QuarterLife Ventures

A twenty-something nurse, runner, and world traveler.

Sunday, September 16, 2012

Finding solace in new friends

Marathon Training Week 3; Day 5: 5.07 miles, 49:32

Crabs in a bowl ready to race!
Before I started this I promised myself I would be totally honest in this blog. It's meant not just as a journal to remember all the fun times this adventure will bring, but also for myself- and others who can or cannot relate- to unload about the hard times too. This week has been a roller coaster of emotions (which reminds me of an awkward moment at work; as we were transporting an elderly lady in the ambulance through the twists and turns of Grenada's rainforest roadway, I said to the woman "it's like we're on a roller coaster!" not thinking that she may well have never seen one in her life...she stared back at me blankly).

The week started off busy, social and fun. A group of us SO's went to crab races at a bar on the beach; all my crabs lost (go figure) but it was fun none the less.

Tuesday I attended my first ever fantasy football draft. Don't assume I know anything about football, but the girls just thought it might be something fun to do this fall, and today I saw one of my guys kick a field goal and get me some points so that was kind of cool.

Wednesday was Katie's "Wine Night" for any SO who wanted to have a mid-week get away while their husband or boyfriend studied late into the night. The students have their first big exam tomorrow and have been stressed and studying like crazy all week, so this was a good excuse for us to get away and relax together (you're thinking "like you're the ones who need the relaxing?", trust me, we do too). I'll say ahead of time, Katie was so gracious for hosting us all. Twenty plus girls in one apartment with a bottle of wine each... things got a little messy. Needless to say, we had a fun night and I met a lot of great girls. However, come Thursday morning as the hangover was wearing off, I felt a bit nostalgic for college and my good friends back home. Moving here is a bit like moving to college; the stress of meeting a bunch of new people at once, made a bit easier with the help of some good ole' ETOH.

group picture; wine night
Now I'm not sure if this was a combination of being in a brand new country for just over a month, too much alcohol for the week, seeing less than an hour of my boyfriend every day, or just crazy hormones, but Thursday was my breakdown day. As a person who tends to hold everything in, and "bite the bullet" in stressful situations, I also tend to erupt when my jaw starts to hurt. I am someone who rarely cries or gets angry. Yes, I am an emotional person, but I am also a chronic over-thinker. When I feel strong, but undesirable emotions, I think them through, rationalize them, and push them away. But when I do this too much, everything boils over and I end up crying in a Grenadian airport when all I wanted to do was to pay the duties on my UPS package and get on with my day. The airport story is long and not something I want to retell in detail, but I will say that if you ever find yourself in a third world country, expect to be given half an answer for everything, not to be taken seriously, and for what ever you're trying to accomplish to take approximately 5 times as long as you would expect. Thankfully, I have met some AMAZING people here, and Cayley was nice enough to drive me to the airport- and wait while I was shuffled around for 30 minuets trying to figure out just how to get my package.

The weekend got a bit better, but with Pat being stuck in the library 24/7, I have to say I was starting to feel the emotional results of his absence. He is stressed, and I'm not going to pretend that is easy on me. It's not. It is easy to begin to feel under-appreciated here, but I went into this knowing this would be the case. In fact, I'm surprised it didn't hit sooner. I am trying to be supportive, bring him dinner (the few minuets we can actually spend time together!) and make him feel positive about all the hard work he is putting in, however, sometimes this effort is met with resistance. I know he will do great tomorrow, I just can't wait until he knows it too. I also can't wait until I hear back on grad school for me. I know my lack of emotional stability is due in part to limited structure and not feeling like a valued portion of society. Work was my therapy back home, and while I do some nursing here, it is not the same as feeling totally confidant and in control of ones environment like I did at my last job. Most of all, I miss my patients, and using all of my skills and knowledge.

Random Updates: 
We have had some random malfuctions in our house- Pat has been awesome about trying to fix them- these include our water heater, our leaky refrigerator, our iced-over freezer...

So handy! 

We bought a scooter!
We are now semi-independent! The one bought is a bit older, and red, but otherwise the same. While I don't normally endorse this mode of transportation (head injuries, death), I am pretty addicted to this thing and love not having to always rely on the buses.

Saint Georges the "Carnage"









Thursday, September 6, 2012

Toto, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore...

Week 2: Day 4; 3.00 miles, time: 30:28

Today's route via Cayley: http://runkeeper.com/user/cayley/route

So I decided I would start tracking my progress publicly to keep me accountable. The more people I tell "I'm running a marathon in November", the more likely I am to stick to my schedule and do it. While I do consider myself to be pretty self-motivated, it would not be difficult to say "its too damn hot to run today"... September is supposed to be Grenada's hottest month, and I think both Cayley and I can attest to that truth! I do feel that in the almost-month we have been here, my endurance has drastically improved in this weather.

Our weekend: So we had another "date night" on Friday- Pat was only at school until 7pm (instead of 11 or 12) and we met up and went to dinner and a movie. With him being gone 18 hours a day during the week, I appreciate these moments immensely.

Saturday I went hashing again... I also had an emotional breakdown regarding a dog: We get to Apres Tout, about 45 minuets from where we live, and we enter a typical 'third-world-country' neighborhood- shack houses with tin roofs that may or may not have running water. While we're all standing around and getting ready to run, an English man comes up to our group and asks if anyone is looking to adopt a dog and if so we should check out the stray under the deck around the corner. Of course I jump at the chance to play with a puppy and Pat and I had already discussed that at some point we would like to get a dog, so why not now? I head around the corner of the building and a tiny, black puppy is cowering under the deck. She is completely emaciated and very, very timid. I am in love. She couldn't have been more than a few months old and I could count every rib in her body. By now there is a small crowd of us and some people are asking if anyone would take her home. Another woman introduces me to her dog and says she was found in the same condition and now she's big and healthy and so this dog deserves the same. I decide I'm taking her. I have yet to let Pat know but I know he is sensitive and wouldn't be mad once he saw her. We tie her up, go on the run and the whole time I am hoping she is still there when we get back. As we're about to leave for the evening, I head over and pick her up. She is adorably sweet and rests her head on my shoulders. I begin to stand up with her when an older, Grenadian man walks over and tries to tell me he thinks this is his sisters dog. He is very confused and I'm having a hard time understanding him, much less explaining that I was directly told "the owner dropped her off here and abandoned her". I decide to start walking and am surprised to realize he is still following me. Looking back, I should have just walked all the way to the car and left right then, but we stayed and tried to respectfully explain to this man that this was nobodies dog. Suddenly I look up and I feel like half the town is surrounding me. The same men that told me earlier she didn't belong to anyone are now siding with this confused, older man with dread locks. By now I am angry and begin arguing that clearly no one is feeding this dog, and I was told she doesn't belong to anyone. When we hear mention of the police the group decides not to push our luck (looking back I realize that was probably just a threat; the police in Grenada rarely respond to real emergencies, much less something like this) and I begrudgingly set the dog down and walk away in tears.

Things that I learned from this experience: 1) I have an irrational emotional attachment to animals I don't know, 2) Grenadians are very possessive of things even if they do not outwardly take care of them, 3) don't get involved with the police in another country (images from "locked up abroad" come to mind) 4) I should have listened to the English man and discretely hid her before we left on our run. 5) different cultures view animals differently then I was raised to view them.

Everyone about to start the Hash- photo courtesy of "Grenada Hash House Harriers"


Cayley(front) and me coming out of the forest


So Sunday I am still sulking and begin planning ways to get to Apres Tout.
Later we meet up with a two other couples so that Pat can study and I can gossip with the girls. It's a pretty decent arrangement for me :)

Not a bad Sunday


Tuesday: Limes started! Limes is an after school program for kids as young as 2 and the volunteers help with homework, playing, and giving them much needed attention. They are incredibly fun, energetic and outgoing! I went Tuesday and Thursday this week and I think I plan to be on that schedule as long as I am in Grenada. Between that and the hospital on Monday, Wednesdays and Fridays, I feel pretty productive and involved.


Outside St. Augustine's Medical Clinic