It's the Final Countdown!

We're already 1/12 of the way through the new year.  Wow that went fast!  I haven't posted in awhile as work and my leaving to-do list has kept me rather busy these past two weeks.

What I find amazing about social media is the fact that one no longer has to wait for the first day of school to meet their classmates.  Facebook especially has assisted with this venture.  Other programs should start what I think Ross has done a great job doing.  New students are added to a Facebook group containing officials from the institution as well as current students so that any questions we may have (official or otherwise) can not only be answered in a timely fashion, but also can be answered very honestly by those who have lived it.  It allows you to get excited about a new journey you're about to embark on as well as prepare yourself in ways we have never been able to before.

Students visa requirements can be a pain in the arm sometimes... literally.  I had an LVN give me a rabies shot the other day and I believe it was the first one she had ever given.  Before she put the needle in she said, "Ok, here goes nothing."  I must say, that was very reassuring!  Needless to say I will not miss getting these vaccinations and look forward to just having my blood drawn every two years.  All of the pain is completely worth it though.

My boss was showing me pictures from a trip to Saint Kitts that he attended on behalf of a Novartis veterinary leadership conference.  I kid you not, each picture he showed me taken from a little disposable camera looked like this.

I know that the majority of my time will be spent with my head inside a textbook, but honestly, it's still nice to know that I can walk out my front door and down to this whenever I want for the next 28 months after I arrive.

I just found this neat little countdown timer so I set it up to show my departure date from the States.  Can't believe it's less than 100 days now.  I have sooo much I need to get done still before I leave.

Happy New Year!

Already 2 weeks in to the new year.  I wish you all had a productive 2011 and I wish you all have an excellent 2012.  I know I will.

This past week I sat down and started planning out the next 14 weeks of my life in order to get everything done needed before heading to the carribean.  When you actually sit down and start planning something like this, 14 weeks is nothing.  Before I know it I'm going to be on a plane for 12 hours heading to a tropical paradise (I say this as I haven't associated the carribean with 60-80 hour school/study weeks yet)

I've learned many new things when it comes to traveling/moving outside of the U.S.  For one, a student visa isn't as easy as I thought it would be.  After being on the island for over 29 days I need to have filed paperwork for a student visa in order to stay on the island.  This paperwork requires certain vaccinations be up to date, certain diagnostic tests come back negative, as well as a police background check to make sure you aren't a criminal.  All which must be completed before you leave for St. Kitts.  Not an easy feat to accomplish with only 14 weeks left before I travel, but I'll get it all done.

I should be hearing back from my new student advisor within the next few days.  It's nice that an institution like this pretty much holds your hand through all of the miscellaneous shtuff you must get through so that you can focus on the studying portion of your stay.  This includes finding a place to stay, figuring out where to get groceries(and when), class scheduling, book and supply purchasing, etc.  So it sounds like as long as I show up and pay attention, and possibly soak some of the information up like a sponge, the next 40 months shouldn't be as bad as people say.  On the plus side, I am in an island paradise whose mean temperature doesn't drop below 70F.