Week 1: Mecca, Ca

We finished our first week in Mecca, Ca. I'm outside of the community center on my laptop. I'm lucky enough to be in walking distance of Internet, for that I am thankful. To my right I can see a mountain range, behind me is another and in front of me is a palm tree farm of sorts. I'm astounded by this place. California is so foreign to me still. I find it strange that palm trees are grown in view of mountains. Perhaps because I've always associated palm tress with tropic Florida it's confusing to me to find a palm tree farm in the desert. The days are warm but the mornings and evenings are temperate. This place is beautiful; I am trying to burn the scenic images into the deepest parts of my brain so I will be able to capture the essence of this place forever. I hope that years from now certain sounds and smells will push forth these images into my mind so that I will be able to return to this state of myself even if only for a brief moment.

I really enjoy the work I am doing; I climb up and down ladders with drills and paintbrushes all morning and I play with kids in the afternoon. I truly have the best of both worlds right now. I constantly find myself asking God, “why me?” in a way that I haven’t before asked him. “Why am I this lucky? What have I done to deserve the good that you’ve put in my life?” These questions are followed, quickly by “thank you” and “please don’t take this away from me. I love it”.

I want to break down the rest of this entry into 4 parts: Traveling, Orientation Day, First week of work, and Community mapping.

First: Traveling.

We left Sacramento early Monday morning, some how we managed to fit 20 pieces of luggage and 9 people into our 15 passenger van. It was a cramped drive but the view was gorgeous. California lucked out in the scenery department. It has everything from mountains to beaches, to farms, to valleys, to plains. It’s unfair really. As per NCCC regulations, we stopped every 2 hours to switch drivers and I took those moments to stretch, breath and capture the scenery on film. The drive itself was relatively uneventful, aside from finding a Louisiana Soul Food Kitchen and Chinese food shop attached to each other in Bakersfield, and arriving in our small 4-bedroom apartment in Mecca. Our rooms are divided 3-3-3-1. It’s frustrating to look at the person who has a bedroom to them self as I and another teammate sleep on cots. I’m more bitter than I should be considering I have a cot to myself to sleep on, and some of the kids down the street from me don’t even have that much. (Sometimes I wonder if I had less stuff, I’d have less to gripe about). Anyway, we went to dinner our first night here at this burger place that boasted it made the world’s best burgers. The burgers were good, but not world famous.

Part 2: Orientation day

We spent all day Tuesday with the Coachella Valley Housing Coalition learning about the organization that we are working with, we were able to meet John Mealey, the executive director of the CVHC. Then we were given a tour of the houses and apartments that were built by the CVHC. The complexes were really nice and I was very impressed. Wolff Waters, the last affordable housing complex they completed was probably my favorite. Of course this is the baby of the CVHC, it’s built in an upscale community so it had to fit in with the rest of the area. This is not to say that the other projects are not top notch, it’s jus that Wolff Waters was a 90 million dollar project and it looks like it was a 300 million dollar project. It’s that nice. I really enjoyed being able to tour the homes and facilities that the CVHC has provided for the Coachella Valley community. The other interesting thing about Wolff Waters is that the keys to the van were locked inside while the van was still running. We had to wait for AAA to come get us out of the jam, but not before we tried to unlock the door ourselves using a stick and lanyard technique. It may have been possible to achieve it if we had more time. I have captured parts of this fiasco on film. The person who locked the keys in the van uttered no apologies, but I’m sure they were embarrassed enough. I would have been, but I also probably would have laughed it off and told everyone about my silly antics. It was definitely an incident that won’t be forgotten on Blue 4, as now we are a lot more cautious to remember the van keys. The rest of orientation consisted of more of the same.

Part Tres: First Week of Work.

Our days are very similar but never the same. We get up every day and leave the house at 6:45; we arrive at the site a little before 7 and are assigned tasks. This week alone: I’ve helped remove a chain link fence, installed steel frames, and cut steel pieces to install, I’ve painted, I’ve moved sinks, I’ve installed closet doors, towel racks and toilet paper holders. By Siesta my Scapula is burning, well the muscles underneath my scapula. I’m tired sweaty and covered in dirt. It’s amazing. I didn’t realize how much I would enjoy working with my hands. I’ve built things before, and felt great satisfaction in my accomplishment but I feel fulfilled almost at the end of the day. In the afternoons, I play soccer and jump rope, and hang out with the kids at the community center, and the evenings I spend studying for the GRE. It’s so beneficial for me to not have a TV, but I am starting to feel claustrophobic in our 4-bedroom house. The room I share with three others is half the size of the room I have on base. It’s tiny, but I know that this is good for me. The best part is that whenever I start to feel claustrophobic all I have to do is walk outside and inhale the beauty that surrounds me.

Part Cuatro: Community Mapping

This weekend my team had the opportunity to explore more of our surrounding area. One group went on a mission to hike up a mountain while another group went to find materials to build a shelf. I stayed in and tried to download lost. I am ¼ of the way through my download that has been active for 4 hours or so. I’m hoping to have this download finished by the time the 5^th episode airs. At least I will have transition to catch up on my show. I did go into town today to pick up the shelf builders, they were over by the main part of town and we were able to see the local market and the recycling center. We also drove by a different community center, which has a Rock Band game night February 18^th. I’m excited to get to do some more exploring on my own two feet. The mountain climbing group made it half way up the mountain before turning back. I think that they’ll try again next weekend, perhaps on an already completed trail. I’m not sure though. I look forward to our adventures as they continue here in Mecca, Ca.

All Packed and Ready to Go

It's 6:32 right now in Sacramento, Ca. The Saints are winning the Super Bowl and I'm upstairs in the computer lab trying to entertain myself. I didn't sit through any of the game this year because I was busy trying to pack, also I don't really care about football, and there were no traditional Super Bowl snacks. I mean what is a Super Bowl party without pigs in a blanket and my mom's famous chips con queso recipe which she stole off the Velveta Cheese box. I just can't convince myself to do it. Although, I do have to say I hope the Saints win. It would be great for their community. Nothing brings together a city like a big win be it Football, Basketball, or Baseball. *

I'm excited about arriving in Mecca, Ca but I'm not so much excited for driving 10 hours packed in a 15 passenger van like sardines. I'm hoping that we will be able to pack effectively and that there will be enough room for me to wiggle my toes. I'm planning on wearing my steel toe boots mostly because I don't have room to pack 'em. Wearing steel toes and working all day sucks but wearing them while driving them sucks harder. I'm complaining a lot about this trip and I think a lot of it is because currently I can see many of the flaws in others and myself. I'm concerned for a lot of things that might happen over the course of these next two months. I'm also excited for the potential a big blow up could bring. I don't know I think maybe I'm just looking at the worst in things instead of the best in things.

I've been isolating myself a lot more lately, and I'm kind of concerned as to why. I can't pinpoint what is making me want to turtle up. I'm generally a very outgoing person, often in the middle of everything and very much want to be included. But recently, I've forgone outings and gone to bed early. Perhaps, I'm getting sick, perhaps this past month has been emotionally draining and I'm not feeling up to exerting more energy than what is absolutely necessary.

I do still believe in this program and am very happy about my actual work. I think it does make a difference, some projects more than others. I'm just blah right now. Possibly because I'm exhausted from packing. I hate packing and it doesn't get any easier no matter how many times you move.

I guess that's all. See you in Mecca?

Sara

*The Saints won, my friends in New Orleans are probably having a blast right now.

The evolution and soon to be absence of the internet

I'm in the computer lab typing this because the wi-fi has been out in my building for weeks now. Fortunately, I have access to internet despite that. It's funny how the internet has become such a necessary part of my life. I was introduced to the world of computers at a young age. My brother was an engineer by nature and my family was fortunate enough to be able to afford new electronics almost as soon as they came out. I went through almost every AOL upgrade and free demo cd available. I was in chat rooms talking to strangers before Chris Hansen knew how To Catch A Predator. In high school, I used internet sources to navigate my way through essays, and basic research. In College, I joined Facebook shortly after it started, and was in awe of my cousins wisdom of purchasing Google stock. I used internet sources for every research paper, and project. I even used it for papers where I was specifically told to avoid the internet. It's grown so vast and rapidly over the years and the progress that technology has made is amazing. I look forward to watching the future of the internet and technology as it grows and develops but hopefully not into some futuristic dystopian kind of way.

I've been thinking about this because very shortly I will be leaving my easy access to the internet behind. I will be living in a community where internet is not a priority to the majority of people who inhabit the community. Possibly more accurately, it's not an option to have in their homes. I find that for someone like myself who has so many questions the internet has been a crutch for me to be able to find answers to. I recently acquired an iPhone in order to ease the tension of being sans internet. However, it's no substitution for my computer. Also, I will not be able to catch the final season of Lost as it airs. I really enjoy that show, but at least I will be able to see it eventually.

Strangely, I'm looking forward to the challenge of not having access to the internet at all times*. I think it will be beneficial to me, to be without it. I have found that lately I have isolated myself more and more. I think it is crucial to unplug from the net and tap back into the world around me. There is so much sensory pleasures that I've missed out on due to the time I've spent indoors staring at a black lit screen.

I anticipate the challenge and possible metamorphosis that Mecca, Ca has to offer me. I'm excited about the things I will learn, and hyped about the people I will meet.

Sara
*I realize that I now have an iPhone but my network coverage isn't fantastic where I'm going. So, it's likely that I won't have my cell phone or internet to isolate myself on, in the 4 bedroom apartment that I'll be sharing with 9 other people.

Goodbye WJUSD and Hello CVHC

We finalized our project with the Woodland Joint Unified School District. I’m both saddened and relieved to move on to our next project. I will definitely miss the students and staff of Woodland, High School. I’m not so sure I will miss tutoring. Although it was rewarding, tutoring had enough frustrations that I could live my entire life never showing a student how to simplify polynomials or write a slightly better than mediocre essay. I do, however, love working with youth, just not academically. I keep emphasizing this, if you haven’t noticed. I think it’s because I do slightly enjoy working in education. It’s rewarding in some ways, but I don’t want to be a teacher. I think that teachers are important they’re necessary and they need to receive more recognition for their work. But, I do not want to spend my life in as a teacher; I have too many frustrations with education in the U.S. and I can’t imagine my life trying to work within that system. Instead, I want to work around the education system.

This project solidified my desire to create my non-profit. I feel that there is a strong need for an organization that encourages teachers to incorporate more creative projects in their curriculum. Students need to be given a chance to grow exponentially in every way possible. A way to do this is to allow students to be more creative, give them the opportunity to shine in areas that aren’t wholly academic and encourage them to have fun while doing it. Hopefully, my non-profit will come to fruition sooner than I think, but it seems to be a very distant dream.

For now, I have to focus on the present. This week is transition, the other teams are back and campus is over run with corps members. It’s nice to have everyone back, but I’m also feeling as if my space is being invaded. I do look forward to being able to hang out with friends for this next week as we participate in cross training, give presentations on our respective projects and discover more about Life After AmeriCorps. This week will most likely go by quickly as there is a lot to do, and it’s hard not to focus on what’s next.

I spent a good majority of my day today looking up Independent Service Project Opportunities in Mecca, Ca. I found about 3 pages worth of potential organizations and events to work with while my team is in Mecca, Ca for the next two months. I am hoping that my team will be able to participate in several of the events, and really become involved in the community. I’m hoping during my time in Mecca, I will be able to update at least once weekly. If I am unable, I will continue to write and post the updates whenever I get internet.

Tomorrow is our Last day in Woodland.

Tomorrow is our last day working with the Woodland Joint Unified School District. Overall my project in Woodland, Ca was relatively successful. I tutored a number of students and connected with people that I wouldn't have been able to meet otherwise. I also learned more about the education system and have a more solid foundation of what I want to do with my life. I can see a need for the non-profit that I want to start. I have increased my respect for teachers but I have decided that it's not a good profession for me personally. It is amazing what teachers have to put up with. I'm happy I was allowed a brief into the education system, and I'm even happier that it was only two months long.

I look forward to building houses in Mecca, Ca and I'm so stoked that I was chosen to be the person who gets to work in the Community Center for half the day everyday. I was picked because I was the most vocal about wanting the position, but still. It will be cool to get to work hard in the morning building houses and play hard in the afternoon with kids that range from 5-18. I was fortunate enough to be able to work on a house with Habitat for Humanity this past weekend. We framed the side of a house and me and Syd the Kid (a really awesome girl on my team), cut 179 pieces of wood. I was sore this whole week from the experience but it felt good. The great thing about building is that it’s a lot easier to measure your progress. It’s much more difficult measuring your progress in the educational system.

We’re getting kicked out so I have to go but maybe I’ll finish this tomorrow night.

The beginning of the last week in Woodland!

All right, I admit it. I'm a slacker. I'm not very good at keeping up with blogging more than once a week. It's unfortunate for me. The whole point of keeping up with this thing is so that I could look back on it and reflect on my experiences. I guess, I just have to push for this once a week business and hope that at some point my motivation to share my experience will improve.

It's hard to put this experience into words, though. I could say to you that I worked with students today in English and I taught them how to correctly cite information in an essay, but it’s likely that tomorrow those students will have forgotten how to do it. It's so hard to measure success in this program, especially when working in education. Student's grades and motivation don't improve over night, so frustration builds as students continue to make similar mistakes over time. I have to write a reflection for each round. I have posted it here:

I was probably the most excited person on Blue 4 to tutor and mentor high school students in Woodland, Ca. At the end of the project, I’m not sure that I feel the same. I had overly optimistic expectations of what the project would be like. I had envisioned myself being the Mr. Holland’s Opus kind of tutor, making a life changing impact for my students during our short time in Woodland. Looking back, I wish I wouldn’t have created grandiose expectations. I had such great anticipation for working in education that I hadn’t accounted for the possibility of apathy amongst the students. After spending an entire month with people who had come to Sacramento in order to make a difference, it was difficult to start working with students whose greatest aspiration in life was to be a street pharmacist. In the end the overall project was worthwhile as I learned a few things about myself: I don’t want to be a teacher, I only like working with kids in fun and creative environments, and there is an inherent need to create the nonprofit I wish to start.

I arrived at Woodland and was bombarded with training. As overwhelming as it was trying to keep straight the standards for essays, the proper logging method and the rest of the rules of the learning center, I managed to quickly catch on to the way the center worked. It was difficult to balance giving away the answer and teaching the student how to write, or complete math problems; I spent much of my day frustrated and annoyed. But then I would have breakthroughs. Students would remember to cite things correctly or turn a negative exponent into a fraction. Those were the moments that I really loved tutoring. The “ah-ha” moments, these moments were inconsistent and infrequent but when they happened they could erase weeks of ill feelings towards an apathetic student. I am not Mr. Holland, but I did make an impact, however small it may be. I measured my impact by the small number of students who came by to say hi to me, who started to do more work with my mere presence, and how many seemed upset that I was leaving. It wasn’t a substantial number by any means, but it was nice to have a few students who wanted me around.

Maybe next weeks post will have more information? You can only hope.

New Project and more reflection

So, I’ve been writing letters lately. Lots of letters, letters to myself, letters to friends, letters to family, letters to people, letters galore. The unfortunate thing with writing letters is that I end up not writing blogs. I justify slacking off on this blog with letter writing, because it’s “still writing”. Anyway here is an update:

My team found out our next project, we’re going to Mecca, Ca to build houses with the Coachella Valley Housing Coalition: http://www.cvhc.org. I’m looking forward to the change of pace and scenery. Mecca is a census-designated place (CDP), which means it’s too small to have a government of any kind but it’s populated enough that it has to have a name for census purposes. My team has taken to Google mapping Mecca and scoping out the town on street level. There isn’t much to the lay out of Mecca. There is a post office, a school and Sports Center. I’m excited to spend two months in a town of that size. It will definitely be a new experience.

A lot of what happens in AmeriCorps NCCC is hard to explain. Everything happens really fast and situations change so frequently it’s hard to keep up. Often times I begin to tell someone a story only to realize that the previous week I had a completely different attitude about the subject. It is sometimes jarring to be in this kind of atmosphere. But it is rewarding overall. I know in the end I will be a very flexible person. It’s hard not to go through a program like this, and not come out a changed person. I am interested in seeing the end results, but the overall process is jarring and often emotionally draining. Because we live and work so closely with each other it is hard not to get annoyed, or be excited about hanging out with each other. The problem is that everyone is on different schedules. I could be cool with one of the members on my team, but they could be upset with me or vice versa. Then there is the whole outside factor. We are often excluded from our home lives, but when we are included it’s usually for big events. Unfortunately, this past weekend a lot of people got a lot of big news, and none of it was good. These kind of scenarios play on me emotionally. I am holding up, better now than earlier this week, but this is the kind of stuff that sucks about a program like this. It’s hard to have to work long hours 5-7 days a week when you are physically, mentally, and spiritually exhausted. Fortunately, I have the fortitude to withstand these types of blows.

It’s Midnight and I have work tomorrow. Only 7 days left of school, and I have a habitat build on Saturday so that’s good news.

Take care,

Sara