Uncertainties

I find myself putting off sending my Visa application. I’ve definitely been feeling worried about this whole thing; whether I’m going to get a job and if I’ll be any good as a teacher. I’m having a huge case of the “What ifs” over here!

There are also quite a few concerns about how Mark and I are going to keep our relationship good. We’re not always the best at communicating with each other, and we’ll be trying to keep things as normal as possible through Skype which is going to be awkward for both of us. After four years I’m used to seeing him and spending time with him every day, complaining about the small things and telling him off for threatening to shave Pinot when she’s being annoying. We’re also having the (stupid) worry that the other person will find someone better while I’m gone. That says a lot about our mutual insecurities! The other thing is that I have become quite used to being taken care of when I need it. Who is going to force feed me tea and soup when I get sick, or pick up a bottle of wine when I’ve had a stressful day? But those things are just me being a sook, I really am a big girl, I swear!

I just need to trust myself. This year away is going to go very fast, it’s going to be an amazing experience, and I’m going to learn a lot about what I want to do next. I just have to keep reminding myself of that.

So, tomorrow I will fill the paperwork and call the Vietnamese Consulate about sending the paperwork & fee. I’m a bit loathe to send off my new passport (arrived this week), but them’s the breaks! I am glad that my new passport photo is a decent one, the last one made me look a bit like a boy… 

This week I bought a portable hard drive, all by myself (thanks Quinn)! I’ll be taking donations and suggestions for movies, TV shows and music. I’d like a big variety while I’m away. Tomorrow I’m making Mark help me look for an e-reader, because the guy at JB Hi-Fi was completely useless. He kept trying to convince me that I didn’t need one – what kind of salesman does that? Needless to say, I didn’t even mention that I wanted to look at speakers and headphones as well. 

I’m slowly accumulating the things I’ll need while I’m away, with special thanks to Imogen for the cute TARDIS face cloth she made me and to Bronny for the pegless washing line, which is something I hadn’t even thought about but will be so useful (unless I decide to make flags out of my underwear). Next week, I’m going to look at suitcases. I’ll need one that’s large, but not heavy. At Jenn’s suggestion, I rewrote my list without all the things that have been done already so that it’s a bit clearer. I think that has helped. 

Next week, interviews or no, I will be booking my flights. Next month I’ll organise my travel insurance and have my documents notarised and certified. Jenn can take care of the certifying for me, but notarising has to be done by a Notary Public. From what I gather, this a bit of an old-school thing, and there are only a few lawyers who are registered in Melbourne, but Vietnam is still catching up I suppose. Luckily, there is a lady who has an office that is around the corner from work. 

I’m signing off for now, with a large glass of red and a terrible movie. Don’t forget to give me your movie and music suggestions!

Jess x

When Did April Happen?

Gosh, I can’t believe that it’s already April!! On Tuesday I had a little panic on the way to work because I realised that I will be finishing work in three months. It has really snuck up on me.

Tonight I’ll be submitting my last assignment, Private Tuition. If the powers that be like it, then I will have earned my Diploma. I am running a bit behind where I wanted to be by now, but unfortunately I’ve had a few health issues (hello gum infection!) that thew a spanner in the works. In saying that, I began this adventure about six months ago. I’m feeling quite proud of myself.

Last week I did a five day in class course to get my TESOL Licence, so I am actually allowed to begin teaching now:

It was a very intense and tiring week. Wednesday-Friday I worked all day, grabbed a very quick bite to eat and then went to class for four hours and followed that up with at least another hour of work/study at home. Saturday and Sunday were full days as well. The lack of sleep was getting  bit dire, so I did resort to drinking Red Bull a few mornings. 

Not being the least confident person in the class was very reassuring, although I was the only person who did this course arse-backwards (you’re supposed to start with the in class bit and then choose your electives). I was also the class nerd. Which is not really that surprising, because I had done all the reading well in advance. I learned a few interesting things: the correct plural for octopus is actually octopodes, and that some of the words that are spelled a bit strangely (could, island) were in fact spelling mistakes to start with!

Part of the course involved conducting a 15 minute lesson for beginner children in another language, that we taught to the rest of the class. We worked in groups for this one, and I think there were a few different reasons for it. Firstly, we obviously benefit from doing some actual teaching! I also think it’s a good way to put yourself in your student’s shoes. Learning another language is really hard, especially when you don’t understand a lot of the words being spoken to you. The other assessment was a 40 question, open book, multiple choice quiz. Since the quiz is also in the textbook, a little prior planning meant that I finished in in about 5 minutes and got 100% (see previous paragraph for nerd reference).

The next major thing I need to do is my resume! I found an old copy when I was looking for my Japanese textbooks (for the teaching practicum). It’s looking a little outdated and old fashioned, so I’ll need to give it quite a brush up. Once my Diploma arrives then I will start applying for jobs. Technically I can start now, but I want to make sure I have everything I might need first.

I have a vaccination coming up a bit later this month (yay, more needles) along with a general checkup in case I need to provide some sort of evidence that I’m not secretly Typhoid Jess. I think I should get a Police Check as well, but it won’t be very interesting reading!

I made a list this week of things that I need to get/do before July. It’s quite big, but I should be able to knock things off easily enough. I need to get miscellaneous electronics, a suitcase, etc and definitely need to renew my passport. My Easter/ANZAC Day leave is coming up, as well as a week off in May (work was getting a bit pushy about taking leave so I don’t have an enormous final pay) so I expect that a lot of work is going to get done then.

Time to sign off and get back to working I guess. I’ll let you know when I get my Diploma xx

March!

I’m finally onto my last assignment. It’s quite relieving that the end is in sight! Hopefully, with a little additional work on my lunchbreaks, it will be ready for submission by next Monday. I have passed all my other assignments with really nice feedback (which is great for confidence levels).

On the 26th I’ll be starting five days of in-class work, Wednesday-Friday after work and then all day Saturday and Sunday. That’s going to be a little intense, the night classes go from 6-10 so I’ll be getting home well after my bedtime! Once I complete that though, I’ll be all qualified and ready to teach!

I am considering starting with some lessons for Mark. Even though he already speaks English, his grammar and vocabulary could use a little work. The spelling too… 😛

Next week is my final Twinrix jab, so I’ll only have another three shots to get before I level up my health status (is that how you say it, nerds?). I’ve been getting lots of practice in for the many insect bites I’m going to receive when I’m gone. The mozzies are really loving this weather. I have really awkwardly positioned ones at the moment…

Once I’ve passed my course, the next step is to update my resume I suppose. It’s been a few years since I’ve even looked at it, one of the hazards of staying at a job for so long. I might even have to start again, God forbid! Luckily, working at AM has allowed me to add roles such as door bitch, bouncer and lady-who-hands-things-out-on-stage to my list of skills. These are very important things to learn, you never know when you may be called upon! 

It’s not quite real. I can’t believe that in just six months, I’ve made so much progress towards such a big life change! It’s been quite difficult this year, pushing so hard to get finished, I will admit that I’ve been stressing myself out quite a bit. My sleep and fitness have been suffering a bit. Hopefully next month I’ll be able to start getting myself healthy again. On the other hand, I’ve had some great opportunities to catch up with old friends and I’ve been trying to do other things than study.

In other news, I now have a tiny ponytail, and managed to get really sunburned in March, in Melbourne!! 

Here’s the obligatory picture of Pinot disrupting my study. I’ll catch you all later!

xx

February Update

Well, I’m up to my last unit. Four assignments have been submitted! I’m exhausted, and running a little bit behind where I wanted to be at this point, but I need to keep my sanity! Hopefully I’ll be all done by the end of March, which will be a relief. We might have to do something to celebrate 🙂

My English for Children assessment has been a bit of a struggle. It’s actually more complicated than teaching teenagers or adults and part of my assignment was making up a list of 10 children’s songs, as well as what topic I’d use them to teach. As you might know, I find kids’ music to be a bit painful at the best of times, so listening to so many at once was a little full on! Thankfully, Quinn had a stash of V’s old CDs for some reason, so at least I didn’t have to watch any of the accompanying videos.

The next stage is a little daunting. I need to tidy up my resume and start applying for jobs. I know that I’m going to get a job (that’s guaranteed by the school), but what if I’ve got too specific an idea in mind about where I’ll end up? In my head, I’m going to be in a town in the Mekong Delta, but I do need to remind myself that I could end up in rural China! It will just depend on what jobs I am offered.

Later this month, I am renewing my passport. It makes things a lot more immediate. I feel like there are a lot of things that I need to do and organise. There are still vaccinations to be done, travel insurance, buying out my phone, cancelling my health insurance, the list just goes on. With, in theory, only 5 months to go, I’m really hoping I don’t end up trying to everything at the last minute. I have leave booked from work in May, so I’m intending to take advantage of that time to finalise any things that are left over. I expect that I’ll be panicking in a corner somewhere. If you see me, pour me a big glass of red and just put Dr Who on the TV!

As you can see above, Miss Pinot has been assisting me today, so I’d better go give her some attention!

Jess x

Study Week Three

I’ve officially finished my first elective! My assessment is done, and I’ll be sending it in tomorrow morning (once I’ve tested the lesson plan on Mark). The lesson plan was tricky to do. Coming up with interesting questions and tasks is quite difficult,  but after a little revision (and inspiration from one of my books), hopefully I have something workable. It’s taken a little longer than I hoped for to finish the elective, but I found the scientific stuff a bit tough to get through. I wanted to make sure I had a good understanding of the concepts. Hopefully the next one will go more smoothly now I have a study system in place. Now I need to decide what to study next…

I have made a few changes to my ergonomics which seem to be helping, but I’ll let my chiro be the judge on Friday!

Tomorrow I’m going to make an appointment to see a man about a bunch of needles. That’s going to be super fun! I’m fine with ink, but the sensation of having an injection freaks me out a little. I’m going to have to get used to it though- there’s a big list of shots I need to get. I’ll space them out over the next six months or so though.

My helper has been a little miffed this week, as you can see below, and I’m starting to run out of tea (all donations welcome!!). My other planning is progressing slowly but surely, which is reassuring. I’m usually the last-minute Queen, but this adventure is not one I want to leave to that philosophy. I’m taking a leaf out of the Girl-Guides handbook, and being prepared!! (Right down to the research of the best makeup to wear in humid climates)

Study Begins

I got my course login details today, which was a bit exciting. I’m starting with the Teach English Grammar unit. I figured that would be easy enough- or not! It’s weird getting back into study, but luckily the first part of this unit is basically a refresher on the basics, so I can ease into it.
Miss Pinot was a bit put out at the lack of attention tonight- she decided to set up camp on my notebooks… She’s going to have to get used to it, the course is going to take around five or six months to complete!

I’m a little worried about what might happen if I don’t get a job in Vietnam. Even though there’s a huge demand, a lot of the jobs I’ve seen so far are requesting a degree of some sort. At the end of the day though, there’s always China or Thailand. They’re not my first choice, but it will pay to keep my options open.