Mail

The post service in Ethiopia is obviously not as fast as the USPS. A letter will take about 4 weeks and packages 4-5 months. Do not send anything valuable in envelopes because one in a while the edges of envelopes will be clipped by postal workers looking for money. Also, do not send anything valuable in packages because they may or may not make it to me. Try to decrease the value of items (like if you are sending clothes take of the tags, wash them and label it "used clothing"). Also, any letter needs to say "air mail" on the front of the envelope.

For the first 10 weeks you can mail me at this address (perhaps a birthday card?):

Nicole Therrien
US Peace Corps/Ethiopia
P.O. Box 7788
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

After training I will be given a new address and will let you all know. I love mail!

Cheers,
Nikki

The Wait is Over

Yesterday it came. I have officially been invited to join the Peace Corps and I couldn't be happier with my assignment. My invitation is to be a Health Economic Development Advisor in Ethiopia. Staging is Oct 4-5 and then the evening of Oct. 5 I will board a plane to Ethiopia! I had initially thought that I would be working in the health education sector, but my actual assignment is really more business than health (which makes sense since I am a few weeks away from completing my MBA). I will be working with the Ministry of Health (sounds like Harry Potter!) to identify means of economic stability and income generation for those infected with HIV/AIDS and other vulnerable populations. My interpretation of it is that I am working to break down stigmas and get these people integrated into their communities. By assisting them with business development, people will be able to afford food, medical treatment and a better standard of living.

Since I wil be working with the Ministry, my accommodations will be set up by the Ethiopian government (no rent...one less thing to worry about!). According to my assignment description I will be in a small-medium town or village and living in a compound (whatever that means). Typically, HED volunteers have one-two rooms to themselves in a house. Most, but not all, have running water and electricity. Something I was not banking on, so that's a nice surprise. Additionally, part of my job may be teaching business owners how to use MS Office or use databases to manage their businesses. Sounds like I may have computer access (and possibly internet).

I think the only aspect of this whole ordeal that I'm not excited about is the dress code. For those of you who know me, you know I do not function well in heat. Well, Ethiopians dress conservatively and I will need to wear long skirs and shirts that cover my shoulders and go up to my neck. I need to find some super light weight material!

The next step is to accept my invitation, which I will do later today. Then its a whole bunch of paperwork and a final medical review (if the last one wasn' t enough). I also think I'm going to find a way to start learning Amharic, the language aspect makes me nervous. I love to talk, and if I don't know the language it will be very lonely.

Cheers,
Nikki

An Emotional Beating

The last time I heard from the Peace Corps was back in March when I was medically cleared. I've been busy with school and moving back to Putnam so the wait hasn't really bothered me. However, now that I am back in Putnam where life moves a bit slower than in Hamden and I'm nearing the end of graduate school the delay is quite noticeable. Last week I received an e-mail requesting an updated resume and stated that my file wouldn't be reviewed for another 6-12 weeks. Twelve weeks puts me into September, which is when I'm done school. The increased competitiveness has gotten me quite nervous and thinking about what I'm going to do if I'm not invited to the Peace Corps. So I began to look at jobs.

There is a job opening as an assistant long term care administrator with a nice salary, benefits and with a reasonable commute from either Putnam or New Haven. The job is entry level and pretty much matches my qualifications perfectly. Imagine the temptation. I had a bit of a life-crisis that day, had lunch with Andrea, spoke with Danshults and Ma. They all said that the job was a good option and that I should at least apply. Of course Danshults was the biggest proponent of sticking with the Peace Corps and Ma said to just go for the job. I took their advice and thought about it pretty much all day and night. By the time I went to bed I decided that I am not ready to give up on the Peace Corps and I wasn't going to sell out for a high paying job. The Peace Corps is what I want to do, it's where I'll make the biggest impact on the world and, if I may be selfish, on my life. Any job I could apply for would never compare and I'd think about it for the rest of my life: what if I actually did join the Peace Corps? Also, if I don't get invited I need to leave CT... I don't think I could take the "I thought you were going to Africa" comments everyday.

And that was my test. The next day I got an e-mail from my PO saying that my file was being reviewed. I'm assuming that doesn't mean I will wait the estimated 6-12 weeks. Maybe I'll hear in July! But now I am nervous as Hell. Everytime I open my e-mail I hold my breath. But at least I'll know soon. I know that I am committed to it, and my decision to accept any invitation has been made. I've done all I can...now it is up to them!

Also, an October invite for Ethiopia has been mailed. I'm almost positive that this is the program they are considering me for. It's funny, even before my sleuthing and trying to find out possible programs leaving in October I had a feeling it would be Ethiopia. Not the most stable of geographic regions, but it's close to the Middle East...which was my first choice. It seems so perfect, but I'm trying not to get my hopes up too high.

In other news, I FINALLY found a new place to volunteer to get HIV/AIDS experience. I'm spending my Thursday mornings at the Agape Center in RI. So far, so good. The people are incredible and very honest and open. They are so supportive of my going to Africa and are eager to help me learn about the disease, how they live with it, and answer any questions.

That's it for now!
Cheers,
Nikki

The Long Wait

This is quick post since I will be leaving work in about 4 minutes. But I have been both medically and dentally cleared!!! I won't be hearing anything now until mid-April though. The placement office is currently reviewing the files of people who can leave during the summer and once all of those people have been invited they'll move on to the folks leaving after September. In the mean time I'll just keep building my resume and making myself appear more qualified than the other nominees. At this point I have a 50% chance of getting invited.
Cross you fingers!
Cheers,
Nikki

Look in the Mail for a Letter

On Tuesday I woke up with an e-mail notifying me that MyToolkit had been updated. Under medical clearance there was a message reading: Complete. A decision has made regarding your medical clearance. Look in the mail for a letter. Today I received said letter. I am medically qualified for each region. I didn't need to follow up on my Iron level or blood counts. All that worrying for nothing. What I am most excited about though is that I don't have any more medical bills!

The next step is with the Office of Placement. They look at my credentials and experience to find a project that I would be best suited for. Once they do that they send an invitation!! I just hope that it is after the cruise mom already booked, one month later than my expected departure date...

Cheers,
Nikki

Medical Hold

The medical hold officially begins today! I received the e-mail notification that my nomination status had been updated. The PC is just beginning to review my medical information now. The little message says that they do not require any additional information at this time but I'm sure that will change.

Also, I have my last dentist appointment soon so the dental hold will be released soon. Not that that matters all too much as you can still get invited with a dental hold. You just don't get to go if you don't get things figured out by the time staging comes around.

And, as always, I must put in my two cents about Tricare. It's awful. Customer service is awful. The website is awful. The entire system is confusing and nobody knows what is going on. And they gave me a PCM that isn't accepting new patients. Clearly I just got more bad news from them. Even though my father was signed into active duty in September (and Tricare is a benefit for active duty sevice members and their families) I am not covered until Feb 1. This means that the $900 in blood work, $440 physical and $550 dentist bill are all out of pocket. I'll try to call today to see if this is an error and I can file a claim. If not I will need to take out another loan from my wonderful parents who are willing to cover the expenses for now. I hate to ask them for money though. I feel like a child.

Cheers,
Nikki

Medical and Dental Review

Despite my ongoing battle with TRICARE and trying to find a primary physician, I completed my medical and dental reviews. Unfortunately TRICARE Prime and TRICARE Standard do not have the same doctors in their network and, by surprise, I have to pay for all of my medical expenses. The total was $440 so it definitely could be worse. I spoke to someone today who had to pay over $700 for the same examination.

I am learning that during the application process nothing goes smoothly. My medical and dental reviews are no exception to this rule. The dental hold I was totally expecting. I'm addicted to Diet Coke and therefore have a couple cavaties that need to be filled. No big deal since I do have dental insurance AND my wonderful new dentist is giving me 50% off because its for the Peace Corps. There is one problem though. The dental officer at the Peace Corps office says I need to have a crown on a tooth that I hada root canal on a few years ago. Two dentists have both said that it is too risky to put a crown on. I'm hoping that's a good excuse and I don't have to destroy my tooth to appease them.

The medical results are what I'm really nervous about. My blood work came back and I had my dad interpret the results for me. He told me that there was something wrong and it appeared that I had lost a significant amount of blood and my iron levels are about 60% of what they should be. I've been told that you are medically deferred until you can prove you are no longer anemic. The iron supplements my dad gave me made me horribly ill so that's not going to work. I could eat more red meat...but then my just passable cholesterol will increase. My best reasoning is that since I donate blood every 8 weeks I don't have an opportunity to fully restore my blood counts. Perhaps if I just keep my blood to myself for a while I will regulate. I haven't actually heard back from the medical officer...but this is what I am preparing myself for.

Other than medical and dental stuff I've been looking into ways to prepare myself for service. I had two trips lined up with school, one to Nicaragua and the other to Mexico to work in health facilities. Both trips fell through. Right now I'm thinking I'll do a volunteer project in Ecuador. It's expensive, but I want to know if this is something I'm good at and enjoy before I devote 2 and a half years to it. I've also been in contact with the CT Dept of Public Health trying to get into an AIDS Educator class. They are impossible to reach. Between phone tag and unanswered e-mails I am getting a bit frustrated. I know I can at least count on finding a first aid/cpr course over the summer. Those are offered everywhere.

So now I am back to waiting. I would love to hear some good news, but right now any news would be good.

Cheers,
Nikki