Saying goodbye

This last week has been a little bit more calm. Now that we know when we're leaving we've been able to visit with some people and say goodbye. We've been doing some shopping as we were warned that it's very difficult for Canadians to find clothes there as we tend to be bigger people in weight and height. It's very difficult to plan a wardrobe for a whole year! Other than that it's been making sure we'll have medical insurance, tying up loose ends here and there and tying to fit in as much visiting as possible. Curtis' cousins Joe and Nikki came up from Texas this week and it was also a great chance to visit with them. Auntie Roseanne and Uncle Rodney made the trip out from Kelsey to wish us well. It wasn't too hard to say goodbye because we haven't seen some of these people in over a year, and the distance won't be felt as much. When it came time to say goodbye to Chris and Ferd though, it was so difficult. Maybe because we've been staying here and it's been so nice to be around them. We're just starting to get used to being close and now we're off. I'm sure it will be very similar when we wave Mom and Dad off at the airport. We're really excited about going, but saying goodbye is always bittersweet.

So here's a breakdown of our roller coaster ride. Looking through contract after contract that was... serviceable. Finding one that looked really great. Hearing from the recruiter right away, everything seeming promising. Not actually hearing from the employer - the position has been filled. Modifying our search criteria and starting from scratch. We even found this great job where Matt, Amber, Curtis and I would work together, and we were minutes behind the competition. We decided to settle for a position where everything on the surface looked good. We dug a little bit for more specific information and it turned out that the overtime was going to be much more than most schools. Back to the drawing board, again!

OK, so after all of that, we've signed a contract! We FedEx it tomorrow and we're already being set up with plane tickets. This is how quick it can go too. We saw the job posting Sunday night and applied. The recruiter called Monday night and we had an interview the same night. We asked to speak with a current teacher and about 1 hr later we talked to Julie (she's the one we're replacing). Monday night was figuring out the contract and making sure there were no loop holes. Tuesday morning was spent making sure we had all the appropriate paperwork and printing good copies of the contract and signing the next year of our life away.

We're really excited about our job acutally. The hours are great and they are actually in our contract! Also, this school doesn't make you do extra hours during the intensive sessions - basically they don't make you do 11-12 hr shifts 3 or 4 weeks in a row. Phew! We're only 40 minutes away from Matt and Amber in a suburb that is around 700,000 people strong. Not bad, hey? We fly out of Calgary Nov 29th... it's so soon!! It's no wonder why some people decide not to go... I mean, that's crazy timing... but we said we wanted to leave in November so we are honestly getting exactly what we wanted. Ok... so the next time you'll hear from me I'll be in YongIn City!!! WOOOO HOOOO!!!!

Waiting... good thing I didn't hold my breath!

So after much packing and organizing we are currently unemployed and homeless. We are still waiting for that perfect opportunity in Korea and we are still getting offers that aren't exactly what we want. I think this is what patience is... really... I thought it was enjoying standing in lines at the grocery store or not loosing your cool in traffic. Really, this... standing on the edge and not having any idea what's going on, this is patience. It's also exhilerating, stressful, evokes feelings of powerlessness... so if anyone asks how I'm doing lately, take your pick. We're not hopeless... not yet, and we might even take one of these "not quite right" jobs by the end of the week. We'll keep you posted.