Give Peace a Chance

Welcome! I decided to start a blog of my experience for the Peace Corps. I felt prompted to do this after reading what feels like hundreds of blogs of current or returned P.C.V., but all of theirs start when they get to their host country. None of them answer my so far most burning questions...How long did it take to fill out the online application? Hear back from your recruiter? Write the Essays? Get the Medical Packets? Reactions from Family/Friends?... so on and so forth. So here I am starting to blog a little about my experience so far applying for the Peace Corps. At this point, I am into the Medical Portion. That means I have filled out a treacherous online application, had an interview over the phone with a recruiter in Chicago, was "Nominated" for the Eastern Europe/Central Asia area for Teaching English as a Second Language, and received a thick packet in the mail to fill out and return to the Office of Medical Services in Washington, D.C. Up to now my journey has been approximately six months. If I hit the deadline of August 11th, for completed and cleared medical, I am looking at being placed in "EurAsia" towards the end of September. The anxiety I have over that deadline may require another blog entirely at a different point in time. If I end up being placed in a country with no internet access, that will be the end of my Peace Corps blogging Journey. If I end up not being medically cleared, that will be the end of my Peace Corps Journey. Both of these would result in the termination of my blog. However, until then this will chronicle my experience. I'm a 22 year old recent college graduate. I've never been away from home for more than six months. I have a Norwegian accent and white legs that could make any Norsk laugh. My diet is a kind of bland meat-and-potatoes variety. I could do crosswords and read books until my eyes go crossed (which is not just a saying because it really does happen). I call soda, pop. I say lunch and supper because dinner being used for both confused me when I was little. I like hot tamales and swedish fish. But mainly at this chapter of my life, I'm a Peace Corps applicant. Welcome to my Journey.