Wishing...

Well the world is still slowly turning and yet another week has passed since I've been home. The job search is still in full force, but the future looks grim. It isn't exactly the busy season in this part of the country, and the economy could be better. Not to mention my agonizing past history of job hunting...it's not exactly the easiest thing for me to do. But I will continue on, unemployment is worse than job hunting.

I've been trying to keep up my spirits since being back from the farm, and some days are better than others, but lately the uncertainty of my future in Scotland has been distracting me a bit.

A New Year...New Plans

Yes, it's been awhile since I've updated, and yes plans have changed a bit. Even though my last post was pretty vague, it was probably pretty clear that I was waiting to see what plan B would look like. Well, here's plan B... I am back home, and will stay home a bit longer than I had planned. Scotland is now three months away instead of three days which stinks, but I am just thankful that as of now, I can still see it coming.

But three months? What in the world am I supposed to do for three months? Yes, I can hear everyone that has managed not to forget that I do occasionally blog telling me, "get a job!" Ugh, I know. I gave myself the holidays to pretend that I was just visiting and come Monday I will begin the ever thrilling job search.

However, even though my near future is looking pretty bleak to me, it's not all bad. Here's an example...take a look at this adorable little face...

Oh boy...

I have been arguing with myself over whether or not I should write this post, and in the end you can see which side won...even though it was after extensive negotiation. So when this post seems maddeningly vague to you, remember the negotiation :)

The past week has been a bit of a rough week for me and a few others, we are experiencing first hand having to trust God when it seems like He has withdrawn his promise. Yes, a few of us here at the farm have had our dreams crushed or are waiting while they are in serious jeopardy of being crushed. I am at the moment, the luckiest person in this exclusive little group because although my dream is in great danger of disappearing, there is still a shred of hope. While I am thankful that I have this reason to hope, being completely helpless as I watch and wait isn't the easiest task in the world. But here I am, watching and waiting for other people to decide...sigh...

If it hasn't been made abundantly clear...I'm in need of prayer ;)

For the sake of an update...

So, things at "the Farm" have been going pretty well these days. The weather's been a good 10 degrees warmer here than at home, so that's something to smile about! (Sorry home people)

As for the 'real work,' I'm plugging along learning as much as I can from the sessions and from others...I am possibly spending too much time and effort on the others category. It is sometimes hard to focus on my assignments and goals when there are just so many people around to "learn" from. There are over 300 people on campus with me and that is significantly more people than I'm used to having around, so distractions abound. I have yet to find a routine that balances out friends, fun and work, so that's a definite prayer request for those of you checking up on me (thanks by the way!).

So here's an interesting thing I learned about myself this week... According to the Myers-Briggs Personality test, I am Extroverted, Intuitive, Feeling focused, and Judging (which means I like planning things out). We were all required to take this personality test before we arrived here in Virginia, so we got our results on Friday. The hot question this weekend has been, "So what's your personality?" My answer to that would be: "I'm an ENFJ."

A Day Out

So, today was the day that Susanna and I got to leave campus and drive somewhere fun. At about 7:30 am we took off in a borrowed van headed north to Alexandria, VA to finish up some Visa requirements, and after getting there early and done in about 10 minutes we thought..."why not make this trip worthwhile and see something?" Manasass Battle Field here we come! We had a great time checking out the civil war era buildings and that awesome statue of Stonewall Jackson. After an awesome lunch of non-cafeteria food, we decided to head back in time to get some serious quilting done (I'll explain that statement later).

About 70 miles from campus Susanna says, "We have a serious problem." Now, Susanna is not one to exaggerate, so I knew at once that we had a serious problem. Yes, we joined the ranks of the "great we have a flat tire" crew. I've seen it in movies, but here's a confession...I have never actually had a flat tire or even been in a car with a flat. So now, I guess I'm a better person...more well rounded! Needless to say, it all turned out ok and after a not-so-quick call to AAA, but I'm not interested in repeating that experience any time soon. I will definitely be avoiding van 2 for the rest of my time here.

And yes, these pictures have nothing to do with our trip...but I hate to have a post without pictures. Look at that Virginia soil...yuck...

And so it begins!

After over a year of waiting and hoping, I've finally made it to orientation! Today is my first full day on campus, and so far things have gone pretty well. Although, since things don't seem to really get started until tomorrow, most of us are just wandering around thinking that we ought to be doing something productive...we just can't figure out what. Especially since we know that in less than 24 hours we will be overwhelmed with everything that we will have to get done (or at least that's what I've been told).
So, even though I've technically started my journey, I guess I still have to wait a bit for the real thing to start. But here's what I do know...I'm extremely excited about having my own room!!!

My fuzzy friend even got his own bed!

Yes, this room may seem a bit bare, but I prefer tranquil...

South to North Carolina

Yes, I'm behind, but better late than never I always say. A couple weekends ago I took a trip to visit a friend from Liberty University who lives in Boone, NC. She's actually the one that told me about the missions program that I will be training for in about a week. Thank goodness for old friends! So, since I'm not much of a writer, here's some pics from my travel journal about my trip...
(warning, these pictures didn't turn out so well...resist squinting, it's not your vision)

I think Boone is very very cute...but there are a lot of trees...