New Soul

A nice song that really reminds me what I want out of each day ... :)

I'm a new soul
I came to this strange world
Hoping I could learn a bit 'bout how to give and take
But since I came here, felt the joy and the fear
Finding myself making every possible mistake

La, la, la, la (21x)
La, la, la, la (21x)

See I'm a young soul in this very strange world
Hoping I could learn a bit 'bout what is true and fake
But why all this hate? try to communicate
Finding trust and love is not always easy to make

Well it turns out, I’m a bad blogger.  To back myself up, I have yet to take a nap this entire contract so finding the time to write out a thorough blog report has been difficult.  Today is my first day being signed off sick in 7 months.  Even though I have this illness (low energy, chills, swollen throat, yuck yuck), it feels nice to just lie here in my bottom bunk with the TV on, catching up on my ESPN time and thinking and blogging. 

It is coming down to one month left working on this ship for this contract, and I am ready to go!  It has been a great experience as much as I have had ups and downs.  It was difficult to adjust to living on a ship, but now I feel so comfortable I can go through my day very routinely.  I really am trying to make the most of the rest of my contract.  We have 2 weeks left in Europe.  If you know me, I have done almost everything there is to do at each of these ports.  I have done almost every excursion possible, made up my own excursions, became a regular at my favorite local coffee shops, taken every picture around every corner, and have always made it back to the ship (on time) with a fulfilled feeling of my day.  We are preparing now to cross back to the United States.  I cannot wait until I first see that bit of land we call North America!  I try to remain neutral about things, but I can’t brag or be patriotic enough when I say that I love the USA!  It is probably the comforting feeling of being familiar where I grew up and that I’m used to the way we do things.  Life can be complicated wherever we are, but I find simplicity in being in the places I feel familiar and around the people I have known all my life.  J 

Living on the ship for these last 8 months has taught me a lot about myself and I feel as though I have changed for the best.  Above all, I think remaining balanced and a good person is what I want out of life.  What feels best at the end of the day is knowing that I have helped someone or made someone else feel better.  Through massage therapy it means physically and it does help mentally as well.  Some of my guests have been so absolutely inspiring to me, it has changed my plans after my contract a bit (will update when I get back).  The girls/guys I work with in my department have become some of my best friends.  Every day we work together, have time off together, live together.  We become close very fast and I enjoy getting to know every person, where they come from, stories from back deck, work stories, sharing vents, etc etc.  It’s what makes us better people individually are the people who we surround ourselves by.  Each person is so different and I am learning from everyone here so much. 

I can’t wait to be in Minnesota again especially for the Holidays!  I will see everyone back home soon and look forward to catching up with some home cooked food, some movie nights, and good old fashioned American bar hops J  Liz

Not Fit For Duty ...

I am sick today.  Have a little bug and sinus infection … UGH.  But it gives me some time now to catch up on some writing, reading, and such. 

  So now we are doing the 7-day cruises and time is flying by.  The 7 days are perfect because we have just enough time to rest in between embarkations and more of the guests are American.  In each of our pre-cruise meetings we go over the run down of nationalities that are coming on board the Liberty for the upcoming cruise and everyone gets excited when we have more Americans than others.  More so because Americans know how to tip, but we are also fairly friendly and easy going people compared to the rest of the world (that and some of us speak little Spanish, no Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Afrikans, Japanese … etc etc etc).  It’s exciting for me when I have someone for a massage and find out they’re from Ohio, Michgan, or even Florida but are planning on going to Minnesota for the summer!  Most of them also give me the rundown on what is happening in the U.S. and leave me with some magazines or books that are in English!  I have had a few guests come in that have really been impactful on what I plan to do after this contract.  I have been juggling so many ideas in my brain about what I want to pursue after all of this.  More traveling, start my own business, or grad school.  You really never know who you are massaging until that person starts to open up to you.  Some are on cruises because they’re on their honeymoon, family vacation, they’ve lost a loved one, it was a present to them, on a work conference, or they have so much money they had nothing else to do with it.  Everyone seems to have a different story.  One of my recent guests is the Dean for a University in Georgia and they have the exact program I wanted to go to Grad School for.  She left me her e-mail address and told me to e-mail her if I wanted in.  J  I’m still really into Herbalife.  Thanks to my friend Ashley back home, I have been sent some shake mixes and have finally started to feel a bit healthier on the ship.  The food is of course amazing on board for the guests, but what we eat isn’t always so great and we retain a lot of fluid working in such a compacted environment, you really do have to watch what you eat.  But I feel really passionately about being a healthy person and from this job I feel as though I’ve been shaped into quite the salesperson and would love to spend the rest of my life helping others to feel the same as I do (mix this business with a massage business, and I have quite the little formula to work with).  And the other option is to continue on with some traveling.  I would love to spend some time in Aussie land, Southeast Asia, or England a bit more.  Who knows?  But I have less than 5 months to figure it out and I will let you guys know when I know myself … lol

Shiplife continues to push me and I’m learning new things everyday about myself and my friends here from all around the world.  There are really some great people that I get to work with here and I will continue to do my best to learn more about them and myself in the mean time … I’m still missing MN like crazy and some days I would give anything for a Sunday Sportscenter session, a Bloody Mary and Stew at Olearys, or a nice bike ride or jog around the block.  Sometimes I think I took these simple things for granted.  Miss everyone … love, Liz

Post Crossing

Post Crossing ... I survived!  Now we have been doing 4 and 5 day cruises in Europe and are now starting 7 day cruises.  I like the 7 days more because it was hectic doing so many turnarounds.  Getting new guests on and off a ship in one day is a lot of work.  So now we can add a few more port days in there to get some rest in between.  It has been really exciting exploring all of the new ports in Europe.  Some days I actually have to stop in my tracks and think, "Am I in Spain, Italy, or France?"  Really, until I look off of the deck of the ship I can see if we are in the south of france by the neutral colored buildings, cliffs, and oceanside cafes in Naples, Monte Carlo, Cannes, etc.  On the ship, life has been getting more comfortable.  I feel more accustomed to the shiplife now.  The other night the spa girls and I went down to the Engine Room for a going away party for one of the spa girls ... Philipinos know how to Karaoke!  haha.  It was just one of those moments when you can sit back with a beer and really appreciate the moment.  When so many cultures who can barely speak each other's language can come together to sing (well more like shout) YELLOW SUBMARINE ... it makes living on a ship very homelike.  I just have a quick lunch hour today and have to get off the ship to find a pirate costume for tonight's all crew party ... so I will try to update my blog a lot more often!  Miss MN because I know that it's springtime now and the summer is right around the corner.  It's funny, when I am in the middle of a massage I will find myself with a random Bdubs or subway craving.  Or I really just want to take my jeep for a drive, or do a walk around target!  haha.  It's the little things, really.  xoxo Lizzy

Promotion

We are now crossing the Atlantic Ocean and nearing Europe.  Our first stop will be Tenerife in the Canary Islands then Sevilla Spain.  A few more stops and it's on to Barcelona Spain our home port!  This is where I will be until October when we cross back over to the United States to Miami again for some more Caribbean.  I am happy I started my contract when I did because now I am able to see a little bit of everything.  It is a bit chilly in the middle of the Ocean now and Spain will be as well for a month or so but getting into the summer time and we will have some hot weather again!  Our manager has been letting us go at 8 pm rather than 10 pm during the crossing so we can rest up for Europe.  It has been great.  I have had time to get my laundry done, make a few phone calls, and have some quality social time on the ship which means I can spend more time with people from other departments and have a few drinks as well.  I have been promote to the Aromaspa Oceanwrap Therapist.  AKA I rub warm seaweed all over the guests and then give them a massage after ahahaha.  But I make more money doing this type of massage because it costs more money and is more popular and the tips are even better ... yesssss.  I cannot wait to see the ports on the Mediterranean and do some exploring.  The ship is swaying all day long.  It's not a rocky type though it's a nice calm rocking and it feels really cool.  I walk around the 11th deck of the ship where the track is and you can see the top of the skybar swaying against the clouds.  It's a really neat feeling and there is no land as far as you can see!  Our spa group went to the dining room the other night for a classy dinner and we felt like we were on the titanic.  It is a gorgeous dining room and there is a classic pianist playing on the winding stairway in the background.  This ship is amazing and I am trying to take as many pics as I can!   Ok it's time for me to get some rest because last night I was socializing a bit too late :)  Miss you all (OH, I met a lady who grew up in Fargo today.  She was talking about the flood and she was a Dragon for one semester!  small world!) ...
Goodnight Minnesota ... Liz

WAVES

Ok ... I have free time today!  hooooray!  I am now onto my 4th cruise.  It has gone by so so so fast.  The 19th will be one month.  8 more to go.  I have been hearing that there was another blizzard back in Minnesota.  For now, I'm fine being in the Caribbean.  I think one day I will miss the snow (the snow that is, not the blizzardy weather).  Our ship is currently gearing up for our crossing.  We will have a cruise that takes us across the Atlantic Ocean and from there we will start doing cruises in the Mediterranean.  I'm so excited.  I don't feel I've been in the Caribbean long enough to see everything like most of the spa girls here, but I have seen a lot already.  After the Europe tour (about 5 months) we come back to the Caribbean so I will get my chance again!  So far, everyday has been something new.  I'm still getting acquainted to working in the Spa and having a life on the ship.  Every port day, when we are in Miami, is my time to run off and pick up the things I will need for the next cruise.  i.e. shampoo, conditioner, make phone calls, food, etc.  We can get these things on the ship, but it's much cheaper on land.  There are certain things that we can and can't do on the ship, so I'm getting used to it.  A lot of rules need to be followed and since I'm new I have to be extra careful.  We aren't allowed to eat in guests restaurants without permission, we need to be dressed nice, always have our name tag on, etc etc etc.  By now, I'm starting to get the swing of things.  In the spa, I'm adjusted to working.  I did 10 massages yesterday!  yikes!  Our sea days are really busy and port days aren't as much.  So sea days my column is usually fully booked with massages and port days we get busier once guests get back onto the ship in the evenings.  When I have lunch and dinner breaks, I make sure to walk on the outside of the ship where I can get fresh air and remind myself that I am living on a ship and I am surrounded by ocean.  Dinner time is right around time of sunset, so it is an amazing walk to the mess hall.  Here we can all sit around and chat with people who have other jobs on the ship.  Crew staff, sports staff (yes we have a rock climbing wall and a surf simulator!), security staff, ice skating cast (yes we have an ice rink on board), dance staff, and the captain eats with us sometimes as well.  Too many interesting people to talk to and meet in only and hour break!!!
The spa is located on the 12th deck which is the very top.  So when it gets rocky out, we feel every little wave and bump!  It is the strangest feeling.  Giving a massage and I find myself keeping balance every so often from the waves.  The table sways back and forth as well.  My bedroom is on deck 1.  The very bottom (I take an elevator every day to work, mmmhmmm).  When I lie in my bed I can still feel the waves every now and then ... rocks me to sleep.  I'm happy I don't get sea sick!!!
Days off ... ummmm HELLO!  My next day off will be in Costa Maya.  Here we have free reign to go out and do everything that guests do as well.  Have a pina colada on the beach, drive a jeep around the islands, and have another pina colada.  Each island is extremely different.  In San Juan we did some exploring of the ruins there from when Spain had possession, there is a fortress you can tour.  And it's architecture is of old spanish building.  Gorgeous.  And the next day we were in Labadee Haiti.  The perfect island to have a drink and lay on the beach all day.  These two have been my favorite thus far.
  Ok ... well my next goal is to get some pictures posted.  I realize I haven't had any posted from training either ... I will go to an internet cafe when we are in Miami next so I can use better internet.  MY GOAL!!!
  Oh and yes, I am working hard and making good money :)  Tips are incredible, I just need to make sure I don't spend them all on Prada purses or shell necklaces at the ports.  Now to figure out how to wire my money home ... lol
  I miss all of my MN, ND, ... MIDWESTERNERS.  It's fun getting them as guests on the ship and they tell me about back home.  So keep me filled in!   XOXO Love Loves ... Lizzy

Ship Life ...

Liberty of the Seas ...
Ok ... well I apologize for not keeping up with my blog.  Life has definitely changed a lot for me.  For starters, I am living on a ship.  And a giant ship at that.  I arrived to Miami on February 19th and made it to my ship in the morning.  I had to go through quite the sign on process to get on since there are so many nationalities working here they need to be strict.  I finally made it to my room in time to throw my things down, change into my uniform and do my first massage the same day I arrived!!!  This was nice because it allowed me to be aquainted faster.  I had absolutely no clue what to expect from living on the ocean.  The first week was stressful because of how easy it was to get lost!  I started to explore more on my own.  I would get myself completely lost on purpose and make myself find my way back to my cabin.  haha.  Now I know my way around and I am comfortable!  My roommate is Spanish and lived in Germany.  She has helped me out a lot.  I am already onto cruise number two.  We travelled St. Maarten, St. Thomas, Labadee and a few others last cruise.  And now its Cozumel, Belize, and Costa Maya!  I get half days off in most of the ports and can earn more hours off incentives by cross promoting, getting good comment cards, meeting my daily goals, etc etc etc.  So it's worth it to work hard ... so I can play hard :)  I promise I will post pictures as soon as I can!!!  And will post more on my blog in the near future, now that I'm more used to the ship life ...
I miss Minnesota!!! :) so let me know how things are going back home everyone ... Loves and Kisses
Elizabeth

Training ... Training ... Training

   Well it's safe to say, I am exhausted from 7 days of training!  I finally went to a pub tonight to let off a little steam and pressure.  It has been pretty overwhelming and exhausting ... but in the same sense, rewarding and proud.  We get up around 6 every day to catch a bus to the training academy in Watford England.  Once at the academy, we stay there all day until 5:30.  Catch the bus back to the YMCA where we stay and have dinner.  As soon as dinner is over, we have to start studying.  The amount of information we have to retain in a day is what I would learn in about a week at MSUM!  And we get tested on it the next day.  If we do one step or one thing wrong, we get called out in front of the class!  It's very intense!  The things I have learned already however, have been very very worthwhile.  I definitely feel prepared for whatever it is I need to be doing next ... I am so so so excited to find out which ship I will be sent on!
  Today I graduated from Elemis training.  I know the spa treatments for massage on the ship ... so I'm ready to go ... now this week I will learn hot stone massage, bamboo, and another one I have never heard of ... haha
  It has been really hard to keep in touch back home ... but now that the first week is done, I will have more time to make a few phone calls.  We don't have facebook where we are staying because it is blocked!  UGH!  They find it too occupying for us ... really?  haha.  I know have a new roommate and she is from Belgium.  My other roommate was from Portugal has been sent on a ship ... lucky girl!  It is really fun just saying hi to anyone around here because you have no idea what type of accent they will be speaking with ... it's crazy.  So right now I am sitting by people from Reno NV, Serbia, Slovakia, Canada, South Africa, and Australia.  Thank goodness I speak English ... it makes life very easy around here.  I have next weekend off so I am hoping to go to Portsmouth for the weekend and catch up with a friend or maybe London ... but it's still up in the air.  So I will send another update as soon as I can ... and for now ... I am just waiting for a ship!!!
CHEERS  xoxo Liz

Watford, England

I MADE IT!!!  After quite the journey I made it to Watford England which is about 20 minutes away from London, so basically London.  I don't know how to sum it all up, but I will do my best to make a long story short.
  The day my flight left:  I woke up early and had a Grand Fusion shake around 7:30 am with Tyler.  Um, yum.  My last shake.  Gave Tyler hug goodbye.  Drive to Crookston to see Kathryn and mom in the hospital because they arrived there via ambulance that night because Kathryn had pneumonia (and ran a few other tests on her, but I think the extent of it was pneumonia).  I haven't heard the final result yet, but I know they are back at home now!  I got my taxes finished.  Said goodbye to mom and Kathryn at the hospital.  Went home to finish packing and get my haircut.  Kristen drove me to the airport at 3.  Liz and Lisa met us there (WOW I have amazing friends and family).  Realized that the plane coming back from Chicago was an hour late so I was bound to miss my connection flight to London.  Say goodbye to the girls and get to Chicago at 9:00, my flight was supposed to leave at 9:01 but they wouldn't let us off the plane!  So after trying to make a few phone calls to people I knew in Chicago for somewhere to stay, I had to settle with a hotel room, even though I am VERY budgeted on this trip so hopefully my travel insurance can cover!  I get to the airport at 4 to make my 6am flight to London.  Send out my last text messages for the entire 9 months (SOOOO WEIRD).  The flight was pretty empty so I had my own row which made things much more comfortable.  I studied the entire way, did a little soduko (thanks to Tyler's going away present haha!), and watched a movie :)  I arrive in London at 10pm England time.  Find out that my luggage is coming on the next plane to London in the morning.  By this point I was pretty exhausted and was almost happy that they were going to deliver it to me rather than me lugging it across town!  The lady working at the baggage claim knew EXACTLY where the YMCA is and told me she would just drop me off here since she lives only a few minutes away!  haha. Wow, the way things happen sometimes amazes me.

At the YMCA.  Upon my arrival here, it is Friday night and all of the other Steiner (the name of the company who hires and trains for cruise ships) students are pretty rowdy as it is the weekend and the bars are located on the same block as our bulding!  I was eagerly welcomed and felt immediately at home.  My roommate was sleeping when I put my things in my room.  Which is very much like a dorm and we share one shower and toilet with 2 other boys in the next room.  She is from Portugal.  I only met 2 other Americans, one from Chicago and another from Nebraska.  I am the minority here and I am loving it!  So many great accents and personalities.

Now I have some unpacking to do and need to run out into the town and so a little exploring of my whereabouts.  I should be getting hungry soon but I think I am too nervous/excited to eat!  haha.

Packing S.O.S.

I leave for London in 4 days and the issue of packing has become quite the reality.  How does one pack for 10 months, especially when you do not know what type of climate or part of the world you will be living in for the entirety of it?  Any packing advice would be greatly appreciated!
Here is my list so far ...

1).  Passport! and ID
2).  Photocopies of my massage certificates
3).  Carry on material i.e. books, Ipod (currently updating), extra clothes, etc
4).  Swimsuit, Parka, day off clothing, scarves, hats, mittens, beach towel, umbrella, boots, sandals (I think this just about covers all climates)
5).  Personal items i.e. shampoos, makeup, hair supplies (I have to wear full makeup and hair in updos everyday so this will be something different for me to get used to!)
6).  British outlet adaptor for my "American" plug in supplies
7).  Hmmmmm?


It's a start anyway!  Thank you everyone who came out to Bdubs, Big D's, and OL's (Sun) ... It was more than I could've asked for to see everyone before I leave.  Held back some tears and got more hugs in one night than a girl could ever ask for!  I have such great friends and family and it's times like these that remind me of how lucky I am.  I have a lot to do in these next couple of days.  Including a few more "see you laters" ... It's GO TIME!!!

"A friend is someone who knows the song in your heart, and can sing it back to you when you have forgotten the words"

Growing Up or Growing Old ...

It's almost 1 A.M. and I finally feel as though my blogspot is up to par.  What a learning experience!  I hope you enjoy my newly personalized site and I promise to keep everyone updated on my whereabouts and my thoughts on those whereabouts!  haha  As I am packing and preparing for my trip, I can't help but think of ways to make the most out of where I am going and the lifestyle change I am about to make.  I keep thinking back to a story I heard in college, I don't remember where or when, but I found it on the internet and here is the link ... 
www.humanhealing.com/stories/growing-up.php
Please take your time to read this story.  Take the advice of those who have lived theirs to heart.  It makes me want to make the most out of every change and curve ball life throws.  Negative or positive, they are all experiences that we need to make the most out of.

Coach J

Since I moved out of Moorhead and back into Fertile MN, I did what I like to do best to pass some of my free time, got myself into the gym to shoot some hoops.  Little did I know, this would lead to me being offered a job as C Squad girls basketball coach and assistant to JV and Varsity for the Fertile-Beltrami Falcons.  Back to my home turf!  This might have been one of the best opportunities I have ever been approached with.  I have always loved basketball but never thought about coaching it, and I'm really not sure why.

So here I am, adding on to my 5 year plan.  COACHING.  Never have I had such a rewarding feeling.  Knowing that I have the chance to help with the development of these young ballers.  The rewarding part comes when I work extremely hard with these individual girls, put in extra gym time, outside gym time, get to know who these ladies are and help them work on growing into fine athletes.  You can actually see the poise, hard work, talent, and teamwork that you taught them used in a game situation, and you know all that time spent was worth it.

I have taken a lot of pride into being a good example for these ladies.  Even though they may be 10 years younger than I am, they are making me a better person.  I get to be around basketball, work with some great girls, and the best paycheck of all is that rewarding feeling you get knowing you taught them the up and under move at post, the give and go, how to dribble behind your back, or the perfect jump shot.

Welcome

Welcome to my blog!

I am choosing to start a blog because this next year of my life is going to be a whirlpool of adventure and it will be hard to keep in touch with everyone.  The last year of my life was an adventure in itself and it's time to close that chapter and begin a new ...

Thinking back to when it was the time to graduate from MSUM, I had no clue what to do with my future.  Options were available to me, but one of the hardest decisions I have ever had to make is choosing one, and choosing one on my own.  I decided to go with an opportunity I had to combine passion with a career. My passion being traveling and exploring new experiences with a career (massage therapy).

I have been hired on as a massage therapist on a cruise ship.  I am being sent to London January 27th for training.  While I'm in training I will be assigned which ship I will be on.  The possibilities here are endless.  Denmark, Sweden, Jamaica, Alaska, Hawaii ... I could be anywhere as of March and this is the type of unknown I enjoy the most!  Anywhere I end up, I will be making the most of it and I won't take for granted one second of the journey.

My goal is to work hard and after my 9 month contract is finished, I have the chance to be sent to manager training.  From here I can sign another contract, shorter if I want to, and be a manager in one of the spas.  They have spas on ships and on land.  Ideally I will aim to be a manager on a world cruise ship.  These ships have more time off and travel to more places.  CHING!

Long term goal.  Some of you know about my new found health kick ... Herbalife.  The products have made me feel like an entirely new person, physically and mentally.  I always enjoy a stop at one of their Fargo or Grand Forks locations (Grand Fusion, Fusion Revolution, etc).  At one of my stops for an aloe shot, tea, and a shake I was approached with the idea of opening a store of my own.  I could be my own Herbalife Distributor, manage my own store (so the management training will do me wonders here), and open it at a location in MN where one day, I will move back to because I know I will miss the lakes, snow, fall, friendly people, and it's many more attributes.  So, the 5 year plan is in place.

Well, here is the next few years of my life in a nutshell.  I have never been so satisfied with the idea of my future.  This gives me a lot of drive to make it happen!