Whinging on the skivers, chicken parmo, and more.

July 30, 2008


I’ve been here a little over 24 hours and already my vocabulary has increased by 20 words that I know hot to use and probably 50 more that I’ve heard but have no idea how to use or what they mean. I’ve been invited to a pub quiz (not sure what it is), a carnival, and a day trip to Whitby, and a hike in the Moors. I got my cell phone today…a pay as you go that I will be mainly using for work. I will be getting internet soon after I meet with a banker on Friday and get a debit card which is required in order to set up an Internet contract.

Vocabulary of the day…try to use at least once a day!
Chicken parmo: chicken parmesan in a mustard sauce with vegetables on the side. Middlesbrough is known for their chicken parmo restaurants, ~7 pounds during happy hour.
Whinging: complaining about someone or something, ex: “last night we sat around and whinged about the new work policy”.
Skivers: lazy people, ex: “they are all in the break room eating tea and biscuits; those bunch of skivers”.
Tea: actually dinner in this part of the UK. There are five meals: breakfast, snack around 11, lunch, tea, and supper is a snack right before bed.

My apartment: I’m sure you would all like to know what/where I’m living. I’m in hospital residence which means I share a flat (bathroom and kitchen) with four other hospital employees. We have our own room which locks and contains a sink, bed, desk, wardrobe, and shelf. I was told that the accommodations were horrible but it is clean and cozy and so far it is nice because I can walk 7min to the hospital. My house mates are Jane (22 and an audiologist), Una (23 and a radiographer), and Janet (47 and a nurse).

Traveling: My trip was rather uneventful. On the long Seattle to Amsterdam flight I sat next to a shy German ( contractiction in terms?) who had been on holiday in Seattle. Whenever I tried to engage him in conversation he looked embarrassed. One of my suitcases was delayed in arriving at the Durham-Tees and when it did the bottom wheel had been mangled and is now unusable as a pull suitcase but the airline will buy me a new one. Other than that, my trip went smoothly.

Misc: I have noticed that when I’m walking around town (as I was earlier when I went to the downtown shopping area) and was talking to my supervisor, Kim (also American and from Portland) that people turn quickly and almost do a double take when they hear our “accent”. It is important to remember that unlike London and other tourist areas, many Middlesbrough residents have not encountered Americans and few have traveled outside the Middlesbrough area.


Shopping: very much like America. I went into a thrift store, department store, and drugstore but need to be careful on what I buy since I take the bus and don’t want to carry a load of stuff. I went to the grocery store down the street and bought food…some American brands but a lot of questionable items such as oxtail soup (not sure what is in it). I bought some “safe” items and came home with a backpack of food. At most stores, shoppers must bring their own carry bags.

That is all in the first 24 hours and I still have much more to do. Tomorrow I will go downtown by myself and buy a hairdryer, iron, and ironing board. That’s all for now. I’d love to hear from you but might but get your message or write back until I have internet access more regularly. If you would like my mailing address please e-mail me at cheananc@yahoo.com. For now, I can only receive letters as the mail for packages is unpredictable and unsecured. Bye for now,

~Nancy

Work permit

It was finally approved!! Later than anticipated but approved non the less. Now I'm waiting for it to arrive in the mail so I can apply for my work visa. Anticipated move date? July 27 with work beginning August 4. I'll be moving home to Washington at the end of the month, attending a wedding in California the middle of July, and then moving to England. I've been spending the past several weeks sorting and cleaning out; how did I accumulate so much junk?! Believe it or not, I'm planning on taking only one giant suitcase to check, one to carry on, and my laptop. I'll be living in the on site hospital housing for 2 months and then will move to either my own apartment or living with some other single female audiologists. I will try to get a mailing address out as soon as I can but e-mail always is the best way to contact me.

31 Flavors

Have you ever though about the individual variety of the friends and people in your life? They provide the individual with the same sensation as walking into a Baskin-Robbins store and being confronted with 31 flavors; each different and each serving a unique purpose. I have a friend who is like bubble gum ice cream; fun, colorful, and always able to cheer me up. Then, another friend who resembles vanilla; simple, sweet, yet straight to the point and able to point out areas in my life still needing growth. Yet another friend is like Rocky Road; at times we have butted heads and had disagreements yet our friendship remains rich and strong. There are times when I’ve thought that I haven’t needed these individual flavors in my life and times I haven’t appreciated the contribution of these individuals to my Christian growth. With my Goo Goo Cluster personality, how would I make it through the lumps and bumps of life without strawberry to add some sweetness or mint chocolate to bring clarity and perspective to the situation? But, as with ice cream, too much of one flavor in the bowl can stifle the effects of the other flavors on one’s tongue. A balance among the time spent among friends creates richness in one’s life. Just as too much double fudge ice cream can make one sick to one’s stomach, so can too much time spent with a negative friend leave you feeling discouraged. A balance must be found between all the flavors and personalities of the individuals in one’s life. Have I made you hungry yet? If so, go enjoy a bowl of ice cream with one of the flavorful people in your life.

Until next time,

Nancy

Waiting

Yep, I’m still here in the US waiting for my work permit to go through. After the permit is approved, then I will still need to wait up to 4 weeks for my work visa. Initially, I thought of all this waiting as an annoyance. I thought I was ready to finish school and move right away. But, over the past week I have begun to realize that this waiting time has allowed me a time of much needed rest. We become so accustomed to our hectic schedules that we accept it as the norm to feel tired and stressed. Not only in our physical lives, but also in our spiritual lives do we experience these feelings of “go, go, go!” Go to the store, go to get the house cleaned, go to get paper work done, go to help out at church, go to get up earlier to have time to pray and read God's word. We forget that we are called to “be still” before God in our spiritual walk and also in our physical everyday goings. When we become so busy, we often feel that God is not speaking to us but in fact we may be so busy that we forget to listen to His voice. We look for God in our crazy schedules forgetting that He is the God of peace and order. These past couple weeks have helped me to rest physically (yes, 10 hours of sleep/night is wonderful!) and also reconnecting with God through His word. I want to encourage you to understand that we are not called to a life of chaos and to take time to be renewed spiritually and physically.
Until next time,

Nancy

England outcome

So, I haven’t posted since I’ve been back from England so I’m sure all of you who read this are wondering about the outcome of that trip. Well, it was a whirlwind trip; I arrived Sunday morning at the Durham-Tees airport, went straight to the hotel, and slept until 4:30 in the afternoon! Then I was taken out to a 300 year old pub and stage coach stop for drinks (don’t worry, I only drank coca cola). The next two days were spent meeting the audiologists at the hospital, seeing patients, and completing LOTS of paperwork. I left early Wednesday morning for the long flight back to Boise. I was really only able to get out and see the area one afternoon; we drove to Saltburn-by-the-Sea and ate lunch by the tumultuous North Sea. Middlesbrough is a city of ~130,000 but it is surrounded by many small communities of a couple hundred. Being so close to Scotland, the accent was very thick and at times difficult to understand. Something interesting is that the accent varies among the small towns making it even more difficult to understand. The people of Northern England pride themselves on being friendlier than those in the South and in my opinion they were some of the most hospitable and friendly people I have met. So, about the hospital; I’m unsure as to the total number of employees in the audiology department but I’m guessing that it is around 30+ including staff and techs. They do a little of everything there: balance assessment and rehab, pediatrics, hearing aids, cochlear implants, and even manufacture their own earmolds and hearing aids. So, are you wondering if I got offered the position? Well, the answer is …yes! Now I am waiting for the work permit and work visa to be approved before it is definite that I will be moving to England. It hasn’t been all relief and happiness since I was offered the position. Some days I feel completely terrified to move that far away and try and get used to a new culture and then other days I am really excited for the new opportunity. I will be living in hospital housing adjacent to the hospital but might possibly move to a smaller town after being there a few months. The public transportation is very accessible so I could always take the bus to and from work. There is still much to be done in preparation for the move…I must defend my doctoral project, sort through and pack only the bare necessities, and say goodbye to a lot of people. I hope to figure out how to post photos on this site so you all can experience the beautiful English countryside with me.

Trials

Hmmm, I should have known not to become too comfortable with how smoothly everything was going as I was getting ready for my upcoming trip to England. I have often heard that when people get ready for a ministry that they are faced with an onslaught of trials and adversity. But, if we are striving after a life honoring to God and living as if our life each day is a ministry to those around us, then we should expect to face trials in everyday life. I am currently going through such a trial. I woke up Saturday morning not feeling so good, I put it out of my mind over the weekend, and come Monday morning I could no longer deny that I was sick. I've been struggling with this cold now for the past 5 days with little relief and with ever growing annoyance and anxiety. I want to have my strength back before I travel but at this rate of recovery I am far from that goal. Prayer is needed!!
This episode of illness has alerted me to a new area of my life for which I need to be in constant prayer; I need to pray about the upcoming trials, temptations, disappointments, fears, and anxieties as well as the joys and excitement all associated with this upcoming move. I cannot walk into this without a cloak of prayer to protect and strengthen me through the upcoming weeks. Please join me in praying that I will have the strength and grace to deal with any trials that seem overwhelming at the time and that I will not be overcome with despair when life's mountains seem impassable.

Stay tuned for more ramblings.