See you later

  "Alright..." I was unsure how to do this as we approached the building.  We had been downtown eating cupcakes.  All my goodbyes had been said over the past 2 days and now the final one had come.  My Ensign in crime, Derek, that I spent nearly every day all day with all summer. 

  "See you in December," he said and he just strolled away toward the door of the enormous Sampson Hall. He was referring to my planned road trip I want to do during my school's winter break to see a few friends on the east coast which he is desperately trying to persuade me to go several hours out of my way to Pensacola where he will be for Aviation training. 

  "See you when you come visit south Florida," I replied and continued walking down the cobblestone path toward the parking lot.  And that was it.  My time at the USNA ended, I got in my car and drove home.  Oddly, it felt right.

  I have forever been a creature of comfort.  This summer I needed to come to Maryland. Period. The past two years I have been trying to make Tampa my comfort zone unsuccessfully.  As hard as you try, some things are just not meant to be and you often find out in the most difficult ways.  I called the IPO director out of sheer desperation, feeling at that point if I did not get back to Maryland I may actually die. 

  When I showed up at the USNA I was so out of place.  Clueless about the military and what goes on inside the gates, I must have looked like a fish out of water.  But as the saying goes: fake it till you make it, and I did just that for a few weeks.  It's amazing how awkward I can be around certain people and in particularly situations (my college roommates know this to a tee).  Yet there have been a handful of people and a handful of situations in my life that I have been so incredibly drawn to and able to thrive in that make all the difference. This summer was the perfect example.  

  I met the best group of people. Yes, my director was a micromanaging douche bag. And yes, there was an employee that hated me for reasons I never knew. And an Ensign who turned out to be the laziest piece of sh*t I've ever met. These are facts. But even these people a little piece of me still loves. Yes, love. Because of the sheer force of goodness and wholesomeness within the other employees at the IPO.  Julia Beth in her gentle and kind ways taught me everything I know about International Programing. Gary taught me the meaning of life as he knows it. Chuck introduced me to every person he knows at the Academy. Stephanie was my daily dose of sunshine and happiness. LeeAnn earned my respect by the way she tolerates the director. I love Yaya's attitude and spunk. And the TADs helped me keep my sanity by making me laugh so hard my stomach hurt.  And each and every person I met outside of the IPO welcomed me with open arms and a smile on their face.  They were willing to teach, help, and provide whatever they could to me. 

  Monday Julia Beth organized the office to take me out to lunch.  Only a few people could attend but I was grateful nonetheless.  The director himself came.  Overall, he must have told me 5 times how much the office is going to miss me and how thankful they were to have me.  Knowing my director, it is for selfish reasons that he will miss me but nevertheless I appreciated his attempt at a kind statement.  Monday after word Gary took the TADs and I out for a happy hour.  Both Gary and Buddy's wife joined us and we joked that we were until staying until 2am, not a second later. Well, we almost did make it to that point I'm proud to say! It was the perfect evening, I laughed nonstop, got more advice someone I admire greatly, and got to spend more time with the friends I've made this summer.

  And then yesterday I did some more work for Julia Beth as usual.  Buddy, Derek and I goofed off excessively in our tiny office, I think all of us knowing that the summer was ending.  Derek is leaving Friday and Buddy in a few weeks.  I did my final goodbyes to every one in the office, though for one of the first times leaving somewhere it truly felt like "see you later."  Then, as I was fully preparing myself to say goodbye to the guys they announced "We're getting cupcakes."  This is why we're friends.

  Cupcakes turned into a trip to CVS which turned into a trip to a jewelry store which turned into hanging out at Buddy's with his wife.   It certainly felt like a situation where we kept looking at each other and silently knowing one of us would have to break off eventually, but thinking please don't do it just yet.  But finally, I had to.  Because I know this won't be our ending.  I've moved a lot in my life, and started and ended a lot of friendships. I think I have a pretty good eye for the type of people who might stick around, and those you'll fall out of touch with.  I know that the people from the IPO will be in my life for many years to come.

  The IPO gave me a chance. I learned, I laughed, I tried, I succeeded, I failed, I gained so much.  I will miss the people, I will miss the beauty of the yard, I will miss downtown Annapolis. It boosted my confidence, brought me back to MD for 3 months and gave me the inspiration I need to enter the next phase of my life.  I will FOREVER be grateful.

The Colonel

Gary is the associate director of the IPO.  A retired Marine, he spent many years as a Foreign Area Officer in Thailand with his wife and young son.  Following that he spent most of his career in various countries in Africa and then a few places in the U.S. Four years ago he came to the USNA as a company commander and then transitioned to the IPO a year ago.  To appreciate Gary, one must have a witty sense of humor first and foremost, as he is constantly firing off one-liners and hilariously twisted statements.  He is also the type of person whose passion for helping young people runs through his blood. He comes off as a brute Marine, but after a few minutes with him you realize he has a side you would never expect in which he so genuinely cares for those he likes (and even those he hates, a trait I have the upmost admiration for).  The thoughts he shared with the young officers and I in the office and over happy hours will undoubtedly stick with me for many years to come.  Among my favorites were:

1. Every topic is best discussed over a cold, frothy beverage with high alcohol content.

2. When traveling in Cambodia, always hire a prostitute as your protection.  Prostitutes have connections every where and no one wants to ruin their connect by hurting you.

3. Family is everything.  No matter what you do or where you go, if you have a happy spouse next to you everything is better (in fact he still refers to his wife as his bride).

4. Never add oil directly to a hot paper shredder (especially while leaning closely over it).

5. Avoid "fairy dust bull shit."  Be straight forward.

6. If you like furry puppies then that's your thing, as long as it makes you happy.

7. Only buy things that are unique.  Avoid the temptation to "nest" with generic, common, every day things.

8. Classic movies are the best movies.

9. The best things happen to you, like love, when you least expect it.

10. "Don't wake the whole town up if someone has flatulence in the middle of the night." i.e. make sure it's truly an emergency if you call someone in the middle of the night... the TADs had to learn this the difficult way.

11. Always care for those you lead.  Watch out for them and take care of them.

12. HAVE FUN.  Do whatever you want to do, need to do, and have to do but always have fun doing it.

The last of the days

  And so the time has come when the final Monday of my summer at the USNA is upon me.  On Friday I had my mentor sign my paperwork to be sent off to my graduate advisor.  As we totaled everything up, my final hours will be somewhere just over the 300 mark.  I only needed 65 for my 3-credit class.  "Oh my soul!" Julia Beth exclaimed when her calculator showed her the number.  God bless her heart, she is one of the kindest people I've ever met.  She is too good to be working for the asshole of a director who did a fine job ruining everyone's week.  "300! 300! Why didn't you take more time for yourself! 300! You spent too much time here! 300!"  She makes me laugh, but she also makes my heart melt because she cares too much about other people.  I explained to her that it didn't feel like 300 hours.  It felt like 3 hours.  Time has ZOOMED by in the minutes I spent learning, laughing, running around, meeting people, and feeling exhilarated and absorbed in everything international.
   I have seen 3 of the 18 international Plebes since their summer training began. The Kazakhstani had issues with his paperwork so I was able to talk with him briefly.  He was still smiling his goofy smile. I passed the boy from Singapore doing a PT run as I walked to my car after work one day.  "Yay John!" I yelled.  "Thank you miss!" he yelled back and gave me a thumbs up.  And I said hello and gave some quick words of encouragement in an unfortunate situation to one of the Gabonese Plebes.  He had mistakenly eaten pork, which is against his Muslim religion, and asked to have access to his personal belongs to cleanse himself.  Upon receiving his belongings, his detailers saw that he was in possession of an illegal narcotic which is commonly used in Gabon as a method of cleansing.  Fortunately our director handled the situation and he came to understand he could not have this.
   Otherwise things have been relatively calm.  I have completely turned over the orientation I planned for August when the semester exchange international cadets arrive to the 2nd LT.  I have a lot of pride in this for all the hard work I did and I so badly want to be a part of it, but I know he will do a phenomenal job.  Our first midshipmen studying abroad have departed.  They are at the Chilean Naval Academy.  I had the opportunity to dust off my Spanish with several phone calls to the CNA one afternoon when the boys were stranded at their hotel 3 hours after they were to be picked up.  Successfully, I was able to speak with someone in Spanish and sort out the logistics.  That was quite an accomplished feeling!

Humor

It's amazing what a little humor can do to your life.  In my case, a lot of humor.  If I had to pick a theme  this week at work it would be laughter.

  When I first arrived at the IPO I sat at Stephanie's desk for 2 weeks, the front most one in the main IPO office. She was on vacation for 2 weeks.  For another 2 weeks or so I sat at a tiny desk awkwardly placed in the corner of the office.  Finally, I was given my very own office (the Colonel's old office) with 2 enormous desks, a huge shelving unit and a laptop computer.  It was nice, but it was big, plain, and lonely.  A few days later the 2 Ensigns took over it.  As I've alluded to previously, my friendship with the one Ensign (oddly from my half sister's home town of Waco, TX) started great and then by the time we were knee deep in orientation turned sour.  However, he became frustrating to work with through several people's eyes, not solely my own, as his disinterest in international programs and helping international students strained the effort we needed from him.  Almost immediately after orientation he took leave, not even saying goodbye.  Luckily, around that time we were assigned a 2nd LT (same situation, only he chose to enter the Marine Corp instead of the Navy and the ranking is different).  With a nickname of Buddy, it's nearly impossible not to love this guy, who married his long-time girlfriend before starting to work for us (and is conveniently from where I go to grad school).
   The 3 of us get along like a well oiled machine.  Not only do we work well together, and accomplish a tremendous amount of tasks, but we can laugh until the paint dries. Our office has become unrecognizable from the way it was when I entered the first day.  We now have a mini-fridge, an American flag, Marine Corp posters, maps, a Sri Lankan flag, and other random memorabilia we dug out of the old IPO closet.  We disassembled the book shelf (an activity my micromanaging director did not approve of), and rearranged the desks.  The funniest part? We have to restore it to it's plain condition in less than 2 weeks for a new professor who is moving in.  I'll be gone though, so have fun guys!
   Two days ago, we spent an afternoon making up a huge story about the Ensign.  A fictional novel about his travels to Ibiza, marriage to a gypsy wife, and epic fight on the Eiffel Tower.  I can't remember the last time I was entertained by something this ridiculous.  But I couldn't remember the last time I had laughed that hard- my stomach ached, my eyes were soaked with tears, and I could barely breath.  We had to close the door we were laughing so loudly. Buddy even typed it up, and thank God because that time needed to be immortalized somehow.

Patriotism

  In these days I am hanging on with everything I have.  I have been interning at the IPO for 2 months and 2 days, with only 7 working days left.  I linger on every conversation with my co-workers, every laugh with my office mates, and every step through the yard.  I feel like I need to quickly gather up as many USNA pens, t-shirts, and memorabilia to take this place that has quickly formed a little spot in my heart with me.
  The Colonel has been out for a week and it doesn't feel the same.  My mentor is gone until Friday, and while this is the true test of my competence, I want her around to share what little time I have left.  I want the happy hours and lunch breaks with my office mates to last forever.  But things in the air are changing.  I have to start thinking about packing for Ft. Lauderdale, the next leg of my life.  Derek has his Detach Form in the office already, and I have begun to pass the orientation I laid the groundwork for to Buddy.  I want to scream NO! I'm just getting settled here, I've fallen head over heels in love with Annapolis, yet the drastic change that is upon me looms overhead.
  On 4th of July, watching the fireworks at the Lancaster Barnstormers game it hit me how much this place has come to mean to me.  Not because it's a world renowned institution, not because men in uniform are hot, and not because it looks good on my resume.  I've never considered myself a patriotic person, I wouldn't even say I've had much pride in my country.  In fact, I spent an entire semester and a summer trying to hide being an American while I was abroad, and my biggest pet-peeve is ethnocentrists.  I'm extremely focused on what makes other countries amazing, countries that I want to travel to and learn the languages of- that I sort of rid myself of the appreciation for my own country.
  But, as I watched the fireworks explode and listened to the yee-haw USA music play I thought about all the accidental 8:00AMs I've gotten caught in when the entire yard stops and salutes the flag.  I thought about the goosebumps I've gotten watching the Blue Angels twice this summer, and the knowledge I now know about the Navy.  Mostly, I thought about the guys I've gotten to know so well this summer, and the honorable duty they're serving.  And finally, I thought about a fantastic road trip I was planning with them for next summer when Buddy, a 2nd LT in the Marines said, "...if I'm not deployed."  I don't believe in wars, and I think some of our involvements abroad are unnecessary, an opinion I'm usually forced to keep to myself, but I said a quick thank you to whatever greater being is up there for allowing me to live in a privileged country and to have men like the ones I know who serve it.

I-Day

  Intense. Emotional. Crazy. Hectic. Chaotic. Exciting. Traditional. It's hard to put into coherent sentences what Induction Day is like on the yard. From 600AM to about 800PM the USNA is a carefully planned mad house... if that makes any sense.

  My day began at 4:50AM. I left the apartment around 5:25AM and arrived at the yard just before 6:00AM (what can I say, I'm a fast driver and there was no traffic). The building I work in is directly next to Alumni Hall, aka the coordination of chaos (i.e. haircuts, vaccines, uniform issues, breathalyzers, etc.) so parking there was not an option today, which is why I was told by a fellow co-worker to leave so early.  I drove behind Alumni and then behind the Library to an empty parking lot. I was not happy.  Thankfully I had brought some homework.  Our internationals went through the I-Day processes yesterday so they were patiently waiting in their rooms in Bancroft to be placed together with the other incoming Plebes.  

  Around 800 my co-worker called to inform me one of the vans we had been using to transport the internationals to activities throughout orientation was parking in a zone next to the Mid Store where it would be towed for I-Day purposes.  I certainly did not park it there!  And so began my "white mission."  Tracking down the Ensign I work with, dressed in white among 100 others dressed in white to retrieve the van key from him to move it.  Mission accomplished.  Then, based on his description I went to where the van was to be located and as I rounded the corner, stood looking at nearly 20 identical white vans.  Panic button... mission accomplished.  As I attempted to drive it to the library lot, I was greeted with a blockade and a familiar guard gate.  This guard gate was the very one who laughed at me one morning when I accidently showed him my debit card instead of my license.  Remembering my comical event, he secretly let me on the lot.

   Another task of the day was to return the said van, along with the other one, to the transportation unit just off the yard.  The plan was for me to follow the Ensign and 2nd LT (with his wife who was tagging along with us to help out) to drive them back.  Unfortunately the plan did not go as such and we were unable to track down the 2nd van, which we later found out had been taken and was on its way to Bethesda.  In the mean time, as I was waiting in my car, parked illegally, the Ensign called me, "Park along the seawall, and meet me at the end of the parking lot. You've 

gotta see this."  Oh my God, I thought. What could be going on?!  All day I had been firing off annoying questions at them about everything Plebe related under the sun.  As I walked up to him he told me to wait 5 minutes.  Sure enough- a bus of tiny Plebes in fresh, crisp uniforms spilled out, each grabbed a laundry bag of gear that easily had to weigh 30 pounds and the yelling began.  "PICK UP YOUR BAG! GET AGAINST THAT WALL! RUN FASTER THAN THAT! YOU WILL GREET ALL YOUR SUPERIORS! GET UP THOSE STAIRS!" Today I also learned the proper, and more importantly, ONLY responses the plebes may say: Yes, No, I will find out, and No excuse... always started and finished with sir/ma'am. Apparently, one poor plebe thought thank you was a response and he got his a$$ handed to him. Comical, but you can't hate him for it!  

   After a quick break, the four of us, along with the colonel went over near Bancroft, where the Induction Ceremony was to take place, to wait for 2 Ambassadors and 3 Naval Attaches, to escort them to their seats.  Only the Naval Attache of Thailand showed up, which was very disappointing. But in the 45 minutes we waited, I thought to myself How do they do it?  How does the USNA manage to bring in the very best?  I do consider myself to be a good judge of character- I think I am able to spot things in others rather quickly and before others can.  I have yet to encounter a midshipmen (with a very slight exception... possibly for another entry) or graduate or worker that doesn't seem good down to their very core.  This is what I seek in life, I thought as I stood there with 4 wonderful people.  A Colonel who imparts his wisdom (and humor) on everyone he meets, an Ensign who shares my love of the world, a 2nd LT who is ambitious and strives to help and please all who he meets, and his lovely new wife, a young happy fresh face.  I want to consistently be surrounded by such good people.  As we stood there, we weren't worried about what our Director would say to us Monday when he found out this catastrophe, instead we planned a happy hour for tomorrow and what to stock our mini-fridge with, and how to celebrate the Ensign's birthday and the Colonel's wife beating cancer.  These are good people, and the USNA is a good place, and I was so utterly happy in that moment that I wouldn't have traded it for the world.

   And as I watched my 17 internationals stand up first, in front of the entire Class of 2016, there have been few moments I have been so proud.  They raised their right hand and said the Oath and I knew how much some of them had practiced it so that they didn't sound like a "foreigner."  I didn't get to spend much time with them during the week, but particularly in the past 3 days my conversations with them have been so touching. After the ceremony, the Plebes have 30 minutes to mingle with their families and we gathered them all together and gave them food and drinks, took pictures, let them call home, and I tried to build them up as much as I could (as I have heard tonight will be the worst). Most of them shook my hand and called me ma'am already, but a few hugged me and I promised Evelyn her hair would grow back quickly.   

arrival of the internationals aka motherhood

  Before this week, if there was any part of me that wanted to have children soon, it is gone.  I have just collected 15 wide-eyed international plebes who are even more clueless about life at the USNA than I was when I first arrived (is that even possible?!).  From 6:00pm Sunday night until 1:00pm today we had various flights from 12 different countries coming between BWI, Dulles and Reagan.  We gave Derek the midnight runs because he ever so politely decided to vacation in France the rest of the week.  The biggest challenge during this time was that I had 2 Ensigns and a 2nd LT (the new recent graduate who has joined us, he is a Marine) all telling me information, but not each other.  It was difficult to make sure all 4 of us were in the loop as well as our supervisor and the director of the office.
  When I arrived bright and early this morning it was a relief to see them all finally together (minus the last 2 from Gabon who finally arrived in the afternoon).  "Have you all eaten? How did you sleep? Did you have pillows? How is your mental health? Does anyone feel like they need to call home right this minute?" I fired off questions the second we were done with an admissions debrief.  Flashing back to my first week in Madrid and then my first week in Salamanca, Spain- though it was an incredibly exciting time, much of it was scary as hell.  My little Sarah looked like a deer in headlights when she traveled to our accommodation on her own, as much of our internationals had done. I remember wanting nothing more than to curl up in her, Amy, or Jan's arms at several times during my first week and I barely knew them at that point.  I also knew that there were times I would have killed for my own bed and a hamburger.
   It concerned me that a tall lanky boy from Thailand immediately shot his hand up when I asked if anyone was homesick.  I arranged for him, a boy from Bangladesh, and a boy from Kazakhstan to be the first round to call home.  Unfortunately we could not work out the Bangladesh country code and never made contact with his family before we had to quickly move to our next appointment.  "Will I get to talk to my family before I am a Plebe?" he asked.  It broke my heart.  I knew this feeling too, as it was about 10 minutes after our arrival to Madrid when someone asked how to get to an internet cafe, we were all so desperate to make contact home.  "Yes," I promised, "I will figure out a way." It's an international programs office for God's sake, why isn't this working!? Later during an unnecessary library brief I pulled him aside to hunt for a computer with me.  The odds were just not in this kid's favor.  We found 1 computer but it would not turn on, and another that did not have internet.  "Can you use an iPhone?" I asked. "You found me a phone?!" he said. "No, but I think I have an idea... does anyone in your family speak English and have an email address?"  Jackpot!  He had an uncle with an email address and a cousin who speaks English.  It took him nearly 30 minutes to send a 3 sentence email on my iPhone letting his family know he had arrived and was okay, but we did it.
   This morning we gave them index cards with our phone numbers on it.  An adorable Filipino called me 30 minutes ago and kindly asked if he would have bed sheets tonight.  Let me just say, laundry did not have a pleasant phone call from me after they brushed it off as no big deal.  I asked how she would like to go to the Philippines and sleep on a bare mattress. She replied that he would have an extra pillow tonight.  I said make it two.
   And now I have 9 more days of this.
 
 

the "calm" before the storm

  As I've mentioned before, a few weeks ago the Ensigns and I began planning the orientation for the international students which will begin on Monday and last nearly 12 days until the following Thursday which is Induction Day to Plebe Summer.  We found out today that the Peruvians did not complete all their paperwork so they will not arrive until sometime next week.  The first midshipman arrives from Bangladesh around dinner time Sunday and the next from the Republic of Korea at 12:30AM.  The rest all arrive between Dulles and BWI throughout the day Monday.  My role will be to (wo)man the fort back at the IPO office when the Ensigns drop them off in groups.  I'll assist them in calling/emailing/skyping home to let their families know they've arrived safely, and get them checked into Bancroft Hall.
  Concurrently with this huge event, I am also helping my mentor with SF182's.  These are the financial forms for the (American) midshipmen from the academy we have studying abroad this fall.  These forms are super important as it is ultimately how they will receive their pay while abroad, and especially their advance before they leave.
   And on top of it all- my director asked if I could "help out" with a project on Tuesday.  This project is the complete and total development of the orientation for the semester exchange midshipmen.  Interestingly, the USNA grants 4-year degrees to students from countries where we are attempting to foster better relations, but only allows students from nations where we have excellent relations come for a semester (each year Russia goes back and forth between this category.  They were scheduled to send 2 mids for a semester exchange but then canceled at the last minute after long conversations with my director).  This orientation is a mess.  I've mentioned before that my director is not well liked, and is a micromanager.  In a nutshell, he took this responsibility from one of my co-workers, made it more chaotic by involving a 3rd party (i.e. me) and then tossed it at me to sort out.  Thankfully my mentor and the person originally supposed to plan it have been my saviors.  It has been a great experience building this from the ground up- but with 2 huge responsibilities already going on, it has been more than stressful.
   Of course in the midst of everything, Derek & I had to venture BACK to D.C. to fetch the holy Chinese visa for my boss.  After sitting in rush hour traffic my mentor called and asked if I could hold the passport for the weekend and bring it Monday because she was locking up.  HOLD MY DIRECTOR'S PASSPORT ALL WEEKEND???  Thankfully, a few minutes later the Colonel called on his way home and stated, "Meet me at Gordon Biersch, I need an alcoholic beverage," and we were able to pass the passport off to him.
   My days are getting more insane, and the nonexistent pay makes me think I am crazy.  But I should say- even when I am up to my eyeballs in Naval lingo, foreign bullshit, fine details, and pink post-its on every surface of my desk, I love every second of working in an international programs office.

"Want to learn the visa walk-through process?"

    A few weeks ago when the Ensigns began working full time with me, the 3 of us were assigned to a tiny little office next to my mentor's.  It's quaint, and we've attempted to decorate it. Most of it however remains tan, and the Ensigns tan uniforms do nothing to help this.  As I walked in Monday morning (having been off Friday), I was pleasantly surprised to see several more odds and ends scattered around in an attempt to decorate.  It makes me laugh to think about all this "stuff" that the office has received from foreign nations that's been shoved in the back of a closet for years- and now we're decorating with it.  My favorite is a bronze plate from Cambodia that says "International Cambodian Naval Commetee" (yes, spelled wrong).

  After examining the decorations, my mentor walked in with a thick packet and said "Want to learn how to do a visa walk through?"  Of course.  I want to learn everything.  Of particular interest to me is immigration/passports/visa requirements, so I thought this sounded fascinating.  At this moment, Derek walked in, informing us Pete had a nasty bout of food poisoning from a questionable omelet over the weekend.  "You'll have to go with Patricia then, no sense in you staying here alone."  Go?  Go where? I thought.

   Fast forward 15 minutes- we are in route to Crystal City, Virginia,  with coffee in hand, and a playlist of French music on the speakers of my corolla (Derek studied in France) with specific directions to get our office's director his Chinese visa before he leaves in 11 days.  Obviously, for a normal trip (like when I traveled to Spain for example), you can either visit the country's embassy or go online, fill out the visa application and within a short amount of time you'll receive it.  In this case, since he waited until the last minute we had to travel to Crystal City, VA to receive a department of defense diplomatic note requesting special permission for his Chinese visa to be expedited.

   Crystal City was full of tall buildings and inside was full of people in uniform.  As we approached the front desk and they asked what type of ID we had, Derek said something all official, and I simply said "A driver's license." Apparently this was the wrong answer. I had to have an escort up to the travel services division on the 10th floor.  Talk about feeling incompetent as Derek walked off through the elevators and left me in the lobby.  

   One hour later- dip note in hand, and thankfully no parking ticket, we began the search for the Chinese Consulate.  Between my iPhone, Garmin and our common sense we were unable to locate it before it closed for lunch hour.  We did however locate the official embassy where I am assuming the ambassadors, attaches, and other super important people work- but this is not where the visas were issued from.  It was here that I was talking very obnoxiously about hopping the fence and voicing my frustration about my arm pit sweat that Derek suddenly turned around and told me to shut-up!  There were 2 gorgeous Chinese women meditating and praying under traditional umbrellas next to the embassy out of protest for a religious group that is apparently being persecuted in China.  If I spoke Chinese I would have apologized for ruining their peace (and asked where I could get an umbrella like that for my mom, who loves Asian culture).

    After a Chipotle break, a short recess to check the French-English soccer match, and some more frolicking around the local D.C. area we placed a phone call to my mentor who gave me more specific instructions of how to locate the consulate.  The consulate was not in fact a building on its own with a large chinese flag waving outside like we were looking for, but inside a tall office building we had driven and walked by several times that morning.  We finally got there, waited in an oven of a hallway, and then went in. Our saving grace was being recognized in having an official passport (different from a tourist passport) since Derek was in uniform.  We were able to bypass the tourist line and walk right up to a window.  

   The awful part?  We have to go back Friday to pick it up.  It wasn't all bad.  We got out of the office, saw nearly every road in D.C. (I discovered through his navigational skills why Derek choses to bike and not drive most places), bonded over our love of Europe, and learned even more about Dept of Defense travel.  Hopefully Friday though, knowing where we are going I will not accidently interrupt any peaceful prayers. 

The Circle of Trust

  When I arrived at the USNA almost 5 weeks ago, I knew how to walk from the parking lot across from Alumni Hall to my building.  And for the first 2 weeks I walked to the opposite side of my building because I didn't know there was a simpler way to go.  But now, after having gotten lost more times than I can count (and wandering off sometimes too), asking more questions than I ever have in my life (thank God my office has enough people to spread these out on), and just simply listening at all times- I can give a pretty decent tour of the Academy, which I have done for a group of Peruvian cadets (who specifically called ahead and asked for females... bizarre?!).  Refer to a previous post for why I did not give tours to the Saudi Arabian cadets.

  A lot of my recent "insider" information has come from the 2 Ensigns I'm working on international orientation with.  In working with student affairs, I never want to feel like I'm stuck in an office away from students.  I feel like the change working with the Ensigns now is allowing me to understand more of what it's like to be a midshipmen at the academy.  I enjoy hearing their stories, especially because they are so unique from what a traditional college student experiences. And I feel like a proud older sister as they're about to go off and train in the Navy.

   The 3 of us have developed a great working relationship.  It has been comically deemed the "circle of trust," since we have all accidently sent emails from each other's accounts, having to share just one laptop.  One is from Alaska and one is from Texas (the same small town as my sister matter-of-factly, and he was fascinated to learn that the Chrissy he'd been listening to on the radio was her!).  It's a breath of fresh air to have young (sane) people in the office.  Since we are so ahead of the tasks assigned to us for international orientation, we spend a lot of time making fun of each other, parking illegally around the yard, decorating our tiny office with post-it notes, arguing over which of the 3 of us should be the employee of the month, and quizzing me on my Naval Knowledge (you would not believe the amount of acronyms that are used).  We have another Ensign joining us in a week (he's off getting married right now, yikes!) and I hope he is able to fit in well.

    It's hard to describe the dynamic of our whole office and the leadership style of my director.  Let me just say- my director is not well liked and I think he sleeps better at night only when he's thrown people publicly under the bus, or insulted them. In an incident that was of no fault of my own, the Ensigns quickly came to my defense.  They also were very disappointed in my daily Pop-tart lunches and have insisted on bringing me some of their creations for lunch each day, for example home made salsa, nut clusters, and sandwiches with potato chips smashed on them (Mom, I know you will be glad to hear that people are making sure I eat, haha).  They are quite the chefs.  They spend quite a bit of time asking me about my experience at a "real" college, which I think is adorable and strange all at the same time.  They just don't understand what I did with all my free time between classes, and sadly I don't have a productive answer for them.

    Today after being mocked repetitively for my headband matching my shoes, I received the comment, "You're the woman, I don't know why you haven't baked for us or something yet." I suppose I need to run to the store and purchase something that appears to be homemade.

May activities

  My duties in the IPO have drastically changed with the incoming month of June.  However in May, aside from sneaking out to see the commissioning week excitement around the yard, I actually accomplished more in my first 4 weeks than I anticipated to all summer.  Most of it was helping my mentor catch up on things that the office desperately needed done, but didn't have the time or man power to do.

  The first task I started with were fact sheets for all the countries we send midshipmen to.  These included basic things like capital, population, ethnicities, religions, etc (which hopefully the mids already know).  But the exciting part was putting together a cultural section.  This is where having studied abroad and traveled a lot came in handy.  For example, I spent nearly the first 2 months in Spain answering the phone "Hola?" the equivalent to Americans' "Hello?"  When in fact, Spaniards say "Díme," which literally means "tell me" as soon as they pick up the phone.  Finding little nuances like this proved difficult yet fascinating, especially for the countries I essentially knew nothing about like Qatar, Oman, Jordan, Morocco.  I have become much more cultured and inspired to stay current in world news.  In fact, just the other day there was a devastating fire near the school where we will be sending 2 mids this fall in Qatar, which I read about in the news.

   Another task I was especially proud of was compiling a list of transfer credits.  I made a multi-tabbed spread sheet (I've very quickly taught myself excel) with each major and the courses that will transfer from each foreign institution, organized by language.  It was incredibly tedious, time-consuming, and required a lot of translating.  However, this will be, and already has been useful for mids interested in certain programs that want to see what courses will apply to their major.  The final document was sent to department heads, the Dean of academic affairs, and most nerve-wrackingly, my director.  I got a quick response of "great work."  If you knew my director, this is like a billion dollars :)

   I've also been working with the website a bit, I've coordinated & assigned midshipmen who have previously studied abroad to incoming exchange students, compiled pre-departure travel packets for the 48 mids we have going abroad in the fall, and helped record financial information.  I have been registered with the Dept of Defense to submit APACS (Aircraft and Personnel Automated Clearance System), which is the system that all military personnel, and associated military personnel (i.e. USNA professors and staff) must be entered in and cleared from to travel on official orders.  I have also sat in on a command brief for NETSAFA (Naval Education and Training Security Assistance Field Activity) officers visiting the USNA to learn about the training of future Naval officers.  This proved very interesting.  Most of the officers were from Saudi Arabia, with a few from Ukraine and other countries.  When the topic turned to women at the Academy, I felt very awkward being in a room full of men.  Although I respected the Colonel before, I especially respected him after his responses to the Saudi Arabians, who clearly were not in agreement that women should be at the USNA.  And finally,  I helped my mentor with a introductory session for rising Youngsters (what sophomores are called) to introduce our programs abroad.  This was neat, as it was a few days after the Herndon Climb and they were anxious to show off their bruises of triumph.

   For the month of June, I am working with our 2 newly commissioned Ensigns on the international midshipmen orientation which will last almost 2 weeks before Induction Day and the start to Plebe Summer.  More on this later- as it has already proven VERY interesting!  

Color Parade

  It's hard to believe that the month of May is nearly over.  It seems like just yesterday I was dying for May 7th to arrive so I could begin my internship.  And now it's nearly June 1st.  I guess that's what I get for wishing my days away, my grandmother always told me never to do this after all.
   I've been talking a lot about what's been going on at the USNA these weeks, but little about what I've actually been doing besides ducking out of the office to peak at everything (I recently discovered a great patch of window space in the ladies room that you can see the field from where a lot of activities take place, this will be so great when Plebe summer begins!).  I promise I've actually been getting work done.  The highlight of my week was on Wednesday watching the Color Parade.  I snuck out of the office and watched for the Brigade Commander to start the march (from the ladies room of course).  When I saw him finally come down the cobble stone street, I bolted out of the ladies room, down the steps, ran through the hallway (thank God no one was around), quickly composed myself and walked outside my building.  Every midshipmen is divided into Companies which marched together from Bancroft Hall (their dorm) to the field.

Once they all assembled on the field, for an hour or so they did various presentations with their rifles, the bugle corp, and of course their colors.  There was a large to-do with the transferring of the colors from the company who hosted them this spring semester to the company that will host them the upcoming fall semester.  This is based on the company with the highest marks in academics, merit and athletics.  Quite fascinating.  Unfortunately, though the temperature was mild, the humidity was intense and quite a few midshipmen were dropping like flies.  

   As soon as they marched back to Bancroft Hall, literally seconds later they were out of their dress uniforms and back in the white ones.  I've never seen a wardrobe change that fast in my life.  I heard one overbearing mother begging her son to keep in on for 5 more minutes to pose in front of the Herndon Monument.  "Mom, this thing is like 10" thick, you put it on then."  Mothers will be mothers. I'm just grateful my school didn't have as many scenic places and monuments to pose by when I graduated as the USNA. It must take hours for the mothers to pose their sons and daughters here.

   Yesterday there were a ton of different awards ceremonies all over the yard.  I was actually impressed by my ability to give a few sets of parents directions on my lunch break. Tuesday the Mids will graduate and commission. They will become Ensigns in the Navy or 2nd Lieutenants in the Marine Corps (the lowest ranking officers), and then they will go off for more training (i.e. Naval Aviation training in Pensacola for 2 years).  At 10:00AM the ceremony begins down the street at the Navy-Marine Corps Stadium and at 10:04AM the Blue Angels are flying over.  I am going to sneak out of my office one last time and try to witness this!!

Herndon Monument Climb

  Please stop raining, please stop raining, please stop raining! I thought the entire drive to work this morning.  I wanted nothing more than to spend my afternoon watching the class of 2015 outgoing Plebes climb the Herndon Monument.
  As of yesterday afternoon the food trucks were set up, and the protective fencing was placed around the monument, but the monument remained grease free.  This morning however, it was thickly lathered with a crisco-like substance.  Many of my co-workers said it seemed thicker than most years (2 years ago in fact, it wasn't greased at all on the basis of safety issues, but that Vice Admiral was only in position for 1 year).
   I walked out at 1:30PM, the scheduled starting time, and listened to the Plebe class's accomplishments thus far.  After a traditional song and the firing of a canon, off they went! The strategy was to take off their shirts (and socks), throw them at the monument, and the Plebes that got there first used the shirts to wipe the grease off.  After 45 minutes I went back inside and pretended to do work.  However every 10 minutes or so I got up and looked out the window as I pretended to do things like throw something away, copy, go to the restroom, etc.  I felt like such a Navy nerd.  After a half hour of this, I admitted to myself that I wasn't going to get anything done, shut my computer down and walked back outside.  I met up with the midshipmen who work in our office who told me about the past few years and particularly when they did it ("It only took us 1 hour, 14 minutes and 38 seconds," one told me.  "But who's counting right?" I laughed.  We were particularly proud when we saw a very tiny, tan skinned boy nearly reach the top.  Though I can't spell his name, he frequents our office, as he is one of the Sri Lankan students earning his 4-year degree here.  There were 2 girls who were very actively involved as well, which I thought was pretty neat.

   Around 3:45PM, when they finally reached the top and replaced their Plebe dixie cup hat with a Midshipman cover, Plebe year ended.  As the shirts said "Keep Calm and Climb On- Free the Plebes, Class of 2015!"   We officially have no Plebes on the yard now, as the newbies don't arrive until the end of June.

Color Parade practice

   Today I anticipated to be like any average morning going to work. Usually by Wednesday or Thursday I have doubled the amount of coffee I drink in the morning, but I expected nothing out of the usual. As I got off the highway and made my way through scenic downtown Annapolis, I began to notice police cars and fire engines around entrances to the USNA gates. I proceeded to Gate 8 where I typically enter, only to be greeted by a line of traffic nearly a mile long. Not knowing what else to do, I called my mentor to try to find out what was going on (voicemail), and waiting impatiently. When I finally got to the gate at 8:20 ('m supposed to be in the office at 8:00) I was told I could not enter because of the color parade. I started asking questions, "I thought it was Wednesday? Where can I enter? Will I be able to get in at all?" He brushed me off and refused to answer me. My first rude USNA-er.

   I tried calling my mentor again, and the general office number. No luck. I certainly couldn't call the midshipman working in our office since he was part of the color parade. I felt like such a rookie... I thought the parade was Wednesday and I didn't know the protocol! I looked for spaces outside of the yard as I drove to a different gate, only to be denied again. "Where should I go?!" He must have noticed my panic. "What's your business on the yard?" he asked. "I'm an intern!" He suggested I try gate 1. I didn't bother asking where it was. I pulled over, whipped out my map, silently thanking Chuck a million times in my head for giving me all the touristy materials on my first day. When I FINALLY got on the yard I met several dead ends, nearly drove into the water several times, when my mentor finally called me back. I parked where she directed me to. Then came navigating to my building. When I thought I'd found my building I realized it was not in fact my building but the library basement.  This is how plebes must feel, I kept thinking, but thank God I won't get screamed at and told to do 100 push-ups.  As I walked outside into the bright sunlight, when my eyes finally adjusted I looked up and I was standing directly across from where nearly 1,000 First Class midshipmen where gathered neat and orderly on the field. 

   "Ma'am, you can't be here, this is blocked off to the public," a stern looking guard said to me dressed in uniform.

   "I'm sorry, I work here. Which way is Mahan Hall?" 

   "It's right there," he pointed to a building not even 100 meters from me.  "You work here and you don't know where your building is?" he said quite rudely.

   "You must not work here or you'd be friendly," I replied.  As I walked away in my defense I added, "I'm new."

   Turns out it was just practice. I can't imagine what things will be like on Wednesday for the real deal.  To the guard's obvious disgust I did snap a picture as I walked away, just out of spite for his rudeness.

Top 10 learnings

Top 10 things I have learned during my first week at the Naval Academy:

1. "Hit the head" is not a violent phrase, but one indicating the need for the bathroom.  Head = bathroom.  Deck = floor.... the list goes on.

2. Do not be on campus at 8:00am or 8:00pm.  You will stick out like a sore thumb, look like a dear caught in head lights and draw much attention to yourself wearing heels on cobblestones as the ENTIRE campus freezes, and salutes the flag being raised and 100 bells chime.  Oh, and it's not a campus, it's "the yard."

3. Academics academics academics.  Every midshipman graduates with a B.S. and every one does it in 4 years.  Only MIT can boast this achievement as well.  I was told a tsunami would have to coincide with a hurricane at the same time as a typhoon for classes to be canceled.

4. Students will be students no matter what institution you're at.  Even at the USNA they wait until the last minute to do their paperwork, they complain about the cafeteria food, they gossip about the opposite sex, and they're constantly sneaking out their cell phones.  At least they're polite and respectful though!

5. I will be called ma'am more times this summer than I will my entire life.  

6. Even the seaman giggle at the word seaman.

7. The USNA is regarded with the utmost respect from civilians.  However, the midshipmen are somewhat cynical of the Academy, believing that the ones that graduate go off and give the school a poor reputation with their cockiness and "holier-than-thou" attitude once they are commissioned in the Navy.

8. The beauty of the Academy should never be underestimated, around every corner and in every building is something remarkable.  I feel ignorant because I don't know what 1/3 of the things mean.  My building is next to the chapel (my mom's favorite building on the yard).  Currently we have 2 enormous Naval ships docked on the other side of my building getting ready to take some midshipman around the Atlantic for several weeks.

9. An office environment is not so bad.  Coming from an educational background where the objective was to be constantly active, I was nervous about this.  But when I have co-workers with bright personalities yelling on the phone next to me, "Who can I show my middle finger to?!" and people from IT services coming to talk about Star Trek- things stay interesting.

10.  My day is no longer decidedly gorgeous or gloomy based upon the weather, but more so by whether the midshipmen are wearing their dress uniforms or not... the yard is so much more cheerful populated with white :)

Living the dream

   Today is my 7th day of interning. By the end of this week I will have already satisfied the required hours my university says I have to spend at my site this summer. To me, if I only come in once or twice a week though, I will not be truly experiencing what it is like to actually work here. Plus... I LOVE IT.

"Fit" has always been crucial to me. I have 100% of the characteristics of an introvert, and I am okay with this the older I become. However, I never want to work in a dead silent, monotonous office environment with a bunch of deadbeats. I like co-workers who pull me out of my shell, challenge me, expose me to their expertise and help propel me forward in my professional career. The International Programs Office (or IPO for short) is exactly that environment for me. The first 2 days I did a ton of smiling and replying with "ok," "sounds great," "awesome," "looking forward to it," "thanks!" But by day 3, when the director had gone off to Norway, and the woman I am working more directly with (let's call her my mentor) was running late I hit the ground running completely on my own.

   The office is very light hearted. Every morning the assistant director, aka The Colonel asks me, "living the dream?!" and I reply "absolutely," I mean this wholeheartedly. He has taught me some incredibly valuable Navy slang as well as the ins and outs of the office in a short amount of time, since his cubicle is directly behind mine. Chuck, a wonderful man who graduated from my university has made it his summer goal for me to meet every single person employed at every single office at the Academy. There are 3 other women who work in the office, they mostly keep to themselves, but they are friendly. There is a midshipman on the verge of graduating and being commissioned into the Navy and his help to me has been tremendous. He is working in the office this summer and it has been nice having another young person around.

I have been silently observing and compiling a list of valuable lessons as a civilian on the yard this first week. Stay tuned for my top ten lessons I've learned thus far.

The internship

  What is Student Affairs?  Think of a college or university.  Take away the students, take away the professors.  Who's left?  Us!  The best way to describe SA is with examples: Career Services, Housing, Office of Orientation, Student Activities, Office of Student Leadership & Civic Engagement, Campus Recreation, First Year Programs (what I will be doing in the fall), International Student Services, Multicultural Student Services, Deans, Provosts, Presidents, etc!!  There are soooooo many SA offices and functions and every single institute of higher education is completely different.  From the previous post, you've guessed my goal is to work in an Office of International Programs and/or International Students.  Oddly, sometimes these offices are considered on the Academic Affairs side, but many professions acquire the degree I am earning for jobs on the academic side (such as admissions and advising).

   For my program, I must complete 2 internships (each a semester in length). My anticipation was to complete one in the fall of 2012 and one in the spring of 2013.  Due to a scheduling conflict and the class I needed for this summer not being offered, I was left merely 3 weeks before the summer term began to find an internship in order to enroll in the internship course (otherwise I would not have been enrolled full-time and would have had to overload in the fall). With very little help from my school (don't get me wrong- I love my school), I began cold calling every international program office at every university in the state of Maryland and the D.C. area.  After nearly 40 phone calls the odds were not in my favor. 

  Jokingly, I brought up the Naval Academy to my parents and a few friends and decided to call on a desperate, frantic, whim.  It rang all day, but I didn't leave a message.  Around 4:00pm I received a phone call.  "Hi, did you call?"  I had no idea who this was and asked where they were calling from.  "The United States Naval Academy."  I quickly gathered my thoughts and spat out "I was just wondering if you were looking for an intern this summer in your office?"  He paused and said "Sure, that'd be great."

  That was 2 weeks ago, and I begin tomorrow.  We had a skype interview, and I was introduced to another worker in charge of semester programs who I'd be working directly with.  I've been told I'll be working on clearing 17 midshipmen to go on foreign naval ships for the fall.  Contacting our embassy, the foreign embassy, writing their orders, gathering their travel materials, etc.  Then I'll help prepare for the international cadets who will be coming from Spain, Peru, Russian, France & Chile.  I thought I'd be more nervous, but I'm so positive that this is what I'm supposed to be doing that I just can't wait to do it.  I've had some extremely negative luck the past few years, I just want to soak up every second of this internship.  

  I'm doing this blog mostly so my mom doesn't call me every single day and ask for every detail of what's going on at the USNA.  Also, because I think it's a particularly fascinating institute, threaded with deep history and traditions that I'm honored to be a part of.

My passion for language & travel

 When I was in 5th grade my Dad bought us a computer.  With that computer came an Encarta encyclopedia CD-ROM that had lots of interactive activities with it.  There were geographic features on it, not necessarily games, but you could go into a program that had every language listed and learn how to say hello, goodbye, count 1-10, and a proverb in each language.  The coolest part was the audio feature that allowed you to listen to the pronunciation.  So as my mom was cooking dinner each night I would run back and forth up the steps from the computer in the basement yelling numbers and muddled phrases at her in Finnish, Thai, Tagalog, and whatever else I could memorize.
  As I got a little older, I began to rent videos and books from the library about other countries. I used to plan pretend trips to other countries and think about how much we could cram into each day.  And then I got to the end of the 7th grade where our teachers could recommend us for Spanish I class in 8th grade if we were advanced enough not to need reading class.  I was not recommended and I cried hysterically to my mom when I came home from school.  I HAD to take Spanish.  I had to learn this language and about the people in all those other countries so I could go there some day.  So my mom wrote a letter, and all the teachers and the guidance counselors still said no.  But, they don't know my mother.  So eventually, I think so we would just leave them alone for the summer they signed me up.
  I had Spanish I class 4th period in 8th grade.  On the first day of class every one got "Spanish names" but I learned that my name was the same, just pronounced different.  I remember telling my mom I was already Spanish, I felt like I was destined to be in that class.  The entire walk home from the bus stop I studied the list of vocabulary my teacher had taught us (all 5 words) so when I walked in the house I shouted "Hola! Como estas?!"  Let's be frank though, I sucked at Spanish I.  I got a C. It was hard!  But oh my God, did I LOVE it. I called my grandparents every time I learned new vocabulary, and I checked out books on Mexico, Spanish, Venezuela, I asked for the CDs we listened to in class for Christmas.  I was in love.  I was a Spanish nerd.
  I took Spanish every year of high school, including AP Spanish my senior year. My love of language was strong. I even took German I my junior year and was fascinated learning about Germans and their culture.  I was never amazing at grammar, or memorizing vocabulary, and I essentially skipped over Spanish III because of a long-term substitute we got stuck with.  I was lucky to have some very nice friends who may have sat next to me and pretended to ignore my wandering eyes.  But I felt such a passion for languages, cultures, people of other countries, geography, and traveling- and I think my teachers knew this so they let me skid by.
   I always had a strong interest in history, and decided to major in it in college.  I'm not sure why I ignored my passion for Spanish, because after 1 semester of history I changed my major to Spanish, the best decision of my life.  Something clicked then.  Suddenly, all the boring grammar exercises I had endured and the vocabulary flash cards I had made seemed to pay off.  My brain didn't have to take everything and translate it like a robot- it was as if I finally felt the language, as cheesy as it sounds.  It led me to study abroad in Salamanca, Spain for a semester my junior year.
   I won't talk much specifically about my time abroad right now because putting it in words simply does not do it justice.  College is a time when you explore your values, your morals, who you are and who you want to be. Traveling abroad helped me do just that, and solidified my love of this world and the people in it.  When I returned, I continued down my path to become a high school Spanish teacher and was successful with that until I realized I couldn't do that as my career.  I can no longer ignore my passion for travel and the world and am taking the route of College Student Affairs to allow me to do this.