Praise in the midst of the storm

Whew it's been such a long time since the last time I blogged and there has been so much that has happened since my last post as well!

As you know, I got a new job as a high school counselor at the school that I truly wanted to be at! I'm beyond excited about starting this new journey in my life and had my first meeting with the director of school counseling yesterday. Ish just got real! :)

Another huge thing is that I moved up to Northern Virginia in the beginning of this month! For now, I'm staying with a friend until I can find a tenant for my house and also get on my feet and settled in this area. Blanche and I have been here for about 3 weeks and things started off really fun and exciting! I was going out just about every night and hanging out with lots of friends. I felt like I was living the life!!

I'm still living and what not, but right now, I'm also learning. I'd even say I am facing some trials and tribulations within all of this.

Before I start, this is not a gripe post with tons of complaints and woe is me pleas. This is just a recap of what's been going on. I'm in good spirits despite it all and am just trusting God through it all.

Number one is that I still haven't found a tenant for my house yet. My house has been on the market since April and only one person has come by to see the place. They ended up feeling like it was too small to accommodate the size of the family. Since then, the property manager I was working with has left the company (or got fired, I'm not sure) and I found this out when I just happened to e-mail them to see how things were going. The company informed me that people have inquired about the place, but no showings have happened because the inquiries were from unqualified people. We have also dropped the price for rent once again. I'm hoping and praying something happens soon because it's getting really expensive paying to live here in NOVA and also my mortgage. I do believe something will come about eventually and am trusting that it happens soon.

Next up is my sweet Blanche. An incident happened last week with Blanche and another neighbor's dog. In this case, Blanche and I were at fault and since then, I have had to make the tough decision to send Blanche back to stay with my old neighbor until I find somewhere else to live. I have been pretty bummed about this because I love Blanche and I don't want to give her up even if it is for short period of time. My neighbors have been really understanding and nice about  helping me as much as they can so I'm so thankful for them in my life. I'm taking her back next week and my plan is to only stay here no more than 6 months before going back for her. Hopefully it will be sooner than that, but we'll see how things go.

In spite of everything that's going on, I still have to say "thank you, Lord". I remember a time when I wasn't sure what it meant to praise God even in the middle of my storms. What does that mean? What does that look like?? Am I supposed to praise God for the fact that things are going wrong in my life!? How can anyone give praise when they've been kicked down and are facing a big trial in their life?? Where do you find the strength to still say thank you when you're crying every day and don't know when this beating is going to let up? Well I have learned that despite the fact that some things in my life aren't going that great and despite the fact that I am experiencing some setbacks, God has still been good to me. He still blesses me in other areas of my life and my whole life is not completely in disarray and disorder. Everything isn't falling apart and He is still blessing me. Things could be a lot worse and I know that he still has his hands on the situation. He knows the end result of a situation before it even began. It's already worked out and worrying doesn't add anything to my life. It only causes me to be stressed when worrying and stressing can't change the situation.

I'm a work in progress and the only way to exercise my faith is to go through some things. I trust God no matter what the situation looks like. I trust that he has my best interest at heart and that everything happening in my life is happening for a reason. I may not know why it's happening, but I trust that it's a good reason. A reason that will work out for my good. A trial is a prerequisite to a testimony. There is no testimony without the trials. The testimony is used to encourage me and others that God is all powerful and if he brought me through before, he'll do it again.

All I can do is trust that it'll all work out and that's just what I'm going to do.

LA

Ok so on to something more exciting and not so stressful! My trip to LA was nothing short of AWESOME!!! My sister and I flew out of RIC to LAX on Thursday May 29th and arrived in LA a little before non PST. First order of business was to secure the rental car then we headed to the hotel. We stayed in Glendale, CA which is about 30 min from downtown Los Angeles. A friend of ours works at the Hilton in Glendale and hooked us up with a discount on the room!

We met up with a lot of friends and family while out there and even enjoyed some great attractions/events!

On the plane headed to LA!

one of the many beautiful views

Runyon Canyon! We hiked it! 

We made it to the top! 

Hollywood Blvd.

Elevator selfies before the Guy & Tony Toni Tone concert.

Color Me Badd! 

Hermosa Beach

Cousin David and us in Malibu! 

Cousin Yvonne at her house in Inglewood.

Heading home! LA was indeed....#dope. I will be back! 

Blanche

Doing more house hunting today and I'm starting to get a little discouraged. I feel like this is becoming my life to find a place for me to live. Nevermind finding someone to stay in my house, because that will happen without any control on my end. I have done all that I need to do to secure a tenant so there is no need to worry or stress about what happens with that from here on out. Of course I should be taking this same approach to finding a place for me, but one thing that has been pulling at my heart is trying to find somewhere to live that will accept Blanche as well.

I adopted my sweet pet Blanche on November 12, 2013 from the Charlottesville SPCA. She was described as a Boxer (mix), but I'm not certain what she's mixed with. Many people have guessed either a pit bull or a bull dog to be the mix. While searching for apartments, I'm noticing that pit bulls and American bull dogs are listed as "restricted breeds" and any dog mixed with them are not welcomed to stay. Because I'm not sure what she's mixed with, I'm not certain she will be accepted at the places I have been looking at. It doesn't hurt to try, but I'm a little worried that we will be turned away due to the ambiguity of what she actually is. 

I e-mailed a potential roommate inquiring within about renting a room in her home and informed her that I have a dog who is a boxer bulldog. I have decided that I'm sticking with the fact that she's an English bulldog mix and that's final. No matter what others may say. Either way, the girl e-mailed me back immediately and said "no boxers or bull dogs" in that they are "aggressive" breeds. :( 

My neighbor has offered to take Blanche if I can't find anywhere that will accept her, but the more I think of that, my heart begins to hurt. I don't want to have to give her away because I have grown to love her like she's a part of my family. I would be devastated if I couldn't keep her!! I'm standing in the need of prayer right now that everything will work out and I will be able to keep her because I would be so sad if it had to go another way. 

I never knew I could love like this, but she's my baby!!

She's such a diva! :)

Fun with Blanche while she was taking a snooze! 

I love this little face!!

She thinks she's a lap dog....all 60 pounds of her! 

#JesusWillWorkItOut 

Up next....housing....

One part of the trifecta puzzle has been solved and I have finally found a new job! It's a true sigh of relief to have one piece of this figured out and crossed off the proverbial "to do" list. Next up is finding a tenant for my house and finding somewhere for me to live in my new city.

In regards to finding a tenant for my townhouse.....*crickets*.

Not one person has even inquired about living here. I contacted my property manager on Wednesday of last week to tell her I got the job and to see if any traffic had been buzzing around for a potential tenant. I knew nothing had been going on because I know she would have contacted me immediately if there was anyone interested. Since I've got a new time line and sense of urgency now, I asked her to drop the price for the monthly rent and to put a sign in my yard advertising that the place is available. Thus far, it's been almost a week and still...nothing. I also told her to list that the property is available July 1st instead of August 1st to see if that would entice a potential renter. With these changes, I'm hoping and praying that something will happen soon. I'm trying not to stress or worry because after reading over my previous posts, I am reminded how things have come together even when it seems like it's down to the last minute. I am trusting God to work everything out just like I know he will....so there's no need to stress if I'm leaving it in his hands!

Now on to me finding a place to live in. I thought this was going to be the piece of cake part. WRONG! Of course I knew it was going to be dumb expensive to live in Northern VA, but I really didn't know how DUMB expensive it really is. I'm talking $1500 for a one bedroom whole in the wall. Or better yet, $1100 for a 1 bedroom apartment in a very unsafe neighborhood. Smh...sounds like Charlottesville, but the prices weren't that bad. I'm trying to find a roommate, but wouldn't mind living alone. Of course with living alone, I'm trying to find some place that's cheaper than $1200, but for right now, it looks like I'll have to find a roommate if I want something for that price. I'm heading up to the area this weekend to do some searching and am really hoping I find something. My sister suggested that I stay with my brother, but I'm not too sure how that would work out because of some apprehensions I have regarding his financial stability and responsibility. I may revisit the option as I get closer to my start date, but for now, I'm so over looking for a place...and I just started. Sad!

I tell you, this has been a challenging year and I knew it was going to be this way. It's all good though, at the end of the day, I'm making it and taking it one day at a time. I know I'll get through it and everything will be all good. I'm just ready to get settled, be in my new place, and be able to kick back and relax....to finally be able to just breathe!

Stay tuned....

I GOT THE JOB!!!!

Nine months of job hunting has finally come to an end!! Last week, I was offered a position at THE high school I mentioned in my previous post!!!!! I am beyond excited about this opportunity!!. This county had a ton of high school openings while I was conducting my search. I checked the location of each high school that I applied to and this particular one had the best location in my opinion. I still applied to the other schools just in case, but was secretly hoping and praying that I would get my top choice. As time went on, the other high schools were filling their positions left and right. I did some further research on the demographics of the school and I was sold! The population it serves is one in which I have a true passion for working with! Everything fell right into place with this one and I'm truly thankful and give all glory and honor to God!

So here's a short version of the path I've been going down since the last post. I feel the need to share this because only sharing the victory without the struggle can lessen the impact of how great this blessing is.

Interview #1 that I had at the elementary school in Richmond basically turned me down. I wasn't bummed about it or anything because I really didn't want that job anyway. I'm not even just saying that as an ego defense mechanism because I was rejected. I really did want a high school position and this one was for an elementary school position. I also found out at the interview that I would be part time at one school and part time at another if given the job. Totally not ideal and I wasn't really feeling that either.

As I mentioned before, I sent my cover letter and resume to the principal at the high school I really wanted to work at after my screening interview. I got no response from her. I wasn't even sure if she read my e-mail. Well about two weeks later, I was just getting off of a plane coming home from a vacation to Los Angeles with my sister when I got a phone call from a random 703 phone number around 6pm. I picked up and there was a woman on the other end stating that she was from the high school I was looking to work at and was wondering if I was available to come in for an interview in 2 days.  Eeekkk!!! I had just taken a 5 day vacation and would be just returning to work and then to ask for another day off?? I wasn't sure if I would be able to pull that off, but I asked anyway and my boss said yes!

So I headed out for this interview and it took me about 2 hours to get there. A two hour trip followed a 12 minute interview. Yes...that's right...I was only in there for 12 minutes. I talked so fast and there were only 10 questions. I headed home just praying I did well. About 4 business days went by and I noticed online that the position still hadn't been filled. I was getting nervous and wondering if I would be offered the job or not. I figured if they really liked me, they would have called immediately to offer me the position. A few people advised me to call the school to follow up, but I was so scared that I would seem pressed or thirsty that I debated if I should actually do that or not. In actuality, I was really scared of calling to here "sorry, we went with someone else" and it'd then be "that awkward moment". Well I mustered up the nerve to call and the principal said "I haven't submitted the names yet, and that's all that I can tell you. Just hold on. Just hold on".

Hmmm..."hold on" ey? Well I suppose she wouldn't tell me to hold on to only get shut down, right!? Low and behold, the next morning, I got a call from a representative from Human Resources offering me the position and I happily accepted!!

So there you have it...I am now a high school counselor!!!!! :) Thank you, Jesus!!!

From nothing....to something....

Amazing things happened on Thursday of last week! I got two calls from two different school divisions....at the same d@mn time!!!Well technically the calls weren't at the exact same time, but they were like an hour apart from each other! Either way, I called back after work and scheduled two interviews....which also happened to be scheduled on the same day. Yesterday, I had the opportunity to travel down to Richmond for a job interview at an elementary school, then I headed up to Manasass for a county screening interview.

Interview #1
So check these odds out! The school I interviewed at has a new principal and the principal formally worked in the same county that I work in now!! I've actually met this woman several times before when she was still working in my county, so that gave me a bit of a heads up on what to expect and what kind of person she was. I talked it over with my principal and assistant principal before I went on the interview to get their professional opinion regarding any pointers and tips they thought would be beneficial for me. I think I did really well in this interview! I was genuine and I was myself! That's all that I can be, so we'll see how it goes!

Interview #2
I'm truly banking on getting hired with this school division more than the first interview's county. I say this because this county actually has a high school position available. Oh and let me not forget to mention that I #rocked my interview with this particular county! The lady I interviewed with told me she really liked me and that she would definitely pass my name on to schools to contact me for an interview. She did suggest that I possibly take an elementary school position if it became available to get my foot in the door in case I don't get the high school position. I e-mailed the principal at the high school and forwarded my resume and cover letter and also informed her that I just interviewed with the county for a screening. I'm hoping things work out in my favor here because I got some really good vibes with this county!! Prayers up! I'm leaving it in God's hand!

My boss really doesn't want me to leave and she has expressed this to me just about every day since I told her I had interviews scheduled. I love my current school and wish I could pick it up (along with my townhouse) and place it in a more popping city! That would be a perfect world! Ultimately, I did tell my boss that I'm trusting God on all of this and that I have prayed that I am open to going where I'm needed the most! I want to be a vessel and to be where God needs me! If that means staying in Charlottesville for another year or two, I'm ok with that too. Time will tell, but I'm really excited that something is actually starting to look up for me! It's been a long process of applying and waiting, and hoping, and wishing for something to come up and now it's actually happening!

Stay tuned.... :)

May Day[s]

It's a week into the month of May and here are a few updates as to what's been going on lately.

1. I have officially signed all the documents and have gone forth with putting my house on the market for rent. The property management company has come by to take pictures of my place and has listed it on various websites. It's been about 2 weeks now, yet no one has inquired about it. The place is not available until August 1st, so I'm not too concerned that no traffic has been moving along with interest just yet. I changed my mind from having it ready July 1st to August 1st because I figured by July 1st, I still may not know where I'll be going or may have just found out what is going to be my destiny for next school year. August 1st would give me more time to figure things out and make moves without the stress.

2. Still no word about a job. A county in Richmond had an opening for a position at a middle school that I applied for, but my app was incomplete due to my principal's mom dying shortly after I applied and I didn't have a 3rd reference. No one at work knows I'm trying to leave so I found it hard to find anyone to do a reference for me. I suppose if I was truly determined, I could have made it happen, but I didn't. I just finished filling out all the necessary information for a job in a county in Northern Virginia and am now just waiting to hear something. Hopefully some form of correspondence will be made soon. I've also applied to some other jobs in DC and Maryland, but no word. The good news is that a few friends of mine have found great jobs that they really wanted so I feel like God is in my neighborhood handing out blessings! I'm sure he won't pass me by! :)

3. I've decided to give online dating another shot. I get the itch to be open minded and optimistic about online dating around this time of the year every year. This time around, I'm basically just seeing what's up and not putting too much thought or effort into it. I hate having to fill out the info and I also hate the back and forth messaging part in the beginning, but it comes with the territory. I'll try to give it a month before giving up and see what happens. Stay tuned...

4. I've been asked to speak at my high school to the graduating honors students. I'm really geeked about this experience and am highly honored to speak to them! I have a few ideas on what I'll say, but haven't really solidified anything yet. I give the speech on May 19th.

5. Count down to my vacay to LA is on and poppin!!! I'm really excited about this trip with my sister and can't wait to get some time away from everyday life to truly relax and enjoy myself! Everyone who has been to LA loved it, so I'm truly stoked about going!!

I'm in pretty good spirits right now despite some stressful days in the past week. I managed to get through them without throwing too big of a tantrum and not drinking down too much wine. I'm proud of myself for making it through and trying to keep a good attitude as well. We've got about 5 more weeks left of school and I'm truly excited about summer vacation!

Where am I now?

My life seems to be basically consumed with the "where am I now" concept and figuring out what I'm going to be doing and where I'll be in the next 4 months. As for a little update, right now things are slowly, but surely progressing. As I've said before, this whole transition is about timing.  I went on an interview two weeks ago and I felt like it was a very productive interview. The man who interviewed me gave me some really helpful tips in regards to how to get my foot in the door if I want to go from elementary school counseling to high school counseling. If nothing comes out of that interview and I don't get hired for that county, I can honestly say, the interview was just what I needed to move forward in a positive direction. Everything happens for a reason and every experience teaches us a valuable lesson if we look for those lessons. 

I have chosen a property manager to manage the renting of my townhouse and I'm basically just in the process of getting all the paperwork filled out and submitted. I will do all of that this weekend. 

Another opening came up for a school counseling position two days ago, so I applied to that last night. I also reached out to a few friends who are in other counties and forwarded them my resume in case they knew of any openings as well. 

I'm a little more relaxed about everything and my boss is being extremely supportive in all of this so I am truly blessed! My sister also inspired me the other day to stop assuming something isn't going to work out before I even try. I needed that because despite the fact that I oftentimes have crazy faith, sometimes it waivers when I need most. 

....oh and those plans to move to Cali or Texas are now going to be placed on hold. That's a huge move that I am not prepared to execute in such short notice. I'll revisit that dream in about 2 years and go from there. I'm not abandoning the thought, just deferring it. 

Mentor hunting

Since the last time I blogged, a few things have happened:
1.) I've been seriously thinking about moving to another state.
2.) I've applied to 2 jobs in California.
3.) I've been looking for and researching jobs in Texas.
4.) I've considered changing careers.
5.) I'm still looking for a property manager to rent my house (I need to do this more aggressively).
6.) I'm kind of still want to move back to Richmond.

As you can see.....I'm all over the place. I'm aware of this, but while talking to a friend today, it was basically confirmed by another person who has listened to me go on about all the disarray that yes....I'm just all over the place.

I feel like right now, I'm totally lost when it comes to where I should be and what I should be doing. Should I just stay where I am for at least another year and take more time to prepare to leave, or should I continue with my plans of moving?

My friend Dionne suggested that I find a mentor to help direct my path.  I initially figured that I didn't need a mentor even though I'm completely in need of some order in my life. I even said to her "I know I'm all over the place and need guidance, but then again, I don't feel like I need guidance".

                                                     

Confused?

Yeah, me too!

To lay it all out there, job hunting has really caused me to waver in my confidence with wanting to move. I do have an interview on Friday with a school system in Richmond, VA which is a start, but as for all the other jobs I've applied to, nothing has been biting. I can't even lie and say that it's not discouraging that I'm not hearing anything back because it is. I'm trying to be patient and know that everything will work out the way it's supposed to, but for right now, I admit that I have good days and bad days when it comes to all of this. I just want to be clear on what I'm supposed to do and be sure I'm not making a decision that I'll regret later.

Wait....did I just say that...?

I was just talking the other day about how I'm taking chances and not living my life with regrets! If I fail, it'll be counted as a learning experience and I'll move on, but now I feel like I'm getting cold feet and moving back to the "safe" zone. I reflected on my 20s and realized that I lived my life in a very safe way. I took minimal risks and played everything as safe as possible when it came to dreaming big and executing those dreams. I vowed that I would live my life differently starting in my 30s, yet now I feel like because I'm a bit discouraged, I'm reneging on being bold and living my best life. 

I know I just need to see it all through and keep moving. Discouragement will happen and road blocks will set you back at times, but I need to erase any negativity and just keep pushing. 

As for that mentor, I'm going to take Dionne's advice and get to searching. I mentor a young girl who is in middle school now and I feel like I give her practical advice because "been there, done that". If someone could be that for me, I feel like I need to take them up on the offer. 

....I got nothing to lose....only gain! 

Uncertain

One of my plans for this year is to relocate back home to Richmond after the school year is over. With that being said, there are a few things that need to happen before that can be done.

1) Sell or rent my townhouse

2) Find a job in Richmond

Well #2 is going pretty well. I informed my current employer of my plans to relocate back in the fall and have totally received nothing but support from them. Despite the mundane and grueling process of applying for job after job and usually getting no call backs for an interview, I'm rather hopeful in this department. I suppose that is because although I would like to relocate, I'm still employed and am eligible for a continuing contract for next school year if I choose to take it. Things could be a lot worse, so I will celebrate the blessings that I do have and not take that for granted. Right now I have an interview with a school system in Richmond scheduled for the end of this month. I also just put in an application for a position at a community college.  We'll just have to wait and see what comes of these things. 

Meanwhile, #1 is what is slowly, but surely becoming the bane of my existence. Basically, I can't afford to sell my house, so I need to rent it out. I spoke with a Realtor today regarding my options for renting or selling and it's confirmed, if I'm going to do anything, I'm going to have to rent. There are three other properties on the market in my neighborhood for rent right now.  One has been looking for a tenant for the past couple of months, and still no luck. I'm really trying not to look at the outside factors and let them discourage me, but I must admit it's really hard. I told myself in the beginning of this process that if things don't work out for me to leave this year, then I will accept that it must be God's will for me to stay another year and I will be content with that. Of course I decided that before I truly started going through with all of this. I am finding it hard to be content with staying another year because I am really ready to leave. My job is amazing and I love where I work, but it's this area that is killing me softly. I'm over being in such a slow town with little to nothing to do here. On top of the fact that the main town is slow, I don't even live in the main town. I live on the outskirts and the commute back and forth is what is draining me. 

I was in a position of being down to the wire regarding truly trusting God to come through for me back in 2010 before I moved to Charlottesville. I was working as a long term sub as a school counselor at a middle school.  I took the position right before Christmas break and was aware that it would only last until the end of February. I knew that come March 1st, I would be looking for another job. My prayer was that I would not have a gap in my employment and sure enough, God came through. I remember when it was 2 weeks before the position was coming to an end and I still hadn't found another job. I was getting nervous and was worried that things wouldn't work out considering the circumstances. I remember how excited I was when I got this job. I was truly in awe of what God could really do!! I suppose it's time for me to kick my faith into full gear and realize that if God could do it for me once, He can do it again!

It's March and I'm hoping that come June, my house will have a tenant on it's way to moving in and I'll be transitioning into a new job and an apartment somewhere in Richmond.