January
- I travelled to Canada to attend TORF and surprise my nieces - the first time I was actually with my oldest niece on her birthday AND it was the first double digit birthday!
- Signed a letter of intent to take a position in Dubai
February
- Returned to Korea from Canada and Koshka (aka girl cat) was ill; vet diagnosed her with end stage renal failure. This signalled weekly trips to the vet, multiple blood tests, and daily medications for Koshka
March
- Started part 1 of a 3 part specialist qualification in Teacher Librarianship through Queen's / Ontario College of Teachers - in conjunction with finishing up the remaining classes for my Master of Education Degree through Deakin University in Australia
April
- Started the paperwork process for my UAE visa. NOT fun or inexpensive. Hired a lawyer in Australia to take care of all my Australian paperwork and a firm in Canada to take care of all the Canadian paperwork while I was living in Korea. (Paperwork for UAE visa must go through several steps in the originating country before it can go to the UAE Embassy in that country, before it can pass through immigration in the UAE...)
- Koshka spends a week in hospital after a 'crash' with her blood work numbers. Sent home with a nasal gastric tube for feeding and hydration - she hates the tube and the tube is removed after 2 consecutive 'good' sets of numbers.
May
- Finishing up last papers for MEd and starting process for cats to leave Korea and enter UAE
- Finished part 1 of Teacher Librarianship specialization
June
- Finished all requirements for MEd degree. Waiting on confirmation of graduation
- Start part 2 of Teacher Librarian specialization
- Koshka has another ' crash', another week in hospital, and finally comes home with another nasal gastric tube which is replaced with an esophageal tube for hydration only - she would eat without the nasal tube.
July
- Waiting on visa confirmation from UAE
- Koshka goes in to have the esophageal tube checked and adjusted - doesn't come out of the anaesthetic. RIP Koshka
August
- Final preparations for moving to Dubai.
- Hooligan departs 6 hours before me for a road journey to Seoul, some time at the exporters facilities, transfer to veterinary quarantine in the afternoon for a midnight departure. Hooligan will arrive in Seoul 4 hours after I do and will go through the importation process with a local importer and be delivered to the Dubai apartment.
- I depart a few after Hooligan for a rail journey to Seoul, have too much baggage and have to pay baggage overages, flight delayed out of Seoul, arrive in transit through China - they don't like the fact that my passport isn't pristine and it takes 'awhile' to clear customs to change planes. Flight out of china delayed due to late arrival of onward aircraft, further delayed by bad weather (yes it was monsoon season and it was a near coastal airport), finally bussed out to plane several hours later to walk through the deluge to the steps of the aircraft to sit on the tarmac for a further 2 hours in the hopes that the weather would clear enough fora take off.
- Arrive in Dubai with all my paperwork to be told by UAE immigration officer I was denied entry - it was sorted when he looked up the correct flight. (he had assumed that because I had a Canadian Passport and a Canadian originating flight had just landed that I was on that flight and of course there was no record of my immigration status connected to that flight).
September
- Started work at the new school - hectic, busy
- Start to furnish my empty apartment
- Finish part 2 of Teacher Librarian specialization
October
- Start part 3 of Teacher Librarian specialization
- rented a car (Nissan Tiida 4 door coupe) and started to drive in Dubai (yikes!)
- Attended a 3 day IB workshop (level 3) on Librarianship and the IB
- MEd (Educational Leadership and Administration) degree arrives - it is official I now hold a MEd(EdLead&Admin) degree.
November
- Purchased a Mitsubishi Outlander GLS V6 3.0l CVT. Finding driving less stressful - in part due to some confidence and in part due to driving something a bit bigger
- Saw Skyfall (Daniel Craig is a very good blend of the earlier 'man of action' James Bond and the more recent ' ladies man' Bond)
- Hooligan still not acting himself after the loss of Koshka and the move. Off to the vet's. THANKFULLY just a bit of digestive and elimination issues - new food, some laxative paste and he was back to his old self. (the relief I felt was immense.)
December
- Finished part 3 of Teacher Librarian Specialization
- Awarded Teacher Librarian Specialist qualification on my Ontario College of Teachers teaching license.
- Spending the winter break in Dubai, watched Twilight Breaking Dawn pt 2 (I had seen the others on the movie channels while in Korea, it seemed only correct to finish the series), The Hobbit an unexpected journey 3D, The Life of Pi 3D, and Argo.
I hope that 2013 is a wonderful year for anyone who is reading this - that any challenges you face help you to grow and the opportunities which present themselves to you are breathtaking and adventurous.
Happy New Year one and all.
