Degrees of doldrum

I'm done!  After taking the best part of 8 years to complete my degree, I've finally finished.  And truth be told, it's been a little anticlimactic.  I was expecting a huge rush of triumph... but it didn't happen.

Finishing up was spread over a couple of months.  I handed in my last paper, a few weeks later I got the results.  Then I had to finish the practical aspects... the required client hours and clinical supervision.  The final supervision session was delayed as I ended up in A&E with Pickle (who had fractured his arm, but coped really well in plaster and is fine now)... and then it was done.

I had to finish up at my placement venue as I was no longer a student, yet the required meetings and paperwork hadn't been completed in order to offer me a position.  So I set to spring cleaning my house, de-cluttering our wardrobes and the accumulation of toys (this is still a work in progress).  I had the meetings, signed the paperwork and a couple of days later I was back in the workplace having only missed two days of work (I've chosen to work part-time as a good balance for my own mental health and well-being particularly as a single parent).

The beautiful flowers on my desk at work
with obligatory photo of my gorgeous Pickle

BigTed sent me a gorgeous bunch of my favourite flowers to celebrate my first day as a fully-qualified paid counsellor... and as they are opening up they smell stunning.

And don't get me wrong, I am ecstatic that I was offered a position doing the work I love.

Over the coming weeks I'll need to do some delightful paperwork *yawn*, to apply to graduate... in May 2015... so I'm not sure when, or even if, I'm going to a celebratory *woohoo* moment.

Has this ever happened to you?  Did you get your *woohoo* eventually?  What triggered it? And what happened if you didn't get that lightbulb moment?

Cheers, KangaRue :)
BAppSocSc (Couns)  - well, that's the first time I've written that and admittedly it feels pretty good

Man in the Moon (aka Happy New Year!)

Today is my New Year. The start of a great year after a year liberally dosed with a fair amount of crap*.

A year ago yesterday (or the early hours of this morning given the time difference in the UK), BoyWonder said that he wanted a divorce. I've moved on in a number of ways: location, attitude, outlook... and there has been a lot of self reflection, which is obviously an ongoing thing. I've also had time to reflect on past relationships and experiences.

A lifetime ago, I was engaged to a(nother) boy who couldn't see the man in the moon. Not a deal-breaker, you might think? But being able to see the "face" in the moon came to represent a level of imagination, dreaming and playfulness. I said to myself that I'd never go out with someone who couldn't see the man in the moon again. But then I married him. Perhaps it was doomed from the start? OK, that's not really giving either of us enough credit, but I can be a bit blithe in my own blog I hope?! A fortune teller in Hong Kong about 8 years ago may agree though, but that's for a future blogpost.

So while it might not be a first date question (because, quite frankly, they might think I'm even more nuts than I am a little nuts), I think I will be asking it pretty early on in any relationship. Will I base views of longevity on the answer? Probably not as a knee-jerk reaction, but it will certainly influence my thinking long term. So while I may not walk away immediately, I'd probably start extricating myself pretty quickly. 

So do you have any left-of-centre deal-breakers? (I can't be the only one?!!)

Cheers, KangaRue :)

*the year has had a lot of positives too - Pickle constantly amazes me, I've watched friends get engaged and married, had some awesome times with both friends and family and met some fantastic new friends too.