A Generalized Life Update #2

Kelly: So I've been at my new job gig for a little over a month now, and so far things are going really well. Our patient numbers (census) have been high for a while, which has made things crazy but so far nothing catastrophic or earth-shattering has happened. For the most part everyone has been calm, somewhat happy and haven't made any ridiculous demands. I really enjoy the staff I work with and we all have a good time and love what we do. I really enjoy the patients too, and gone are the days of constantly feeling like walking on eggshells. When working in psych, things were so unpredictable all the time, and you just never knew what may set someone off. So there's that. It's pretty smashing.

Secondly, Holly and I have been in the process of trying to find a house to rent. We can't quite afford swinging to buy one yet, but it's time for a change. We've been at our townhouse for a little over 2 years now, and a series of circumstances have left us ready to go. It's been overall a somewhat frustrating process, in terms of finding a house and making phone calls to prospective rental companies/landlords. We've learned the term "single family" does not apply to twin sisters, which sort of stinks for us. Neither one of us can really afford to live on our own, nor do we want to. We've had a lot of closed doors, but as of today two more prospective options have opened up. I'm not really trying to keep my hopes up, but there's a part of me that is optimistic that one of these two will work out. On the way home after just driving by to look at a neighborhood in where one of them are, we prayed while driving, and soon after came across the number of another house to rent. God is good! I'm going to make a phone call tomorrow to this other house and hopefully things will be in our favor. So that's what's going on in our lives for the time being. Thanks for hanging with us!

Holly: I spent all of last week traveling for work-related events: building two high tunnels and a VISTA training/networking/catching up weekend in Pikeville, KY.  Got to reconnect with a lot of VISTAs from my Atlanta training, and meet some more, all of who are doing some pretty awesome things in northern and eastern Kentucky. Speaking of VISTA, things are going very, very well; I am still really happy there and I'm learning more and more as every week passes.  I have about three and a half months to go until my term ends, and I feel like the second half has just flown by! As for post-VISTA....well, they liked me so much they decided to offer me a full time gig!! Yep, you are totally reading that correctly! :) I've known for quite a while now but have been essentially sworn to secrecy, but I think I've kept it a secret for long enough! I am beyond excited to transition into this new role and I am still blown away at just how much God has worked for good when He called me to do this crazy thing almost a year ago! I don't know any of the logistics yet, but...yeah, there it is!!

Yoda and Wiley (our pet babies) have been with us for three years now.  We still love them to pieces and they still drives us insane.  They've brought us so much joy and have kept us ridiculously entertained.  Neither of us are in relationships still, and we're still ok with that (Although I'm plotting...) And lastly, we're spending Memorial Day weekend in Indiana! You may remember when we went to their wedding almost four years ago! Yep...their little girl is due in July (their first!!!), and we are all BEYOND excited :)

So that's basically it.  Pray God will have His will as we continue to search for a house, and that all will go well for our dear Ashley and her little Nugget :) Thank you all for continuing to journey on this crazy road with us!

And just in case you need a laugh, which I'm sure you could always use one, you can watch this video that Kelly and I can't get enough of!

A Generalized Life Update

Holly: A lot of things have changed for us in a short amount of time.  So here's what's going on.

We have been at our new apartment for about four weeks now.  While it still has its messy places, its boxes of stuff with nowhere to go, and a washer that still needs to be hooked up (any takers?????), we are feeling very at home and happy.  This morning we finally had to turn on the AC after putting it off for a while now...Berea Municipal is scary.....more on that later.  Wiley is contently snoozing on a student hand-me-down armchair and Yoda is....well...somewhere around here, probably getting into some kind of mischief.

A week ago I started a second job, back at University of Kentucky.  It's only part time, and it's only through the summer.  Essentially I play mail clerk and get slides for the pathology department.  It's pretty boring, actually, and the commute is pretty wretched, and I'm still not entirely sure how I feel about it, but the ladies I work with are quite pleasant, so that helps.  I have applied for a position in the biology department there and my application has gone on to the hiring officials, so we will see about that; I'd basically be helping to run UK's biology labs, and it would be full time and NOT temporary.  We shall see.  Just praying that God will show me where to go and what to do.

I still work Old Navy, but on the weekends now.  Even though my UK job is only 3 hours a day, it's a TON of driving in Lexington, and my poor car just doesn't get the gas mileage it used to.  I'm coming up on six months at Old Navy.  Considering earlier posts I ranted and raved about quitting...well, it's just amazing what can happen and how God can use you.  I really love working there.  I've become friends with some pretty awesome people there too.

Life is pretty good, peeps.  Pretty darn good.  :)

Kelly: I've been out of college for almost four weeks now...WOW!!! That is crazy for me, and it still hits me at random at times. Like...whoa, I'm not a college kid anymore. But I've got some great news to share as well! Earlier this month, I scheduled to take the boards (NCLEX). I currently hold a provisional RN license, which means that I can still work, but I have to be supervised by an RN or ARNP until I pass the boards and become an RN. Well, I took the boards yesterday! It was intense and it took me over 2 and a half hours to answer 202 questions! I got my results this morning and I PASSED! I'm now a Registered Nurse, so maybe I'll just start signing my name Kelly Korb, RN, BSN! ^_^

BUT...I still don't have a job yet! :( There haven't been any new openings in a few places, so for now I'm on a standstill. I plan on making some phone calls today to some jobs I applied back in March, so we'll see! Several applications have been referred rather quickly, so that's good news! It's just a matter of time I suppose, but I'm looking and applying to at least one job every day. If not applying I look every day! I'm just praying that God will open something up for me. Maybe He just wanted me to pass the boards first. :)

30 Days of Writing: Something you're proud of

Kelly: In light of recent events, today's topic is highly appropriate. There are a lot of things that I am proud of, but what I'm going to talk about today is simple; my college degree.

To obtain a college degree is an excellent achievement, of course. However, obtaining a Berea College degree in my opinion is much more...different, for lack of a better word. I was blessed to have worked with wonderful educators who helped me get this degree. Some I knew for quite a while, some I only had one semester. Yeah...about that. One of the most influential professors I had I had my second to last semester, for just one class (you know who you are...). Others I had for the majority of my time here and were just THERE. If I needed them, they were in their office; I didn't have to channel jump through a plethora of graduate students just to find them! That's why Berea is what it is! Thank you God and for everyone He put in my life to get me through! ^_^ 

Holly: I'm proud of two things, really: first, and obvious, is my degree from Berea.  I know, I know, that's what EVERYONE says.  But seriously, I don't think many people realize just how big of a deal it is graduating from college, much less Berea College.  I put a lot of work into it, I have a lot of fond memories attached to Berea, I've formed some lifelong relationships as a result of my education there, I've become a more educated and well-rounded individual and young woman, and my faith in God strengthened and was pushed and challenged as well (which, trust me, is NOT a bad thing). 

The second thing I'm proud of is that, for the most part, I have succeeded in living on my own and holding my own.  Yeah, there's been some scary moments, there's been some moments in which we weren't sure how we were going to pay next month's rent, there's been a lot of phone calls to Mom and Dad, there's been A LOT of penny-pinching (there still is), but when I look back I am proud of where we were and how far we've come.  I've also learned, in these days of apartment-dwelling and semi-tight budgeting to become dependent on God.  Completely dependent!!! He's brought us through and I know He will continue to do so! :)

Today our life began...

Kelly: I will let Holly add to this once she gets out of the shower. Anyway, today was a super exciting day. We signed the first lease to our very own first apartment!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I just realized...this is incredibly hard to type after having nails done. Yeah...sis and I got some fancy acrylics today just because we could! But stay tuned; move in day is on the 12th! In the meantime, heading back home to get the rest of our stuff! Enjoy the pics :D

Holly: Yay, we're big kids now!!! Sort of.  Is it too late to say "I don't want to grow up."  lol.  While we ran around and did big kid apartment stuff, this morning I worked my last hour as a Berea student.  Sort of surreal to realize that I'll never have a job this easy again.  Actually...I won't have a job this easy again.  Sad but true.  Life goes on.  I have grown close to the biology department this year, and I will miss the people terribly.  They're my second family, basically.  Anyway...two more days until the big show!  EEK!  Folks coming down tomorrow afternoon.  Meanwhile, I have to have rehearsal...apparently 235 graduates-to-be need practice in walking in lines of two.  We shall see.  o__O

Yes! It's real!!!

She couldn't resist! :D

 

Movin' on up...to a deluxe apartment in the SKY-YY-YYYY!!!!!!!

Holly: Ok..."deluxe" might be a bit of an exaggeration! But if you can't figure it out from the title, then I'll just share it now:

Kelly and I have a place to live now!!! w00000t!

It's nothing spectacular...well, ok, again, sort of a lie...the current tenant is a current student who happens to be graduating with yours truly and, in essence, she's leaving us the majority of the furniture and STUFF and the timing could not have been more perfect!!! Anyway....

Nothing spectacular, I mean...it's not huge or anything, but it's perfect for us and it meets our basic needs.  It's clean, it's not far from campus, it's in a pretty quiet spot, it has a (teeny tiny :]) porch, two floors, and, from what we know, a reasonable, nice, not-psycho landlady.  And it will do just fine for our sweet Yoda as well; Yoda is our heartbreakingly sweet, cute, and petite black-and-white feline who currently resides with my Genetics professor in her office with three other kitties, a fish, and a guinea pig.  Post May 6th festivities, though, and she's as good as ours!  Tomorrow, if I can sneak out of my class for a few minutes, I will be calling this (from what we know) reasonable, nice, not-psycho landlady just to sort of introduce ourselves and ask a few more questions.  But yeah...it's a done deal. 

Now if I could just get a job..............

Kelly: Yesterday, sis and I also had the lovely opportunity to help a friend find a roof over her head. She's moving to the big city of Lexington to pursue her Master's in Sociology (dear Lord I hope I didn't butcher that). We all had a blast locating, rating and viewing, minus the sketchy guy and the three-legged dog. Yeah. Super sketch. ANYWAY, it gave us good findings too. In a year from now I will be almost done with my degree and will be most likely seeking employment in the city; hey, it's better money and oodles more opportunities. I will MAKE the 45 minute drive once a week to church!!!!!!

Just looking and seeking got us all excited to be on our own! Having a place to call our own is something we all have longed for just for the sole experience! So yeah! Starting May 4 (hopefully), sis and I will be starting to move some of our stuff in. Our goal is to have all of our stuff in by May 12 since summer classes start on the 14th. Unpacked or not, well that's a different story.

The Journey Begins...

Kelly:  When I first started college at Berea, I had this big dream to go back home, live in the city and work at a big hospital. It's funny to me how plans can change over a course of time. If I were a freshman and someone told me I would end up wanting to live in Berea, I would have told them they were crazy. 

Now I'm the crazy one. lol

With Holly graduating in a few months and me still continuing my education, we sat down over Christmas break and had a few conversations. We had both been entertaining the idea of staying in the area and me living off campus during my last year in school. Talked about it to the folks, and they were on board with the idea. Talked with some friends, and they were on board with the idea too. So the research began. Last semester Holly and I started looking up various apartments and writing down their phone numbers so we could contact them. The contacting started today...

...two voicemails were left. I was an idiot and left the notebook with all the numbers written down at school...in my desk. I went into the shower this morning and when I came out sis told me nobody answered. Guess they were busy with lunch. Holly just now got off the phone with one of our potential living spaces. 

WE'RE LOOKING AT A PLACE NEXT TUESDAY!!!!!!!!!!!! 

Holly:  *gah* *spaz* *panic* *holycrapisthisreallyhappening*

YES. YES IT IS!

This is the best spring break ever!!!!!!!!!! :D  And the lady sounds so nice and the apartments look so nice too! :)

Like Kelly, I never imagined living somewhere like Berea.  I had plans to become a small animal vet and move to the Carolinas (our family goes to North Myrtle Beach every year and there's a vet clinic nearby.  I would always say, I'm going to work there!).  But plans change.  Big time.  As my education has progressed, I've come to the realization that maybe my heart belongs elsewhere, not in vet medicine.  I mean, it's always there, and perhaps my plans will change again.  But let's just be frank: if I were to apply for vet school right now, they'd take one look at my application and throw it away.  So where I'll be, I don't know.  But I'd say that God is turning the tables in our favor so far! :)  And as it stands, I can't imagine being anywhere else other than Berea!!

Stay tuned!