Saturday, September 17, 2011

Wow, I haven’t been here for a while. It’s been almost 4 months to the day I left Peace Corps and a definite roller coaster it has been. Upon being given my one-way fare to return to my “home of service” record I flew back to North Carolina while Peace Corps sent my medical paperwork to the Department of Labor for “review.”  This has turned out to be a nightmare over the last 4 months, with never ending doctor’s appointments, claims being denied, a plethora of paperwork and daily phone calls and emails to see what is and isn’t approved for my body.  I am no longer afraid to talk with anyone about any part of my internal working systems and when the doctor asked me Thursday “So, what do you think about Peace Corps” I responded “I don’t think you really want my opinion.” 

The truth is the life of a RPCV (Returned Peace Corps Volunteer) is not easy anyways, and the life of a medically-separated RPCV in an economic downturn is even harder.  Trying to find a job, an apartment, a car, and put your life back in order after you have not-existed in the USA for one year is difficult, combined with the frustrations of weekly doctor appointments and the bureaucracy that is called Department of Labor and Post Service Unit (Peace Corps) and it’s enough to make you want to jump off a bridge.  One example of this was this past week on my final doctor’s appointment, where the doctor (maybe?) thinks he figured out what has been causing my stomach problems and sent me home with three prescriptions.  I called the PSU office to see how to get them filled and was told I had to send in a form to the DOL for pre-approval and would hear back in 4-10 weeks.  Google mapping a bridge right now….

What have I been doing when I am not at the doctor? Over the last few years I had begun thinking about opening my own business.  If the politicians aren’t going to be real with you, I will-the economy IS NOT getting any better.  In fact, I think it’s getting worse.  Seeing as how sending out 100 resumes still gets you nowhere these days and even if you want to work at McDonald’s you have to take a quiz online and (as they said on CNN yesterday) “it’s not just burger flipping anymore, there is a science to it, advanced training is required” I decided it was the perfect time to take the plunge and go for it.  The last few months I have been going non-stop attending small business classes at the local community college, meeting with the Economic Development Workforce, and speaking with county and state officials about the plans.  Together, with my dad, we came up with the name “Sausy Bites” and my friend Jacky has been great at helping me with the business plan.  I hope to have everything finalized and ready to present for loans/grants in the next couple of months.  If you guys haven’t checked out my website, please take a look (it is still in the very early stages) www.sausybites.com

I have also been working hard to rehab my ankle injury that I sustained around the same time the parasite found me.  I have been back in the gym and the hot yoga studio and have lost half of the 30 pounds that I found while in Honduras!  My body is feeling healthier and I hope these new meds will help my stomach. 

Finally, you all know that I cannot get the traveling out of my blood.  This summer I was lucky enough to get to visit Spain for the second time around and saw the beautiful beaches south of Barcelona, Munich (where I looked for Olympic Stadium twice, but continued to get lost), Asheville (where I got to hang out with my brother and mom for a few days), Vegas (just long enough to win), Dallas to see my family, and Myrtle Beach (where I did not get to shag).   

That’s about it from here.  I will try to be better about updating the blog again.  Until then, I hope you all have a great weekend!

-Jen