The Rest of My Life

Nothing new other than thoughts to share really. Had I mentioned that at the NAFSA conference I had spoken to a few people from New Zealand universities? When I got back in the office I wrote them all to thank them for speaking with me (that's called networking). It did not look particularly successful. One person wrote back a short little, yeah you too sort of response. That was about it.

Then, this week I received a very pleasant email from one of the women I had spent quite a bit of time speaking with. She apologized for taking so long to respond. She also said that she would be more than happy to help me if she could (or something like that). Well, being desperate as I am, I will probably try to take advantage of the offer.

Mostly I am hoping that she might take a look at my resumé and give me advice. Let me know if it is appropriate for New Zealand and if she has any advice on how to make myself more attractive for universities in NZ.

Let and I have been talking quite a bit about when and how we will get there. Who will be first. What will the other do...those sorts of things. We are both pretty willing to settle wherever jobs are to be had. We also both are resigned to job searching wherever the first person gets a job.

It is exciting and scary and i'm so impatient to get there. Yet, I still have so many things to take care of here.

I think that is it for now.

The Best of the Best

A productive week and a very productive day.

On wednesday this week I was able to get my medical forms for New Zealand Immigration mostly filled. Then today I went to get my x-rays. The x-ray offices were really nice. If you've had to go to medical offices in New York some of them are not very pleasant you will know. Quest Diagnostics has some of the ugliest offices I've ever been to. Though to be fair, their office in Forest Hills was pretty nice. The nurse that took my blood in that Quest was really good too. I have the veins of mystery, nurses/doctors can never hit them the first time when trying to draw blood. So, I am always turning pale as they dig in my arm with the needle trying to find a vein to drain. I have never been a fan of needles, why such a curse?

At any rate, I get the x-rays taken and they tell me I am done. I say, well, I have a form that I need filled out by the radiologist. Oh, I don't believe the radiologist is in. Hmmm, when I called I said that I had a form that needed filling out by the radiologist and was told that would be no problem. Well, let me find out where/or when the radiologist is expected. Me sez, "OK."

Luckily the Radiologist was found and my forms are complete. I still need to get a signature from my main physician but my medical forms are just about good to go.

The other thing i did today was get my fingerprints taken so that i can request my background check from the FBI. That was a pain becuz I had been told that I would be able to go to any NYPD precinct and have it done. One phone call told me they would also have the forms I needed. So, this morning I go to my local precinct office and am told that not only do they not have the forms, but the NYPD does not do FBI fingerprinting. Oh? Really? Well, who does? Nobody seems to know.

Back to the apartment goes I. Look up the main number for the NYPD and call up to ask what I can do. Luckily, after being transferred a few times, I am told that I can indeed get my fingerprinting done by the NYPD, I just have to go to an office in downtown Manhattan.

Being lazy and afraid of humidity as I am, I choose to drive back in to Manhattan (I had already driven in for the X-rays). Now it is a bit late (it was around 7:30 am when I drove in earlier) and the traffic is nightmarish. I thought I would miss rush hour traffic at it was after 11, I had forgotten that all day is rush hour in NYC. It took me awhile to even get near the office. When I got close I realized that the streets in the entire area are reserved for officials parking only. Not only that, I'm not really used to lower Manhattan and there area a lot of little streets that go nowhere and it is a bit confusing.

After far too much time I finally find a parking meter, not horribly far away from the police station. I drop a couple of quarters, my last, into the meter to realize that one only gets 10 minutes per quarter and decide that i will just have to risk it. Luckily the finger printing was relatively painless once I got into the office. Of course, it being what it was it still took about 40 minutes. They do the fingerprinting electronically now so no ink stains to show for my effort. The machinery is pretty cool though.

My luck held out and as I walked back to the car I saw no ticket in the window. PHEW!

Then, back home came I to eat thai food, ice cream and then take a nap. Ahhhhhh.

Go Bananas

Hey, so today I went to the dr. and finished most of the medical requirements for immigration. I still have to get some proof of immunizations and my chest x-ray. Chest x-ray i will have done this friday. The immunization proof is going to be a bit more difficult. I have never had a regular pediatrician or doctor before, so it isn't as though I can just call up good old dr. meineke and get my immunization records. What I am going to try to do is see if my old school district (Portland Public Schools) has proof that I can use. That would make life a bit easier.

On Friday i also hope to get my fingerprinting done so that i can send in for my FBI background check. Then I will be able to send in my application! Excitement.

Oh, I've been not so updating. that has a lot to do with the fact that nothing much has been happening in terms of moving forward in the move process. still do not have fingerprints, but i think i've nailed down where and how to get it done. maybe i can do that monday or tuesday? next wednesday i will begin the medical process by meeting with my doc and showing her the docs. then i'll have an idea how long that process will take in its entirety. i've also got to contact my past employers to get proof of employment, i'm hoping that will not be too complicated.

those are steps i need to take. luckily now a few of them are actually scheduled to take place. i keep moving oh so slightly closer to my planned future.

Finally I really looked at the application package that NZIS sent me. I am very impressed! The application is pre-filled with all of the information they were provided during the EOI process. All I have to do is correct any information that is incorrect, add any info that might have changed since the EOI and provide documentation to prove what I list in the application (employment, education, citizenship...). I'm sure that immigration in the United States would never provide pre-filled applications!!!

That's all for now.

Here it is, my Friday and I want to quick update before the beginning of the long US of A weekend. Though I think a very limited number of my vast audience is located in this country, I figure those elsewhere might want to play along too. The game goes a little like this, you need to have a lot of explosives (fireworks) a lot of flammables (lighters/matches/alcohol/charcoal fluid/charcoal) and a lot of children running around. Mix this with a lot of drinking of the alcoholic beverages to impair judgement, a lot of eating of meat to slow the impaired people's response times even further, and let the fun begin. The game is won by the person with the most remaining appendages at the end of the weekend with bonus points for each of your younger relatives that still have all of their digits.

New Zealand news is sparse. I have just been staring admiringly at my pile of application materials and will start working on them as of tomorrow I believe. Four day weeks are great, next week is a three day week, that's even better. I should be able to make much progress.

Celeste installed a lovely message board under the counter on the right hand side of the page to make it very simple to leave me notes about anything. Please take advantage of that simple way to say hi (or to comment on anything on your mind).