On the move.......again

January 8th and 9th, 2009

So I have finally finished posting and writing about my trip to Europe and well behind schedule. My original plan was to have it done by New Year’s but it soon became very apparent how unrealistic that goal was. But hey…mid-February is not that much later right? Important thing is that it is done. Now I need to get caught up on what as happened since…plus I have another note that I wrote about a month ago that I still need to get posted but I need to keep things in order. Good thing for me I actually have not accomplished very much in the last 2 months.

Yes I did film this while driving....but it is easier than taking pictures. This is somewhere between Banff and Lake Louise (I think).

I have found my way to my temporary home…Vernon, British Columbia. I can’t lie I am not here by choice but this is where mom and dad have decided to retire so I am here for now…..but hopefully not very long. The trip was far more eventful than it should have been. The roads through the mountains have been terrible so on day one we actually only made it as far as Banff (a stretch of the highway was closed for most of the day so we didn't want to risk being stuck somewhere.) We did lose one along the way as one of the goldfish died in the hotel but they are WAY past their life expectancy so I can’t be completely surprised. (The other 2 made it and are happily back in their fish tank).

Day 2 we did manage to make it all the way to Vernon and promptly moved into….Auntie Faye and Uncle Andy’s basement. The new house was not ready when we arrived so we ended up bunking with them for a while. Mom and dad headed off to visit Debi in the Cayman Islands so basically I spent 2 weeks trying to entertain myself and not annoy Auntie Faye and Uncle Andy too much.

The first few weeks here were certainly not enjoyable for me….not that everyone didn’t try. The winters here can be very grey and when we arrived the fog had settled into the valley…..and stayed for about the first month I was here. Makes me very grumpy…..oh and it snowed and it was cold. I guess the winters in the USA made me forget. Plus the day I left London it was 9 C (48 F) so you can imagine how happy I was when I arrived home and it was -20 C (-4 F).

Another patch of the highway. As you can see the roads were still not in great condition but we made it and that is all that counts.

I am currently still trying to find an assignment in the USA. It seems that there has been a bit of a slow down in the travel nursing market…..in my speciality (or lack there of) especially. Of course we (and I mean travel nurses) cost a lot more money than other nurses so hospitals are not using us as much right now. It also means that some units are running short staffed and some patients are holding off on surgery (due to the economic climate) and neither of these 2 conditions can last very long so hopefully something will come up….SOON.

Unfortunately I cannot work here in BC right now (or in Alberta) because I do not have an active license here in Canada. I have done all the paperwork here in BC so we shall see how long that takes. Lots of forms to come back from the 8 US states I am licensed in so who knows.

I have been trying to prepare to be gone as much as possible. That included taking a short trip down to Everett Washington to get my CPR renewed (well actually I had to re-do it as I let the other one expire before I went on my trip). Ok and I would also be doing a little shopping while I was there.

January 19 and 20th, 2009

No that is not a mountain lake. That is the fog that is sitting in the Okanakan Valley. Lucky for us we drove out of it and into the sunshine.

It was a long drive so Jessica (my cousin) decided to come along for the ride and to do some shopping. We were derailed for a short time when we hit the border. Apparently US Customs and Border Patrol had a bit of an issue with me coming down for something related to work while being unemployed, while living in my Aunt and Uncle’s basement (while my parent’s live upstairs), coming from a BC address but still with an Alberta driver’s license and Alberta plates on my car. It is a really good thing that Jessica is employed (and gave her entire job description to the boys) or they may not have let us over. They seemed very concerned I was going to do something that would mess up my TN status and get me deported. (He straight out told me he did not want me to go down and teach the course……I assured him I would not). I really like working in the US so it is pretty safe to say I am not going to do anything that could mess that up.

Oh look, I'm on the computer.....so unlike me. I am doing something productive though....finding the closest Victoria's Secret.

Anyway, so they let us down and I took my course. The instructor knew where I was coming from (her son plays hockey in Kamloops quite often) and could not believe how far I drove. I can’t believe either but as long as I get a job it will all be worth it.

Of course we did a bunch of shopping as well. We might have been a little over our personal exemptions but Victoria’s Secret is so worth it (I really miss Victoria’s Secret). Plus outlet malls are outstanding and something that Canada really is lacking.....so we spent some money. Just doing our part for the US economy. (And don’t worry, since I have nothing else to do I am also doing my part for the Canadian economy).

Jessica looking very happy to be heading to the mall.

My car...after the shopping but before the car wash. That was our next stop.

The best part about the trip though…..sunshine….that’s right I got to see sunshine for the first time since I have moved to BC.

Jessica and I decided we wouldn't do either of these things.

Because the road looked like this.

Julie