Crazy Evening

So . . . how would you feel if you were at home on a quiet Sunday afternoon and into evening and when you went outside to go somewhere discovered that the front end of your car had been smashed in? Well that is exactly what happened to me today. It was quite the experience. There was no information left on my windshield, so I thought it was a hit and run. While I was looking at the damage and reaching into my bag to call the police, my neighbor came to tell me what happened. I guess their new vehicles emergency break wasn't working and it rolled back and hit my car. Great, right?
So because of just having bought the vehicle that day, my neighbor wanted to wait to report the incident until the next day. I left with Elizabeth to go to FHE (which is where I was headed anyway). On the way, I had second thoughts and started telling everyone to get their thoughts. Unanimously everyone said I needed to report it immediately. So, I called, and then left immediately with Elizabeth (in case I needed a witness). When I got home, I let my neighbor know that I had called the police to report the accident. Then we waited for the cop to show up. When he arrived, my neighbor told him what had happened, and then we separately were put in the back of the police car for him to get information. I never realized how cramped the back of a police car is (because I'd never been in one before, though I have been in the front seat of a highway patrol vehicle before; on second thought, maybe when I was younger I'd been in the back seat of a police car at one of those emergency fairs, or something, but I don't know for sure).
In the end, it was quite an interesting and adventurous night. Now I just have to see about getting my car fixed . . . and hope that my neighbors insurance will cover the entire cost. . .

Little update

So, I just learned today that I am allowed to check in to my residence two days before my class begins . . . That doesn't give me much time to get settled and figure things out after I get there. Oh well, at least I know when I can arrive so I can start making travel arrangements/plans . . .

Great News!

So, I received my invitation to orientation/training for the US Dept of State Foreign Service today! I am really excited about it, but haven't really had the chance to process what everything means. I've known ever since I took the Russian language test and was bumped from #37 to #5 (yes, it affected my ranking that much!) a couple weeks ago that this was coming. So, that means that I've been preparing in all the ways that I could.
First, I've been trying to get my stuff in order (after all, I came back to Bismarck to go through my stuff, and I succeeded in doing just that!). Next I've been trying to figure out the logistics of moving with my cat, Gizmo. I learned recently that depending on where I go (even to just travel through certain countries on my way to another location) I would need to have an ISO compatible microchip in Gizmo. In addition, I need health vaccinations! I took Gizmo to the vet this morning and got all of that done. When it gets closer to the time to travel I will actually have to get a health certificate to take with me. I got him a microchip which was injected with a large needle (though surprisingly he seemed to feel one of his vaccination shots more than that one). More or less, I have everything in order to travel with Gizmo.
Now comes the more difficult stuff that I couldn't even begin to touch until after I received my invitation. Since I am moving to Washington DC, I have to figure out lodging (though luckily the State Dept has a contract with a company that provides temporary housing so I will not have to pay anything out of pocket for rent/utilities, and the housing is pet-friendly), I have to figure out travel arrangements, including transporting my things, and most difficult, I have to figure out when I'm going to leave Bismarck.
I told my boss today that I got my offer, and she told me that she cried after she got my message. Everyone keeps saying that they're going to miss me, and that makes me feel good and sad at the same time.
My class begins September 13. That gives me just over 2 months to get everything prepared. I don't have a lot of information/specifics on how A-100 goes (that's what they call the training class), but I've heard that it will take about 4 months. Then, depending on where I go, I may have language training that could result in my being in DC for up to a year. That's about all that I know, but I will definitely keep everyone posted when I know more!

Birthday Fun

I had a great birthday this year, I must say. I began the day by traveling with a couple friends (Becky and Karla) to Theodore Roosevelt National Park in the western part of North Dakota (near the Montana border). We went to go hiking. The weather was beautiful, not too hot, but still sunny. We hiked the back country, so there wasn't really a trail. We also had to wade across the Little Missouri River. It was great! We headed back after a few hours because we saw storm clouds coming in and didn't want to cross back over the river in a rain/thunder storm.
After finishing our hike, we got ice cream in Medora. Ice cream is great no matter what the occasion.
Then we headed back to Bismarck. When I got back, I met up with another friend, Colette, and she took me shooting. I shot a shotgun for the first time. We used a 12 gauge automatic shotgun and shot skeet. I must say that I really sucked, but I was happy to hit a couple, especially considering it was my first time. Colette did a lot better than me, but considering how long she's been shooting, that's not a surprise.
After shooting, we came back to my place for my birthday dinner: BBQ! That is my favorite. Unfortunately, I don't have a grill, so I used my griddle instead. It was yummy. My sister, Elizabeth, spent time while I was gone to make the sides: a cherry version of Clarence's salad and potato salad. In addition to that and the main dishes of hotdogs (all beef of course) and hamburgers, we had olives, green beans, and baked beans. It was a good meal, and I found myself getting full quickly. For dessert we had home-made pistachio ice cream. Yum!
But besides all that, it was nice to have so many people remember my birthday, so thanks to everyone who did!

My cat is huge!

I've been told for a while by people that I have a big cat. He's been a little overweight for most of his adult life, but that is only a part of his size. In fact, I don't even think he is that much overweight. He is just HUGE! I looked up average cat sizes because I was curious, and this is what wikipedia says:
Height: 9-10 in
Head/body length: 18.1 in
Tail: 11.8 in

Well, knowing that didn't tell me much, so naturally I had to measure Gizmo. These are his dimensions:
Height: 12 in (maybe taller, he scrunched down because he didn't like me measuring him)
Head/body length: 24 in
Tail: 13 in

With that, you can see that my cat is nearly 6 inches longer than the average cat, 7 if you include his tail. I wonder if he's part maine coon . . .