Well, it's my last day as a VISTA for the American Red Cross of West Alabama, so I thought I'd do a compilation list of things I learned during my year here.
1. Don't expect someone to tell you how to do your job. While it would be nice to have a supervisor get you started on the right track, it's not always going to happen. Sometimes you'll just be handed a bag of keys and get told to find out where they go because your supervisor got fired and no one knows what to do with you.
2. Things change quickly. In the time that I have been here so many volunteers and staff members have cycled out or moved on. This is where I wish I had a compilation video of all of them smiling with some dramatic music in the background while we all reminisce.
3. If you don't like something, fix it. If you live with a cracked out, high, wasted twenty-eight year old ex-marine, then find somewhere else to live. Don't endure months of stolen food, forgotten vibrators, and loud but thankfully short sex acts.
4. Have more than one thing to do with your life. Even if you love your job, you've got to find something else to do with your time or you will get worn out. So whether it's a healthy competitive addiction to trivia or a weekly voice lesson, have something that gets you out of a work mindset. Just avoid getting in the middle of fights at Waffle House unless you want to be a background youtube sensation.
5. Working for a nonprofit is hard. It's not a nine to five desk job. You have to work nights and weekends and sometimes at a moment's notice. Even if you complain, you know it's what has to be done, so you do it regardless of any Volunteer Assignment Description or regional supervisor's sour face. Seriously, why won't she smile? It can also involve a lot of getting thrown under the bus.
6. Unfortunately, the only way to get things done the way you want them is to do them yourself or to be less anal about them. Waiting around for someone to fix the server or figure out why the lanyard people are continuing to call you from New Delhi isn't going to do any good. If a group is complaining about a health fair not getting planned, you might as well take on the project so that it happens. Even if it completely stresses you out, you do the work because you know it's needed. I am so proud of Brazos Abiertos and the help it brings to the Latin American community every year.
7. Post college friend creation is a difficult process even with living in a town full of people you know. I have noticed that the quality of my friendships have increased as the quantity has decreased. Who would have thought? Along with this, age and intelligence are not factors to be considered in making friends. This was something I had already picked up on a little bit, but nothing proved it more to me than my friendship with James.
8. Life is too ridiculous not to laugh. With my living situations and fire clients pretending to be kidnapped or using their money for parties at Surin, I would not have survived this year without a sense of humor and a coping mechanism of making memes. You also need people that you can talk to about cows being in trees, trying to find a non existent Birmingham office, Clara Barton wearing hot pants, getting the runaround, picking up ferns, and crazy ERV teachers.
9. I LOVE food especially when it's free. My weight gain can attest to that. I will eat anything, and it will not mess up my stomach. I also apparently love chicken more than anyone else and really need to give chitlins a chance.
10. I HATE DESK JOBS. In a year, I never developed a proper sleep schedule due to reading fanfiction and watching episodes upon episodes of television shows. I am not meant to sit at a desk for hours and be up before 8 in the morning. My coworkers will agree that it generally takes me an hour or so to fully wake up, and even after that I'll fall asleep if I'm not doing something.
11. You can't do work like this without it's mark on you. Sometimes this is literally after you run into a trailer hitch, but luckily when you work at the Red Cross everyone is first aid trained your injuries are well taken care of.
12. Working at poverty level is one of those character building experiences. In this year, I have personally worked with close to sixty families who have been affected by single family house fires and a larger number who were affected in the Centrepoint tornado. These experiences have reminded me what things are important, so it's hopefully limited my complaining about money issues and led to me being even less materialistic.
13. Life is all about relationships regardless of their length. I have gleaned so much from month long friendships with community service volunteers that I hope to see again as well as from people I have known all year. None of these people are very similar to me. Military veterans, Montanans, former gospel singers, senior college students, random people at improv shows who end up being your stage manager, sassy special needs adults, family caregivers, old volunteers who make blunts out of pipe cleaners, and ambien lovers have made my family this year.
14. Give back to what's important to you. For me that was my beautiful hometown of Tuscaloosa. When I left after senior year came to an abrupt end because of the tornado, I felt terrible even worse when I went to Phil Campbell and saw my grandmother and aunt's destroyed homes. This year has allowed me the opportunity to see my city get back on its feet, and I got to help in that process. It also made me not be Tuscaloosa centric. There are eight counties I now call my own, and I care deeply about the plights of each of them. Find what's important to you and help make it better.
That's all I have for now. Maybe I'll expand on it later, but I've got some free food to eat in a little bit. Thank you for reading and being a part of this experience. I can't wait to share the next ones with you!
Friday, June 22, 2012
Monday, June 18, 2012
The Final Countdown
Well, it's my last Monday in the office and hopefully any office for a while. Where I'm going, we don't need desks. That was a strained reference to Back to the Future. I am still in disbelief that I have actually been here this long. What's crazier is how much just this office has changed in that time. I'll save all of that for a reflecting post at the end of the week. For now, we'll focus on my next to last week at work.
If I just talked about that, however, it would be a very short post because things have calmed down recently. KNOCK ON THE WOOD OF CLARA BARTON'S COFFIN.
I mentioned that two Fridays ago we were going to the house dedication for one of our volunteers. I was in tears most of the time just out of complete happiness for Pam Nero and her husband. It definitely represented a full cycle of things for me. When I left Tuscaloosa last May, Alberta City was devastated beyond recognition as my childhood home. Now over a year later, I got to see a family move into their new and well deserved home. Tuscaloosa is really coming around, and I am so happy that I was able to be here to see the process. As things pop back up, it's become the town I recognize, and my love for it has only grown deeper.
Over the weekend, I had the joy of communicating with the replacement campus minister at the Wesley Foundation. He texted me to discuss a group picking up cots to stay at Wesley Foundation over the week. I was just surprised that someone I have not interacted with in over a year decided that texting me was the most professional way to get in touch. It was a big mess getting in touch with the church. Mike, a volunteer, wanted to meet me to get his last hours in, so I told him to be at the office at 6:50 PM because the people from the church were going to get there after seven and call me before they got there. I drove up as it was raining at 6:45 and in the parking lot was a tour bus blocking every single car from leaving. WHYYYYYYYYYYYYY?????????? Luckily, the rain subsided long enough to load 120 cots on to their bus. Once they left, Mike and I had to inventory the cots left so we knew how many they took. The humidity made me realize that it was a bad idea to take a shower before getting there just to stand in a trailer or ankle deep water.
The rest of the week went pretty smoothly. There were a couple of fire cases bringing my total for the year up to 50 out of 150 at one point. Other than that, nothing really happened. We have so may community service volunteers right now that Cody and I are just trying to make up stuff for them to do. I hate when the ones we like finish up, though, because then we never see them again. It's been a year of temporary friends and oddities. There are all kinds. This will again be touched on in a reflection post at the end of this week.
Cody and I went to trivia on Tuesday last week and Lexi and I on Thursday. We had good performances at both as Green Eggs and Ham and Huffalumps and Woozles. Obviously, I chose to regress a little in my team name inspiration. There was a terrible discussion Cody and I had about a question regarding a train. I just made a guest appearance explaining it in his blog.
Our old building that was damaged in the storm was finally bulldozed last week. It is completely flat now, though, I've yet to see it. I didn't have any emotional attachment to it since my only time inside was for my interview, but I know a lot of other people were sad to see it go. It's actually been more of a pain for me with the numerous times we've had to move things around and take things out. Those desks volunteer Mike and I moved were about the DEATH of me. Well, the mold would have killed me if the desks didn't.
This weekend was relaxing with a coloring of fun. Friday, I went to El Rincon with some friends, and while I was overcharged we had an enlightening conversation about the Illuminati and its members including Jay-Z, Lady Gaga, Jennifer Hudson, and Mark Ingram... You shouldn't be too surprised that I played the role of he sceptic. Saturday after getting a few things moved out and a set of tennis with my dad, Cody and I went to dinner for his birthday since Wynease and Toya both bailed on us, with good reason I'm sure.
I also made the exciting decision to go to Camp Sumatanga next week as a counselor. It just hit me in church of all places that it fits perfectly into my schedule and I may not be able to go again for a while. I was delighted to discover that two friends are the directors. I know this week will pass by even more quickly now that I have the promise of immediate fresh air and lack of technology come Saturday.
If I just talked about that, however, it would be a very short post because things have calmed down recently. KNOCK ON THE WOOD OF CLARA BARTON'S COFFIN.
I mentioned that two Fridays ago we were going to the house dedication for one of our volunteers. I was in tears most of the time just out of complete happiness for Pam Nero and her husband. It definitely represented a full cycle of things for me. When I left Tuscaloosa last May, Alberta City was devastated beyond recognition as my childhood home. Now over a year later, I got to see a family move into their new and well deserved home. Tuscaloosa is really coming around, and I am so happy that I was able to be here to see the process. As things pop back up, it's become the town I recognize, and my love for it has only grown deeper.
Over the weekend, I had the joy of communicating with the replacement campus minister at the Wesley Foundation. He texted me to discuss a group picking up cots to stay at Wesley Foundation over the week. I was just surprised that someone I have not interacted with in over a year decided that texting me was the most professional way to get in touch. It was a big mess getting in touch with the church. Mike, a volunteer, wanted to meet me to get his last hours in, so I told him to be at the office at 6:50 PM because the people from the church were going to get there after seven and call me before they got there. I drove up as it was raining at 6:45 and in the parking lot was a tour bus blocking every single car from leaving. WHYYYYYYYYYYYYY?????????? Luckily, the rain subsided long enough to load 120 cots on to their bus. Once they left, Mike and I had to inventory the cots left so we knew how many they took. The humidity made me realize that it was a bad idea to take a shower before getting there just to stand in a trailer or ankle deep water.
The rest of the week went pretty smoothly. There were a couple of fire cases bringing my total for the year up to 50 out of 150 at one point. Other than that, nothing really happened. We have so may community service volunteers right now that Cody and I are just trying to make up stuff for them to do. I hate when the ones we like finish up, though, because then we never see them again. It's been a year of temporary friends and oddities. There are all kinds. This will again be touched on in a reflection post at the end of this week.
Cody and I went to trivia on Tuesday last week and Lexi and I on Thursday. We had good performances at both as Green Eggs and Ham and Huffalumps and Woozles. Obviously, I chose to regress a little in my team name inspiration. There was a terrible discussion Cody and I had about a question regarding a train. I just made a guest appearance explaining it in his blog.
Our old building that was damaged in the storm was finally bulldozed last week. It is completely flat now, though, I've yet to see it. I didn't have any emotional attachment to it since my only time inside was for my interview, but I know a lot of other people were sad to see it go. It's actually been more of a pain for me with the numerous times we've had to move things around and take things out. Those desks volunteer Mike and I moved were about the DEATH of me. Well, the mold would have killed me if the desks didn't.
This weekend was relaxing with a coloring of fun. Friday, I went to El Rincon with some friends, and while I was overcharged we had an enlightening conversation about the Illuminati and its members including Jay-Z, Lady Gaga, Jennifer Hudson, and Mark Ingram... You shouldn't be too surprised that I played the role of he sceptic. Saturday after getting a few things moved out and a set of tennis with my dad, Cody and I went to dinner for his birthday since Wynease and Toya both bailed on us, with good reason I'm sure.
I also made the exciting decision to go to Camp Sumatanga next week as a counselor. It just hit me in church of all places that it fits perfectly into my schedule and I may not be able to go again for a while. I was delighted to discover that two friends are the directors. I know this week will pass by even more quickly now that I have the promise of immediate fresh air and lack of technology come Saturday.
Friday, June 8, 2012
Topanga, I'd F*** Her
Thank you, drunk girl at trivia for a lot of quotable moments. She also actually gave us a couple of right answers that I may not have trusted if the question for which she named "Czechoslovakia"as a current country had come earlier in the game... Cody and I did fairly well this week, though his team name choice "Porn on the Cob" did not get the laughs he thought it would.
I only have two full weeks left at work, which borderlines ridiculously unbelievable. I stare at where I've written "Last Day" in purple on the white board calendar and don't comprehend that it is so quickly approaching. Not too much has gone on at work this week for me personally. With the loss of Bev, we are extremely short staffed, so my role has been working as the in office person for the entire day while others are running around to meetings or classes. I've spent a lot of that time creating jobs for community service volunteers to do because we allowed ourself to get way too many at one time. One such job was moving old desks out of our old building that is getting demolished. I went to go help this guy move them, and it was one of the most strenuous things I have done in my life. The first desk was solid wood and too wide to fit out the back door. We turned it as many ways as we could in that narrow hallway and eventually had to take the legs off and pulls the drawer out. I did something incorrectly because I couldn't grip anything for a few hours after that.
In a more productive light, Holli and I met with Jacqueline Morgan of the Honors College at the University to discuss the possibility of an internship or honors seminar to replace the whole created by the VISTA grant running out and the lack of in house volunteer coordinator. We have people that can fill these needs, but they need a coordinator. She was very optimistic and thinks we may even be able to get someone for the fall. I hope this works out because once I leave there will only be two staff members and one VISTA to serve eight counties in daily office activities.
In a couple of hours, we're going to the Habitat house dedication for one of our volunteers who lost her home in last year's tornado. After losing her home, she has a heart attack and a stroke within a matter of months. I've seen her multiple times this year, and she is always smiling and in a good mood. With so many people out there complaining, it really does something to see this woman who has been through so much to be positive. I cannot wait to see her get her new house in Alberta City.
Culturally speaking, we had our first rehearsal for Second Samuel this week. It looks like it'll be a good show! We blocked the entire first act and ran it a second time, so it looks like we'll be doing a lot of full act runs starting the last week of June. We'll do the same for the shorter second act tonight, and the continuous runs through August should help with the line memorization. I have quite a few lengthy monologues directed to the audience that I'll need to work on.
Also, I have two new show obsessions, but I'm already completely caught up on both of them. I've been avoiding it for sometime, but I finally watched Downton Abbey. I knew I'd like it but never made myself watch it. I've now seen both seasons and the Christmas special in a matter of three days. It's very well done and and interesting period drama. The passage of time is not documented too well, but I may just not be paying attention as closely as I should. I just love seeing Maggie Smith in anything. The other show I've been watching is HBO's Girls. While I am not a girl, I think the plight of these twenty-somethings in the city is comparable to my own. Not all of them, of course. I've never accidentally smoked crack at a warehouse party in Brooklyn, but never say never. I think the show could have some great things to say about gender roles if it shies away from making each character fit a stereotypical mold. I like the British girl, Jessa, and her non traditional views on relationships. It's refreshing to see a character not following the same romantic formula that is in every movie or show. I'm looking forward to the season continuing!
Now, I'm resurrecting a parody song I wrote of "Part of Your World" for Camp Sumatanga about wanting to be the craft chick. They apparently want to use it this year. I didn't keep a record of it, so I'm just making it up again.
I only have two full weeks left at work, which borderlines ridiculously unbelievable. I stare at where I've written "Last Day" in purple on the white board calendar and don't comprehend that it is so quickly approaching. Not too much has gone on at work this week for me personally. With the loss of Bev, we are extremely short staffed, so my role has been working as the in office person for the entire day while others are running around to meetings or classes. I've spent a lot of that time creating jobs for community service volunteers to do because we allowed ourself to get way too many at one time. One such job was moving old desks out of our old building that is getting demolished. I went to go help this guy move them, and it was one of the most strenuous things I have done in my life. The first desk was solid wood and too wide to fit out the back door. We turned it as many ways as we could in that narrow hallway and eventually had to take the legs off and pulls the drawer out. I did something incorrectly because I couldn't grip anything for a few hours after that.
In a more productive light, Holli and I met with Jacqueline Morgan of the Honors College at the University to discuss the possibility of an internship or honors seminar to replace the whole created by the VISTA grant running out and the lack of in house volunteer coordinator. We have people that can fill these needs, but they need a coordinator. She was very optimistic and thinks we may even be able to get someone for the fall. I hope this works out because once I leave there will only be two staff members and one VISTA to serve eight counties in daily office activities.
In a couple of hours, we're going to the Habitat house dedication for one of our volunteers who lost her home in last year's tornado. After losing her home, she has a heart attack and a stroke within a matter of months. I've seen her multiple times this year, and she is always smiling and in a good mood. With so many people out there complaining, it really does something to see this woman who has been through so much to be positive. I cannot wait to see her get her new house in Alberta City.
Culturally speaking, we had our first rehearsal for Second Samuel this week. It looks like it'll be a good show! We blocked the entire first act and ran it a second time, so it looks like we'll be doing a lot of full act runs starting the last week of June. We'll do the same for the shorter second act tonight, and the continuous runs through August should help with the line memorization. I have quite a few lengthy monologues directed to the audience that I'll need to work on.
Also, I have two new show obsessions, but I'm already completely caught up on both of them. I've been avoiding it for sometime, but I finally watched Downton Abbey. I knew I'd like it but never made myself watch it. I've now seen both seasons and the Christmas special in a matter of three days. It's very well done and and interesting period drama. The passage of time is not documented too well, but I may just not be paying attention as closely as I should. I just love seeing Maggie Smith in anything. The other show I've been watching is HBO's Girls. While I am not a girl, I think the plight of these twenty-somethings in the city is comparable to my own. Not all of them, of course. I've never accidentally smoked crack at a warehouse party in Brooklyn, but never say never. I think the show could have some great things to say about gender roles if it shies away from making each character fit a stereotypical mold. I like the British girl, Jessa, and her non traditional views on relationships. It's refreshing to see a character not following the same romantic formula that is in every movie or show. I'm looking forward to the season continuing!
Now, I'm resurrecting a parody song I wrote of "Part of Your World" for Camp Sumatanga about wanting to be the craft chick. They apparently want to use it this year. I didn't keep a record of it, so I'm just making it up again.
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
For Such a Time as This
At times like this it's hard to think about doing a weekly recap, but I haven't missed one yet. I named this post for a song that was always sung at camp, but I can' seem to find it anywhere, which probably means that it was either not very popular or it was an original piece.
Someone I went to college with died in a car accident his weekend on her way home from a wedding that some of my very close friends were attending. I didn't know her too well, but she had at least been a presence I was aware of for the passed three years. I had actually interacted with her more recently because I met her mother at the regional Red Cross office. My only college memories of Laura involve her being crazy, making people laugh, slipping down hills at Halloween parties, but recently she had really grown up. She still had her intense joy, but she had funneled it into a passion for social work and had begun her job at AIDS Alabama.
As an offshoot of this, it's made me realize that I need to actively pursue my ever changing goals. The way last year ended put me in a kind of rut that resulted in me staying in Tuscaloosa for another year. I do not regret the decision nor the work I've done in that time, but I need to get out and do other things because you just never know what will happen.
With that being said, my time in Tuscaloosa is quickly coming to a close. I only have thirteen days left in the office. I can't believe that almost a year ago I was desperately trying to get in touch with my would be supervisor about my pre service orientation. Now I'm here sitting at a desk covered in schedules, lists, and forms. It is definitely not what I pictured I would be doing and has taught me a plethora of things. The main one being that I cannot for the life of me develop a good enough sleep schedule to support an 8(ish) to 4:30 job.
On the less introspective side of things, I decided to be all hip this weekend and try two new places in Homewood's SoHo area. The first was The Little Donkey. It's a taquerÃa that uses all natural and fresh ingredients. They make everything from scratch, which I think is pretty impressive. Amanda Coppock and I went Saturday afternoon. The cheese dip and guacamole were both really good as was the burrito with black beans and chicken I got for my entree. I really wish I had gotten the concoción as my side because it sounded so much like gallo pinto, which was my favorite breakfast dish in Costa Rica. They had some interesting specialty drink options that are also made from natural ingredients. I did not order any of them, but I hear that they can be on the bitter side. It was a great restaurant with a good atmosphere. It's a little on the pricey side for Mexican food, but the quality is much better than a standard Americanized Mexican restaurant.
We only had to travel two doors down for the other newly opened food place, Steel City Pops. For $3, you can get any of an array of flavored popsicles. They have the traditional chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry, but they also have balsamic strawberry and blood orange. I was safe and got the chocolate one and was well rewarded. Just like Little Donkey, they make everything they sell for the day fresh. In the morning they make all of the popsicles and even experiment with flavors. Then they sell them until they're gone. I'll definitely be going back.
I'm really glad that Birmingham is continuing to develop little areas like this. It gives it the feel of a larger city with different neighborhoods. If I hadn't already lived there too long, it would definitely be somewhere worth looking into moving. Rehearsals for Second Samuel start tonight! And not last night like I thought and foolishly drove all the way to Birmingham just to turn around and come back...
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