Hello All!!! As usual I hope all is going well and that you enjoyed the rest of your summer! I can't believe that fall is already here, and yet I still don't even notice it!! Its still hot as all get out down here in good ol' Louisiana. I just realized how long it had been since my entry into my blog, so I thought I would give it a little update.
Well since I didn't post an entry for the end of my third round I'll let you know about that, then tell you about what I've been up to for my fourth project so far.
The last three weeks in Thibodaux were really good,but difficult. It was particulary hot and humid those last couple of weeks, so I even non-physically intense work was. My teammate Kellyn and I for some reason got stuck on trash duth A LOT!! Those last two weeks they were having volunteers going around picking up the site just about everyday!! It needed it though because if it was only cleaned once a week like it started out, oh man!! We were good at it though, because we were filling up at least a whole dumpster everyday we did it!! Just the two of us tooling around on a four wheeler with a trailer behind it being the trash bitches if you will. However we did get to do other things too. Probably the best thing though(and I can't believe I'm about to say this) was when we got to clean the completed houses!! I'm talking washing windows, mopping floors, that kind of stuff. The reason why it was so cool though was because we got to work with a great married couple named Sheryl and Steve. They lost their other business to Katrina, and decided it would be best to start a new one. They put out fliers to various business/churces and the head project manager,Chris, saw their flier and hired them to come and clean/prep the homes.
I'm telling you these people are just amazing!! They are some of the nicest people I have ever met in my life hands down!! They really embrace the 'southern hospitality' philosophy. After working with them for only a few days they invited my team and I over to their home for dinner!! They treated us so nice, and made some great food too!! I got to have gumbo for my first time, which was awesome! Funny thing about that; apparently people in that area prefer to eat thier gumbo with a scoop of potato salad in the middle of it! It sounds a little unusual I know, but it helps to offset some of the spiciness. It was so good, and after dinner they invited us to watch a movie on their flat screen plasma tv!! Oh yes it was awesome!! Oh I should mention that they have a GORGEOUS house too. Mom, I'm telling you these people have your dream kitchen! It was so crazy though because I didn't realize just how much they like us until a few days before we left. They were at the work site, and they said their good-bye's to us, and they were crying!! It was like we were their adopted kids or something. Especially for Sheryl because she never had any children of her own. I tell you it was so hard saying goodbye to them, Charlie, and Delvin. I never knew just how attached they had got to us until we left. Delvin gave us all a little gift to which was really nice. The girls got these nice bracelets from Dillards(Marshall Fields equivalent), and the guys got these cool mugs that say 'Honorary Cajun' with an explanation as to what that entails. Unfortunately mine broke on the way to Camp Hope . Ah well, it was the thought that count.
So yeah thats what happened with that. Oh, and over our transition we got to go to Pensacola,FL!!! It was so great because we all chipped in $55 for a hotel room that was right on the beachfront!! It was so nice. I'm telling you three days of lounging in the sun is good times!! We really didn't do a whole lot though because the area was unbelievably touristy, so we mostly just hung out on the beach. It was a good time though. After Pensacola we had to go to Mississippi for five days and stay at Camp Iti Kana. Its a girl scout camp that some other Perry Point AmeriCorps teams have worked at for their project. The lady who owns it is really nice, and in exchange for staying there we only had to do two days worth of labor(the other days we were working on transition paper work, etc.) It was cool, and I got to literally blaze a trail for the camp which was pretty sweet. Hard work and it was really hot out that day. However I did get to use a chainsaw, so I was pretty psyched about that.
Then those five days came and went and now I'am in Violet, LA where Camp Hope is located. Violet is a "suburb" if you will, of New Orleans. It was severly damaged by the flooding, and we are here gutting homes. Well, I should say I am here gutting homes. Some of my teammates are doing this, but others are doing other jobs on the camp. See, the way the camp is set up is that it is run by various orginizations who work together to keep it going. Mainly it is run/funded by Habitat for Humanity. It is also partially funded/run by St. Bernard Parish government. Finally you have us proud AmeriCorps NCCC'ers who helped to not only build the camp, but also run its day to day operations. There are six different areas of the camp you can work in. We sort of got to choose what we wanted, but not really. See what we did when we got here was give our Team Leaders our top two choices of what we wanted to do for a job, and then based on number of volunteers coming here, and other various factors, would determine what you get. Mostly you do get what you want, but not always. Its more about where the need is. Luckily I got to be what is called a 'bus captain.' Bus captains are people like myself who take various groups of volunteers who come here to gut homes. We are responsible for making sure all the volunteers are following all the safety procedures, and have all the supplies/materials they need. Also, say if we are gutting a home, and someone finds firearms/ammunition, or a snake, or there is something unsafe about the home that would prevent us from doing our work, then I'll be the one to call opps(Operations), and they will handle the situation.
So far I'am on my second week of training. You really don't need two weeks of training, but they just have so few volunteers and so many AmeriCorps. To much supply, not enough demand I guess. Hopefully we will get more volunteers coming in though. I'm not going to be holding my breath or anything, but I do hope things will turn around. It's odd because it seems like everybody has just gotten really apathetic to the need of the residents down here. I mean I know people have lives, and its really hard to get time off from work, school, or just life in general. But its still really sad just how few people are here. Whats even more sad is that we've had people come and volunteer here from OTHER COUNTRIES!! Yet our own citizens are not even willing to come and give some of their time/energies. I'm sorry I just had a little tangent there. I'll stop now I promise!
So anyways I'm really hoping that everything is going well for all of you, and I can not wait to see you all in November. You know when I was reading over my last entry I had made it on July 27th!! Its now September 14th!! Time is just so absolutely crazy like that. Must mean that I'am having fun I guess! Well take care and I love you all!!



Ryan

While I can't believe I'am actually about to type this, it is true. I am into my fifth of my eight week stint here in Thibodaux, LA. Its so crazy becasue I feel like I just arrived here. Yet already so much has happened, but I'm still having a blast. So, for all of my adoring fans out there(for any of you who actually read this, START LEAVING ME MESSAGES!!!) Anyway, here's a little nutshell version of whats been going on since my last entry into the blog.
As of this point we are on the verge of completing the construction of 28 homes to be given to the ever eager and wonderful partner families. So far we have done things such as siding, roofing, framing, installing windows/doors, insulation, painting, and other various tasks. It has not been an easy project though. We have been working in very hot/humid temperatures day in/day out for the past five weeks, until this week. Thankfully this week we got a break from the heat thanks to a cold front that has moved over us. Unfortunately with that cold front came large amounts of rain! This rain has subsequently turned our construction sight into a giant mudpit However, my teammates and I discovered yesterday that this can have some advantages; a.k.a. mud wrestling. Yes, thats right I got into an all out mud wrestling with some of my fellow teammates. It was so much fun because it was a nice way to let out some pent up energy from the day. Also, we saw a group of high school volunteers playing in it earlier, and it was so tempting to join them. Alas, we had to finish our workday. We got to have our fun though, and man was it awesome!!! I had such a great time, and the afteraffects were so worth it. Granted I still have some mud in my hair, but its so worth it!!
Also I have had some great couple of weekends in New Orleans partying it up on Bourbon St!! For any of my family members out there reading this I'll keep it some what PG rated. In fact I'll done one better, and just say that I had a great time. Its a great place to go to see some crazy, bizarre, and unusual stuff.
So other than that not a whole lot has been going on. I'am getting really anxious to see all of you again, and I hope that I will be able to have some quality time with all of you when I get back home. November seems just too far away, but something tells me that it will be here before I know it. As always I wish you all the best, and I hope that you are all having a great summer, and enjoying your time doing what you love!! Take care and I'll see you all soon!!



Ryan

Hey everyone!!

Right now its almost the two week mark since we have been in Thibodaux!! Its so crazy to think that our project is already almost a quarter over, but at the same time we still have six weeks left. I feel like the time is going to go by so fast, but I know I'm also really going to enjoy it. So far I have done a multitude of tasks including siding, pre-fab work, insulation, and other things. Its been hot as all get out down here, but thats only to be expected.
The Habitat for Humanity staff is so cool, and they have been so good to us. Everyday when we are working they come around and distribute water, snacks, and other stuff to help keep us hydrated and energy levels up. They also provide us with lunch, and the occasional supper. It usually just depends on how many volunteers are here.
We recently just completed the "Bayou Blitz Build". We(and by we I mean only some of our team. Most of them opted out to take the weekend off rather than work) spent the Fourth of July weekend building four five houses in four days!! It was so intense, but it was a lot of fun too. Now, when I say build what I mean is that we actually framed, and did all of the exterior work on the homes. Most of the interior work on the homes are done by sub-contractors that Habitat hired. They don't normally do this, but since they have a large goal, and not a lot of time to do it in, they needed reinforcments. Its really cool though because I'm still learning a lot about construction.
Oh, and the coolest freakin thing happened the other day!! Habitat had these tickets reserved to a Faith Hill/Tim McGraw concert and most of my teammates got to go!! The others just decided not too, but oh well. It was so cool, because we had ground floor seats!! At one point I was practically at the front of the stage!! It was really awesome, and the music was really good. It was a really nice gesture of them, especially seeing as how the tickets cost $60 a pop!!
So yeah the work has been really good, and I'm really enjoying myself down here. However I'am also looking forward to some well deserved R/R. I've been working for two weeks straight, and on very little sleep I might add (I think this week I was averaging about 4 hours of sleep a night!) I know it was self-inflicted but still. Regardless of I have met so many wonderful people, and already have made some new friends. Well, its getting late, but I just wanted to give you all a little update. As always I hope everything is going well, and I wish you all the best!!



Ryan

Hello everyone!!
As usual I hope all is going well for all of you. I was just sitting here on a a day after work and thought "Time to update the blog again!!"
My third round project I'm spending in the historic and small, but nice town of Thibodaux, LA. Its actually not that small however. Its around 15,000 people, with a few other smaller surrounding communities. Our project is to work with the Bayou Area Habitat for Humanity project. This Habitat project was set up back in January with the intention of building 50+ houses for those who lost their homes in Hurricane Katrina. We arrived here on Saturday, the 24th, and got a very warm introduction by the volunteer coordinator. Unfortunately there was another AmeriCorps team still here from the Sacramento campus, and they were not planning on vacating the house we were to be living in until Monday. It was fine though because there was another available volunteer house that we just crashed in until they left. It was cool because we got to meet some other great A folks, and chat with them about their experiences. They actually were heading back to their campus to graduate. It was so weird to think, "Wow, that could have been us!!" Luckily we still have another awesome five months, so its all good. Its probably going to go by much faster than I anticipate, but I'm still going to enjoy every moment I've got here.
So anyways about the actual purpose as to why we are here. We are going to be living and working on the Habitat site for the next eight weeks helping them to build these homes, and hopefully help them reach their goal by the December deadline they have set for themselves. Its a pretty big task, but with all the volunteers and supplies they have, I'm sure they'll do just fine. Oh, and the even cooler thing about this whole project, some of the homes being built are being funded by Harpo Productions, aka Oprah Winfrey!! Which means that sometime in early August Oprah is supposedly going to be shooting a TV special down here along with Bon Jovi. So for all of my loving family/friends out there you just might be seeing me on the A on Oprah in the not to distant future. It would be awesome exposure for our program, and it would just be a cool thing in its own right too.
So far though I've been having an awesome time working here. I've met some really great people who are down here volunteering, and the Habitat staff is great. During the day they provide all volunteers with coolers of ice water at every work site, and snacks/lunch too. They are really a great organization to work for because they really treat there volunteers really well. If you ever get a chance to work with them in the future I highly recommend you do it.
So as you can see things are going really well so far. I'm having a nice time enjoying all of this wonderful southern hospitality, and the culture of the area. I hope all is going well with all of you back home, and I really hope that you will keep in touch. Please feel free to send me an email or call me anytime you want. If any of you don't have my email, its fole0137@metnet.edu. My phone is 651-329-7371, and if call and I don't answer, just leave a voice message and I'll get back to you ASAP. Take care everyone and I'll try to keep this as updated as best I can.



Ryan

So this is it folks. As of today I only have three more days in Yonkers, and then it's back to the Point for transition. It has been an amazing six weeks, and I have done/seen so much, and yet I feel like I only just arrived. Well, in any case, rather than dragging this out forever about all thats happened, I'll do something a little different. I'm going to post a TOP 10 of what I learned in this round, so as to give you a pretty good idea of just what this round was all about.

TOP 10 THINGS I LEARNED IN ROUND 2 IN YONKERS, NY:

10.) Adam Sandler has a Puerto Rican twin named Ralph Herrera who works right here at St.Christophers!!

9.) Turns out that even with 70+ channels of T.V. to watch, I still can not find anything good on T.V.

8.) If you want to find out about the really fun things to do in NYC, don't ask information booths, ask people who live there.

7.) Yonkers is a very...diverse city in which if you can speak Spanish, it helps out a lot!!

6.) Not all people in the city are rude and mean to tourists. In fact for the most part they can be kind and helpful, you just have to ask first.

5.) Turns out that most of the concerns people have with environmental problems like toxic waste, clean water etc. really are not the biggest problems we have with the environment.

4.) Invasive species suck!! Always plant native plants in your homes/gardens whenever you can!!

3.) Do not go to TGI Friday's in Times Square. Its a freakin rip off!!

2.) Transvestites/cross dressers are really fun people who just choose to 'project' themselves to the world in a different way.

1.) Nothing is what it seems to be. Never assume you know about someone until you've actually gotten to know them first.

So there you have it folks!! The six weeks of experience here boiled down into ten convienent tid bits of info. I hope you've enjoyed, and I'll be seeing you all soon!!



Ryan