It's Starting To Set In: Visa and Car Sale

It's finally starting to set in that this is really happening.  I leave in three days.  And it's only begun setting in over the last two days.

Part of the reason I think it's finally setting in, is that my visa has finally been approved and is on it's way back to me.  It will be here on Monday.  I spent Thursday afternoon and all of Friday morning desperately trying to get in touch with the British Consulate in Los Angeles, where my application was submitted.  I finally faxed a letter explaining what had happened and asking why I had heard nothing. 

The backstory: My application was opened on August 3 when all my documents arrived.  A couple days later, I recieved an e-mail saying I'd forgotten to check the box to pay the postage to have it mailed back.  Oops.  Okay, so I responded with my credit card information for it to be charged.  A week goes by, and I recieve the same e-mail again.  I check my statement, and sure enough it hasn't been charged.  So I re-send the information and the card is charged the next day.  Then... nothing.

When I finally got through via the letter I faxed, I recieved the following e-mail:
Dear applicant,

We have received your faxes and your application will be assessed today. We have also confirmed that your credit card was charged on 12th of August.
If all documents were submitted, you will receive an automate email today, confirming your visa has been issued and including the UPS tracking number.
Regards,
XXXX XXXX
Visa Section Los Angeles

Now, tell me this doesn't sound like "Whoops! Our bad! We'll get right on that!"  So from what I can infer, after the postage fee was charged, my application simply never got bumped out of the "incomplete" pile.  A few hours later, I recieved the e-mail confirming that my visa has been approved and the tracking number.  So lots of time, stress, and one emotional breakdown later, it is finally on it's way.
 
The other thing helping it set in that Yes, I'm actually leaving, is that my car has finally sold.  Which I am actually kind of sad about.  It was a great car, I just couldn't afford to keep it while I spend a year not driving it.  But I think it's gone to a good home, and the money from it (that's left after I pay off the loan!) will be helping pay for my housing.  So it's okay. 
 
Everything is finally starting to come together.  The two biggest things have been taken care of over the last two days.  Sure, I still have to get together the last bit of the loan to pay for housing; but overall, I just have a long list of minor things to do.  They'll get done soon.  And then... I will be off to LAX and landing in London.  And the year that I have been looking forward to for so long will commence.
 
In the meantime, I must now go get ready for my leaving-the-country party.  As I will not be coming home for Christmas, just wanted to make sure that I can see everyone before I go.

Visas, Packing, Financial Planning

I leave the country in just over a week, and I think the reality of this still hasn't quite set in.  I also think that this is in large part because my visa has, unfortunately, still not arrived.  I was told by the father of the kids I babysit that my Congressman's local office can help in situations like this, and have contacted them.  And they are helping, getting in touch with the Embassy and, apparently London, as my application was sent there from the embassy.  It's a slightly disconcerting thought that my passport is in London while I am still in California, but if that's what's needed, then that's what's needed.  I recieved a call from my caseworker there this morning for extra information.  Unfortunately, I was really tired and don't recall much of what was said, except that she was going to try to get in touch with the Embassy in Los Angeles, so I'm not sure how this is going.  I only hope it's going well. 

I've been getting the compulsion to start packing over the last few days.  I guess it's understandable; I will be trying to fit my life into three suitcases, two full-sized and one travel-sized.  But as it's still over a week until I go, I'm trying to delay myself.  Most of the things I will need to pack, such as clothing and toiletries, I will need to keep out until the day or day before I leave.  Instead, I've started listing what I will need to pack and trying to organize it by which suitcase it will belong in.  It slows the compulsion for a while; unfortunately, it can later also make me want to just start already.

Financial planning is also starting to get sorted.  Bank of America has an agreement with Barclay's in which BofA customers can use their debit card at Barclay's ATM's with no fees, so I have set that up.  Also working on getting the last of the student loans done, so that housing will be completely paid for. 

It's amazing how many little things start popping up in the final week before a long-term trip.  My to-do list for each day is long enough to be almost frightening, but yet nothing should take extremely long on its own.  And then my mood seems to follow the list, in which I am partly overwhelmed, yet still somehow not quite as motivated as I should be to get it done.  I'm not quite sure what to think of my mood the last two days.

On Doctors and Moving

I had my last appointment with my rheumatologist before I leave this morning.  It's a strange feeling, knowing that I won't be seeing that office again until sometime next June or July.  For the past three years, I have been going in there in frequencies varying from every three months, to every two weeks.  She is the doctor who diagnosed me, treated me, and got me back to the place where I am healthy enough to go live abroad for a year.

I will not be without care; at least not for most of my trip.  I will be able to get set up with a rheumy while I am there.  It may just take a few weeks, which I think is what is causing the strange feeling.  In a sense, I am between doctors.  I can still call Dr. P until I leave; but the office visits and chats with the nurse and office manager are on hold.  It is new and unsettling, but at the same time exciting.  It means that one more stop on the path to England has been passed.

And so, to Dr. P, as well as T and S in the office, I thank you.  You are the reasons I am healthy enough to go. 

Introducing Me

The first question I have always asked myself when I stumble across a new blog is, Who is the person who is writing this? So I find it only appropriate that my first post be to answer this question.  I am a 22-year-old girl from Southern California who will be leaving in two weeks to take a year-long study abroad at Kingston University, just outside London.  For privacy's sake, I will be referring to people by their first initial here.  As such, I am simply D. 

So, why am I taking a study abroad?  Quite simply, because I want to.  I have wanted to for years, ever since I found out this type of program exists.  I took myself to England when I was 18 and a senior in high school for my spring break, and fell in love with what parts of the country I saw.  Granted, I already had an obsession, but actually being there only made me want to go back, over and over again.  So, why not live there for a year? 

Of course, I now also have the added incentive of dating someone who lives in the UK.  My placement in the country is an hour-and-a-half train ride from his home.  While many people think that is a lot, it is the closest I could have been placed, and is much better than the eleven-hour flight that has been required to connect us for the last three years.  It is a change that we are both beyond thrilled about.

So who am I? There are so many facets to cover.  I am a Sociology major with a concentration in Social Work.  I am still in the process of deciding where in the social work field I want to work, though am leaning toward a battered women's shelter or anti-human trafficking campaign.  This past school year, I took a course in Braille Transcribing, and will be working on the manuscript for my certification this upcoming year.  I suppose you could say that I am a helping type person, who wants to help others through their situations in some tangible way.

I am a chronic History Channeller, especially regarding English/European and Biblical history. I enjoy creating period clothing and have attended many Renaissance Faires.  I have tried to get into reenactments, but unfortunately that has never worked out.

I also have Systemic Lupus Erythmatosis, also known as simply lupus.  It is an autoimmune disorder that, to put it simply, causes the immune system to go into overdrive and attack healthy tissue.  This can cause problems varying from minor skin rashes to joint pains to organ involvement.  I am extremely grateful that I am stable enough to take this trip.  It affects my daily life, but I refuse to let it define me.

I often work with children, whether babysitting or in daycare settings.  For the last three years, I have worked at my parent's church providing daycare for the Mothers of Preschoolers program (MOPS) and different covenant groups (Bible studies) that met during the week. 

Right this moment, this is all I can think of to post about myself.  As far as background information goes, it should be sufficient.  I hope that this has piqued your interest and that you will return to follow my adventures and my thoughts as I embark on a year living in the beautiful UK.