The Intern Chronicles: New Neighbors, Old Friends, and Other Amusing Anecdotes

This past weekend we moved 90% of the things I am bringing into the new apartment and had all kinds of delightful adventures! Here is the highlights reel for all the friends and family who'd like to know.

The Apartment

I have a bath and a half, one bedroom apartment that isn't actually terrible at all. My favorite parts so far are my kitchen and my "dining nook" because I have a giant Lazy Susan  in one cabinet and lower cabinet shelves that slide out for reaching pots and pans.  My "dining nook,"  is so named because I moved the table and chairs over into the corner by the window so I can sit in the sunlight. You all know sunlight is a very, very good thing for me.

If you know about my general tendency toward clumsiness, you will also be happy to hear that since my apartment was designed for older adults, I have safety rails along all the hallways, a clumsy-proof shower, and emergency pull switches in every room that will contact security and emergency medical personnel when activated. I sincerely promise to do my level best not to need any of the above features!  

Other highlights include the fact that I now have a 30-second commute to the hospice music therapy office, and there is a pool just downstairs from me. I also don't even have to go outside to get to my new bank. It's part of the same building and is about as far away from me as the hospice office. 

New Neighbors

Everyone I have met so far has been incredibly welcoming and friendly! There is a drummer that lives at the end of the hall, and apparently he drums during business hours. I know this because my new banker told me so when I went to open my internship checking account. The drummer lives above the bank. I live above an accounting firm, but now that I know about the drumming, I don't feel as bad about needing to practice in the apartment. Maybe Mr. End of the Hall and I can start a few building-wide jam sessions. ;)

I also briefly met one of my next door neighbors and he was also incredibly warm and welcoming. I think I'm going to like it here. 

I live directly across from the housekeeping office and down the hall from the building's locksmith. The housekeeping staff have been incredibly helpful and kind so far. We didn't have sheets the first night we got there and there was nobody in the office the next day, but we improvised fairly well with packing blankets. Fortunately, I have sheets for the bed now! 

Speaking of kind and helpful, I forgot to mention that my internship director is plenty of both! She and her husband came up to the apartment on Saturday evening to greet us and help us get oriented and settled. She was also kind enough to get a sandwich platter for us, followed by directions to the nearest grocery store. I cannot wait to start learning from this awesome lady. 

Old Friends

The best part about my new location is that it brings my husband and me closer to a lot of people we have missed since they moved to the KC area. On Sunday night, we had one of Andrew's oldest and closest friends over. He ended up staying pretty late and crashed on our couch. 

If you're one of the people that crashes on my couch at home, rest assured, my open-door, open-couch policy still applies to my apartment and apparently the new couch gets a seal of sleepy friend approval. So in other words, please come by and visit me! 

Miscellaneous Adventures

On Saturday night we successfully navigated our first grocery shopping trip in Lee's Summit and I am now the proud owner of a Price Chopper card. Do I get to call myself a local yet? 

On Monday morning, I had to report to the JKV (John Knox Village) health clinic for my pre-employment drug screening and TB test. Embarrassingly enough, I showed up for my drug screening with very bloodshot eyes. I hadn't quite gotten the hang of my very adjustable shower head yet and managed to blast myself in the face with the hot water. Oops! 

Once we got past the awkward discussion of how I got my eyes so red, I got to advocate for music therapy by teaching the nurse all about it. Well, or as much information as we could discuss in the time it takes to say "Ahh" and get a TB test. 

On my walk back from clinic I encountered a super friendly dog named Angie. Angie's owner was very nice, too, but not incredibly pleased about having to pop out of the back balcony door in her PJ's to stop Angie from trying to follow me home. 

I can't wait to get down to the hospice music therapy part of all this! I'll be reporting for my first day bright and early Thursday morning. Wish me luck and write me letters!

The Intern Chronicles: Preparing to Disembark

Almost exactly 24 hours from now, I will be meeting up with my internship director and getting the keys to my new apartment.

This is currently blowing my mind.

I can hardly believe that I am finally finished with my undergraduate classes and now I finally have the opportunity to provide music therapy services to hospice patients and their families all day, every day.

I am thrilled that I will have the opportunity to intern with Village Hospice out of John Knox Village in Lee's Summit, MO.

I needed to reread that sentence a few times to be sure it was really real.

I'll be keeping a running commentary on my adventures as an MTI (Music Therapy Intern) here so the folks at home can follow along.

I was very fortunate to receive an iPad Air for my birthday/Christmas and I'm busy learning how to upload all my song sheets into On Song, which is the most awesome app for music therapy, hands down. One of my brothers was kind enough to gift a keyboard to me so I can practice in the apartment. There are so many exciting opportunities just around the corner and I can hardly wait for my first day of work, which is January 2nd!

For the moment, though,  I need to go round up a few more instruments and some extra guitar strings because here we go! 

Saturday Shout Out: Rob Blevins

It's been a while since I've done a Shout Out, but this one is timely and necessary.

Every so often in life, you get the chance to share a little bit about someone who made you who you are, and my older brother, Rob Blevins, is one of those people.

I want to share just a few of my favorite Rob stories to help you see how this incredible man has helped make me who I am. I know I wouldn't be on my way to becoming a music therapist without him!

Once in 7th grade, I came home from school crying because I had been picked on by a boy at school. Rob casually asked his name. The next day and from then forward I was never bothered by this bully - or any others - again. Years later my brother admitted that he had gently but firmly picked up this troublemaker and set him against the fence at the middle school football game and had a very serious discussion about not making his baby sister cry anymore.

When I was first learning to play the flute, family funds were very tight. I desperately needed a better instrument and lessons to keep making progress. Rob was 16 years old, in school full-time, working his first part-time job to earn money for his own college fund. He went in 50-50 with my parents on my new flute and covered a few months of lessons from time to time, as well.

All along the way, Rob has encouraged me and encouraged my pursuit of music. He listened to all my early attempts at making music and barely even winced. He pushed me to take every opportunity and every audition, and stayed up late with me to get audition results.

He did manage to save up that college fund, and now he has a master's degree in technical writing. In typical Rob fashion, he's been using those writing skills for years to proofread all my papers.

It was Rob who made it very clear to me that even though funds were still tight, I was going to college, and he would steer me toward the scholarships to make that a reality.

I finally got the chance to repay a tiny bit of everything Rob has done for me by teaching him to play the guitar. Again in typical Rob fashion, he started writing songs that are WAY better than mine, but he's still cool enough to let me jam with him anyway.

Now that you know a little bit about my awesome brother, I do have one small request. You could help me help him fulfill one of his lifelong dreams. Rob is in a contest to win an internship with his childhood hero, Steve Young. I would consider it a personal favor if you went to his page and "liked" and shared it!

Thank you, Rob, for pushing me to pursue music and helping me all along the path to becoming a music therapist!