Weeks 1 & 2: The West Coast (San Marcos, CA and Reno, NV)

 ***Note: I didn't realize how encompassing 70 hours of work and travel a week can be, so these updates might be a bit more sporadic than originally planned. Hang in there, and I'll try my best to insert excerpts from my journal from time to time and keep you updated!**

In.Freaking.Sane. That's the only way I could possibly describe this job... this crazy life I've stumbled upon.

It's 5am and I'm working on zero hours of sleep and a 20 hour workday behind me. Oh, and I'm on a plane to Canada, with three days notice.

Adrenaline and instinct have become my best friends; learning how to connect without attaching, appreciate without longing.

But there's something so fantastic and exhilarating about all of it... constantly testing my limits. Seeing sparks of inspiration in the eyes of the students I talk to. Hopping on a cross-country plane at the crack of dawn, and waking up in a city I've never been before. It's a constant reminder that the future is always uncertain - even when we think it is. 

Already in the first few weeks, I've discovered the value of being able to live in the moment. To cherish connections, however confined by space or time; and to always be open to the world and new possibilities. I can't even imagine what the next few months will be like... but one thing is certain, I've learned to stop expecting, and just to accept and go along with the ride.

Lessons from Week One:
So the first few weeks inevitably came with a few hard knocks... and even moreso for some of my fellow recruiters who hitchiked, got drenched in hot coffee, missed plane flights, and sat alone in hotel rooms without even facebook for company. Good news is, most everyone found a way to bounce back quickly and make the most of it. And as for me, I picked up few good lessons from my first week on-the-job:

#1) Always know what class you're going into before trying to make an announcement.
My very, first-ever classroom announcement was a bit of a bust - I stumbled into a small classroom with about a dozen asian students sitting in a circle of desks, waiting for their professor. I walked in, noticed they were all staring at me, and got nervous... so out came the word vomit. "Um... hi! Have you ever wanted to travel to Australia, Europe, Africa, South America or Thailand? Yeah... we're having an information meeting, or I mean, I'M having an information meeting... Thursday... you can do volunteer work...." and as I smiled and handed them flyers, I noticed that they were looking at each other awkwardly, and one guy said something in Chineese to the girl next to him, who then said to me very politely "we do not speak english." She handed me back my flyer, and pointed to the board - "ESL: English as a Second Language for Foreign Exchange Students." Awesome. (Also did an annoucement later in a class full of deaf students which was actually alot of fun - although I had to slow down so the sign language interpreter could keep up with  me.)

#2) Never, ever hesitate.
As a little rundown of what an average workday consists of for me: 10 minutes to the hour, "stalk the halls," pace up and down the hallway (sometimes multiple floors) looking for a full classroom with a friendly-ish seeming professor. Ask to make an announcement. Success? Say "be right back!" Run to the next class, repeat. Denied? Run to the next class, repeat. Run back to first class. Make announcement. Make another  announcement. Make... ANOTHER announcement while yelling, jumping, barely breathing, and sweating like a wet shower curtain. Then BREATHE, rest. ....and repeat, 45 short minutes later, every hour for 8-10 hours a day. After a few weeks of this, it became nothing less than routine - hesitation wasn't even a question.

But that first week on the job, I almost let my head get a hold of me.

Monday afternoon, I hiked it across campus at CSU San Marcos to try my luck at the biggest lecture hall on campus. (Only about 400 people, but at the time it seemed huge.) When I got there, I realized that no other classes were beginning anywhere near mine, so this was it: I could make only one announcement this hour, and it had to be THE one. As everyone poured into the lecture hall, I waited near the entrance, holding my pile of flyers and sign up sheets, running the announcement through my mind. As I watched more and more people fill up the seats, the nerves started creeping up on me... what am I doing? CRAP! what are the odds? A girl walked by that I recognized from high school!

"I can't do this." I started thinking to myself. "There has to be more people here who will recognize me. I need to just do a relaxed, "cool" version of my announcement and go back to the smaller classes." So I bailed. I turned around, walked halfway out the door, then heard the professor begin class - and then something just came over me. "No, this is my one shot, and screw being cool" some invisible motivational speaker yelled into my ear.

So I turned back around, and ran - except this time, toward the professor's podium. She had just opened up Powerpoint, and I walked up and said "excuse me, I'm sorry to interrupt, but can I make a quick announcement about a volunteer meeting this Thursday?" and much to my relief and surprise, she said "...sure, just make it fast."

HEYguysmynameismichellefrominternationalstudentvolunteersandIwanttotellyouaboutanINCREDABLEprogramthissummer
ifyouveeverwantedtotraveltoplaceslikeAUSTRALIAEuropeAFRICAsouthamericaorTHAILAND!!

The first paragraph came out like word vomit (but convincing word vomit apparently, because people were paying attention) and suddenly, the confidence and memorization took over. I air-white-water-rafted, gestured a cheetah claw, mimed a ticking clock to show the meeting time, and by the end of it - the whole class was laughing and clapping. Even the professor seemed pleasantly amused!

I took a deep breath. Bright red in the face and probably shaking, and ended with a screeching "see you guys on Thursday!" then ran up the lecture steps and out the hallway, accepting high fives and residual applause from my performance.

And just like little children's screams in the Disney Move Monsters Inc., there began my fuel from students' applause and laughter. It was addicting. And I would never, ever hesitate again.

Big Bear: Week Two

Pretty typical study break in the cabin

Apparently, it's Saturday. I had no idea what day of the week it was until I turned my phone back on this morning and noticed. The last week has flown by... every day more packed and blurred, with fits of hysterical laughter, hours of midterm-week style studying, spontaneous games and dance parties, and a generous dose of sleep deprivation.

It's amazing how quickly we've all bonded with each other - a week in, and I've already found myself saying "keen" and adding "as" to the ends of words, (favorite phrase of the day: "mates as!" - meaning "great friends") and making jokes at and nicknames for people who eight days ago were complete strangers. ISV always has a way of doing that somehow - "bringing likeminded people together," (as I've memorized from my meeting script) but really. I can't believe that these passionate and extroverted fellow travel addicts aren't just new friends ... they're coworkers. And in four short days we'll all  be out there on our own to do our job - afterall, that's why we're all here. But I'm still going to miss this little summer camp and those crazy Australasians. 

Big Bear, California

Fifteen Americans. Fourty eight Kiwis and Aussies. A Swede, a Canadian, and a total of sixty flamboyant extroverts, placed in a summer camp and instructed to mingle and scream our heads off for nine hours a day. Welcome to ISV recruiter training - two days in, and it's already one of the most exciting, unpredictable, and challenging experiences of my life.

Our study sesh, night one

In the last 48 hours, we've memorized about six pages worth of material, performed it while jumping, sprinting, doing over-the-top hand gestures, and in front of an audience of seventy, who are instruced to yell "F*** YEAH!" everytime we do it well and make them excited. We've run around with balloons tied to our ankles, played "never have I ever" musical chairs, bonded over cafeteria-style meals, and slept in camp-style bunk beds, laughing ourselves to sleep after exhausting fourteen-hour days full of activity.

This is going to be an insane next few months. Maybe even more than I predicted. We have an eighty page binder full of information (about 40 of the pages we need to have memorized) and we won't find out until mid-next week where we're going, who we're traveling with, or what exactly we should expect from the next three to four months with this job. And yet, after stumbling over the words to my announcement and being hugged and applauded  by a crowd of my new international friends, the future has never felt so optimistic.

I'll keep you updated asthe week continues, but for now - a couple "little ditties":

Shaun (from New Zealand) doing "the shuffle" over our lunch break

Words and Phrases from Aussies and Kiwis (the list will continue to grow)

• "Sweet as": not to be confused with "sweet ass" as I interpreted it when my cabinmate Rhys said "sweet as" and walked out of the room. (He later clarified that it means "awesome, cool." or "great." Not that he was complimenting my ass.)
• "Puffed" as in "man, I just went on this run and I'm puffed!" (meaning out of breath, really tired.)
• "Frothing" as in "I'm frothing about these concert tickets" (meaning soooo excited about)
• "Heaps" as in "this is HEAPS of fun!" (which they say constantly)

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An Introduction

My luggage, in all of its glory.

This isn't the first time I've attempted to fit my life into a suitcase. First, there was freshmen year of college... but that turned into a suitcase + bike + overstuffed U-Haul. Then there was Greece. Mom talked me into using space bags to keep my clothes organized (good idea, in theory) and I returned with a pile of crumpled space bags, and an extra backpack filled with souvineers. (Highlight: the ash try I bought at a flea market, convinced that it was a relic from ancient Greece.) Then of course there was Australia... a nice intro to ISV's "no worries, just pack 3 seasons into a backpack!" mentality, and a year later Spain, which finally adjusted me to this whole nomadic lifestyle of grabbing a pair (or in my case, a pile) of clothes for the road, and hoping for the best in my next adventure.

So fittingly, that's why I created this blog. Travel for me started as a bug, and has now turned into a lifestyle. It all started with a study abroad stint, then perpetuated into a volunteer project, a longer study abroad stint, visiting friends in Europe, and now my first post-college job as a traveling recruiter for International Student Volunteers, a non-profit company with headquarters in Sydney, Australia and Yourba Linda, California.

"Where the hell is Michelle?" started as a joke refering to the FAQ among my family and friends, but now, I've decided that it will be my *official* blog for the next indefinite period of time that I'm traveling, working, and living out of a gaudy fuchsia suitcase.

So follow me to the mountains, the beach, universities in big cities and in the middle of nowhere... or wherever the hell else I end up. Life is always an adventure, and I hope to share mine with you.