Last night I informed my family that I would not be making any of my normal calls that makes me get up at two or six thirty. I was going to sleep, and hopefully be refreshed in the morning for once. If I do not sleep enough, it catches up with me in the form of a migraine.
I slept until eleven. I knew I had an appointment for an internship opportunity at 3:30, so I had time. About ten minutes later, I got a call from the interviewer that she wanted to see me at noon. This meant that there was no shower in my future, and I had to get a cab really fast to make that appointment. Crap.
As would be my luck, I told the driver I needed to be near City Mall, but could not tell him any real directions because I have limited Arabic, and he had zero English. He wasn't sure where to go, but I got in anyway and just told him yalla yalla so he'd start driving and I could get the interviewer on the phone. She picked right up and gave the driver directions.
I arrived early, and it was to my benefit that this woman appreciated that I was older, and that I was staying a year. The job entails updating their website with English and Arabic in order to attract investors from outside Jordan.
She seemed to feel I was a good fit. Because I am staying for both semesters, she would not need to retrain someone else to replace me when spring rolled around. Additionally, I have run my own business, and am generally familiar with licencing, permits, and tax requirements. This organization serves as a one stop shop for all business related permits, so my life before school is a huge plus.
She started explaining some of the problems she hopes to correct with her staff, and asked that I be a strong influence to make that happen. She stated the other workers would benefit from exposure to a strong American self-sufficiency. Essentially, it would not be my job to tell them what to do. Instead, I was just supposed to dazzle them with my brilliance.
I am really hoping to get this internship. Her attitude towards me felt really good, so I think I might have it. There are two slots, so I don't have to be the very top choice. I just have to be one of the top two.
After my interview, I did some grocery shopping for the week. I had a normal sized dinner in my own home, and took out my garbage. I washed my clothes for the first time and have everything hanging on racks by my window to dry. It was comforting to be doing normal, non-Jordanian specific activities.
I am anxious about tomorrow. The Arabic is both for formal and informal language classes. They have 25 contact hours, and we are to expect 30 hours of homework a week. That is so much homework, and I hope I can keep up with it all. Because the kids are home on Sunday, I can talk to them at normal times of day for me. This means two nights in a row I'm going to get good sleep. :)
Lastly, I learned on Thursday that because I am staying in Jordan for so long, I will receive residency. I will essentially be a Jordanian for the next year. I get to skip the long tourist lines at the airport, and go straight to the Jordanian lines. Where my shorter stay classmates have to pay the fees for all the touristy stuff...I get it for 1/50th of the price. And I get to have this little national id card that states I belong here. That's really cool. :)
I slept until eleven. I knew I had an appointment for an internship opportunity at 3:30, so I had time. About ten minutes later, I got a call from the interviewer that she wanted to see me at noon. This meant that there was no shower in my future, and I had to get a cab really fast to make that appointment. Crap.
As would be my luck, I told the driver I needed to be near City Mall, but could not tell him any real directions because I have limited Arabic, and he had zero English. He wasn't sure where to go, but I got in anyway and just told him yalla yalla so he'd start driving and I could get the interviewer on the phone. She picked right up and gave the driver directions.
I arrived early, and it was to my benefit that this woman appreciated that I was older, and that I was staying a year. The job entails updating their website with English and Arabic in order to attract investors from outside Jordan.
She seemed to feel I was a good fit. Because I am staying for both semesters, she would not need to retrain someone else to replace me when spring rolled around. Additionally, I have run my own business, and am generally familiar with licencing, permits, and tax requirements. This organization serves as a one stop shop for all business related permits, so my life before school is a huge plus.
She started explaining some of the problems she hopes to correct with her staff, and asked that I be a strong influence to make that happen. She stated the other workers would benefit from exposure to a strong American self-sufficiency. Essentially, it would not be my job to tell them what to do. Instead, I was just supposed to dazzle them with my brilliance.
I am really hoping to get this internship. Her attitude towards me felt really good, so I think I might have it. There are two slots, so I don't have to be the very top choice. I just have to be one of the top two.
After my interview, I did some grocery shopping for the week. I had a normal sized dinner in my own home, and took out my garbage. I washed my clothes for the first time and have everything hanging on racks by my window to dry. It was comforting to be doing normal, non-Jordanian specific activities.
I am anxious about tomorrow. The Arabic is both for formal and informal language classes. They have 25 contact hours, and we are to expect 30 hours of homework a week. That is so much homework, and I hope I can keep up with it all. Because the kids are home on Sunday, I can talk to them at normal times of day for me. This means two nights in a row I'm going to get good sleep. :)
Lastly, I learned on Thursday that because I am staying in Jordan for so long, I will receive residency. I will essentially be a Jordanian for the next year. I get to skip the long tourist lines at the airport, and go straight to the Jordanian lines. Where my shorter stay classmates have to pay the fees for all the touristy stuff...I get it for 1/50th of the price. And I get to have this little national id card that states I belong here. That's really cool. :)
No comments:
Post a Comment