Flight's Changed!

Went up to the Travel CUTS office to switch my flight today. Now I go to Minneapolis on the 20th, and come back home on the 24th, take part in provincials for my Musical Theatre Ballad (yay!) and fly out to Dublin on June 1st.

I really do wish that we were able to book our own flights though, instead of having to go through the travel agent. I just feel better being able to see for myself that that is the best flight for me. And there wouldn't be a service charge on EVERY flight. But my Mum is awsome. She outright refused to pay a service charge on the flights because, when you think about it, we paid the service charges the first time, THEN the cancellation charge of an extra $100 (that they neglected to tell me of when I bought the cancellation insurance) on top of the $300 that it costs to cancel my flight. There is no reason for us to pay another $140 in service charges.

And in other news...

the biometrics paperwork is all sent out! Just waiting for it to get back with my visas now!

I had my MRI a while back, results are pretty good, of course I went during an almost pain-free week! I have a bulged disk at L5-S1. Pain level is at a persistant 2.5 right now. Normally that wouldn't bother me, but it is just annoying now!

I will be officially done my serving job in one week. I think all of this will start feeling more real when that is done. It has been a constant in my life for the past 8 months, and it sure will be strange to not work there.


All in all, life is good. I am so close to what I want, but it still feels like this is just a dream. But when I think about how much time is left....
The hardest part is coming up now. I have my good-byes to say. It is strange to see people that have been in my life for my 18 years, and to think that I won't see them anymore. Weird.

Biometrics and Clothes.

So the new bank letter was right (finally). I got the email from swap in regards to my biometrics appt. The biometrics appointment is were I go to the visa application centre (VAC) and get a fingerprint scan and a picture for my visa for the british government. THe email had my GWF number in it (basically a visa application number for the british government) and so I was able to book an appointment with that. It is next thursday. Yay! Then all I have to do is curior off my application to the British High Commission in Ottawa. And then I will be ready to go!

It is so crazy to think that I will be leaving in... let me check... 41 days and 11 hours. That is so soon. And I sound like such a girl when I say this, but how will I take all my clothes? Answer? Impossible. I have to prune my wardrobe I guess. I'm sure that S & L will love the new additions to their closets. I have a backpack that I'm taking, and I think I'm going to pay the extra money and get my parents to ship some stuff over once I find a place. That way I don't have to worry about it, and if there is something that I have forgotten, because trust me, I will, they can just sneak it in. It's very strange to think about packing everything I will need for two years in a backpack and a box. I'm just really glad I'll be going with a fair amount of money. I can't imagine how anyone gets by with only the support funds that the governments require. And I haven't even left yet!

Paperwork, paperwork,...

So, I faxed off the revised copy of my bank letter (again). My bank is probably sick an tired of me, because every time I go in there it is because I need a new bank letter. Why? Because it is never good enough! Granted, the first copy was completely wrong because I didn't read the instructions properly, the second copy was wrong because my name was spelt wrong, and the third copy was missing the teller stamp. Which the instructions failed to mention. Ugh. At least I was able to fax it this time. I didn't want to take yet another trip to the travel cuts office, or even to puralator to curior it. I just want this to be done. I know I will feel so much better once I have my passport and visas in hand. Or I will start to panic. Either or, it will be better than living in limbo like this. I never really liked that game...

In 50 days I begin a new...

I realized today, that in 50 days, I will be walking down the streets of Dublin for the first time. This realization is exciting, scary, and oh so close.

The Backstory:
I'm going to be cheesy here and explain everything to all who stumble across this blog. Truth be told, it will most likely only be my friends and family. But, I know that someone else who likes to research (like me) will probably read these words at some point. So here we go.

My name is Melissa, I am 18, and I am from a small city with an even smaller town feel in Alberta, Canada. I have lived in the same house all of my life, my parents are still together, and I believe I have been brought up to be a strong, independant individual. I graduated high school in 2008, and have been working, just waiting. Waiting for Ireland. I have been planning the trip of a lifetime for four years, and now that its almost here I am a bundle of nerves. I have no idea what to expect. But it will be great. I know it. I can feel it.

The Plan:

I leave on May 21st, 2009, and fly to Minneapolis to visit my best bud for life, E, who is going to school there. I leave there on May 25th, fly overnight to Amsterdam, run around an airport I don't know, and hope I don't miss my connection to Dublin. What does this mean? I leave the life I know in 45 days, and will be walking the streets of Dublin in 50 days.

Time Left:

There are many ways to look at the time I have left;

1.47 months

6.29 weeks
44 days
1071 hours
64315 minutes
3858929 seconds

I call it soon! It just kind of crept up on me. But I'm going to make the best of the time i have left, and try not to freak out too much.

How I'm doing it:

I am using a program called SWAP (http://www.swap.ca/) to help me get my Visas. I am going on what they call the Brit-Ireland swap on a holiday makers visa. This means I am able to work in Ireland for one year, and Great Britain (England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland) for two years.

I am lucky enough to have my friends and family behind me on this one, because I don't know if I would have the courage to go to another country by myself, let alone for almost two years. I will miss my home, my life, my friends, but this is something that I can feel in my bones. This is where I am supposed to go, and what I am supposed to do. Any further than that and I am stumped, but after I get myself to Dublin, I'm sure that I will figure it all out.