Cannons (a two-part special)

September 1st, 2010

Hello, everyone, and Happy September. It’s hard to believe that the summer months are over, though I hear that many of you back home are still in the midst of some serious humidity and heat. We’ve had some crazy weather these past few days—sometimes it’s 70 or 75 and lovely, and yesterday it was 55 and raining. This morning it rained again but now, at about 7pm, it’s much warmer and brighter. I don’t understand. The key, clothing-wise, is certainly layers. I was half-excited about the rain yesterday because I wanted to use my pretty umbrella, purchased at Milwaukee’s Bastille Days this summer, but I quickly realized that I was the only one shielding myself from the drizzle. I may as well have stamped “Transplant” on my forehead because all of the locals just put their hoods up and kept strolling. These Rain People are troopers. I must learn their ways.

The market happens every Saturday and Sunday. It's HUGE!

Portland: THE Bike City of America.

Anyway, this past weekend was packed once again. On Saturday, I had the great fortune of Skyping with Molls, which was refreshing and entertaining. I returned home to find my community ready to go to Portland’s well-known Saturday Market (which, incidentally, also occurs on Sundays). After a ride on the train, we landed ourselves at the market, which was MUCH larger than I’d expected. There were two distinct areas—one with quite a bit of “junk” and the other with some fine artisan crafts and a lot of really awesome art. Of course, we weren’t able to make any real purchases, but I did splurge and split a meal from one of Portland’s famous (and usually cheap—I think the prices were jacked up at the market) food carts. Yum. We meandered over to Stumptown, which is a coffee shop that apparently serves some pretty great drinks. I passed, saving my money instead for our next stop: Powell’s. The bookstore is seriously my Northwest Heaven. It goes on and on and on endlessly, room after room piled high with new and used books. They have everything and anything, and everything in between. I spent a whole $2, but I saw at least a few dozen books I was interested in purchasing.

A commonly photographed sign.

So pretty! Even on a chilly day.

We had a pretty chill Saturday night and then rose early on Sunday to drive to the Oregon coast, which is rocky, chilly, and gorgeous. We went to Cannon Beach, home to one of the most famous “big rocks” (see photo) in the country. It was lovely, even on an overcast day. The sun did emerge for an hour or so, long enough to warm me while I ate my lunch and chatted on blankets in the sand with my housemates. I loved strolling the beach and watching all of the families there. The beach itself reminded me a lot of San Francisco, which reminded me of parts of Chile. Conclusion: I like Pacific beaches.

Hilarious. Our faces are seriously hideous. Don't zoom.

I’ve come to believe that Oregon and Wisconsin are Sister States. On the way home, we stopped at Tillamook cheese factory, where we sampled all sorts of cheddars, some pepperjack, and a cojack. They were out of cheese curds (yes, they have those here!!) but we did treat ourselves to ice cream. I got a combined scoop of two flavors, Grandma’s Cake Batter and Huckleberry. Pretty delicious. We packed a lot in our weekend, as we have been doing lately, but that made it seem like Friday happened a long time ago, and I like that feeling! We had a community meeting on Sunday and then went to bed.

G-Sham, minus Linds (who was freezing and in the car).

Not cool, Tillamook. Not cool.

The work week has begun to feel shorter to me—or at least it has taken on some sort of rhythm now. Every Monday, an old man brings us pastry and bakery items to distribute to our clients. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, Karen, our loyal volunteer, is usually around. I’ve learned that she, like me, enjoys staying busy. She gives me papers to translate or people to call, and I watch her do various notary actions. On Wednesdays, the seniors (the “viejitos”_ have lunch and social time, and I get to eat (and sometimes play “Lotería,” similar to Bingo) with them. Fridays we make calls or have meetings or get tasks assigned to us, like helping with case notes or calls for another program.
This Friday, I’m meeting with my supervisor to create a work plan for our energy assistance program. We’re going to get our fall funding soon, which marks the beginning of our “busy season.” I have a few other random responsibilities, too, like creating the list of appointments for our Legal Aid clinic each month and calling those clients who have been scheduled. I also order office supplies and help with intakes on the monthly Dental Van days. And I have a LOT of phone calls. Each day, I found out that more things are actually my responsibility. I have plenty to do now, which is good. An empty calendar makes me nervous.

I’m starting to feel like part of the EPH community. Today I helped with a Back-to-School event and a little girl, the granddaughter of one of our seniors who comes each week, spotted me and shrieked, “Grandma! That’s my friend!” because she remembered me from the previous week. At lunch, one of the viejitos--- an altogether too flirtatious sixty-something who wears his jacket unzipped and nothing underneath (a lá Disco Days)—called to me, “Hello Wisconsin!” And the elderly man I helped the other day, who, in his cute, but stubborn/negative/defiant way was like a Latino Grandpa Wolff, sought me out personally for his requests today, as if he had decided that I am the only person in our office he’s willing to tolerate. I’m still learning everyday at EPH, but it is sort of incredible how much I am already able to do and how fast my transition has been from a useless observer in a busy office to someone with several appointments each day. My job keeps me on my toes; I helped two guys with resumes today and mediated a tenant-landlord dispute (surprisingly, my angry and firm Spanish was rolling off the tongue as I advocated for a client who had been inexplicably locked out). Tomorrow I have an energy assistance appointment. I never know what to expect, which is pretty cool.

On a different note, I decided to talk to our dear support person, Crunchy, about being a volunteer for his youth ministry program at St. Henrys. Every Sunday at Mass, I hear him plead the congregation and particularly appeal to people my age who could share their faith with the teens. I waited to see what my schedule felt like but have decided that I can commit to the Wednesday night sessions youth ministry does each week. I am really excited, and so is he, so I’ll keep you posted on that.

Time to go. Crunchy and Margaret, our esteemed dinner guests, have arrived!

Special shout-outs to:

Beth Mueller: Happy Birthday! (And a belated one to Alex, too!)
Molly: for ripping open your cadaver. I’m proud of you, you B.A. Koala you.
Britt: Good luck on your first day of classes in Spain!
Aunt Peg and Aunt Vic: for your lovely mid-week emails. They brighten my day!

And love to each of you.

Amanda


Cannons (Pt. II)

September 3, 2010

I wrote that first part while on the roof before dinner on Wednesday, so I wasn’t able to publish it immediately. I thought I’d make this a two-part special and add a bit to this entry before I publish that one.

Today is Friday. Yay. We are leaving for Seattle after everyone gets home from work. We’re headed to the Northwest’s major metropolis for the weekend to celebrate Labor Day at another JV house, where we’ll also be spending tonight and tomorrow night (the evening of the party). I’m excited to visit Seattle again, especially the Pike Place Market, which I loved last time I was in the city. It will also be nice to see other communities. Beth will be there, along with many other JV houses from the area. We’re lucky that we have a car from our house headed there and were also able to snag two spots in Crunchy’s car because, as luck would have it, he and Margaret are headed that way too. We’re also staying on Baimbridge Island, accessible from the city by ferry, at Daniel’s house on Sunday evening. I’m also excited for that little detour. All in all, it sounds like a promising Labor Day weekend, and there’s always the four-day work week to be excited about as well.

Full house! Free show!

Anyone who knows me knows this made my week.

Last night after work, I rushed home to grab the pasta salad Linds and I had made the night before (after a long dinner with our guests annnd doing dishes because it was my night!). The salad was beautiful, thanks mostly to Mom’s delicious home-made pesto, which she sent to me! I grabbed the pasta salad, the polenta from the night before, and the watermelon, and I speed-walked to the train stop about ten minutes from our house and caught the blue line to Portland. There, I made my way to the waterfront park and found Jenna, Daniel, and Linds. We settled in, enjoyed our picnic, and were treated to a FREE concert by the Oregon Symphony Orchestra, complete with a
cameo from the Portland ballet (a “Sleeping Beauty” number) and the 1812 Overture as a finale, accompanied by cannons and a fireworks show! It was a beautiful, beautiful evening. I’m so glad I was able to make it to the city after work—and I’m so grateful for free shows in the park!

I’m on my lunch hour and it’s sunny and HOT outside, so I’m going to get out of this café and into the sunshine for a few minutes. I need my daily dose of Vitamin D while I can still get it naturally!

Have a restful Labor Day weekend!

Shout outs to:

Katharine and Diesel: I thought of you about a million times during the symphony.

Colleen’s mom, for sending us really delicious desserts this week.

Seattle: here we come!

Love,

Amanda