Tuesday 10 April 2012

Gettin' Paid

I hope all you little kitties had a wonderful long weekend and a family-and-friends-filled Easter holiday. Kevin had four days off, but since we don't have a vehicle just yet, we spent the weekend in the city. We did, however, get up to some fun: fishing, fish eating, salsa-making, bike riding (popping a tire was not actually fun), farmer's market-ing, swimming, yoga-ing, surfboard buying, sangria-making, sangria-drinking, and all around lounging and relaxing in the beautiful sunny weather. Photos to come soon, but here's a sneak-peek!

Fishing at Lyall Bay

But before the weekend arrived, on Thursday afternoon, I received a job offer! Yay! As of Friday, I will officially be an Addictions Counsellor!!! I have been hired by an NGO called CareNZ, and have been placed in an office just outside the city in a neighbourhood called Lower Hutt. Essentially what I'll be doing is running intensive outpatient group therapy sessions and doing individual intakes, assessments, and follow-ups for group participants. This is a HUGE step for me! When I went in yesterday to sign the contract and get a bit more info about the position, every person I was introduced to laughed and wished me good luck when my boss told them where I'd be working. She then sat me down to explain that this office is "a little run-down, extremely disorganized" and helps clients that are from much lower socioeconomic statuses, have a lot of gang affiliation, and are likely at a higher risk of violence to themselves and others. I think she used the word challenging... Now, for most people (like Kevin), their first reaction is "WTF?!? Why would she put you there?" And naturally, I'm ridiculously excited about this opportunity and see it as an incredible learning endeavour. And hey! This is the first job I've ever had working Monday to Friday, 8:30 to 5:00. Can't complain!

Beautiful and strange sunset at Mt Victoria

It's funny how things work out--I likely applied to 60+ jobs over the past six weeks, with only two of them being anywhere near relevant to my education and experience. Day after day, I was receiving rejection emails, which gets a little discouraging when it doesn't seem to stop. This worked out smoother than I ever could have imagined and I can see myself being very happy in this role. Although, I hate to inform our friends and family back home in Canada... Kevin has his dream job. I just got my dream job. Can you put the pieces together? I think some of you guys'll have to book some flights out here...

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