Good Things Come to Those Who Wait

"Good things come to those who wait," is on repeat in my head on a daily basis. "Things happen for a reason," is usually following. By now, you all know I lack in patience. I like being prepared and I feel so unprepared for this adventure, emotionally and physically. I feel like if I knew exactly where in Africa I was going, I would be more at ease. I don't know. I am just so anxious and excited for this adventure I just want it to happen already. I am stressed about saying goodbye to all my friends and family too. This has been really hitting me hard lately. I feel like talking about it has been helping though. I keep a lot of things in and then it just piles up and stresses me out and I don't sleep.

I have started to just being more proactive and going with the flow and hoping for the best. I'm LOVING my job with the Boys and Girls Club and have been panicking a bit about leaving the wonderful kids and staff. I came up with an idea...Peace Corps Partners. I want to create a "hub" (website) that will allow me to interact with the kids at the Boys and Girls. I want to be able to show them the stuff that I am doing there and teach them about the cultures I will come in contact with. I want to use webcasts, podcasts, vlogs, blogs, social media, discussion boards, etc to increase their global awareness. I want to implement a pen pal program as well as fundraising events that will benefit the communities I will be working with. I feel like this program serves the missions of both the Peace Corps and the Boys and Girls Club of America. I am getting a lot of support from the Boys and Girls and hope to come up with a plan that I can give my Peace Corps recruiter.

Other than that I am still chugging along. School is going...ok. lol...I am exhausted but the end result is worth it. Short and sweet this time around!

"I Bless the Rains Down in Africa"-Toto

Alright folks! We are making progress! I just received my nomination letter. I have been nominated for Sub-Saharan Africa in the Secondary Education Science Teaching Program and will be leaving June 2013 (tentatively). Whew! Let the research begin!

I have found out that there are approximately 27 countries that have open Peace Corps programs and approximately 80 languages are spoken amongst those countries! Yikes! It's so exhilarating to think this time next year I will overseas on a new adventure. Bring it on and it's on like donkey kong! I am still in that whole ignorant stage but I am totally eager to learn and prepare myself as much as possible. Next step = medical mumbo jumbo (I will spare you the details because the list is long and tedious!).

In other news, things at the Boys & Girls Club are going great. We are getting ready to finish up our summer camp and then head back into after school programs. My Mad Science Thursdays have been going great and the kids get pretty excited to see what I have up my sleeve. We released our first edition of our Ninja News Newsletter. Photos and stories were taken and written by myself and a group of club members. I am so proud of their enthusiasm and hard work. We will be releasing our next edition August 3rd. This edition will wrap up our summer camp program. I plan on continuing the newsletter into the school year.

I have started my theme song playlist and on it so far:

Africa by Toto
Hakuna Matata by Timon, Pumba and Simba
I Like to Move It Move It by King Julian

More is yet to come!

"You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough." Mae West

Here We Go...

Hey folks! I just had a great weekend! My dad, grandparents, aunt, uncle and cousins flew out. My aunt graduated with her doctorate so we went to her graduation and celebrated. We are all so proud of her! It is such a great accomplishment! Go Dr. Haag!!!!

I have to tell you all about this dream I had over the weekend. I will do my best to recount all the I remember. Ok so here it goes...I remember walking out of a plane with my Peace Corps recruiter. We were on an island of some sort. I remember seeing a beach and another island close by. Now this other island is what stood out most. There were mountains but behind these mountains were big skyscrapers. Weird, I know. I remember my recruiter telling me to go get to know the people and just left me on the island. Then I woke up I think because that is about all I remember. At work on Monday I was telling a friend about it and how weird it would be to hear from my recruiter soon. Surprise!!!!!! I was officially nominated on July 2nd. How crazy is that? So now, if any of you psych people want to analyze my dream, by all means, go ahead and get back to me!

Now the fun begins! I have to go through all these medical tests and what not. I am hoping to hear about a tentative placement as well. I will let you know when I find that out.

This is a short one but I hope to update more frequently now that some progress has been made!

"All successful people men and women are big dreamers. They imagine what their future could be, ideal in every respect, and then they work every day toward their distant vision, that goal or purpose." Brian Tracy

Sit Tight For Now

You guys will find a reoccurring theme in my postings...PATIENCE. Something, I feel, lack a lot of. It wasn't until recently that I realized I might have a lot more than I think. A couple of days ago, I was eating with my boss, aka Mama #2, and I told her I wished I had more patience. She said, "Jordy, I think you have a lot of patience. Look at what you are accomplishing." Then I thought about it and she was right. I moved out to AZ in 2005 to attend ASU and even though there have been bumps along the way, I am still trying to accomplish that first goal of graduating from ASU. I have been patient enough to make it this far and not give up. Granted I had some "weak" moments, but here I am doing my thing. I quote weak because to some they may have seemed weak, but to me, they have been great moments that I don't regret. I have established a lot of great relationships in those moments and have been able to work on myself as well.

So when my recruiter says, "Sit tight for now," I am trusting that things will happen when they need to. I emailed him a couple of weeks ago to ask what I could do this summer while waiting to better prepare myself. "Sit tight for now," wasn't really the response I was hoping for. So, I have taken the liberty to start the preparation process myself. The mentality I have right now is that it is going to happen, it's just a matter of where I am going. It may sound conceited, but when you get that feeling that it is just meant to be, you go with it. I started reading journal entries from volunteers all over the world, since I don't know where I am going. I am reading their opinions on what to pack. How do you pack for 2 years in a foreign country? Hmmmm...I will get back to you on that one.

In other news...Boys and Girls Club is amazing! I love being apart of this great organization! The kids are great and my co-workers rock! This week I am starting Mad Science Thursdays. I will do different experiments and activities with the kids. This week we are talking about weather. I also started a newspaper with a co-worker. Kids are really responding to it. I made press badges for them and all. I am hoping to get our first paper out tomorrow, but we will see. My other job at the Az Bread Co is going well too. Co-workers are great. Customers are great. Food is great. It is all just GREAT!

"Compassion is sometimes the fatal capacity for feeling what it is like to live inside somebody else's skin. It is the knowledge that there can never really be any peace and joy for me until there is peace and joy for you too." Frederick Buechner

Summer O' Fun

Ok so a little update on my shenanigans lately...Working at the Boys and Girls Club these past few weeks has been amazing! I love the kids and the other staff. The kids just finished up the semester so next week starts our summer camp program. Let me just say...it is going to be a great summer. I will be running a few different programs...Torch Club (leadership, life skills, community service program for 11-13 year olds), a reading program for all ages through Maricopa County, and the Live. Laugh. Love. Dream. Inspire Room (discovery zone). I am super excited about the summer. A little overwhelmed with all the program planning but it is a great experience and I have amazing resources.

Peace Corps update...waiting on some paperwork to turn in to my recruiter...financial obligation blah blah blah stuff. I am really hoping to get a nomination (and tentative placement) by end of the summer. In my short time with the Boys and Girls Club, I have become really passionate about bringing what they do to a  community that needs it. Along with all my program planning for the summer camp, I am also trying to come up with a program that I can use for my Peace Corps service.

Do you every have those moments where you are like, "It is just meant to be." You can't explain it, but you just know the universe is on your side. I have been feeling like that a lot lately. Things are just falling into place and I have this sense of peace, I guess you can call it. I know I can do anything and be anything and I am not limiting myself. I hope I can convey this attitude throughout the rest of my life. It is so empowering to think about. The possibilities are endless!

By the way my 25th was a couple weeks ago and I crossed two things off the ol' bucket list, try escargot...check and try oysters...check. Holla!

When It Rains It Pours

Have you ever had those days or times in your life where everything and anything goes wrong? I feel like a lot of people dwell on those kinds of things a lot. Instead of reacting negatively, which I am guilty of doing as well, we should find something, a spark of some sort, that puts the light back in and brightens your day. You have the choice to react to any given situation, so react positively no matter how distressing the situation is. Who likes to be in a bad mood and depressed? No one! I started thinking about this more recently after I had a not so good day and called home to my mommy (lol). This one day just was very blah for me. I got hit by a cyclist, I was stressing out over school, I was tired, etc. etc. etc. After getting off the phone I realized that I chose to react negatively rather than positively. Soooo a goal I have added to my life list is to react positively 100% (or close to it) of the time. I like being in a good mood and positive and I like that that can rub off on others and make their day better as well. It is also really cool to have days like those and then have times where everything seems to go right. Within the past week and a half-two weeks, I passed all my finals, got a job working at the Boys and Girls Club and finally got my interview with the Peace Corps. 

The last couple of weeks have been busy for me. I finished up the semester (another one bites the dust), I have been working and anxiously awaiting the call from the Peace Corps. Guess what? They called, or rather emailed me, and I had my interview with a recruiter on May 2nd. When I got the email I was so excited. Then I started to think about it and I started getting really nervous and then had the stress of 4 finals = Jordan gone crazy! My head was on constant overdrive. I was thinking about renal physiology and cancer genetics and optics and cell signaling and…what the heck was I going to say during my Peace Corps interview. Everyone told me to not worry about the interview and focus on finals. Easier said than done. The Peace Corps will be a life changing event for me and I didn't want to go into the interview not prepared. I made a list of questions I wanted answered and ideas I had about projects I wanted to be involved with or start. This helped a lot. It help me be a little more organized. My recruiter by the way was phenomenal. His name is Lassana and he served in Tonga, an island in the south Pacific. He was a great help and inspired me even more about becoming a volunteer. 

Have you ever had to get your fingerprints done? I know they have machines that do them, but I went old school and had to do it with the ink and paper. It was one of the hardest things I have ever had to do. Las and I had some good laughs. My fingers did not want to cooperate. It was actually my pesky ring fingers that didn't want to cooperate. So after the interview ended, I felt like a major weight was lifted off my shoulders. It was a perfect way to end my crazy week. I called my parents right after to let them know how it went and called my grandma too. One of the things I miss the most about back home is my grandma. I miss talking to her and hanging out at her house. She is the sweetest person I know. 

So next step…I will get nominated and then tentatively placed somewhere. Las told me that placements usually open up about a year before you will leave. My plan is to leave in June 2013. I am hoping to hear from him in July or August letting me know I have been nominated. Once that happens then I have to go through a bunch of medical tests and what not. Once I pass all those and have no issues, I wait and I wait and I wait. I will get a detailed invitation about 2 months before I would leave if everything goes well. Patience is not my strong suit, as you can tell. 

Thank you all for all the support and kind words!!!!

Oh Benny Boy, I Wish it Were That Easy!

So I came across this Benjamin Franklin quote, "He that can have Patience, can have what he will." Here is my problem Ben...I don't have patience. I do to some extent I suppose but I definitely wish I had the patience to get more patience. Does that make sense? Here is my progress so far as far as my Peace Corps application goes. I am receiving a lot of reading material. That is pretty much the extent of it! There is nothing wrong with this by the way. It is very helpful for me and will be great prep work. I just want my frickin' interview.

I feel like my application was pretty strong and I have reason to believe my recommendations were outstanding. 'How do you know this?' you ask, because of the people that completed them for me. Amazing people, I should say. They have all had great impacts on my life in some way. I had to have a total of three, one from a close friend, a work supervisor and a volunteer supervisor. I could talk on and on about these people. My work supervisor, Carol, gave me my first job when I moved to Arizona. I was 17 and the shyest person you would have ever met. I honestly wouldn't be where I am at if it wasn't for her. She has been there for me since the beginning, almost 8 years. 8 years!!!! I can't believe it has been that long. I was just talking to my mom about that the other night. It has been a fast 8 years, that is for sure. I had two friends do recommendations for me. Lindsay and Lindsey are there names, seriously. Hahaha...I am just realizing this now. LindsAy I have known for about two or three years now I think. We were brought together by a tragedy but she has been an amazing friend and supporter. LindsEy I met my spring semester freshman year. We worked with the ASU football team. She is also a former midwestern gal so we hit it off right away, and I can't mention her without mentioning third amiga, Eleana. These girls, I swear, were apart of a great moment in my life. We are lifelong friends. We can not speak or see each other for a long period of time and when we eventually do speak and see each other it is like we haven't missed a beat. Lovely, lovely ladies! My last recommendation came from my case worker at Big Brothers Big Sisters. LeAnn, was a great support during my match with my little sister. I really appreciated her taking the time to do this for me.

I could honestly right a book about the people I have met so far. Who knows, maybe one day I will! They are all amazing and have helped me in becoming the person I am supposed to be. Their love, support and kindness will always get me through tough times. I definitely have to give a shout out to Casey Carney who is a current volunteer in Paraguay and been answering all my questions and being sooooooooooo helpful. I was introduced to Casey through LindsEy, so thank you LindsEy!!!!

"As we express our gratitude, we must not forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter the words, but to live by them. " JFK

Oh The Places I'll Go!

Oh, the Places You'll Go!

by Dr. Seuss

Congratulations!

Today is your day.

You're off to Great Places!

You're off and away!

You have brains in your head.

You have feet in your shoes

You can steer yourself

any direction you choose.

You're on your own.  And you know what you know.

And YOU are the guy who'll decide where to go.

You'll look up and down streets.  Look 'em over with care.

About some you will say, "I don't choose to go there."

With your head full of brains and your shoes full of feet,

you're too smart to go down any not-so-good street.

And you may not find any

you'll want to go down.

In that case, of course,

you'll head straight out of town.

It's opener there

in the wide open air.

Out there things can happen

and frequently do

to people as brainy

and footsy as you.

And when things start to happen,

don't worry.  Don't stew.

Just go right along.

You'll start happening too.

OH!

THE PLACES YOU'LL GO!

You'll be on your way up!

You'll be seeing great sights!

You'll join the high fliers

who soar to high heights.

You won't lag behind, because you'll have the speed.

You'll pass the whole gang and you'll soon take the lead.

Wherever you fly, you'll be the best of the best.

Wherever you go, you will top all the rest.

Except when you don't

Because, sometimes, you won't.

I'm sorry to say so

but, sadly, it's true

and Hang-ups

can happen to you.

You can get all hung up

in a prickle-ly perch.

And your gang will fly on.

You'll be left in a Lurch.

You'll come down from the Lurch

with an unpleasant bump.

And the chances are, then,

that you'll be in a Slump.

And when you're in a Slump,

you're not in for much fun.

Un-slumping yourself

is not easily done.

You will come to a place where the streets are not marked.

Some windows are lighted.  But mostly they're darked.

A place you could sprain both your elbow and chin!

Do you dare to stay out?  Do you dare to go in?

How much can you lose? How much can you win?

And IF you go in, should you turn left or right...

or right-and-three-quarters? Or, maybe, not quite?

Or go around back and sneak in from behind?

Simple it's not, I'm afraid you will find,

for a mind-maker-upper to make up his mind.

You can get so confused

that you'll start in to race

down long wiggled roads at a break-necking pace

and grind on for miles across weirdish wild space,

headed, I fear, toward a most useless place.

The Waiting Place...

...for people just waiting.

Waiting for a train to go

or a bus to come, or a plane to go

or the mail to come, or the rain to go

or the phone to ring, or the snow to snow

or waiting around for a Yes or a No

or waiting for their hair to grow.

Everyone is just waiting.

Waiting for the fish to bite

or waiting for wind to fly a kite

or waiting around for Friday night

or waiting, perhaps, for their Uncle Jake

or a pot to boil, or a Better Break

or a string of pearls, or a pair of pants

or a wig with curls, or Another Chance.

Everyone is just waiting.

NO!

That's not for you!

Somehow you'll escape

all that waiting and staying.

You'll find the bright places

where Boom Bands are playing.

With banner flip-flapping,

once more you'll ride high!

Ready for anything under the sky.

Ready because you're that kind of a guy!

Oh, the places you'll go! There is fun to be done!

There are points to be scored.  there are games to be won.

And the magical things you can do with that ball

will make you the winning-est winner of all.

Fame!  You'll be famous as famous can be,

with the whole wide world watching you win on TV.

Except when they don't.

Because, sometimes, they won't.

I'm afraid that some times

you'll play lonely games too.

Games you can't win

'cause you'll play against you.

All Alone!

Whether you like it or not,

Alone will be something

you'll be quite a lot.

And when you're alone, there's a very good chance

you'll meet things that scare you right out of your pants.

There are some, down the road between hither and yon,

that can scare you so much you won't want to go on.

But on you will go

though the weather be foul

On you will go

though your enemies prowl

On you will go

though the Hakken-Kraks howl

Onward up many

a frightening creek,

though your arms may get sore

and your sneakers may leak.

On and on you will hike

and I know you'll hike far

and face up to your problems

whatever they are.

You'll get mixed up, of course,

as you already know.

You'll get mixed up

with many strange birds as you go.

So be sure when you step.

Step with care and great tact

and remember that Life's

a Great Balancing Act.

Just never forget to be dexterous and deft.

And never mix up your right foot with your left.

And will you succeed?

Yes! You will, indeed!

(98 and 3/4 percent guaranteed.)

KID, YOU'LL MOVE MOUNTAINS!

So...

be your name Buxbaum or Bixby or Bray

or Mordecai Ali Van Allen O'Shea,

you're off to Great Places!

Today is your day!

Your mountain is waiting.

So...get on your way

I don't think anything describes my journey thus far and my journey to come better than this! I have read it over and over again and it just fits me to a T! I am at the stage in my life where I honestly believe I can 'MOVE MOUNTAINS'.  I have experienced ups and downs and turn-arounds and they have all led me to here and now and I wouldn't want to be anywhere I else. I am in a great place! I get 'it'! I get what life is about now! When I originally started on my journey after I school, I didn't get it. I was ignorant and selfish. I didn't appreciate the opportunity that I was being given. 

Life is about experiencing all that is out there. It's about making lasting relationships. It's about loving and giving and laughing. It's about respecting all of that and more. Set goals for yourself. You can accomplish anything you want. You have the potential to do it! YOU are the only thing that stands in the way. Nothing is impossible! Erase it from your vocabulary, it isn't a word. I remembering reading something that  said 'Remember impossible = I'm possible'. Cheesy I know, but believe it. That is what the world needs. People who believe in their power to MOVE MOUNTAINS!

A Waiting Game

If you read a little about me, you will see that I recently submitted my Peace Corps Volunteer application. I am in the waiting stage now. Waiting for the suspense filled interview with a recruiter. My patience has never been my strong point, although I am getting better. I think a lot of people are surprised with my decision to join the PC after I graduate. I have mentioned it here and there as a viable option after I graduate but I haven't talked in great detail about it. It certainly brought up a lot of 'Why?' questions. So here is actually an essay I had to submit for the application...

"Peace Corps service presents major physical, emotional, and intellectual challenges. You have provided information on how you qualify for PC service elsewhere in the application. In 250-500:

1. What are your reasons for wanting to serve as a PCV?

2. How do the reasons relate to past experiences and goals?

3. How do you expect to satisfy the PC 10 core expectations (which expectations do you 

    expect to find most challenging and how do you plan to overcome these challenges?

One of the most frequently asked questions I get from people when I tell them of my interest in becoming a PCV is, "Why do you want to do that?", and then some people follow up with, "The U.S. has its own problems; they shouldn't be sending people to other countries to fix those countries' problems." That last statement is what really upsets me. Its a selfish and ignorant way of thinking and it is a major reason why the world is so segregated. We need to learn to respect others values and beliefs and work together, rather than judging and working alone. This leads me to my first reason: there are millions of people in this world that do not have the knowledge and resources that the U.S. as a whole provides. If I can bring my passion for life and learning and helping others to those who have so little, it would be an absolute privilege. I hope it has a 'pay it forward' effect. What I can bestow upon others, positively, they can pass to others and hopefully cause a domino effect and before you know it there is this community functioning at a much higher level than they were capable of to begin with. In doing all that, I can bring to light the different cultures I will be immersed in to those who want to know why I want to do this. I am completely aware of the challenges that the PC will put me through. I am not saying it will be a walk in the park, but I can say that I will face them with positivity, confidence and respect. Challenges are meant to be overcome, not feared or ignored. They ultimately shape us into the person we will become. With these challenges that I will face, will come a better understanding of myself, as well as, others. You can never know what you are capable of until you push yourself to the limit. 

Every experience I have gone through, every person I have met, has all had some sort of impact big or small. I am finally realizing all this at the ripe old age of 25 and I realized before how much I took all of that for granted. All these experiences and people have led me to where I am today. As far as future goals, I realize how often things change and how indecisive I can be. I have so many goals and I don't want to limit myself to doing to just one thing. I want to be a doctor, a writer, an athlete, a traveler, a philanthropist, a scientist, etc. Why should we limit ourselves to one thing, when there is so much out there? The Peace Corps will allow me to dip my toes into all of those areas.  

I would like to think of myself as a decent human being. The Peace Corps is all about respect, understanding, learning, giving and love. Preparing for this journey, will entail all of that and more. It would be unrealistic for me to say that I know what I am getting myself into. But I can tell you that I will face this journey head on, with respect, patience and an open mind. My willingness to learn, my compassion for others, my passion for life and my fun-loving, independent qualities will allow me to successfully fulfill not only the Peace Corps' expectations, but my expectations as well."

I sent my essays to my parents because I knew they had a lot of questions about my interest in the PC. They now have a better understanding of my interest in the PC. 

I took some time away from school and moved back to Illinois. To be completely honest I felt lost and just needed to regroup. I was frustrated because I had this plan and my plan wasn't happening and I was having a difficult time dealing with it. I ended up getting a job at a home improvement store and was living with my parents. I felt like something was still missing and   wasn't for sure what it was. I decided I wanted to volunteer a little. I wasn't able to make time for it while I was in school. I became a 'Big Sister' with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Illinois. To date, it was one of the best decisions I have ever made. It was life changing and started this roller coaster ride in becoming a Peace Corps Volunteer. 

I realized after all the time I was spending with my 'Little', how important positivity is in life. I was able to positively impact someone else's life and encourage that same positivity in someone else. I have always known about the Peace Corps and at this time I started my PC research. 

The U.S. has a lot of programs that support youth and community development (e.g. Big Brothers Big Sisters, Boys and Girls Club, YMCA/YWCA, etc.). After all of my research, I found that this aspect of the Peace Corps interested me the most. I was able to witness first hand how these programs benefit the people and their community, and I want to be able to produce a similar kind of program in a community that is lacking in that kind of support.

I feel like I can talk on and on about this. I think I am going to stop here for now, though. 

"I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve the world and a desire to enjoy the world. This makes it hard to plan the day." E.B. White