been torn between a missions position and a regular chem-e position, something came to light early this week: my motivation for taking the missions position was NOT a good one.
You see, I've had my heart set on going to Russia for some time now. The problem is -- well, I was willing to do almost anything to get there. I didn't necessarily want to go to teach English. Sure, that'd be fun and all, but mostly I was interested in the free time I would have. Tea, CCX, hanging out with my girls, all that ... I didn't care why I went, just that I would go.
Now, tell me something: would you, if you were in charge of the program, want someone whose heart really wasn't into their work on the team?
I don't want to insult the people who were willing to have me on the team. I thought I had the right motivation when I interviewed, and I was pretty sure that was the direction I was headed. It took some serious, gut-wrenching reflection to figure out that I was lying -- to myself, to my potential teammates, to everybody. As much as I could see myself in the position, I didn't feel it. I was almost alarmingly unaffected.
And that's just not right.
When I went to Wisconsin for my interview, I found myself getting excited about the job. The location is pretty awesome, too (I may finally be able to take up kayaking), but the job was something I had looked for without knowing I was looking for it. Does that make sense? When I met my potential coworkers, saw the facilities, and actually heard about what I would be doing, I thought -- for the first time since I started interviewing -- "Yeah, I could do this. Heck, I could even enjoy it."
Some people find that hard to believe. It's largely a desk job, and there are parts that will bore me. But there are other parts that will be pretty awesome, and it is those parts that I'm going after.
It's crazy. Two weeks ago, I wasn't sure how long I would be living in my parents' basement. I didn't know where I was going, what I was going to do -- or what I SHOULD do -- and I really didn't know what I wanted. Heck, a year ago, I wasn't convinced I was going to find a job that I thought I would like.
Everything's different now, and it's looking good.
Saturday night/Sunday morning:
The insomnia is persistent. I think I need to be a little more forceful and go to bed. Church in the morning, after all.
I got the phone call -- THE phone call -- yesterday morning, about three and a half hours after I fell asleep. I've been offered a job. And ... I'll be taking it. Then I spent a large chunk of the day NOT talking to people, no matter how hard I tried. Frustrating!
Nerves are starting to settle in. I got my paperwork this morning (which was blessedly free of information) and suddenly things seemed more real. I'm hoping to contact a few more people tomorrow so I can post this thing ... Egads. Don't want to randomly surprise too many people, hm?
I have so much I want to say, but none of it comes out well. Maybe I should turn in.
Verdict reached. Have a good night, everybody!
Early Tuesday:
I'll be out in Rapid this weekend, if all goes as planned ... Good stuff. In particular, I'll be in town on Sunday for as much of the day as I can. Besides that, I'm getting ready to move!
It's exciting. I've been looking up apartments, churches, coffee joints, restaurants -- right now I'm just looking forward to actually being in town so I can do some exploring and figure things out.
This blog is plenty long. I think it's time it ended.
Thanks for reading, folks! Talk to y'all soon!
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