FIRST IMPRESSIONS: Pros and Cons

The Pros

1. Meeting Fellow Young Adventurers

One REALLY cool thing about Nashville is that if you meet young adults your age, you're almost BOUND to have something in common! 80-90% of the young adults I have met in Nashville are not Nashville natives. In fact, I would say close to 60-70% of them have moved to Nashville in the past few months. 

This doesn't mean all the young adults in Nashville are newbies. It makes sense that us newbies are interested in and attending similar events as we work on getting to know the area and developing friendships.

Of the people who moved to Nashville, whether in the past couple years or half a decade ago, I would estimate that 60% of us moved their "just 'cause." Nashville is a POPULAR place, and it's AMAZING to learn that SOOOOO MANY PEOPLE share my dream. They want to move to Nashville not necessarily to become musicians or to attend a specific school or work a certain job. They decided to move to Nashville simply because they wanted to. 



And EVERY PERSON I've met here has had the GUTS and the ADVENTURISM in them to make the move! THAT'S pretty cool!

The "crowd" I run in (so to speak) is the Catholic young adults. We already have our faith in common, and having these additional things in common in pretty cool.

I'm also fascinated by the fact that in the past month I've met more people from more states than I've possibly met in my whole life! There are Midwesterners, their are New Yorkers, Californians, Georgians, Floridians, Alabamians?? (is that a word?) 

Even within a shared faith community, you get to learn so much from these people who come from all these different lifestyles and life perspectives from you!

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2. Vanderbilt!

I don't want to step my game too much, but I already love this place! I am honored and proud to be a part of the Vanderbilt FAMILY.

Coming into orientation I was excited but not yet bouncing off walls. But literally through all of orientation, I felt ecstatic. I love that Vanderbilt is a prestigious university. I love it's size. I love the people that work there and the incredible diversity when it comes to age, race, profession, etc. 

I LOVE the professionalism. 

I love how I have so much to learn, so much to explore, a whole CAMPUS for one of the greatest and most respected organizations (in the country) at my feet.

I love the spirit: the pride we take in not only our own work but in each other. I love the camaraderie. I love people being there for each other.

I love that Vanderbilt is more than just a University. It has it's own medical center with MULTIPLE on-campus hospitals. It does prestigious research, and it applies it's findings to it's practice!!!

But yah, when it comes down to it, the people the people the people... I loved the people I met at Orientation. I loved the vibe I got riding the bus with people of all professions, ages, etc. Some of us old and some of us new. 

Imagine all the knowledge I could gain from these people! Imagine all the life stories to be told! And somehow, in each of our lives, life brought us here...

THAT'S SPECIAL.

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 3. My apartment / roommate

This one's more personal, so if you don't know me this probably won't mean as much to you. 

I am so blessed. 

God put everything in place for me. He found me an AMAZING, sweet roommate with SO MUCH IN COMMON (I'll do another post on that later ;)), an affordable rent, and a BEAUTIFUL apartment in a beautiful, safe location with a BEAUTIFUL porch and hardwood floors, MY OWN ROOM and bathroom, an adorable kitchen pre-decorated, etc. etc.

I'm so blessed, guys. Need I say more? Aside from the fact that I have to drive hills to get anywhere, it's PERFECT. 

Thank you, Jesus!

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The Cons

1. SHOPPING --> Locations; Produce; Meats; Selections; Stock

One of my favorite stress-relieving pastimes back home was to window shop: to not buy anything but just walk around stores, look at things, touch the clothes (yes, I'm one of "those" people). In Nashville, there is NO. SINGLE. GREATER. STRESSOR. for me than shopping.

Locations

Stores are so spread out, so I can no longer find all of my things in one place. I think the best way to organize this section is to write a brief rant about each store here and my experience. First, I would like to note that:

1) The stores are spread out, so I have to go on completely different directions depending on where I want to go. Even when there's a shopping mall, I have a hard time finding stores that have what I am looking for. Today I went to five stores before I found one with a simple butter dish.

Understock

2) The stock at the stores is just not good. I visited two or three Dollar Trees in Nashville my first week here and couldn't find what I was looking for. When I went home for a week, I found it to the first Dollar Tree I stopped at. At the Nashville Dollar Trees there are often empty sections where they have run out of stock. The selection is a bit more limited too. 

The same goes for Walmart. Back home, I had no problem finding just about everything I could possibly be looking for at Walmart. These days, I go to Walmart and either can't find something due to smaller selection, the things I want end up being on opposite sides of the stores, they're out of stock on items, or the quality just isn't good (flavorless strawberries, cheap grapes, etc.) and I end up returning or tossing things (that especially goes for food which leads me into......

Selection (produce, meats...)

Produce. I've tried so many stores in Nashville and still haven't found one that supplies affordable, quality food for all of my food groups: meat, produce, bread.... Kroger has decent boxed goods and ok prices, but their fruit is typically already molding or just doesn't look that fresh and appealing. I didn't like the deli meat I got their either and ended up tossing some. (If I explored more I might find something I like.) 

I stopped at Publix at one point and their produce looked better, though still not as ripe and fresh as back home, but their prices were astronomical. Ok, that may be a slight exaggeration, but they were high. Cereals averages around four or five dollars per box. A jumbo bag of veggie straws was close to eight dollars. Even their Pringles were two dollars. Basically, take the cost of an item at Target or Cub and add an extra 1/2 or 1/3 to the cost.

Aldi's is oddly set-up and hard to navigate. It does provide ok boxed goods, sauces, etc. I wasn't a fan of their potato chips, and I never trust their meats (here or back home). Their fruits didn't look that great either (again, mushy or moldy). 

I will give Nashville Target's points for having cute clothes. I'm lucky that there is a Target only a quarter mile out of the way on my way home. It's a weird Target, because it is constructed like there should be too entrances but there is only one, and it's on one of the store. If you're on the side of the store with food there is a wall where Targets typically have doors. It kind of feels like a fire hazard? Their is a smaller selection of produce than in the cities and the prices seemed higher on any fruit that looked ripe or close to ripe.

I went to Trader Joe's a week ago and LOVED the meat and hamburger buns I bought, so I went back this past week. I bought the same items and they were awful. The bread was dry (when I checked it was supposed to be "used by" the day after I bought it) and the meat had so much fat connecting every little piece that I couldn't even pick through it. So I guess Trader Joe's is hit or miss. It's currently out of the way for getting home too and is in a TERRIBLY cramped Mall area when it coms to streets. (Green Hills Mall? Scary streets and rush hour. Bellevue Mall? Not good selection.)

So far I have tried Target, Kroger, Publix, Aldi's, Walmart, and Trader Joe's in Nashville and have had little success finding good produce at any of them. (Trader Joe's might be ok if I remember to eat my fruit before it goes bad next time.) I finally tossed the bread I got at Walmart. The strawberries I got at Walmart looked good but where flavorless even with sugar. Their grapes just seemed cheap and on the verge of becoming prunes. I tossed a package of meat (after trying it two times) and the hamburger buns from Trader Joe's after my second trip there. 

On today's agenda....

Today I went to Dollar Tree then Ross's then Burlington's then Walmart before finding a butter dish (and that was only one of the many items on my list). This past week I went to Walmart, Target, and finally TJ Max to find a good phone case. Fast food is more spread out too, and I've stopped trusting the McChickens in Nashville.

Long story short: Help a girl out! I've tried sooo many places! Where is foooooood?

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2. THE ROADS -->

Hills-Without-End; No Shoulder; Lanes Randomly Ending/Changing; Poor Lighting; Ditches

Hills-Without-End

Hills are a great thing, right? Yes, they are absolutely beautiful to look at. You can see far and wide when there are no trees in the way. Hills are cool. But for driving... yikes.

People who have always lived in Nashville learned to drive these roads from the get-go. For them, it was part of learning to drive. But when a Midwesterner from a generally flat state (with the states around it also being generally flat), learning these roads was a nightmare! 

If driving here simply involved driving up and down straight hills, that would be no problem. But after almost every hill or every other hill there is a sudden turn, and, unless you've memorized these roads by heart, you have no clue which direction your car is supposed to go in the next three yards and you're going 40+ miles per hour (often with an aggressive driver behind you). I'm finally learning to become more comfortable with this driving situation, but I still don't like it. To top it off...

No Shoulder

Nashville roads almost NEVER have ANY shoulder! This is unnerving enough on the highway, but if you want to visit anyone who lives even remotely out of the city you are probably going to have to drive on curvy roads with no shoulder where your car is INCHES from a cliff: whether that be a direct plummet downward into someone's yard or what.

The roads I have pictured here are not the most scary. 

-- 1) I was VERY lucky to have the extra two feet beyond the asphalt before the instant decline, as most roads don't have that. 
-- 2) I took this picture at a point when there wasn't a very deep decline (not a great tactic when you're trying to capture the frightening-ness of these roads).

These are pictures from when I decided to"go for a walk" in my area. Hmmm... with cars turning corners and coming down the hill at you with less than four inches of shoulder for you to walk on much of the time (I kid you not, I tested it with my feet and could not walk off the road unless I put one foot in front of the other or did a sort of tightrope)... maybe that's why people rarely walk places outside of downtown.

Lanes Randomly Ending / Changing

About as annoying as the two things listed above is the fact that lanes suddenly end or become turn lanes with little to no warning. If you don't have the streets memorized, you are going to have to be on HYPER ALERT to keep an eye out for when your lane ends or (more often) suddenly becomes a "turn only" lane.

I haven't spoken with a single non-Nashville-native about the roads who hasn't agreed that they're dreadful or even that they're words I shall not repeat. It's just something else!

Poor Lighting

Driving at night itself isn't fun, but it's even less fun when roads are poorly lit. I think part of the reason that the roads "feel" poorly lit is that with the hills you just can't see what's coming ahead of you. The hills also probably block some of the light from further parts of the street. Driving on the highway usually isn't as dreadful. It's the side roads that you have to take to get anywhere into Belle Meade, Brentwood, or Franklin that sometimes have little to no (yes, sometimes no) lighting. 

With hills and turns and no shoulder before sudden drops, it was especially unnerving to drive at full speed my first couple weeks in Nashville.

Ditches

Ditches aren't the most common thing in Nashville, but you will find that if you take certain roads there is a sudden caving out of the land by the road before you reach someone's yard. Through this ditch flows a stream. Pretty, but scary if you have only two to four inches of shoulder protecting you from it and no more than a foot protecting you from the cars coming at you from the opposite direction in the lane next to you.

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Pro AND Con: The Heat

I'm excited for a warmer winter in Nashville despite my fears of driving down steep hills on ice. That said, HEAT EXHAUSTION is more real than anything! As an introvert, I thought hanging out in a crowded room / in the presence of others was exhausting, but the heat and humidity drains me twice as fast!

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HAVE CHEER!

So there you have it. If you feel bogged down with negativity go back and read the PROS section again. :) Another HUGE pro for me is that, as a result of this Nashville adventure, I have grown in appreciation for the stores and roads back home TENFOLD. Minne, you're cold, but I will not take you for granted ;)

My "Unemployment" Issue [PART 1]

In June, I visited Nashville and stopped by a a child care center I was interested in working at. They told me they were hiring and would send me an application to fill out. I received the application that afternoon and filled it out within the week.

Shortly thereafter, I had a phone interview which was following by a Skype interview. Setting up these interviews; however, proved very difficult due to poor communication. I ended up calling and emailing multiple times in order to get my interviews set up. At this point, I was skeptical of working for an employer that I was already having difficulty working with, but I was assured this was to be expected and was told to have patience because HR was a busy place.

During my Skype interview I was told that all by background work had to go through before I could start work and that this could take up to six to eight weeks for someone from out of state. I said this was okay, because so long as we got the process rolling right away, I should be able to start work around the time I was hoping to (the first or second week of September).

A week after my Skype interview, I received a call and was offered the position with the hours I had hoped for and making only slightly less than what I had asked to be paid. I accepted. They told me shortly thereafter that they hoped I could start work on August 26th granted my background check had been completed by then.

I filled out the paperwork they sent me by email within one to two days.

Over email, I was told that I needed to have Fingerprinting done in order to work with kids. I was asked to set up a time to come in and do so in the next week. I responded telling them that I was out of state and would not be back in Tennessee until late August or early September. I asked if I could have my fingerprinting done somewhere in Minnesota and sent to them. (After all, the Federal Government works in every state.)

They responded that they would not accept Fingerprinting done in the State of Minnesota. I would have to come to Tennessee to be Fingerprinted. At that time, I rationalized that it would be a waste of money to spend two or three hundred dollars to Tennessee for ONE APPOINTMENT prior to moving there. 

Upon further insistence that they would not accept Fingerprinting performed out-of-state, we scheduled my Fingerprinting for the day after I arrived in Nashville in late August. I actually moved down to Nashville a couple of weeks earlier that I had wanted to in order to get my fingerprinting done on August 20th. I was informed they hoped to have me start work on August 26th but that my start day was dependent on when my fingerprints finished processing.

I might add that between the time I was hired and the time I moved to Nashville, the woman who hired me left the company and I got a new supervisor. However, I did not know about this, so for weeks I sent emails to the wrong supervisor before finally calling and being told, "She doesn't work here anymore. You have a new supervisor." Uh, ok. I was finally able to talk to my new supervisor on the phone, and I really liked her.

On August 20th I walked into the Nashville FedEx I was told to go to in order to be fingerprinted. Fingerprinting took less than ten minutes. I really could not logically figure out why a Twin Cities FedEx would have been "less reputable."

I spent the following week getting settled into Nashville: unpacking my things at my new apartment, doing some shopping, organizing my room, seeing family... I called my employer a couple of times later in the week to ask if my Fingerprints had come through yet so that I could start work on August 26th as scheduled. 

When I spoke to my supervisor in person on the 20th, she said that she hoped they could get me Conditional Employment if my fingerprints did not go through right away. With Conditional Employment I could attend orientation and work and make my regular wages. I simply would not be allowed to be left alone with the kids until my fingerprinting was complete.

That week I sent multiple emails, make multiple phone calls, and left multiple messages before I hearing back from HR on the evening of Friday, August 23rd. I was told that my fingerprints had not gone through yet, and I would be unable to start work on the 26th. Due to orientation dates, I had to start work on a Monday, so I would not be allowed to start until at least the following Monday.

Hearing this, I decided that instead of sitting around in Nashville waiting to work, I would go home for a week to do the things I had hoped to do back home before moving to Nashville: the biggest of those things being going to the Minnesota State Fair. I joined my mom for the drive home and flew back to Nashville the following Sunday. It was a much-needed week of refreshment and fun.

My employer promised to call me as soon as my Fingerprints went through and did not contact me throughout that week, so I returned to Nashville with another week of unemployment before me and hoping to start the following Monday.

I emailed and called a few times that week. In an email sent to HR and to my supervisor, I mentioned the possibility of Conditional Employment, because this had not been spoken of since the day I met my supervisor in person. I was told that the Tennessee Department of Human Services would have to approve my Conditional Employment, but they would look into it.

A day later I emailed to ask if they had heard anything. It was Friday, and I was REALLY hoping to FINALLY be able to start work the following Monday. I was informed that they had not heard back but were looking into things.

This is when I decided to look into things a little myself. I called the Department of Human Services to explain the situation and ask about Conditional Employment options. They told me to call the Out of State Registry for the State of Tennessee and gave me the number. I called the Registry and they looked up my information, and they asked me when had sent in my New Supplemental Disclosure Form and Out-of-State Form for the state of Minnesota. 

I told them I wasn't sure, because all the paperwork I had done I had sent to my employer. They told me they couldn't find either of those documents in their files and said I would have to call my employer to find out the document's FAX number and when they were sent.

I called the HR department at my work and was told they didn't have access to any of my paperwork. They asked who I had been working with in HR, so I have them the name of the HR representative I had been working with other the past few months. They told me I would need to call her.

I made the phone call, but the representative didn't answer, so I ended up leaving a message explaining that I had spoken with Out of State Registry and they couldn't find these documents. I asked if I could be told when these documents had been sent over and their FAX number. With this information, I could work further with the Out of State Registry to see if Conditional Employment would be an option.

I didn't hear back from my employer, so I called and was able to chat with the representative. Had the representative gotten my voicemail? Nope. But we chatted a little. If I understand correctly, she said only the employer could work with places like the registry but to tell her what they needed. I cannot start on Monday, September 9th. They will contact me on Monday or Tuesday with further info.

In the meantime, this girl is going to start looking for babysitting jobs.

WELCOME TO ADULTING!!!

Before I get into sharing my experiences and stories living in Nashville, I think it would be helpful to explain a little bit of WHY I moved to Nashville, WHAT I hope to get out of this experience, and my longterm plans related to living in Nashville.

WHY

I will start of by saying that I am by no means trying to "run away" from my Minnesota life by moving to Nashville. I love by life, my job, my home, my living situation, my friends, and family back in Minnesota.

That said, moving to Nashville is something that has been on my mind for a long time. I was never very serious about it until April of this year when the idea came to me. 

As of this past spring, I was (1) working a part time job that I loved but that I felt I was outgrowing and could easily get back if I  left and later returned to Minnesota, (2) living at home where I didn't have to pay rent and was always welcome but also didn't feel I was gaining some of the adulting skills my friends who lived away from home were gaining as young adults--skills like renting an apartment and even working full time, and (3) I was not dating or in a relationship.

In other words, if I wanted to do a "young twenties" adventure that could involve moving someplace out of state or someplace exotic, doing a year of missionary work, traveling..... now was the time. 

My situation was ideal: (1) I could easily leave and come back to my job, (2) I didn't have to worry about ending a lease in Minnesota in order to move, (3) I was assured I was welcome back should I decide to move back home in the future, (4) I wasn't leave a significant other or uprooting a family, as I hadn't reached that stage in life yet, and (5) for the first time in YEARS, my mental health in a stable enough state for me to move away from home and gain skills in independence. 

There had to be a reason I wasn't in a relationship or married like a number of my friends from college. I figured God had a reason and a plan for my being in such a flexible situation. My situation was comfortable and ideal but also stagnant. I was finally in such a healthy place and ready to grow in new ways, but what was the next step? 

My thought: If God has situated me just so at this point in my life...

Maybe God was calling me to take a leap of faith and do something crazy.

So moving out of state it is, and to nowhere else than the place that has been my dream city since I was sixteen. :) 

WHAT

So I've sort of explained why I moved here: to gain some adulting skills and go on an adventure. Now as to "what" my plan is while I'm here...

I got a child care job, so I'm planning on doing that. I love working with kids, and I need to pay the bills. I have a lovely apartment with a beautiful apartment-mate. It's actually a two bedroom two bathroom and quite affordable, so I'm super lucky. All HARDWOOD floors and a beautiful view.

How long am I planning on staying in Nashville? My original thought was I would try one or two years and then decide if I want to stay down here longterm. I'm currently thinking I will only make this a school year-long excursion. I will have my adventure, learn new things, and build new friendships and connections, but ultimately moving here has also made me realize how much I LOVE my home and take for granted back home (good roads, amazing produce, stellar friends, and incredible family). 

With this in mind, I have NO REGRETS in moving to Nashville, and two weeks in I am already learning so much about my self, my values, what matters to me, and about how to stand up for myself and advocate for myself. 

And that is my goal. Simple as that. To grow as a human. This move has already become worthwhile in the things I've learned that I may not have learned any other way. Do I plan to stay here longterm? No, that's not the plan. Home is home. But I'm so blessed and am learning and experiencing new things, and this blog is where you will get to go on this journey of growth with me! Welcome :)