w00t!

Ok, an impromptu post to tell you a little about yesterday....

I got the call in the afternoon on my Italian cell phone. I knew it was about the job because I'd only given my number to them... I was nervous, really shaking, I was sure they were going to tell me that unfortunately I didn't have the job, but I was wrong! I jumped silently around the room as the firector talked to me and I'm going back into Milano on Monday to finalise everything and get my letter of intent to employ (so I can sort out all my documents here). My contract will start and be signed in September, but my training will probably be in June. I'm super excited, but also really nervous. Ack, I have such terrible confidence, I get nervous so easily!!!

Anyway, so the job is at a Reggio Preschool 'One to Three'. I went to the school in the centre of Milano and it's so nice! I love the Reggio approach to preschool education, it seems so creative and nurturing. I'll be a prechool teacher, which is a job I've wanted to do for some years now, but short of studying for an NVQ in the UK, I wasn't going to get the job there. I'm going to have a pretty nasty commute in the mornings, but it's totally worth it! I was made for this job :D

It's actually handy that I won't start until September, it means I can tie up all my loose ends in the UK, bring a bunch of stuff back to Italy with me (again) and try and pass my driving test there. The sad part is that I won't see my beloved for some two months and I likely won't be there during August which is when a bunch of people were planning to visit :( But it's really important I get my licence... unless I attempt to do it here?

Last night my beloved took me out to a really fabulous sea food restaurant and I quickly snapped this pic before we went. Don't mind the awful poses or the insane mess behind us, we were rushing out of the door to make our reservation!

Neither of us are used to drinking anymore and a bottle of wine between us took a lot of effort to drink. All we did when we got home was complain about our bulging stomachs and our wine induced headaches. That'll teach us ;)

Guessing Game

Who spent two days working on her CV and covering letter?
Who sent it off yesterday feeling terribly nervous and stressed out?
Who got a reply back within an hour?
Who was offered a tour and interview this month?
Who booked flights to Milan last night?
Who is going to Italy next Thursday?

Yep. Me.

Me. Me. Me.

I can still hardly belive it. They got back to me so quickly, I'm really hopeful. When I think about it too much it makes me really nervous... I've got so much to do. I've dug out my psych books from Uni and I'm trying to cram as much Italian into my head as possible and it's all totally overwhelming and I feel really unprepared, but at least I have some time before they want to meet me.

Milano here I come!!

(here)

p.s. thank you for the good luck wishes, I think they helped, so keep thinking of me until I get the job ♥

Secretly very excited.

I know this is really long, but please read it and share in my joy as I shout from the rooftops of happiness!

Ok, so not so secretly excited. VERY PUBLICLY EXCITED!

I'm jumping the gun a little here but I can't help it. The future was looking a little bleak, exciting but by no means rosy. For those of you who don't know, I'm moving to Italy in the summer of this year. My boyfriend landed a nice little job and moved there last week. I'm supposed to be doing all the things I need to do to be ready to go out there, i.e. getting my driving licence, any qualifications to help me get work, sorting out our flats worth of stuff that's in storage etc. etc.

The future was looking bleak. I say this because although I love Italy and I've always wanted to live there, I had a romantic idea in my head of this all being a little more planned a little less spontaneous. I had an idea that we'd go in a few years (read 5) and we'd be settled with a little money, some kind of career path we'd each be following and some valuable job experience. But, life never quite works like that. I've been struggling with the age old question of 'What do I want to be when I grow up?' but decided to do a teaching English as a foreign language course, which was my intent for our original plan to move to Japan in a couple of years anyway. So I was going to do it in June and hope for the best in regards to jobs.

I've looked at the job market, and although it's always easier to find a job when you're in the country you want to work in, it wasn't looking good. The fabled E word that has crippled many a competent job seeker stood in my way at every corner. Yes readers, Experience. Most schools are looking for at least 1 years tefl experience, many were looking for more. Sigh. So I got disheartened and decided I'd probably end up working the reception at the Ramada for as long as it took to find my dream.

Then, as if an angel guided me through the clouds of despair (well, a google search really) I found the job of my dreams. I've been banging on about wanting to do this kind of work pretty much since I graduated in 2007, or perhaps even earlier. The problem being I'd have to study for 3 years plus to gain a qualification that is worth less than my degree in academic terms and it's just not very well paid in the UK. Like several potential career paths, I crossed it from my list because of the length of training and I'm a pretty pessimistic person, so I talk myself out of it easily. But this, my dream come true, my lifeline, my perfect job stood there looking me in the face. No experience necessary, full training given, requires an appropriate qualification, one of which being a PSYCHOLOGY DEGREE!!!! Seriously ladies and gents, this job was made for me!

I don't want to say too much more, because if I don't get it, I'll be gutted, but they are actually looking for a team of staff, so I have a better chance than if they were looking for just one more staff member. I am so unbelievably excited, it's untrue. I know I shouldn't pin all my hopes on this, because they might not want me, or need me by the time I get to Italy, but I am qualified for this job, I'd be fantastic at it, it's not badly paid, it's in Milan, so commutable and I've been keeping an eye out for something like this for years. I'm going to send them a preliminary email teling them about my situation and that I really, really want this job, and that I'd be perfect for it, of course and suggesting that maybe I can go out there to meet them before the end of June and have a little meeting or interview or something. I have no commitments here at the moment, so I could jump on a flight tomorrow, assuming there is a seat. Hell, I'd even sneak into the baggage compartment if it meant getting this job. Seriously.

Thank you google angels for bringing this up on the first page of search results and thank you cold virus for making me ill so I stayed at home instead of going out this weekend and thank you my beloved for badgering me about looking for schools and work and thank you internet for existing and THANK YOU amazing potential place of work for looking for me (because I know when you wrote that ad, you were secretly looking for me, maybe you have an oracle or read Tarot, whatever it was, thank you too).

I'm happy :D

ps, wish me luck!

Uh Oh.

Right, I really need to stop spending money. I just bought a subscription to Lula. ok, so it's only £20, but it's £20 I'm not going to earn back any time soon! I realised upon submitting my subscription that I should be getting my first issue of Make Up Artists Magazine next month *squee*

I spent most of yesterday with my old school Friend H, who I hadn't seen in about 5 or 6 years. We'd kept in contact through various means but as time went by we both continually chickened out of meeting up again for fear of it being weird or awkward. She finally moved to London a week ago so I went over to snoop around her flat and drink some wine. We also watched Summer Heights High and the awesome Death Becomes Her. All in all, it was a great afternoon/evening and wasn't awkward or weird at all. It also made me miss the days when films were only 90 minutes long.

Next week is 'Job Week' so I'm going to sign up to a bunch of agencies and apply for a bunch of admin jobs in the vain hope I can bag something that pays £20k or more and isn't too demanding or scary so I can finally save money to replenish my savings account and to go toward Japan!

Fingers crossed :)