Tuesday night we hosted a group of 20 Santa Clara students at our house for a question and answer talk about JVC. The students were in New Orleans on an immersion trip (similar to the trip i took into San Jose when i was a junior at SCU and what made me want to do JVC). They came with lots of questions and food, so they had our attention immediately (some advise: always bring food to a JV house and you will be loved). As they walked into the house i realized that i recognized at least half of them. It had not occurred to me that i may know some of the students. Its not like i graduated all that long ago haha. One of the girls recognized me as her Orientation Leader! I cannot believe it is over 3 years and i still have that title :) There were a few from classes and the art department. The leader of the group was best friends with Annie's, roomamtes, girl friend... Such a small world, right?! Anyways it was wonderful having them all over for dinner and chatting. They are in NOLA building a house and also learning about the city. We talked a lot about why we are doing JVC, what its all about, and what we are learning from our placements. They were super impressed with the way we live and what we are doing in the city. Which was not only a good ego boost (haha) but also made me step back and remember why i am here and what an amazing opportunity JVC really is. I really do not miss school.... at all. And have come to fully realize that I am not really the school type. There are so many people i admire who just cannot get enough of the classroom and that type of learning environment, but that is just not me. That is not to say that SCU was not an incredible experience and i am beyond grateful for the education i have! But i am doing a different type of learning here, in the world. A much more hands on learning, which as most of you know is a much more Julie way of learning :)
On a different note, for the past few days i have been finding similarities between the people in my life here in New Orleans and the people in my life at home. Maybe its because i miss home or maybe its just that these similar qualities are important ones to have and i am drawn to them. Anyways here are a few examples.
Blue is a guest who does not come in very often but everyone knows him and he brings a lot of love when he is here. He has many necklaces and objects that make up his outfit. These objects are like his jewelery and he wears them with pride. The best part is that each object/jewelry has a story, a history. There is a small shoe that hangs from a chain: representing his travels. The chicken bone that hangs from a string, connected to a dog collar holds some of his magic powers, i think. He has not told me the whole story with the chicken bone yet. There is also a long chain that holds a few different earrings. The value he puts on these objects, because of the history behind each, reminds me of Nana. I love asking Nana about her jewelry, where it came from, who gave it to her or where she bought it and why. I think Nana likes to tell us the stories, Blue does too :) Blue is also a very strong believer in magic and tells me about how powerful it is. A lot like how Nana is always telling us how important love is and how much she loves us.
Bill recently left New Orleans to go on another adventure. But he was originally from California! We had lots to talk about when he was around the center. He is about 45 and looks like the perfect 'beach bum.' (And i do not mean 'bum' as the slang word for homeless person). The way he walks, the sunglasses he wears, his sun soaked skin, even the way he talks has a little beach bum in it (the word 'dude' is used quite a bit). Bill has a hug smile, warm heart, is patient, and loves to talk about where he has been and what he has learned. He reminds me a lot of Dr. Rick.
Mary reminds me of Mom, in her quiet, patient, way. She mostly does her own thing but when your earn her trust she is a valuable friend. She is friends with Robert Terry (who brushes his mustache with a tooth brush). They have each others back and look out for each other, in a way only good friends can do.
Horace is one of the guests i tend to talk about a lot because he is such a great presence at the center. He is a very small man, only about 5'3'' and is more on the quiet, observant side. But he has some of the best life advise to give. He has a way of teaching you a lesson without you really knowing it or helping you look at a situation after and learn from it. Papa may not be a 5'3'' black man but he tends to be pretty good at teaching life lessons too.
There are a few others like Frank, who reminds me of Frank, not only because they have the same name, but they also have similar humors. Kristen's love for choosing outfits makes me think of Jenny and her fashion style. Blair makes me miss Monica Lim: her huge heart and love of chatting. There are so many people who come in and out of the center, so please don't feel left out if you were not mentioned, im sure someone will come along who makes me think of you ;)
I have heard that when you continually encounter coincidences and 'small world' meetings your life is on the right track. A 'small world feeling' is a good feeling. So i guess i am doing alright.
With Love!
p.s. William (the deaf gentleman) gave me a sign name on Friday :) It is a sort of flick of your right pinky on your left palm. You use your pinky to sign the letter 'J' so i think that is why he made the sign he did for my name. I am so excited that i have a sign name now!
Saturday, December 17, 2011
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Useful Basket
This is bringing home the Christmas tree which we will be decorating tonight!!! I cannot wait :)
Pretty useful basket huh?!
This next picture was taken a few hours after the first picture, so i figured they needed to be in the same blog entry.
Its only about 4 feet tall, decorated with plastic ornaments,
draped with beads as tinsel, and strung with cheep white lights, but it is perfect!
Best part is the topper is a hand made, recycled beer can, star :)
Friday, November 25, 2011
Turkey Day
This year Thanksgiving was brought to a whole new level for me. I have always loved Turkey Day because it is about that time of the year when school is getting tough, you need a break, you start to miss your family, a few days off for some sleep is necessary, and your stomach starts to growl for a good feast. Our Thanksgivings are always fun filled days with the family too! Checking out the cars, playing Crockett, block throwing, dress up games, manners lessons, story time, questions, dish washing party time, eating (of course), testing/teasing the new family members or the soon to be new family members, and so much more. Basically we have awesome family get togethers!
When i was in Italy, Giovanna made a wonderful Thanksgiving, or 'Ringraciamente,' feast for Lauren and I. With her olive oil covered potatoes, stuffed tomatoes, fresh bread, pasta, and chunks of Turkey (also covered in olive oil) spread out on the dinner table, we tried teaching the Leocata family what Thanksgiving meant to Americans. We appreciated their interest in an American tradition and wonderful attempt to re-create a very important family day in our lives.
This year Thanksgiving was--like most years--all about the people sitting at the dinner table, but it was also about creating Thanksgiving day. It was about how we all came together and did our individual part to create a wonderful community feast. It started with an email i sent out asking everyone to start thinking about what dish they were going to make. We were missed Becca and Lily who had gone home to be with their families this week. But with next door there were 9 of us total. Each of us chose our favorite family dish to make, which clearly made our feast the best because it was made up of the 'best' family recipes. The Lantern Light nuns gave us one of the donated turkeys. It was a 13lb turkey that they handed Anne and I at the end of the day on Monday. We had ridden our bikes to work that morning which meant the turkey was coming home in my bike basket. It threw off my balence a little at first but sure did make Anne and i laugh the whole way home. Have you ever met someone who brought home their Thanksgiving turkey in a bike basket?! Well now you have, haha. Anyways we were pretty proud to get it home :)
Ana and Ed took on the turkey preparations and cooking. Stephanie made 2 different types of sweet potatoes. I made the families green bean salad. Although there was some discussion of making a green bean casserole at first... Luckily i was able to talk them out of that and convince everyone that the green bean salad would be better. Lauren made a green salad and a fruit salad. Cate made backed brocolli (with garlic and olive oil, can't go wrong). Anne made backed Bree for an appraiser along side of Stephanies spinach dip (which came from my little black recipe book!). Caitlin made mashed potatoes with almost as much garlic and cream as Dad's potatoes. Cara made her families stuffing recipe, the ingredients of which were generously donated by her family. For desert Ana made pumpkin pie and apple crisp. I made a chocolate chip pie (can't have a good meal without chocolate right). And to drink we had about 7 bottles of wine that were passed around the table all night. It was a feast!
It was also the first time some people had been away from home for Thanksgiving while others (like me) it was their first friend filled Thanksgiving. By that i mean no one at our table was related. We all consider ourselves a family now and have a wonderful community bond but it was different than having Thanksgiving dinner with family members. We all worked so hard to save the money we needed to eat what we wanted to eat, then take the time and make each dish (there was even an oven schedule made so that everything could be cooked), and finally coming together to enjoy our accomplishments. It was very rewarding :)
We obviously had lots to talk about at the table but right before we sat down i got the text from Jenny asking me the family question. "What was the best/most memorable memory from a teacher?" Everyone loved the idea of a question at dinner so that is how all of the conversation started. We played some games after and stayed up pretty late. A few people went out and others stayed in to watch a movie. Over all it was a very successful and fun Thanksgiving!
I hope each of you had an amazing Turkey Day as well :D
P.S. Thanks you to my family for the wonderful phone call i recieved on Thanksgiving! It brought tears to my eyes to hear the dinner prayers and everyones voices together singing at the end. Thank you :)
When i was in Italy, Giovanna made a wonderful Thanksgiving, or 'Ringraciamente,' feast for Lauren and I. With her olive oil covered potatoes, stuffed tomatoes, fresh bread, pasta, and chunks of Turkey (also covered in olive oil) spread out on the dinner table, we tried teaching the Leocata family what Thanksgiving meant to Americans. We appreciated their interest in an American tradition and wonderful attempt to re-create a very important family day in our lives.
This year Thanksgiving was--like most years--all about the people sitting at the dinner table, but it was also about creating Thanksgiving day. It was about how we all came together and did our individual part to create a wonderful community feast. It started with an email i sent out asking everyone to start thinking about what dish they were going to make. We were missed Becca and Lily who had gone home to be with their families this week. But with next door there were 9 of us total. Each of us chose our favorite family dish to make, which clearly made our feast the best because it was made up of the 'best' family recipes. The Lantern Light nuns gave us one of the donated turkeys. It was a 13lb turkey that they handed Anne and I at the end of the day on Monday. We had ridden our bikes to work that morning which meant the turkey was coming home in my bike basket. It threw off my balence a little at first but sure did make Anne and i laugh the whole way home. Have you ever met someone who brought home their Thanksgiving turkey in a bike basket?! Well now you have, haha. Anyways we were pretty proud to get it home :)
Ana and Ed took on the turkey preparations and cooking. Stephanie made 2 different types of sweet potatoes. I made the families green bean salad. Although there was some discussion of making a green bean casserole at first... Luckily i was able to talk them out of that and convince everyone that the green bean salad would be better. Lauren made a green salad and a fruit salad. Cate made backed brocolli (with garlic and olive oil, can't go wrong). Anne made backed Bree for an appraiser along side of Stephanies spinach dip (which came from my little black recipe book!). Caitlin made mashed potatoes with almost as much garlic and cream as Dad's potatoes. Cara made her families stuffing recipe, the ingredients of which were generously donated by her family. For desert Ana made pumpkin pie and apple crisp. I made a chocolate chip pie (can't have a good meal without chocolate right). And to drink we had about 7 bottles of wine that were passed around the table all night. It was a feast!
It was also the first time some people had been away from home for Thanksgiving while others (like me) it was their first friend filled Thanksgiving. By that i mean no one at our table was related. We all consider ourselves a family now and have a wonderful community bond but it was different than having Thanksgiving dinner with family members. We all worked so hard to save the money we needed to eat what we wanted to eat, then take the time and make each dish (there was even an oven schedule made so that everything could be cooked), and finally coming together to enjoy our accomplishments. It was very rewarding :)
We obviously had lots to talk about at the table but right before we sat down i got the text from Jenny asking me the family question. "What was the best/most memorable memory from a teacher?" Everyone loved the idea of a question at dinner so that is how all of the conversation started. We played some games after and stayed up pretty late. A few people went out and others stayed in to watch a movie. Over all it was a very successful and fun Thanksgiving!
I hope each of you had an amazing Turkey Day as well :D
P.S. Thanks you to my family for the wonderful phone call i recieved on Thanksgiving! It brought tears to my eyes to hear the dinner prayers and everyones voices together singing at the end. Thank you :)
Monday, November 21, 2011
On YouTube
The Harry Tompson Center is just one of the many pieces that make up the Jesuit community here in New Orleans. The Immaculate Conception Jesuit Church is the church that over sees many of the JV placements in New Orleans and they play a huge part in helping this city. There is a JV at Cafe Reconcile, The Good Shepard School, and of course the HTC. This past weekend Anne and i were invited to join Don and Emily at a Mass/lunch in set up to honor special people who have helped the Jesuits this year. Each of the organizations under the Immaculate Conception Jesuit Church had one person they chose to honor. Don had chosen one of his board members to thank him for all he had done this past year and years to come. It was nice to see all of these organization come together and hear about their yearly accomplishments. Anne and i also learned a valuable lesson about the Jesuits: never go to lunch with a Jesuit unless you have time to do what ever he is about to ask you to do. Almost all of the people honored on Saturday had become involved in their respective organizations by way of a Jesuit friend asking them to lunch ;)
Another thing we learned was that Anne and I are on YouTube! Well the Harry Tompson Center is and we have our shinning few second in the video. The video is about the Immaculate Conception Jesuit Church, what they do for the community, and how they need "your help" (aka donations). Its a very well done video! Check it out! But don't think i am having you watch it to ask you to donate: I really just want you to see it because i am on YouTube. We are shown ar around 2 minutes in :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCdGwYfklOU
Love You All
Another thing we learned was that Anne and I are on YouTube! Well the Harry Tompson Center is and we have our shinning few second in the video. The video is about the Immaculate Conception Jesuit Church, what they do for the community, and how they need "your help" (aka donations). Its a very well done video! Check it out! But don't think i am having you watch it to ask you to donate: I really just want you to see it because i am on YouTube. We are shown ar around 2 minutes in :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCdGwYfklOU
Love You All
Monday, November 14, 2011
Thank You
If you did not already know, last Friday was a very special day. It was the BEST Wishing Day! It was 11-11-11. So, of course, Anne and i needed to make it a big deal. We (with the help of Don) baught a bunch of 11 shapped candy--twix and kit kats--to pass out at 11:11am! It was brilliant. We made an annoucement over the loud speaker and had everyone make a wish. Everyone who was number 11 on any list was given more candy and their name was super highlighted on the sheets. Anne made signs to put up around the center just in case someone for some reason didn't hear us talking about Wish Day, all day. It was a good day!
If you have a facebook, look up the Harry Tompson Center and 'Like' it to see pictures from 11-11-11
Everyone who comes into the HTC is special but there are a few guests who have a very special place in my heart. These are beautiful people, inside and out, who inspire me. I have so much respect for them and the way they live their lives. Their courage, love, apprication, and understanding of others makes me step back and look at how i can live my life better. One of these special people wrote an amazing 'Thank You' note and gave it to me on 11-11-11. This is part of it:
"...It is easy to say and yet not said. THANK YOU!!! My life is better beacuse you breath the same air as I. That you live and dedicate your life to being a light where only it seems darkness prevailes is a testament not ontly to the size of your heart but also the glory of God and His son Jesus Christ. Once again, THANK YOU!..."
There is a quote about how there are 'such and such' seconds in the day and how thank you is not said as much as it should be in that time. This 'Thank You' note reminded me how important 'Thank You' is. So THANK YOU to all of you aswell. It is also a convienant time with Thanksgiving coming up :)
Lots of Love
If you have a facebook, look up the Harry Tompson Center and 'Like' it to see pictures from 11-11-11
Everyone who comes into the HTC is special but there are a few guests who have a very special place in my heart. These are beautiful people, inside and out, who inspire me. I have so much respect for them and the way they live their lives. Their courage, love, apprication, and understanding of others makes me step back and look at how i can live my life better. One of these special people wrote an amazing 'Thank You' note and gave it to me on 11-11-11. This is part of it:
"...It is easy to say and yet not said. THANK YOU!!! My life is better beacuse you breath the same air as I. That you live and dedicate your life to being a light where only it seems darkness prevailes is a testament not ontly to the size of your heart but also the glory of God and His son Jesus Christ. Once again, THANK YOU!..."
There is a quote about how there are 'such and such' seconds in the day and how thank you is not said as much as it should be in that time. This 'Thank You' note reminded me how important 'Thank You' is. So THANK YOU to all of you aswell. It is also a convienant time with Thanksgiving coming up :)
Lots of Love
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Being a Volunteer
Being a JV automatically puts you on, what seems like, the universal volunteer list. All non-profits, walk-athons, and functions seem to know about our willingness to help. This past weekend Lily recruited us to help with Project Lazarus's huge annual Halloween fundraiser. Project Lazarus is a home for people living with HIV/AIDS. It is an amazing place filled with people of all ages and backgrounds. Lily is mostly in charge of field trips, volunteer organizing, Bingo calling, games, and fun stuff for the residents to do. This past weekend she put us all to work for the 4 day event that is The Project Lazarus fund raising event. It is a known weekend around the country that mostly attrachs gay men, who have a lot of money. It was a lively, loud and extremely fun crowd every night!
It started Thursday with a cocktail attire auction. We all came dressed up and in heals, which does not happen very often when you are a JV. I love dressing up every now and then, especially now because even just putting on a pair of jeans and a nice top is dressing up compared to my usual sweats and t-shirts. We were given ticket collecting jobs, raffle selling, guarding the auction items, and greeting people at the door. All jobs were easy enough and made more fun because we were allowed to partake in the open bar and free food. Anne and I were given 'Vanna White' jobs at the front doors because we are good at smiling and greeting haha. The whole night was a lot of fun and made even more exciting when i spotted a famous actor from the show 'Mad Men,' which i have recently become obsessed with. Bryan Batt was at the event and of course i had not problem walking right up to him, giving him a big huge, introducing myself, telling him i am a huge fan, and asking him to buy a raffle ticket. He bought 2. I gave him a discount ;)
The 'Vanna White' look alikes.
Julie Connelly and Bryan Batt :)
Friday was more of a club scene at the House of Blues in downtown. There was good music, food, drinks, and dancing! Of course we worked for the first half of the event then were let off around midnight and enjoyed the party after working. We danced the night away! Becca, Stephanie, Lily and i were able to stay at a hotel in downtown for the night because Lily's work gave her one to stay in for the long event filled weekend. It was like heaven sleeping in a king size bed (all 4 of us haha), waking up to a continental breakfast, and then going back to the hotel room for a mid morning nap. We would have stayed longer and used the pool but it was a little on the cold side. It is amazing how much you appreciate a hotel when you have not been in one for a while haha.
Saturday was the big Halloween costume event held at the convention center! And was it BIG. I saw more glitter, platforms, mini skirts, wings, feathers, and just outrageous outfits than i have ever seen before. Gay men go alllllll out with their outfits! We all dressed up too. Becca was Black Swan. Anne was the KFC man. A few girls went as Chimney Sweeps. Stephanie was a gypsy. I was Betty Boop. And we had a few other creative outfits, but nothing got close to the glitter and sequins that we saw all around us all night.
Sunday during the day the event was a boat ride on the Natchez steam boat. It started at 1:00pm and all we had to do (as volunteers) was collect tickets for a half an hour. Then we all got on the boat and our jobs were done. So we, again, partook in the free food and drinks. We sat out on the deck in the sun and laughed about the crazy weekend that we had :)
We all went to bed really early Sunday night and took it easy when we got home from work on Monday. We had a few trick-or-treaters, but not too many. Although we did not complain too much because that meant more candy for us!
Have a good rest of the week :)
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
What a Funny Day
My smile is glued to my face. My abs hurt from laughing. And I cannot stop talking to people because with every new conversation opens up a new box of emotions, feelings, and thoughts. Its literally an adventure around every corner! I honestly do not even know if I can pin point any specific moment or explain any one person in particular because my day just flowed together. It swayed and crashed and brought a peaceful presence to me. It is one of the most amazing feelings to be breaking the cycle of de-humanization. It truly amazes me how much people have to say when you give them the chance to talk. And it is so easy to listen!
One example that does come to mind happened in the middle of the day when i was running around trying to do a few different things at the same time. I was talking to Keith about unlocking his bike for him, Isic was bumping my arm (jokingly), Charles was tapping my solder waiting to talk to me, Mark was standing near by waiting for me to get a blanket for him, and I was suppose to be working the showers. I all of a sudden started laughing and said, "I'm surrounded!" with a big smile on my face because it was such a funny moment being pulled in so many directions. Isic immediately looked at me and said, "Surrounded by Love!" What a moment :)
Today was a fun day because I love my job. I have found a place I love and it is filled with people i love. A place that challenges me and teaches me. I hope you all have found something fun and challenging in your work today!
One example that does come to mind happened in the middle of the day when i was running around trying to do a few different things at the same time. I was talking to Keith about unlocking his bike for him, Isic was bumping my arm (jokingly), Charles was tapping my solder waiting to talk to me, Mark was standing near by waiting for me to get a blanket for him, and I was suppose to be working the showers. I all of a sudden started laughing and said, "I'm surrounded!" with a big smile on my face because it was such a funny moment being pulled in so many directions. Isic immediately looked at me and said, "Surrounded by Love!" What a moment :)
Today was a fun day because I love my job. I have found a place I love and it is filled with people i love. A place that challenges me and teaches me. I hope you all have found something fun and challenging in your work today!
Weekend Outside
For the most part my weekends have little adventures here and there. There are late nights in the French Quarter or at local bars near our house. The former JV's who live around the city have us over sometimes. Then there are the stay in movie nights or nights we all just pass out because of long weeks. So there is not normally too much that i need to update you on from my weekends, but this weekend was different.
Friday night we went to the Sisters of St. Josephs house (a program similar to JVC), where Ellie lives (the other girl who works with Anne and I. We went with a few other members of the community to listen to Sr. Helen Prejean speak. She is a amazing woman with a huge heart and very entertaining personality. Most people know her for her book "Dead Man Walking" which is about her experiences with men on death row. She is powerful speaker who made me think/question alot of what i know about our jail system, law system, and why America still practices executions.
Becca, Steph, and I decided to go on a bike adventure on Saturday around City Park and up to Lake Pontchartrain. It was a beautiful ride and about 12 miles round trip. City Park is a huge piece of land set just above New Orleans and on the edge of Lake Pontchartrain. There are tons of walk paths, bike paths, and streams. Along with the New Orleans Modern Art Museum :) We road through the park, up the center and then off to the left side to hit the lake. The lake is not nessesaraly very clean water but it was a beautiful view and smelled a lot like the ocean. It is a mixture of salt and fresh water (because of Katrina). We sat on the edge of the lake for about an hour talking, soaking up the sun, doing a little bit of yoga, and eating PB&J. It was just the sun/water expositor i needed :) The ride home was nice too and the nap after was a perfect ending!
Sunday my community met up with Eric (one of the former JV's who is our support person) who drove us all about 25 miles south of New Orleans to the swamp land. We were going to go canoeing but the weeds and shrubs this year grew way more than usual and covered the majority of the open water. We did however take a nice walk along a wood walk path that took us through a good part of the swamp. It was so peaceful being in nature again, you forget how calming trees and greenery are when you are in a city for so long. Its about a 2 mile loop and at the end is a big open wet land filled with long blowing 'cat tails.' It looked like the Louisiana version of fields of grain, haha. As we walked through the trees on the path we fallowed a river/swap water way. Eric told us to keep our eyes open because that is where we would see a Gator if we were going to see one. Sure enough, we did! We saw three!
It was a very good weekend, mostly because i was outside so much! It kicked off the start of a good week :)
On a side note: There was some sad news that we heard today that was hard to hear at the beginning of the week, but Emily and Don warned us that we would experience this eventually. One of the guests at HTC was killed in a hit and run on Saturday night.... Renolda Miller liked to go by Zeus and normally whore a long woman's coat which he called his cape. The cape was a polyester bright blue rain coat that went very well with his plaid pajama pants, sunglasses, and mostly toothless smile. He was a character with a big heart and even bigger smile. He will be missed here but is in our prayers and memories.
Friday night we went to the Sisters of St. Josephs house (a program similar to JVC), where Ellie lives (the other girl who works with Anne and I. We went with a few other members of the community to listen to Sr. Helen Prejean speak. She is a amazing woman with a huge heart and very entertaining personality. Most people know her for her book "Dead Man Walking" which is about her experiences with men on death row. She is powerful speaker who made me think/question alot of what i know about our jail system, law system, and why America still practices executions.
When we first met Sr. Helen she did not have a name tag on so we did not really know who she was but the minute we walked into the room she gave us each a huge (grandma like) hug that made us feel so welcome. It also made us laugh a little because it caught us all off guard.
This was the view coming back from seeing Sr. Helen on the free ferry that takes you across the Missippi.
Becca, Steph, and I decided to go on a bike adventure on Saturday around City Park and up to Lake Pontchartrain. It was a beautiful ride and about 12 miles round trip. City Park is a huge piece of land set just above New Orleans and on the edge of Lake Pontchartrain. There are tons of walk paths, bike paths, and streams. Along with the New Orleans Modern Art Museum :) We road through the park, up the center and then off to the left side to hit the lake. The lake is not nessesaraly very clean water but it was a beautiful view and smelled a lot like the ocean. It is a mixture of salt and fresh water (because of Katrina). We sat on the edge of the lake for about an hour talking, soaking up the sun, doing a little bit of yoga, and eating PB&J. It was just the sun/water expositor i needed :) The ride home was nice too and the nap after was a perfect ending!
Sunday my community met up with Eric (one of the former JV's who is our support person) who drove us all about 25 miles south of New Orleans to the swamp land. We were going to go canoeing but the weeds and shrubs this year grew way more than usual and covered the majority of the open water. We did however take a nice walk along a wood walk path that took us through a good part of the swamp. It was so peaceful being in nature again, you forget how calming trees and greenery are when you are in a city for so long. Its about a 2 mile loop and at the end is a big open wet land filled with long blowing 'cat tails.' It looked like the Louisiana version of fields of grain, haha. As we walked through the trees on the path we fallowed a river/swap water way. Eric told us to keep our eyes open because that is where we would see a Gator if we were going to see one. Sure enough, we did! We saw three!
This one was chilling under a bridge that we crossed over. It was about 8 feet!
The sky was ever bluer than this picture shows :)
On a side note: There was some sad news that we heard today that was hard to hear at the beginning of the week, but Emily and Don warned us that we would experience this eventually. One of the guests at HTC was killed in a hit and run on Saturday night.... Renolda Miller liked to go by Zeus and normally whore a long woman's coat which he called his cape. The cape was a polyester bright blue rain coat that went very well with his plaid pajama pants, sunglasses, and mostly toothless smile. He was a character with a big heart and even bigger smile. He will be missed here but is in our prayers and memories.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Cooking For the Community
There are many differences between living with roommates and living in an intentional community. In general living in a community is a lot more like living with family. Roomates are friends that you live with and community is an adopted family that you take into your life and become apart of. Its a place to grow and learn about yourself and others. You are not nessearly best friends with everyone in your community but thats ok, living with all different types of people is what makes a person grow and learn the most. I got very lucky with my amazing community! We are all very different people but our differences are what makes us such a fun group. We really have no problem speaking our mind (so there is lots of joking that goes on) and we are real easy going (so sometimes just sitting on the couch watching a movie or a game is exactly what we enjoy doing together). Community has its challanges as well. Having to discuss everything from how much toilet paper we use to the amount of cheese we buy can get very tedious. In the end though it makes everyone happy becasue we have to come to a lot of agreements and compromises.
One of my favorite things about living in a community is dinner time! We do our grocery shopping on the weekends. After deciding what meals everyone wants to cook we make a list of exactly what we need, hop on the bus, and shop. At least 3 of us go so that we can carry it all home. We spend an average of $75 dollars a week. Then we decided who is making their meal when. Each meal has a chef and assistant chef. Then the 3 cleaner-uppers (makes clean up real fast). Dinner is a community event for us every night of the week. We cook togeter, pray together, and eat together. On occation someone is missing or something comes up or we have a different dinner event to go to. But if we are all home than we are all eating dinner together. Its amazing the value of a meal together. The conversation does not have to be deep, it does not have to be formal, and most of the time elbows end up on the table (hehe). The importance comes from sitting together and enjoying eachothers company. We mostly talk about our days and then wonder on to different subjects after everyone has vented or laughed about the days happenings.
We make $75 dollars go pretty far. Yesterday i made a cauliflower curry and rice dish. We have had the beef bowl recipe, from my little black book or recipies. Black bean burgers. Tuna pasta medly. Veggy noodle soup. Ster fry. Apple sauce. Cinimin buns. Cookies. And more. We get very creative and my cook books (on a budget) that i got for Christmas last year have been a BIG help. I think the favorite dish i have done so far is Breakfast for dinner :) I do a vegiterian version and a bacon lovers version (i think you all can figure out the difference and of course all of the bacon fat is used in the bacon lovers version haha). I have never been much of a cook (as most of you know) but something about cooking for my community and having the support of the people i am feeding gives me the energy and excitment to make goooood food.
This new love of cooking does not nessesaraly mean that i will be jumping on the opportunity when i am back in CA, haha, but i do not doubt that i will learn a lot this year and become a much better cook ;)
One of my favorite things about living in a community is dinner time! We do our grocery shopping on the weekends. After deciding what meals everyone wants to cook we make a list of exactly what we need, hop on the bus, and shop. At least 3 of us go so that we can carry it all home. We spend an average of $75 dollars a week. Then we decided who is making their meal when. Each meal has a chef and assistant chef. Then the 3 cleaner-uppers (makes clean up real fast). Dinner is a community event for us every night of the week. We cook togeter, pray together, and eat together. On occation someone is missing or something comes up or we have a different dinner event to go to. But if we are all home than we are all eating dinner together. Its amazing the value of a meal together. The conversation does not have to be deep, it does not have to be formal, and most of the time elbows end up on the table (hehe). The importance comes from sitting together and enjoying eachothers company. We mostly talk about our days and then wonder on to different subjects after everyone has vented or laughed about the days happenings.
We make $75 dollars go pretty far. Yesterday i made a cauliflower curry and rice dish. We have had the beef bowl recipe, from my little black book or recipies. Black bean burgers. Tuna pasta medly. Veggy noodle soup. Ster fry. Apple sauce. Cinimin buns. Cookies. And more. We get very creative and my cook books (on a budget) that i got for Christmas last year have been a BIG help. I think the favorite dish i have done so far is Breakfast for dinner :) I do a vegiterian version and a bacon lovers version (i think you all can figure out the difference and of course all of the bacon fat is used in the bacon lovers version haha). I have never been much of a cook (as most of you know) but something about cooking for my community and having the support of the people i am feeding gives me the energy and excitment to make goooood food.
This new love of cooking does not nessesaraly mean that i will be jumping on the opportunity when i am back in CA, haha, but i do not doubt that i will learn a lot this year and become a much better cook ;)
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Oh The Treasures You Find
Oh the treasures you find and the gifts you are given. I mean this in many ways. Each person i meet is a treasure in their own way, a special, God created, treasure: whether they spill shampoo all over you in the morning, complain about not getting any socks, get angry that you didn't do their laundry, or give you a big hug just because, they are all treasures to me.
One of the reasons i love working at HTC is because no two days are EVER alike! There is always a new adventure to deal with, new people to talk to, or new treasures. I really do not think i will ever be very good at working at a desk simply because i love the fresh air too much. Being outside working with people is where i shine best. And i cannot say this enough, no two days are similar here but each is a treasure.
Then there are the actual treasures that you are given as gifts. The other day a guest came up to me and gave me a funny little horse toy. I really have no idea how to explain it but its basically a wire horse about 3 inches long. He asked first if i liked horses and when i said yes he presented the toy to me. (He first tyred giving it to Anne, but she did not say that she liked horses. It may have been a peace offering because he was in a bad mood the day before haha). Sometimes the gift may be a cookie, a can of soda, or a peppermint. Then there are the gifts that come in the form of pieces of art! During my first week someone gave me a picture that they had colored in. It was one of the line drawings that kids get with meals at restaurants and normally come with a box of crayons. It is now hanging on my wall. Last week Anne, Ellie and i were given paper butterfly's made out of magazine pages that also hang on our wall.
Some of the treasures that come our way are found objects. The laundry seems to collect the most because people forget what is in their pockets when their laundrey goes in the washers and dryers. I find the best treasures in the dryers. Most of the time i find old papers, lighters, and pennies but sometimes i get something more interesting. I found $100 the other day (in the form of a Las Vegas game chip). Then there was a very large Lima bean (painted green and slightly burnt because it went through the dryer). Oh and the tooth, the molar, complete with a big cavity (Dr. Rick was clearly needed about a month ago to take care of it before it fell out and ended up in someones pocket, as their treasure). There are many found treasures at HTC, most go unnoticed or are picked up by someone else, but then there are the few that make it into the office and become our treasures.
I have found many treasures here in many different forms. Every moment here is time to be cherished and grateful for. Most people here have few possessions but the bags that they carry and the objects they own are their treasures. The gifts i am given and the kind words that are said to me are my treasures. But more so are my memories. Anne and i have begun to journal about the moments and funny quotes from our day to days lives here. We usually go get daiquiris on a Friday afternoon, sit in a nice place, and reminisce for hours, making sure to write down all of the treasured moments from the week :D I
t will be fun to go back years from now and remember all of the treasures!
Go find some treasure!
One of the reasons i love working at HTC is because no two days are EVER alike! There is always a new adventure to deal with, new people to talk to, or new treasures. I really do not think i will ever be very good at working at a desk simply because i love the fresh air too much. Being outside working with people is where i shine best. And i cannot say this enough, no two days are similar here but each is a treasure.
Then there are the actual treasures that you are given as gifts. The other day a guest came up to me and gave me a funny little horse toy. I really have no idea how to explain it but its basically a wire horse about 3 inches long. He asked first if i liked horses and when i said yes he presented the toy to me. (He first tyred giving it to Anne, but she did not say that she liked horses. It may have been a peace offering because he was in a bad mood the day before haha). Sometimes the gift may be a cookie, a can of soda, or a peppermint. Then there are the gifts that come in the form of pieces of art! During my first week someone gave me a picture that they had colored in. It was one of the line drawings that kids get with meals at restaurants and normally come with a box of crayons. It is now hanging on my wall. Last week Anne, Ellie and i were given paper butterfly's made out of magazine pages that also hang on our wall.
Some of the treasures that come our way are found objects. The laundry seems to collect the most because people forget what is in their pockets when their laundrey goes in the washers and dryers. I find the best treasures in the dryers. Most of the time i find old papers, lighters, and pennies but sometimes i get something more interesting. I found $100 the other day (in the form of a Las Vegas game chip). Then there was a very large Lima bean (painted green and slightly burnt because it went through the dryer). Oh and the tooth, the molar, complete with a big cavity (Dr. Rick was clearly needed about a month ago to take care of it before it fell out and ended up in someones pocket, as their treasure). There are many found treasures at HTC, most go unnoticed or are picked up by someone else, but then there are the few that make it into the office and become our treasures.
I have found many treasures here in many different forms. Every moment here is time to be cherished and grateful for. Most people here have few possessions but the bags that they carry and the objects they own are their treasures. The gifts i am given and the kind words that are said to me are my treasures. But more so are my memories. Anne and i have begun to journal about the moments and funny quotes from our day to days lives here. We usually go get daiquiris on a Friday afternoon, sit in a nice place, and reminisce for hours, making sure to write down all of the treasured moments from the week :D I
t will be fun to go back years from now and remember all of the treasures!
Go find some treasure!
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Hard Day Advise
Like every job in life you have your good days and bad days, fast days and long day, days with less crazy people and days with more crazy people. Working at HTC you end up being a sounding board for a lot of life troubles, celebrations, tears, laughs, fears, and every other human emotion that a person can express. Expression comes in all forms as well. Today started off rough with miss communication and frustration. Then there was a lot of tention in the air in general. And during lunch many people got angry with the organization and lunch system. It was an off day.
Horace is my angel, my life lesson giver, and my wise advise know-it-all. He comes up with the most clever ways to teach you about life. And has a saying or joke for just about everything. He is slowly teaching me the NOLA lingo that normally goes right over my head, one because i cannot understand what people are saying half the time and two they have the oddest sayings (or slang language). One of my favorite Horace quotes though, is something that i was telling myself all day and when i have a hard time getting out of bed in the early mornings, i say to myself: "Julie (which sounds more like Judy with the NOLA accent), get your shine on!" Its another way to say get going, get living, smile, and shine your light.
"Get your shine on!"
Horace is my angel, my life lesson giver, and my wise advise know-it-all. He comes up with the most clever ways to teach you about life. And has a saying or joke for just about everything. He is slowly teaching me the NOLA lingo that normally goes right over my head, one because i cannot understand what people are saying half the time and two they have the oddest sayings (or slang language). One of my favorite Horace quotes though, is something that i was telling myself all day and when i have a hard time getting out of bed in the early mornings, i say to myself: "Julie (which sounds more like Judy with the NOLA accent), get your shine on!" Its another way to say get going, get living, smile, and shine your light.
"Get your shine on!"
Morning bike ride to work.
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Day to Day
This weekend was as busy as always. We have lots of different events and such that people from around the city like to invite us to for various reasons. Mostly because we make good volunteers and participators at walk-athons and fundraisers. We are becoming professional! Sunday was the usual grocery day as well. Which we were able to do in under an hour. The bus is at 1:45, we shop for about 35 to 40 min and catch the same bus on its return trip: home by 2:40. Also something we are becoming professional at :)
I realized today that i have not given you all a very cohesive idea of what my day to day life is like in NOLA. So here it goes.
My alarm goes off at 6:01 (sounds better than 6:00am). I have the house to myself for the most part in the morning because my work starts the earliest. I am able to take my time and enjoy the morning, which is really important to me. I am waiting for Anne outside by 6:40 with my bike. We ride to the Harry Tompson Center and get there at about 7:15. If we take the bus we catch it at 6:50 and get to HTC around 7:20.
If i am working the showers i have to set up the shower area. We have a table with deodorant, toothpaste, shampoo, soap, powder, fabreez and q-tips, for communal us. These items are hot commodities and tend to walk away if I am not keeping an eye on them. When they do grow legs i make a very loud announcement that they are missing and most of the time someone comes from around the corner with it in their hands and a 'i got caught' face or they magically appear a few minutes later. All 10 of the showers will have been cleaned the night before so all i have to do is open the doors and set a towel in each room. I have a small table that i sit at and manage the sign in sheet. Then there are paper towels to be put out, shaving cream to refill, soap dispensers to check, chairs to set up, fans to turn on, and other various tasks. From 8:00am to 12:30pm the showers are open and busy. Today 104 showers were used: that is 104 towels, 104 washcloths, and 104 times the showers need to be sprayed down. After someone is done in the shower they leave their dirty towels in bins outside the rooms and i go in with new towels and a bottle of bleach/water to quickly spray down the handle, walls, and floors. Its not necessarily the cleanest way to wash a shower but its the fastest and its better than nothing. I am also in charge of any toiletry needs: from feminine products, to razors, toothbrushes, mending kits and just about anything else you can think of. Everyone gets about 15 min in the shower until i come around and knock on their door. I have a continuing list that never really seems to stop growing until about 11:30. I call names to fill the showers, wait for everyone to finish, clean out the used showers, and call more names. Its a busy job that keeps you on your toes but i enjoy it!
If i am working laundry my day starts with finishing the folding from the dryers that stayed on overnight. Then i go out side to the front where a line has already formed of people who want their laundry done. It is not a first come first serve basis because we would not know who got there at 4am and who got there at 5am. Instead everyone who wants a chance to get their laundry done comes before 7:45 and is put into a lottery. At 7:45 i pick the first 7 names from the lottery and we start the loads. I take an intake of every ones loads then figure out who's can be put with who's to make the washers full. The best case is when you can double up on two of the washers and get three people into the other one. But sometimes you get loads that are too big which means you probably will not be able to do as many peoples laundry (but just as many loads will go threw as the day before). Each washer and dryer is run 3 times with guests cloths, then about about 3 or 4 times with towels from the days showers. The dryers take the longest so sometimes the guests cloths are not done until after lunch but most of the time they are there till after lunch anyways. I am also responsible for any clothing needs. We do not really have many cloths to give out but we are asked all the time if we have anything so we give it out when we can. Socks and under where are very hot items. We only give out socks on Wednesdays because there are so many people asking all of the time. We run out very quickly and since the cooler months are coming we have to be careful how many we give out. For the most part we keep them to replace ones that we see in the wash that are so terrible and old that they can not be worn any more. Its a nice surprise when the guest who's old socks are thrown out sees the new pair in their basket :) The laundry room is a small room that gets very hot when all three dryers are running at the same time, and there is a constant knocking on the door from people who have more questions than you knew were possible to ask. Are my cloths done yet? Can i get some socks? I need new under where. Where are some pants? Do you have any detergent i can have? Why did you not do my laundry today? When will you pick my number from the lottery? How much longer? ... Sometimes im pretty sure im working with 2 year olds asking my "why? why? why?" rather than adults, haha. Its a bit of a dungeon sometimes because it is hot and you have to be a mean old troll, constantly saying no, but its an important service we proved and the majority of the time people are very greatful.
If i am working the phones i have a totally different type of job. The phones are open almost all day. There are 4 phones that get rotated like the showers, every 20 min. Not too many people ask throughout the day and for the most part everyone is willing to wait. There is not much to it and most days an outside volunteer comes in to work and we give them phone duty because it is the easiest and fastest to learn. When that happens i become a floater. A mini Emily of sorts. Emily, Don, and Sister Mags are alllll knowing! Anne, Ellie and I are slowly becoming more knowledgeable about services that we provide and the service around the city. Most of the time when people are looking for Emily its to ask her to charge their phone (her room is a web of phone chargers and cords), find an address, look up a phone number, or find something they need in the center. I can do that, so i help them out. I have done a lot of googleing and can find the answer to just about any question they come up with. The HTC provides showers, phones, laundry, legal aid, notary services, medical services, hygiene kits, restrooms, and veterans info. Doctors come in on some days, lawyers on others, and the rest of the stuff is handled by the full time staff (us). The Lantern Light Sisters are the group of Nuns who are in charge of birth certificates, ID assistance, lunch, prescriptions help, mail, emerging financial assistance, groceries for area residents, food stamps, and resume help. The Harry Tompson Center and the Lantern Light, together, make up the Rebuild Center. The whole Rebuild Center was built in 2007 (im pretty sure) and is in the back parking lot of a church and, surrounded by the local hospitals. If you cannot find something that you need here more than likely someone in the Rebuild Center will know were to send you! Its amazing how even bad news can make a person happy here. There are so many people who send you one way and then another, then back the other way, until you have been sent all over the city and you are more frustrated and confused than you were originally. At the Rebuild Center we have answers, even if they are not very happy, we will know what to do with what ever you may need.
I am becoming professional in many different things but mostly in how to be a good listener. There are services that you can provide for people but most of the time they just need a patient, listening ear. People love to talk if you give them the chance and there is a lot that people have to say.
Oh and you always have to find humor in your job!
I realized today that i have not given you all a very cohesive idea of what my day to day life is like in NOLA. So here it goes.
My alarm goes off at 6:01 (sounds better than 6:00am). I have the house to myself for the most part in the morning because my work starts the earliest. I am able to take my time and enjoy the morning, which is really important to me. I am waiting for Anne outside by 6:40 with my bike. We ride to the Harry Tompson Center and get there at about 7:15. If we take the bus we catch it at 6:50 and get to HTC around 7:20.
If i am working the showers i have to set up the shower area. We have a table with deodorant, toothpaste, shampoo, soap, powder, fabreez and q-tips, for communal us. These items are hot commodities and tend to walk away if I am not keeping an eye on them. When they do grow legs i make a very loud announcement that they are missing and most of the time someone comes from around the corner with it in their hands and a 'i got caught' face or they magically appear a few minutes later. All 10 of the showers will have been cleaned the night before so all i have to do is open the doors and set a towel in each room. I have a small table that i sit at and manage the sign in sheet. Then there are paper towels to be put out, shaving cream to refill, soap dispensers to check, chairs to set up, fans to turn on, and other various tasks. From 8:00am to 12:30pm the showers are open and busy. Today 104 showers were used: that is 104 towels, 104 washcloths, and 104 times the showers need to be sprayed down. After someone is done in the shower they leave their dirty towels in bins outside the rooms and i go in with new towels and a bottle of bleach/water to quickly spray down the handle, walls, and floors. Its not necessarily the cleanest way to wash a shower but its the fastest and its better than nothing. I am also in charge of any toiletry needs: from feminine products, to razors, toothbrushes, mending kits and just about anything else you can think of. Everyone gets about 15 min in the shower until i come around and knock on their door. I have a continuing list that never really seems to stop growing until about 11:30. I call names to fill the showers, wait for everyone to finish, clean out the used showers, and call more names. Its a busy job that keeps you on your toes but i enjoy it!
If i am working laundry my day starts with finishing the folding from the dryers that stayed on overnight. Then i go out side to the front where a line has already formed of people who want their laundry done. It is not a first come first serve basis because we would not know who got there at 4am and who got there at 5am. Instead everyone who wants a chance to get their laundry done comes before 7:45 and is put into a lottery. At 7:45 i pick the first 7 names from the lottery and we start the loads. I take an intake of every ones loads then figure out who's can be put with who's to make the washers full. The best case is when you can double up on two of the washers and get three people into the other one. But sometimes you get loads that are too big which means you probably will not be able to do as many peoples laundry (but just as many loads will go threw as the day before). Each washer and dryer is run 3 times with guests cloths, then about about 3 or 4 times with towels from the days showers. The dryers take the longest so sometimes the guests cloths are not done until after lunch but most of the time they are there till after lunch anyways. I am also responsible for any clothing needs. We do not really have many cloths to give out but we are asked all the time if we have anything so we give it out when we can. Socks and under where are very hot items. We only give out socks on Wednesdays because there are so many people asking all of the time. We run out very quickly and since the cooler months are coming we have to be careful how many we give out. For the most part we keep them to replace ones that we see in the wash that are so terrible and old that they can not be worn any more. Its a nice surprise when the guest who's old socks are thrown out sees the new pair in their basket :) The laundry room is a small room that gets very hot when all three dryers are running at the same time, and there is a constant knocking on the door from people who have more questions than you knew were possible to ask. Are my cloths done yet? Can i get some socks? I need new under where. Where are some pants? Do you have any detergent i can have? Why did you not do my laundry today? When will you pick my number from the lottery? How much longer? ... Sometimes im pretty sure im working with 2 year olds asking my "why? why? why?" rather than adults, haha. Its a bit of a dungeon sometimes because it is hot and you have to be a mean old troll, constantly saying no, but its an important service we proved and the majority of the time people are very greatful.
If i am working the phones i have a totally different type of job. The phones are open almost all day. There are 4 phones that get rotated like the showers, every 20 min. Not too many people ask throughout the day and for the most part everyone is willing to wait. There is not much to it and most days an outside volunteer comes in to work and we give them phone duty because it is the easiest and fastest to learn. When that happens i become a floater. A mini Emily of sorts. Emily, Don, and Sister Mags are alllll knowing! Anne, Ellie and I are slowly becoming more knowledgeable about services that we provide and the service around the city. Most of the time when people are looking for Emily its to ask her to charge their phone (her room is a web of phone chargers and cords), find an address, look up a phone number, or find something they need in the center. I can do that, so i help them out. I have done a lot of googleing and can find the answer to just about any question they come up with. The HTC provides showers, phones, laundry, legal aid, notary services, medical services, hygiene kits, restrooms, and veterans info. Doctors come in on some days, lawyers on others, and the rest of the stuff is handled by the full time staff (us). The Lantern Light Sisters are the group of Nuns who are in charge of birth certificates, ID assistance, lunch, prescriptions help, mail, emerging financial assistance, groceries for area residents, food stamps, and resume help. The Harry Tompson Center and the Lantern Light, together, make up the Rebuild Center. The whole Rebuild Center was built in 2007 (im pretty sure) and is in the back parking lot of a church and, surrounded by the local hospitals. If you cannot find something that you need here more than likely someone in the Rebuild Center will know were to send you! Its amazing how even bad news can make a person happy here. There are so many people who send you one way and then another, then back the other way, until you have been sent all over the city and you are more frustrated and confused than you were originally. At the Rebuild Center we have answers, even if they are not very happy, we will know what to do with what ever you may need.
I am becoming professional in many different things but mostly in how to be a good listener. There are services that you can provide for people but most of the time they just need a patient, listening ear. People love to talk if you give them the chance and there is a lot that people have to say.
Oh and you always have to find humor in your job!
(After seeing the picture of us with baskets on our heads as well, Don said that this was why he hired us)
Monday, September 19, 2011
The Ways I Bring CA to LA
There has not been very much about New Orleans or Louisiana in general that is similar to California. But every now and then i can find something that reminds me of home. For example this weekend we drove about 3 hours towards Florida, to a beach called Gulf Shores (about 45 minutes away from Mobile, Alabama). It was beautiful! White sand. Warm water. Big enough surf to keep me happy and a good riptide to make me think of summer time in Manhattan beach :) A former JV drove us to Mobile because she was visiting a friend (and splitting gas 5 ways is much cheaper). Then we met up with the Mobile JV's and all went to the beach together. There were some 'madusa' (if you remember from Italy the Italians call Jellyfish 'medusa') haha. But only one of us got stung. The minute she got stung though the rest of us were out of the water, real fast!
On Saturday we had a bunch of people over to hang out and enjoy the cool weekend weather we were having. We ended up playing a few games of 'flip cup' which of course reminded me of Santa Clara and the many many games that were played on the weekends in the boys house :) (Miss you all so much!) The current JV's did not beat the former JV's but the girls did beat the boys, of course.
To make sure pieces of CA came with me to New Orleans i asked Mom to send me a project i was working on this summer. It was decoration for my beach cruiser at home but ended up being very useful here in NOLA. After some hard work i was able to hallow out a coconut, paint some nice Hawaiian flowers on the sides, and strap it to the front of my bike so that i had a convenient cup holder.
On Saturday we had a bunch of people over to hang out and enjoy the cool weekend weather we were having. We ended up playing a few games of 'flip cup' which of course reminded me of Santa Clara and the many many games that were played on the weekends in the boys house :) (Miss you all so much!) The current JV's did not beat the former JV's but the girls did beat the boys, of course.
To make sure pieces of CA came with me to New Orleans i asked Mom to send me a project i was working on this summer. It was decoration for my beach cruiser at home but ended up being very useful here in NOLA. After some hard work i was able to hallow out a coconut, paint some nice Hawaiian flowers on the sides, and strap it to the front of my bike so that i had a convenient cup holder.
The cup holder came in very handy for Anne and my Friday daiquiri stop :)
And we looked really good with our bike spokes all decorated!
Basically we are just so cool.
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Picture Time (and good news)
This is my view from the window of the number 16 bus in the morning (about 7:00am). Its a good view to wake up to in the morning :)
This is the view when Annie and i take our bikes in the morning. This is around 7:15am. It is also the ONLY hill is all of New Orleans and we have to ride up it (both ways!). Its one way to wake up haha. But the built in exersice has been nice.
On our way home from work Annie and i take different streets sometimes to change it up. I have come across many places in the city with buildings that look like this and i love it!
These are typical NOLA houses. I like the style alot and cannot wait to paint them!
These next pictures are from Saturday. We had a going away party for Justine (an emplyee of Catholic Charities which is one of the organizations working with the Harry Tompson Center). On the left is Sister Mags and the right is Sister Vera.
This is Izic and his awsome bike! Yes he has 3 cell phones around his neck and yes his bike has straws on the spokes. He came in today with more straws to put on the JV's bikes. With my coconut cup holder and straws on the spokes, my bike is lookin gooood ;) Isic also informed us that with our bikes not having straws the cars will respect us more lol
This is Q or Quinton. He keeps Annie and i on our toes. Q is always joking and messing around with us in a big brother way. He is also one of the favorites at THC and gets special treatment because it is so great and really makes this place what is it.
This is William the guest who i get to practice my sign language with all of the time :)
Billy is another favorite of THC and always comes in with jokes.
On the left is Justine, who is leaving at the end of september. It will be hard without her because she is the spanish interpreter and does more to help our guests than could ever be listed. She will be missed.
p.s. The good news is that Mark came back in yesterday! He was not back to his usual self but i saw him, said hello, and gave him a hug. I hope he is getting better but for now i am just happy to have seen that he is ok :)
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Who Dat Say Day Gona Beat Dem Saints?!
"Who Dat? Who Dat? Who dat say day gona beat dem saints?!" Is the chant we hear all day when the saints are going to play at home or away game, it does not matter, the pride in this city wells up and seeps out of everyone! From the bus drivers uniformes to the Sisters who work at THC, almost everyone has back and gold on. The Saints played an away game on thursday. I have been told that for away games everyone tail gates all over the city, in every parkinglot and garage. We wantto the local sports bar and bandwagoned with the best of them! It was a pot of fun to be around such team spirit, even if they didn't win.
This city looks big on the map but it is one of the smallest cities i have ever explored. Although the city pride is the strongest i have ever felt and it get stronger with every day i am here. From the festivals and parades to the bikes and houses everyone has a sense of pride for this city. I have never been in a place with such love and community. Now it is not all rainbows and butterflys here but there is a sense of interconectedness and support that runs through many people i meet. No school or club i have ever been involved in even gets close to the feeling this city has!
Having grown up in an upper-middle class family, when i have visited city's in the past the majority of the time i spend is in what would be conciered that cities upper-middle class areas. Which is normal for families and social class groups, it just makes sense. Once you have spent a signifigant amount of time in a city you get to know other areas and meet more people who make up the city (although not everyone vertures out of there comfort zone). Here in New Orleans all of the JV's have entered into the city with a different perpective. I am workig with people who i would not nessesarly see if i was a tourist here. I am spending time in parts of the city that visitors avoid and using public transportation that only locals know about. I only just recently went into the upper class neighborhoods. I had almost forgotten they exist in NOLA. The homes are beautiful, well kept, and look like an amazing place to raise a family. It has been huge eye opener and life changer. But more importantly it has shown me how important all parts of a city are. The poor, the rich, the big, the small, it is the combination of everyone together that makes a city what it is. I have enjoyed learning from my new perspective and come to appriciate more and different quilities this city has. Another part that has added to my new perspective is my minimal living expences, simple life style, and community home.
It was a week of learning. I got a much better sense of the city itself and the people in it. I also had a new experience at work. Not to say every day teaches mensomething new, good and bad, just this week was a bit more powerful. This is a sort of sad story but it's apart of my experiences here and I want to share as much as I can with you all. This week I was on showers, which I'm pretty sure is my favorite position because of the interactions I can have with the guests. All week I was learnig more names and rejoicing when I remembered someones name. Everyday I was waiting to see mark, inpeticular. He is one of the guests I have gotten to know. He always has a smile on his face and likes to joke with me. Last Friday he was having a hard day... I sat and talked with him for some time. He kept saying things like how he would get two step up lifes ladder and it would break on him. There was nothing going right and no reason to be here. No reason to live any more. I didn't know what to do really except listen to him and let him know someone cared. Annie and I are not trained for situations like this but then again is anyone really. We are at THC to be friends with the guests and give them people to care about them. So I treated mark how I would treat any of my friends having a hard day. Long story short, he talked with the doctor who was in that day and talked with me some more then left. I was hoping to see him on Tuesday (after the long weekend) with a smile on his face again and full of jokes. But he didn't come Tuesday, or Wednesday, or Thursday, or Friday. It was a hard week with mark in the back of my mind. But i learned that we are at THC to be there for the guests as their friends and help them with anything we can but we are not therapists, doctors, or specialists of any kind and cannot live their lives for them. We are apart of their lives but only for moments and so we have to be able to give without expectations and help without too much attachment. Most of you know how hard that is going to be for me but it does not mean I'm going to stop giving the guests everything I can; from kind words to toothbrushes and shampoo, I'll be there for them as much as I am able to.
Love you all so much and keep in mind those who are gone from our lives but are still so very loved (especially because it is 9-11 today).
P.s. It's bee between 75 and 80 all week here with no humidity! Enjoying it so much.
This city looks big on the map but it is one of the smallest cities i have ever explored. Although the city pride is the strongest i have ever felt and it get stronger with every day i am here. From the festivals and parades to the bikes and houses everyone has a sense of pride for this city. I have never been in a place with such love and community. Now it is not all rainbows and butterflys here but there is a sense of interconectedness and support that runs through many people i meet. No school or club i have ever been involved in even gets close to the feeling this city has!
Having grown up in an upper-middle class family, when i have visited city's in the past the majority of the time i spend is in what would be conciered that cities upper-middle class areas. Which is normal for families and social class groups, it just makes sense. Once you have spent a signifigant amount of time in a city you get to know other areas and meet more people who make up the city (although not everyone vertures out of there comfort zone). Here in New Orleans all of the JV's have entered into the city with a different perpective. I am workig with people who i would not nessesarly see if i was a tourist here. I am spending time in parts of the city that visitors avoid and using public transportation that only locals know about. I only just recently went into the upper class neighborhoods. I had almost forgotten they exist in NOLA. The homes are beautiful, well kept, and look like an amazing place to raise a family. It has been huge eye opener and life changer. But more importantly it has shown me how important all parts of a city are. The poor, the rich, the big, the small, it is the combination of everyone together that makes a city what it is. I have enjoyed learning from my new perspective and come to appriciate more and different quilities this city has. Another part that has added to my new perspective is my minimal living expences, simple life style, and community home.
It was a week of learning. I got a much better sense of the city itself and the people in it. I also had a new experience at work. Not to say every day teaches mensomething new, good and bad, just this week was a bit more powerful. This is a sort of sad story but it's apart of my experiences here and I want to share as much as I can with you all. This week I was on showers, which I'm pretty sure is my favorite position because of the interactions I can have with the guests. All week I was learnig more names and rejoicing when I remembered someones name. Everyday I was waiting to see mark, inpeticular. He is one of the guests I have gotten to know. He always has a smile on his face and likes to joke with me. Last Friday he was having a hard day... I sat and talked with him for some time. He kept saying things like how he would get two step up lifes ladder and it would break on him. There was nothing going right and no reason to be here. No reason to live any more. I didn't know what to do really except listen to him and let him know someone cared. Annie and I are not trained for situations like this but then again is anyone really. We are at THC to be friends with the guests and give them people to care about them. So I treated mark how I would treat any of my friends having a hard day. Long story short, he talked with the doctor who was in that day and talked with me some more then left. I was hoping to see him on Tuesday (after the long weekend) with a smile on his face again and full of jokes. But he didn't come Tuesday, or Wednesday, or Thursday, or Friday. It was a hard week with mark in the back of my mind. But i learned that we are at THC to be there for the guests as their friends and help them with anything we can but we are not therapists, doctors, or specialists of any kind and cannot live their lives for them. We are apart of their lives but only for moments and so we have to be able to give without expectations and help without too much attachment. Most of you know how hard that is going to be for me but it does not mean I'm going to stop giving the guests everything I can; from kind words to toothbrushes and shampoo, I'll be there for them as much as I am able to.
Love you all so much and keep in mind those who are gone from our lives but are still so very loved (especially because it is 9-11 today).
P.s. It's bee between 75 and 80 all week here with no humidity! Enjoying it so much.
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Picture Time
All 11 of the 2011 New Orleans JV's!
This is my community. The Hennriatte Dellie JV's!
Ed, Lily, Becca, Me, Stephanie (my roomie)
Annie! aka Best coworker Everrrrr (and happens to be sitting right behind me)
Best 12$ ever spent on entertainment from Walgreens :)
Yes, 4 people fit in the pool (the 5ft wide by 15 in deep pool)
It Was Not a Hurricane
Just so you all know, because the news has blown everything way out of proportion, it was not a hurricane that we had this past weekend! It was a tropic storm that kicked up a lot of wind and rain but nothing that we had to really worry about. And we all survived :) There was some major flooding in other parts of Louisiana but not in the Orleans perish. Sunday night was the only scary night because of the harsh winds. A large tree branch went down in our front yard but did not damage anything. It was a site to wake up to! Then about 2:00pm a few of the neighborhood guys came around and started chopping the branch up for us. Our landlord was out of town for the weekend so they came over to help out. What nice gentleman, to help a house full (mostly) with young girls haha.
Despite the heavy rain that came in waves throughout the weekend we still got out every now and then to keep ourselves busy. Friday night we volunteered at a fundraising party for Project Lazurus (one of the girls in my house wors for them). It was hosted by the magazine called Passport with is mostly geared towards the gay population, which made the party cround, majority, gay guys. We had so much fun! Everyone was so willing to donate and there to have fun, which was made easy but the open wine and vodka bars haha.
Saturday we were able to escape the rain by going to the Tulane game in the Superdome! Don gave Annie and i 4 free tickets. We had a blast! The superdome is huge and a fun place to explore.
Sunday we met our two support people for the HD JV house. Eric and Matt are both former JV's (or FJV's) and great guys! They took us on a tour all over the city. We went up to lake Pontchartrain to see the levees that are in some of the nicer parts of the city. Lake Pontchartrain will end up being the best i can do as far as an ocean near by but i am ok with that. It is a huge lake and looks like an ocean because you cannot see the land on the other side. The only odd part is that there is a bridge running straight out into the lake. Its one of the longest bridges reaching up to about 27 miles and looks like it is going to no where. The best part about the lake is that it is swimmable and only about a 25 minutes bike ride away (yet another reason this city feels so small).
We also went down in the 9th Ward. I am glad that we went because it is something that i have wanted to do for a long time. The 9th Ward no longer has the houses in trees and smashed cars like the news showed. Instead the 9th Ward has become a desolate place. There are hardly any houses and the ones that are there are funny shapes, sizes, and colors. The new homes are part of the program that Brad Pitt set up providing new homes for families who wanted to come back. But the houses are very out of place and not anything like typical New Orleans homes so many people refuse to embrace the generosity. Which i think is a perfect example of this cities pride. They are family people who stick together and do not make change easily. Since there are not many new homes the rest of the land is grass filled and spooky feeling. The new levees are ugly steel enforced cement walls that look omenice. There are hardly any people around and no noise, no birds, no nothing. Public transportation is far away and the grocery store is also no where near by. I have never seen an area like the 9th Ward or the city of New Orleans as a whole, but the one thing that i have observed about the city so far is its intense pride, self worth, and resistance. I feel like the rest of this year will just prove those qualities even more but in many different ways.
Monday we went to a BBQ with the Jesuit community in New Orleans! We were literally the only 8 females in the room although we were not the youngest. There were Jesuits of all ages, drinking (alot), eating, talking, and having a good time. It was a fun experience and we learned a lot about the Jesuits. We also went home with the most leftover food i have ever been given. We will be set for at least 3 more days of dinner!
Laundry went well last week but im back on showers this week and am glad!
Despite the heavy rain that came in waves throughout the weekend we still got out every now and then to keep ourselves busy. Friday night we volunteered at a fundraising party for Project Lazurus (one of the girls in my house wors for them). It was hosted by the magazine called Passport with is mostly geared towards the gay population, which made the party cround, majority, gay guys. We had so much fun! Everyone was so willing to donate and there to have fun, which was made easy but the open wine and vodka bars haha.
Saturday we were able to escape the rain by going to the Tulane game in the Superdome! Don gave Annie and i 4 free tickets. We had a blast! The superdome is huge and a fun place to explore.
Sunday we met our two support people for the HD JV house. Eric and Matt are both former JV's (or FJV's) and great guys! They took us on a tour all over the city. We went up to lake Pontchartrain to see the levees that are in some of the nicer parts of the city. Lake Pontchartrain will end up being the best i can do as far as an ocean near by but i am ok with that. It is a huge lake and looks like an ocean because you cannot see the land on the other side. The only odd part is that there is a bridge running straight out into the lake. Its one of the longest bridges reaching up to about 27 miles and looks like it is going to no where. The best part about the lake is that it is swimmable and only about a 25 minutes bike ride away (yet another reason this city feels so small).
We also went down in the 9th Ward. I am glad that we went because it is something that i have wanted to do for a long time. The 9th Ward no longer has the houses in trees and smashed cars like the news showed. Instead the 9th Ward has become a desolate place. There are hardly any houses and the ones that are there are funny shapes, sizes, and colors. The new homes are part of the program that Brad Pitt set up providing new homes for families who wanted to come back. But the houses are very out of place and not anything like typical New Orleans homes so many people refuse to embrace the generosity. Which i think is a perfect example of this cities pride. They are family people who stick together and do not make change easily. Since there are not many new homes the rest of the land is grass filled and spooky feeling. The new levees are ugly steel enforced cement walls that look omenice. There are hardly any people around and no noise, no birds, no nothing. Public transportation is far away and the grocery store is also no where near by. I have never seen an area like the 9th Ward or the city of New Orleans as a whole, but the one thing that i have observed about the city so far is its intense pride, self worth, and resistance. I feel like the rest of this year will just prove those qualities even more but in many different ways.
Monday we went to a BBQ with the Jesuit community in New Orleans! We were literally the only 8 females in the room although we were not the youngest. There were Jesuits of all ages, drinking (alot), eating, talking, and having a good time. It was a fun experience and we learned a lot about the Jesuits. We also went home with the most leftover food i have ever been given. We will be set for at least 3 more days of dinner!
Laundry went well last week but im back on showers this week and am glad!
Monday, August 29, 2011
Oh the People I Meet
Oh the people i meet at the Harry Tompson Center make my life so much more entertaining! First of all the New Orleans accent is ridiculous and the southern drawl makes me giggle inside. Everyone talks out of the side of their mouth. Its like they figure if they pronounce every syllable or every word it would be to much work and make them even more hot than they already are. So i only catch every other syllable which makes fallowing what they are saying very hard. I am also developing my own California drawl! It is going to be pretty funny when i come home for the first time and people start catching me saying words like 'ya'll' 'who dat' 'Na' 'Sir' 'Mam' and more that i don't even realize i am saying.
Oh the people i meet at the Harry Tompson Center are so unique. You will be hearing all about the guests i meet for the rest of the year, so i will start now :) Christopher is in his own world. And not like he days dreams but i mean really in his own world. He is constantly talking to himself in a very low deep voice. When you ask him a question he will answer you and snap out of his world but as soon as you stop talking to him he goes right back into Christopher world. When he in in the shower or brushing his teeth is when he is the loudest: yelling to himself in a sort of low voiced growl. Every once in a while he will yell out loud! Everyone in the center will look at him for a moment then go back about their own business.
Gladys is a 37 year old woman who must ask for about 10 things a day: everything from plastic bags to shampoo and feminine products. She used to be dating Mario but now is going with Nick. Nick looks like he is about 18 but must be in his late 20's.
Horis sits next to me all day writting poetry and helping me clean the showers when it gets really busy. He keeps me sain. He has the most calming voice and knows how this place is run so if there is ever a question i have and cannot find Emily, Horis has my back. THC would not run the same with out Horis and other guests like him, who have made their way to the top of everyone 'favorites' list. Quinten is another favorite. He has the biggest heart and the best sense of humor. If you need a smile you go talk to him :) He is also the mediator, between anyone getting heated or acting up. And then there is Luther, the strong silent type who will quietly ask if everything is ok because he knows that sometimes people just need to be asked. Ricky is the self proclamed janitor of the HTC and knows where all of the cleaning supplys are: he keeps the place looking good during the day.
William knows sign language becasue he is def. He is sharp as a nail and knows what he wants even if he cannot hear you tell him 'no.' Haha. He writes a lot down to talk with people who cannot sign and he can read lips for the most part. But he really likes to sign and he keeps me on my toes. My signing from high school is coming back but he is having to re-teach me a lot. Im loving it!
Because i was working the showers last week i was learning names really fast, which (as most of you know) is really difficult for me. But since i was seeing the people, writting their names, and saying their names it was sticking! By Friday i recognized a good 50% of the guests by face and at least 25% by name: big accomplishment for me.
I meet new people every day. Have different conversations everyday. Learn about new lives every day. And enjoy every minute of every day!
p.s. I am working on laundry this week. Sister Mags is teaching Ellie and I the laundrey system. Which is not my favorite so far.... Ill let you know what i think of it at the end of the week.
Oh the people i meet at the Harry Tompson Center are so unique. You will be hearing all about the guests i meet for the rest of the year, so i will start now :) Christopher is in his own world. And not like he days dreams but i mean really in his own world. He is constantly talking to himself in a very low deep voice. When you ask him a question he will answer you and snap out of his world but as soon as you stop talking to him he goes right back into Christopher world. When he in in the shower or brushing his teeth is when he is the loudest: yelling to himself in a sort of low voiced growl. Every once in a while he will yell out loud! Everyone in the center will look at him for a moment then go back about their own business.
Gladys is a 37 year old woman who must ask for about 10 things a day: everything from plastic bags to shampoo and feminine products. She used to be dating Mario but now is going with Nick. Nick looks like he is about 18 but must be in his late 20's.
Horis sits next to me all day writting poetry and helping me clean the showers when it gets really busy. He keeps me sain. He has the most calming voice and knows how this place is run so if there is ever a question i have and cannot find Emily, Horis has my back. THC would not run the same with out Horis and other guests like him, who have made their way to the top of everyone 'favorites' list. Quinten is another favorite. He has the biggest heart and the best sense of humor. If you need a smile you go talk to him :) He is also the mediator, between anyone getting heated or acting up. And then there is Luther, the strong silent type who will quietly ask if everything is ok because he knows that sometimes people just need to be asked. Ricky is the self proclamed janitor of the HTC and knows where all of the cleaning supplys are: he keeps the place looking good during the day.
William knows sign language becasue he is def. He is sharp as a nail and knows what he wants even if he cannot hear you tell him 'no.' Haha. He writes a lot down to talk with people who cannot sign and he can read lips for the most part. But he really likes to sign and he keeps me on my toes. My signing from high school is coming back but he is having to re-teach me a lot. Im loving it!
Because i was working the showers last week i was learning names really fast, which (as most of you know) is really difficult for me. But since i was seeing the people, writting their names, and saying their names it was sticking! By Friday i recognized a good 50% of the guests by face and at least 25% by name: big accomplishment for me.
I meet new people every day. Have different conversations everyday. Learn about new lives every day. And enjoy every minute of every day!
p.s. I am working on laundry this week. Sister Mags is teaching Ellie and I the laundrey system. Which is not my favorite so far.... Ill let you know what i think of it at the end of the week.
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Picture Time
Here are a few pictures to give you a bit of an idea of what i have been up to.
"Cafe du Monte" with delicious french donuts and a ton of poudered sugar, Yummm!
This is my house! The front door that you see is mine and around the left side of the house is the front door to the other duplex.
This is a few of us on one of the balconies on Bourbon St.
"Cafe du Monte" with delicious french donuts and a ton of poudered sugar, Yummm!
This is down in the French Quarter in front of the St. Louis Cathedral which has a beautiful view of the river too.
We have more beads than we really know what to do with at our house so i decided to put them to good decorating use.
Its amazing what a few beads and some thum tacks will create.
:)
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