Three6ix5ive's Blog
Three-hundred sixty-five days. One at a time.Archive for americorps
Day 11: State of Emergency
At the end of eleven days I have been thoroughly oriented for CCSC. My housemates and I moved last week and the corps started work two days ago at each of our respective placements.
I’m working as the assistant to the president at St. John the Baptist Outreach Center. I thought I had a good idea of what that meant and I figured I’d learn more about the programs as I went along and correct anything I was wrong about assuming. Well, so far I am mostly right on that. Anticipating a learning curve set me at ease for starting here. But as soon as I got a real phone call with a real emergency I was uneasy again, and in a major way.
About 2 or 3 hours into claiming my desk and office at St. John’s I was fielding a call from protective services about an 86 year-old diabetic man in needing to get food yesterday. He had been spending all his money on medications and only had some bread and macaroni left in his home. The fear was that he’d go into a diabetic coma before we could do anything for him. That call made emergencies real for me. The sense that what I do at my work matters in terms of life and death for others, scares the hell out of me, but somehow that fear motivates me.
Thoughts on emergency and outreach
I’ve only been at St. John’s for 3 days, but even that amount of time has given me a lot to think about with respect to the purpose, limitations, stereotypes, and nature of outreach.
**** Thoughts to come later. There are too many words and not enough minutes before I need to catch the bus****
In lieu of my reflection on outreach and social services, I will share this gem with you all. After recent fruitless minutes and hours spent in Buffalo traffic, I remembered one of my favorite sketches from the show Scratch and Burn. It was a rap sketch comedy show on MTV back in the day. Why it did not receive as much as or more acclaim than other shows like Date My Mom, I do not know. Anyway, I just wanna give it up to Scratch & Burn with this list of 50 things you can do in traffic.
- You can make phone calls
- Look at people that are in the car next to you
- You can refold maps
- You can switch CDs
- Be rearranging your keys
- Sniff the tree
- And look for change in the seats
- You can sing
- Snap
- Pray
- Stare at cars
- You can think
- Rap
- Play air guitar
- write a novel
- moon a school bus
- You could wiggle your feet
- Have your own fun wave
- You could jiggle your cheeks
- Lay
- Shave
- Or sunbathe
- Find a shape in the cloud
- And start breaking it down
- Find a pencil
- And make sure that your tape is rewound
- You could write up a sonnet
- Mend your socks
- You can fry up an omelet on the engine block
- You could be wet from knee sweat
- Plan a vacation
- Or reset your presets to Spanish stations
- Drive slow with your left foot
- Start farting and sniffing
- Try throwing shotput
- Start a petition
- Floss with yarn
- Wear a toga
- Spoof cop
- Wash the car
- Or do yoga on the rooftop
- Hang some laundry
- Siphon gas
- Graffiti the median
- Bang drums lighting fast
- Bake ziti
- Spell teedeeyum
- Cut a sunroof out
- Act sociopathic
- Write a song about things you can do in traffic
Count em!
Day 4: Tech(no) fast
The program I am in (CCSC) works around four pillars. These are community, simplicity, spirituality, and social justice. Up until about 2 days ago I thought spirituality would be the most challenging pillar for me to stay present to, but I think I am wrong. Simplicity is a tricky thing.
In my interview and essay for CCSC I defined a broad sense of simplicity as a truthful way of living with regard to those around you and a real understanding of oneself. With material simplicity (and opulence) being so relative, I figured it would help me understand better if I had a more abstract view of simple living.
Right now my fellow volunteers and I are going through a technology fast. All our cell phones and laptops are off. Neither house has a television or internet access either. But we do have a home phone (which I forget right now… but we’re in the book as CCSC and it begins with 716.8…) So far it’s been a little bit rough, but has really helped us get to know each other. It’s opened my eyes to how much I use my cell phone. aiiii. In any case, I know I’ll be happy to turn that thing back on in 40 days and I think both houses are already planning to bring TVs in October.
Simple living as a way to be more present in daily life has been a joy and pain for me. An americorps stipend is nothing to brag about, but I’m not too worried about it. My struggle is going to be staying true to that abstract definition of simplicity. I’ll keep you posted on how I do… next time I come to the library.
For those of you who want it, my address:
57 Glendal Place
Buffalo, NY 14208
Peace all,
G
Day 0
Last week I left Cedar Park and flew to Chicago to visit my brother and some friends at ND before beginning a year of service with Catholic Charities Service Corps (CCSC). It was kinda like my last stop in the old world before everything changes. The corps is located in Buffalo and takes in between 4 and 11 volunteers a year to live in intentional community, learn and practice Catholic Social Teaching, and serve the community through different volunteer positions. This year we have nine volunteers in two houses.
I landed in Buffalo yesterday morning and in about six hours an employee of Catholic Charities will come to the friend’s apartment where I’m staying and pick me and my baggage up. And I am scared as hell. Actually, it’s not as simple as that. I am excited and nervous and confused and just a little bit elated over it all. And since I signed on I’ve gone through every emotion while contemplating my circumstances. I’ve had second thoughts six or seven times. I decided to do service because of an obligation I felt in my fortune, the ability to devote a year, and because I was thinking the opportunity would be rewarding spiritually. None of that has changed and that’s the reason my second thoughts never led to the severing of the commitment.
I can’t remember this kind of tumult within me when I started college. If the anticipation is any indicator of how this year is going to go, I’m sure it will be a noteworthy one (hence the blog). In some 365 odd days I invite friends and family (and anyone with internet access and faint curiosity) to see my side of a service year. I’m going to be living on an Americorps stipend in a house with three other volunteers and working at an outreach center outside the city.
I was thinking of making some predictions for this year, but I’ll hold off. I will, however, give my first impressions and thoughts about Buffalo and service. I learned from the CCSC that Buffalo is the third poorest city in America. I was surprised by this and though I’d never been to Buffalo, I couldn’t really believe it. I assumed the most poverty-stricken cities would be those that were on the losing side of the civil war or devastated Appalachian areas. Upon arriving here I am getting a better picture of the place. Walking and driving through the city the business woman in me wants to save this place through commerce and marketing, probably foolishly. But I will try to learn more about Buffalo’s brand of poverty while I’m here.
I began to understand a little bit better the gravity of full time volunteering last week. Before I thought most of the negative opinions about the decision were born out of reluctance to accept varied ideals and a fear of anything off the conventional path. Now, I think that’s where some of those opinions come from, but I get the fear a little better. I’m thinking about people who have to tell their friends and family they’ve decided to join the military. Welcome to reluctance and fear from your loved ones, peers, total strangers. I’ve been told many things to dissuade me from signing on. I can only do so little. I’ll lose track of my goals. I won’t meet a man (and by default die old and alone). I will feel trapped. I will be in physical danger. And so on… I’ve thought about every single one of these arguments and a dozen more anxieties of my own. In the end I think the campaign to show me what a bad decision I’m making has only helped me stand more firmly in my decision. And that’s where I am now. I’m still scared like whoa, but I’m surer now where I’m standing.
