I am going to Yakima, Washington

...To try and make a job connection.  That is the location of an osteopathic medical school that I would love to work for (at one of their clinical sites near Portland or Seattle).  After my emails being kind of ignored for 2 months, I called the Associate Dean directly.  He was slightly put off, but when I said, "I just want to make a personal connection" he said, "oh, well can you come on the 25th?"  Yes!!
He said he'd ask the Dean to come to the meeting, too.  Now all I have to do is convince them to hire me.

Wish me brilliance on the 25th!

Kit's Oil Spill Work

Here's a map of where Kit is working:  NOAA oil spill map.  Yesterday, he was in Terrebonne Bay, and today he is in Barataria Bay.  In Terrebonne, he didn't see any oil damage yet, and he did see about 20 happy and healthy dolphins.  Today he will see oil damage for sure.  What he's doing is going around a designated area with a GPS unit and a digital camera.  He makes notes about the status of the site, and documents it.  This is how the government is keeping track of what is happening, and where.  They are hiring local people with boats to take them out.  Everyone is working hard from sunrise to sunset. 

BP has a big dining hall where they provide food to the workforce.  He says it's decent and edible so far.  They broadcast the President's speech in the dining hall on Tuesday night, and the BP and government employees sat and watched it together.  It is not an us vs. them situation on the front lines, they are all just working together.

World Cup memory

Four years ago, during the last World Cup, we were in Guatemala visiting Gabriel as part of our adoption process.  He was just over 3 months old.  Kit was getting in the spirit of things and watching the games on TV.  In this picture, he was cheering on Argentina, and baby G. wanted to be like Daddy!

US Aid to Guatemala after Disaster

From the U.S. State Department blog:

The eruption of Volcano Pacaya and Tropical Depression Agatha have claimed nearly 200 lives, injured an additional 100, and forced nearly 150,000 people to evacuate their homes. Flooding and mudslides have also damaged electrical, communication, and transportation infrastructure, further impeding evacuation efforts and search and rescue operations. In addition, a 100-foot sink hole swallowed an entire intersection and apartment building.

The United States has responded to the crisis caused by these natural disasters, conducting relief operations in Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador. The majority of efforts have focused on Guatemala, the country that was hit the hardest. Throughout the crisis, the helicopters from the Department of State, Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement (INL), rescued over 150 people from flooded areas, delivered 65,000 pounds of supplies, and conducted aerial damage assessments. USAID's Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance provided $150,000 for the local purchase of emergency relief supplies, including blankets and shelter materials, for flood- and volcano-affected communities. USAID also activated a nine-person assessment team in Guatemala, including a regional advisor, a military liaison officer, and a Guatemala-based disaster risk management specialist. In addition, the Department of Defense has sent Joint Task Force-Bravo from Honduras to assist in relief efforts, whose helicopters and personnel have helped transport more than 94,000 pounds of relief supplies to six communities in need. In total, the U.S. government spent roughly $840,000 on these operations in Central America.

U.S. Embassy officials, Department of Defense personnel, USAID and Government of Guatemala officials continue to work together to monitor humanitarian conditions in affected areas. Damage assessments are underway to provide the U.S. and Guatemalan governments with a better picture of what will be needed in the rebuilding phase. See pictures of Bravo's relief efforts. The U.S. Embassy in Guatemala has posted pictures of their efforts in their Flickr stream, and INL has pictures on their Facebook page.

http://blogs.state.gov/index.php/site/entry/guatemala_disaster

Deployment to Louisiana

Kit works for the National Marine Fisheries Service, whose parent agency is NOAA, National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration.  They are one of the main federal government agencies involved in assessing what is going on with the oil spill in the Gulf.  Although his usual work isn't related to environmental disasters, the agency has been asking employees to volunteer for assignments there.  The big job that is going on right now is figuring out exactly how the environment has been affected, so that they can have a precise plan for the clean-up.  An urgent request came through today, so Kit stepped up and he will be going to Louisiana on Monday.  He will be working on fish impact assessment (slogging through the swamps) and response planning (mapping affected areas).  The rotation will last 10 grueling days of 16-hour shifts, and he will likely have to go back later in the summer.

 I am very proud that our family can contribute to the effort.

Message from the Universe: Time to Rest

I heard today from the nearby medical school that I didn't get the job.  I really wasn't the perfect match for the position they had, which was partly teaching and partly working with very ill patients in their clinic.  However, they did love my teaching style, and there may be opportunities for part-time work in the upcoming semester.

That is actually sounding perfect to me right now.  Not financially, but physically.  The other night, I had 3 dreams in rapid succession.  In all of them, I was trying to perform a Herculean task.  I only remember the first one clearly--I was trying to pull a loaded mini van by riding a bicycle through thick mud.  The other people in the dream said, "Are you crazy??  STOP!!"  I don't remember what I was trying to do in the other dreams, but when I woke up, I thought, "wow, my body is trying to tell me something."

Also today (I love synchronicity), I got some junk email entitled "Whatever Happens is the Answer."  It said that when we ask for something--like a new job--the outcome is in fact the answer from the universe about what is the best course.

OK, I get it.  Right now I just have to rest.

More info about conditions in Guatemala

Imagine living through so much loss without outside help--one week has now passed since tropical storm Agatha hit and caused such destruction.  Panajachel and the surrounding villages are on their own for now.  There is no Red Cross, no large church groups, no government aid coming in, nothing.


http://mayanfamiliesconnectionguatemala.blogspot.com/2010/06/crisis-in-guatemala-update-from-sharon.html