This Time of Year

Oh December. I have been waiting for you the entity of November. Finally you are here but I am floating. Floating around my mind attempting to settle down to write ONE MORE PAPER! :) I have so many random thoughts that maybe if I write them down here I can get down to business.

So... I have decided to stay home to do work today with one all defining rule: NO TV. I really am tired of wasting $6.00 per latte at a cafe... tired of getting a sore bum from the uncomfortable library... not to mention getting the yucky germs from library go'ers. I also do not like literally racing to find a seat at the library. So.. I have given myself 2 hours to get my act together and write from home. If I can't do this I must force myself to go to the library... ick or a cafe.

I really struggled with moving to Montreal but finally am seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. I love that my program is geared toward therapy. Within one course in particular a lot of emphasis was placed on the necessity for therapists to seek their own therapy. So for my first time ever I went to counselling. I first went to one place and I found myself analyzing her skills: "OK she is trying to show me empathy. Okay she is re-phrasing what I'm saying to ensure she understands" ... So I went to a different therapist yesterday and was able to stop doing that. I am glad to feel how awkward clients feel going to therapy. That has given me even more empathy for people. Overall it felt good. I think it serves as a reminder for why I am going down this career path. I no longer feel like the hypocrite who advocates for therapeutic methods but has never utilized them.

I guess the other things on my mind include; getting a job after this degree, babies and continuing education. I am more worried about the last one. I thought that I would be finished with school after this degree but I'm now looking into becoming a registered marriage and family therapist. Not a title that is necessary to do therapy in Canada but I'm sure someday we will be moving toward that direction. There are very few programs in Canada for this certification.. so we are trying to look at some possibilities for when posting season happens again. Danial is also playing with the idea of becoming an officer which would likely mean min. 4 years in Kingston. So many things to consider....

But what I need to do is stop planning the future and focus on writing my paper. This paper is about the onset of domestic abuse after military members show signs of PTSD. Interesting topic. Yet, this paper could be worth 100% of my grade. Which means I should stop procrastinating.

C'est Montreal.. ?

So I have been here for a month and what do I have to show for myself? Does a McGill sweater count?

I've been really ambivalent about my entire Montreal experience to date. Some days I idealize it, others I despise it. Why must I be so love/hate?

Thursday night I went to a free outdoor concert only to find that it was Arcade Fire. For anyone who knows me, I am awful at linking songs to the artists. It was quite euphoric to put a face to the name and link the name to the songs that I love. It was a beautiful summer evening and I was sweating the shit out of my Giant Tiger rubber boots.

One thing about living here is that I am definitely second guessing my natural opting for scruffy, lame clothes. Dirty looks from people on the street seems like a legit motivator to put a bit more effort in my attire.

I love that everything is within two blocks that I would ever need. I have not been robbed yet... and honestly, I haven't gotten lost yet. I almost 'scratched' that statement last night because some gals from class and I decided to meet at a family-run Indian food joint in the middle of Montreal-nowhere. It was only a half an hour bus ride by myself but when I exited the bus to find myself on a deserted street, I kinda felt freaked. Of course, I made it there in one piece and the food was pretty delightful. Opted for the metro way back and then went for beers somewhere in the middle of where we all live. It turned out to be another hole-in-the-wall hub for activity. After becoming sufficiently buzzed I meandered back to my bachelorette pad with no troubles.

MARCH 30th WAS EXCITING

Hey!
So I checked my email to find a message from an admission officer at McGill that says that I've been ACCEPTED!

EEK Montreal in SEPTEMBER. I can't believe that I've been accepted to my number one choice on my first try. It doesn't feel real.

:) <3

It's been a while

So here we are in 2011 and I haven't been updating this thing. I am really only posting because I am frustrated with work and want to rant!
I have been there for about 5 months. It is a stressful job where I am on call 24/7. this makes it really difficult for me to have a life and be balanced as a person etc. If my bosses treat me well I do not complain... Lately I have been getting nasty attitude vibes from them which I find reeealllly frustrating. I have also been getting actual attitude from one in particular. I'm not someone who easily lets snarky comments roll off my back. I get that she has a really stressful job and is just trying to get through the day but I still cannot accept that as a good reason to be given attitude. They always tell me how beneficial I am for their agency but the attitude just somehow takes away from those warm fuzzies. They may be my token into my first official social work job but I am getting so fed up with the BS.

On another note... LOL I always seem to bitch and then talk about something more positive.

I have decided that 6 months of living in a place without stuff on the wall is too much. So we bought paint and decided to stick around this duplex for a while. I started the job last night and am already beginning to feel better.

Oromocto is getting more and more comfortable which is a good sign.

I am still hoping to get accepted to a grad school but do not know how likely it is. I was not accepted to Laurier because the accepted applicants have between 4-25 years of work experience. I have three more schools to hear from and then will at least know what I'm doing in September. One thing that I know for sure is I will not be working somewhere that supervisors and bosses dump their stressy shit vibes on their employees while the nature of the job itself is STRESS and CRISIS. Ah crap. There I go again with the negativity.