In a blink of an eye…

It felt like a blink of an eye, but 2012 is halfway done and I have been wondering where did the year go?

Even more surprising to me, a few friends have asked me why I haven't been blogging.  I'm not surprised that I have wonderful, caring friends- just that my blog has been missed.

Here's a run-down of the last sixth months:

My husband and I bought a house and moved one county over.  We're still in the unpacking stage and I still cannot find what I am looking for half of the time, but owning our first house is immensely exciting!

I have been accepted into George Mason University and will be completing my Masters in Interdisciplinary Studies, with an emphasis in ethics and interpreting.  This has turned into a phenomenal opportunity to transfer the interpreting courses that I previously completed at Gallaudet University while exploring another discipline.  Although I do not officially start classes until this fall, I am doing a directed reading (i.e. independent reading) this summer and researching the history of the RID Codes of Ethics.  I hope to do another directed reading next summer, examining the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) and how it influences an individuals ethical decision-making process.  That will leave me with three classes and a final project- my anticipated gradation date is May 2014.

I have also been honing my presenter skills.  In March, I went to Richmond to present my first full-scale workshop, "Ethics: It's about the journey and destination," about various approaches to ethical decision-making as well as how the Circle Process and Critical Friends Model can be used to discuss ethical dilemmas.  The following week, I co-facilitated the VRID Community Dialogue on team interpreting.  In May, I lead another ethics discussion group- yes, I love these things!  As an extrovert, talking through things always helps me, plus I feel that I learn so much from the group.

Although it was not accepted, I did conquer some fear and submit workshop proposals for the VRID conference

Looking ahead:
I have one more year left in my term as VRID District I Representative and have started brainstorming for events this fall.

I am attending the VRID conference in Roanoke this weekend; in August, I will be attending the Region II Conference in Ft. Lauderdale.  I am sharing a room with two friends and we're going down a day early to get some sun and fun in before four full days of learning.  I really do love conferences- I always learn so much and meet so many awesome people.  Hopefully, these conferences will inspire me to start blogging again.

That's life in a nutshell!  Happy Summer!

Resolutions and wrap-ups

A new year inevitably marks a new beginning, prompting us to reflect on another year that flew by and make resolutions we probably won't keep.  I wish I could promise to blog every week, but that might be too ambitious...

Looking back....

This past year was more of an adventure than I could have expected.  I am not where I thought I would be, but that's not a bad thing.  In the past year, I passed the NIC, dove into the freelance interpreting world full-time,  served on the PCRID conference committee, joined the VRID board, started a blog, quit graduate school...the list could go on.  On a personal note, my husband and I had to make the difficult decision to put down our dog, Mary, as she battled cancer.  By the year's end, we welcomed a puppy, Sadie, into our home and celebrated his promotion and our three year anniversary.

2010 was certainly a year of lessons learned.  Most significantly, throughout this year, I was reminded of how important it is to take care of yourself.  Too much of my year was spent stressed and burn-out, making the conscious decision to take care of myself and giving myself permission to say "NO" was the best thing I did for myself.

As you may have gathered from previous postings, the PCRID conference was a tremendous learning.  I learned about the conference planning conference and about myself- mostly that the Support Staff Coordinator position needs someone a little more Type A than me.  On the final day of the conference (Day 3), I attended Marc Holmes's "Carpe Prepum," which was a good reminder of the importance of preparation.  My resolution last January was to improve and increase my preparation for interpreting assignments, an area which I continually try to hold myself accountable.

And looking ahead...

I am honestly looking forward to the new year.  2010 was a challenge, while I hope 2011 will be challenging.  Work is going well- I started guaranteed hours with an area agency this week (I get to maintain my freelance status, but receive guaranteed work a few days a week).  Additionally, I am enjoying my work with VRID and am very excited with all the events in the works for this year.

I want to continue to grow as an individual and an interpreter.  We are never done and there is always something new to learn.  At the end of the day, I am thankful to have not only a job that I love, but family and friends that I love as well.