SPIKE Announcements (Rounds One and Two)

This is quite a bit overdue, but I'll do my best.

Blue One's Spike One

For Blue One's first spike (11/14-12/19/13), we went to Calabasas, CA to work with the Mountains Restoration Trust (MRT) on an environmental stewardship project. We lived for 2 weeks in Malibu Creek State Park (MCSP), then for 11 days in Mt. Crags Camp, and the last 6 days we were back to camping in MCSP. Our Team Leader (TL) got her own tent, the 6 women lived in an 8 person tent, the boys were able to double up and each pair had their own 2 person tent. We cooked using a propane grill or an open fire at the camp site. At the Salvation Army Cabins, we had a full kitchen and slept 4 to a room. For MRT, we planted native plant species, removed invasive plant species (I now have a permanent vendetta against Smilo and Euphorbia), and set traps for, sexed, sized, and caught Louisiana Cray Fish (no, we did not get to eat the Cray Fish). We were definitely under prepared for the weather - we had been told that "It never gets cold in Southern California!" so consistently that a few members on the team did not bring their Ameri-sweatshirt, any Ameri-long sleeve t's, or full length BDUs. In fact, some of us were even lacking in long pants to sleep in. This was a critical error because we were living in the coldest part of Southern California due to the valley we were camping in at MCSP. Overall, we had an amazing time.

Blue One's Spike Two

The announcement for our second spike came early in December. Our TL set up a murder mystery for us to figure out our next location (Kestrel and Holly both thought she was just being creative, but Mira and I knew that it had to be reveal day). For our second spike (1/13-3/21/14), Blue One will be going to Vashon Island, WA to work for Camp Sealth - Camp Fire Central Pugent Sound on another environmental conservation project! Vashon Island is only a ferry ride away from Seattle, WA where most of the members of Blue One plan to visit at some point on Spike. We'll be living in cabins with kitchens and heat, which will be a lovely upgrade from camping in Malibu Creek State Park. For Camp Sealth, Blue One will be repairing 6 miles of trail, building new structures (including a recycling shed, outhouses, footbridges, water bars, and drainage ditches), assisting with reforestation work, and overhauling various facilities. Blue One is excited to learn more about Vashon Island and Washington state. This will be an exciting project and after break, we will be more than ready to start getting things done, once again, for America.

Catalina and CCC Composite Spike Two

This would be a good time to explain that I won't be going with Blue One to Vashon Island, WA. After an application and interview process, I was selected to be on a Composite Team for Round Two. I will not be with my team for the entirety of Round Two, which includes transition training. Instead, I will be joining my new Team Leader, DuVale, and 8 other Ameri-People from the 4 AmeriCorps NCCC Pacific Region Units for a 10-week split round project. I applied for this Composite Team because I know I want to go back to school for engineering/environmental science, but I am still trying to pick a specific (hopefully job producing) major.


From 1/15-2/26/14, I'll be camping on Catalina Island doing trail work, invasive species removal, and native species planting  as well as supporting the native plant nursery for the Catalina Island Conservatory. From 2/27-3/21/14, I'll be doing storm water management and water conservation with the California Conservation Corps while I live in CCC Dorms, located in San Luis Obispo. I'm very excited to partake on this adventure with this Composite Team and to meet the challenges that will arise. 

Veteran's Day (of Service), 11/11/13

This year for Veteran's Day, I was able to join Blue One in another wonderful day of service before SPIKE to get more things done for America ('MURICA!). We were able to rehab the baseball field at the George Sim Community Center. Specifically, we worked on that Matt Cain Junior Giants Field and had a great time doing so.

Mira and I getting it done

Graham and Ryan fixing the diamond

Mira and I handled scraping the backboard, while Holly, Antonyo, ChiChi, Rachael, and Kestrel helped paint. But that was not before ChiChi and Kestrel raked leaves and weed. Toya also helped with leaves and weeding. Graham and Ryan helped with fixing the baseball diamond, and I joined them after finishing paint scraping when we ran out of rollers. Frank got his hands on some powertools, and we pulled together again for another wonderfully successful day. More pictures of our eventful day can be found here.

This was our second time really working together as a team, but now we had the added bonus of getting through C(orps members) T(raining) I(nstitute). Our official induction date was 11/14/13, and with only three days left of training (most of which was specialty role training), Blue One was more than prepared to start functioning as a unit. We had diversity training day, which bonded us on several levels - and goddamn was that an emotional day. Between the ridiculousness of lunch time (ahem, ChiChi jumping in bed with me, Holly, and Kestrel whaaat!?) and the powerful topics covered professionally and exquisitely by the two presenters, it was a really positive turning point for the team. The next day we had alcohol and sex education day, which showed the low levels of patience the team could have, but we made the best of it nonetheless. We also had our Red Cross CPR/First Aid/AED training, and first responder disaster training that week. It was necessary training for sure, and we all enjoyed a lovely nap in the sun during lunch both days. Hands of Peace training was another day of bonding for the team, and we made our Team Charter, which is our "living document" of team standards. CTI was intense, and condensed, because of the Government Shutdown, still somehow we always found ways to make the best out of every situation. Should've known then that Blue One was going to become my family away from home, on way too many levels.

Blue One after a hard day!

On Veteran's Day, it's difficult to not think about my grandfathers, both of whom served in World War Two. My father's father, Pop-Pop as all of his 9 grandchildren called him, served in the Battle of the Bulge. My mother's father, Grandpa as his only 2 grandchildren called him, served as a Sergeant in Italy. My mother still says phrases to my brother and I, bestowed upon her by her father when he was raising her (Let me hear your feet hit the floor! Good enough for government work!). Both men worked hard after the war for their families and I miss them both every single day. I often wonder what they would think if they were here to see me graduate from a 4 year university with high honors, and now with me running around the country with AmeriCorps. Oftentimes, I still feel like they're with me, keeping me safe, leading me in the right direction. I was more than happy to do service work on a day meant to celebrate the veterans of this country, and all the people they've impacted along the way.

How Can YOU Follow Blue One?

Just like our Facebook Page silly :)

Photo Cred: The Amazing Mira Pearce

If You're Going to San Francisco, be Sure to Wear Some Flowers in Your Hair

Being able to visit San Francisco with a few of my teammates is a weekend I am always going to remember. For anyone who wants to do Americorps NCCC, the most significant benefit I can express to you is the ability to travel to places you've never been before. Considering I've never left the East Coast, even being in Sacramento, CA was a shock to the system.

But after visiting San Fran? I've been able to cross something off my bucket list. I was able to stay the night with Graham, Frank, Ryan, and Mira - but the struggle to get there was one for the record books. As you can tell by my lovely text message to my best friend at home, Mira and I had to make some serious moves to get ourselves to San Fran.

As soon as we arrived at Pier 39, we enjoyed the best crepes I've ever eaten, fell in love, met up with the boys, and listened to the soothing sounds of sea lions. After a relaxing and hysterical evening in the hotel, we ate at Peter D's - the best little dinner in downtown SF (just ask Ryan who is STILL talking about the waffle he ate there). Followed by a trip to the Golden Gate Bridge, getting lost a few times, accidentally finding the Palace of Fine Arts, and getting back to Pier 39 to end our perfect day. And by end our perfect day, I mean, eat award winning Clam Chowder at the Fisherman's 9th Grotto, visiting the World War II exhibit, and once again enjoy the sea lions (just in the day time). Oh, did I mention yet that Mira got her nose pierced on the boardwalk after the boys left for the MegaBus? They leave us alone for 10 minutes and she gets a piercing - we just can't be trusted.

If you asked me a year ago if I thought I'd be in CA, I would have said no. Sacramento? No. San Francisco? No. This program has already affirmed my wanderlust, which was once a concept and is now a reality. There is so much to see and do and learn. So much to experience and live and be spontaneous about. There is so much life to be excited for. Cheers San Fran, I'll be seeing you soon again (hell, I still have to visit the Red Wood Forest).

Make A Difference Day, 2013

What an amazing, but equally crazy day.

We moved onto campus on October 24th, and had barely met each other before it was time to pull together and start getting things done for America.

Blue One, deciding what signs to throw

Make a Difference Day 2013 was on October 26th and this truly could have been a mess. Not only were we still getting to know each other as people, but trying to learn each other's work ethic at the same time? That's a pretty heavy challenge - but Blue One definitely faced it beautifully.

We spent the day beautifying and cleaning a community garden in Sacramento, CA. The people we met were really inspiring. There was the master gardener, who told us which plants to pull and which plants to crossbreed. Her garden was stunning and her advice was really necessary while we were cleaning up. (I had no idea that tomatoes could be kept in a brown paper bag to help them ripen). Next was the hard working woman who knew all about the gardens - which ones to be fully pulled, fully weeded, and why. I will say that the condition of your life reflects heavily on the condition of your garden.

Leading with love and sass

But the most inspiring people we met, was the couple running the garden. Both of them could easily be in their 70s, and the husband was doing difficult lifting and digging right along side of us. His wife, who has one of the heaviest accents I have ever heard, ran the show. She knew everything that was happening in the garden, who has what plot, who was going to have a plot next season. She definitely kept us moving and assigned us a wide variety of tasks to complete. We were up and on our feet for the whole day.

As our first real team effort, I'd call this a great success and a step in the right direction for all of us.

17 Days Later, How Exactly did I end up in California?

October 24, 2013

The official word from the Pro-Staff of the Facebook page!

I am glad to report that I officially made it to the NCCC Pacific Region Campus on Thursday, October 24th. The excitement I felt when I found out that the Government Shutdown had finally ended is indescribable. I was ecstatic, as I could finally go to start my new life in California! I immediately started the intense process of packing. I have never been more grateful that I had donated so many clothes at the beginning of the summer than during my packing process - and even so, I still had too many clothes to fit into my duffel bag! I suppose the biggest part of the struggle was the fact that I had to pack for all four seasons. Perhaps if I had any idea of the places I'd be going to on SPIKE then I could have more effectively packed, instead I had to decide what was "most important" to get me comfortably covered for all elements of weather. 45 pounds of clothing later, and I was ready to head to JFK airport in NY to leave for Cali.

But not before one last dinner with my best friend, Kourtney, and my parents. I cried.

Saying goodby to my parents and my brother was a very surreal experience. The furthest I've ever been from any of them was my week long vacation to Florida, where I was with 7 other females (3 of whom are my best friends). This is my first grown woman, traveling alone experience, but I really can't thank my brother enough for carrying my bag and helping me navigate the check in process.

Plane tickets and pictures from the trip to San Fran

I was surprised to see so many Ameri-People in the airport! We were rolling 12 people deep, but I was a little disappointed that I didn't meet anyone from Blue One (my team). I slept for most of the plane ride to San Francisco International Airport, but I did have the pleasure of sitting next to two very inspirational people who got to talking to each other. The man had a wife and children, and had fallen flat on his face twice so far. This is his third time rebuilding. During the housing crisis in the early 2000's, his mortgage company fell out. Then he started a contracting company, which fell out after Hurricane Sandy. Now? He's working for an solar energy company in San Francisco. This was his fourth time traveling to the city. He attributed most of his success to his family, as they are the reason he had to continually pick himself up and dust himself off after financial disaster. The power of will-power. The woman was from Britain and had blown through her loan ceiling. She couldn't get anymore loans for school and couldn't afford it. She had been in the United States, and had a very serious relationship prior to returning to London, where she slept on floors of friends and family for the past year. She has an 18 day VISA to spend her time with her significant other and try to pick herself up. Her positive attitude and realistic view of her situation made her story even more compelling. I hope the best works out for her and her significant other.

People come into your life for a reason; so while I got a lesson of the importance of self-improvement, drive, dedication, and perseverance, I was met with a pretty serious complication once landing in San Fran: our flight to Sacramento was cancelled.

The 12 of us were able to go on our first mission: Operation Get To NCCC.

Luckily, the airport was working with us and while some of us called the appropriate professional staff on campus, the rest of us found food, found the man in charge of operation get to Sacramento Airport (a side operation of get to NCCC), and find some common ground while learning about each other. We took our first ride in a 15 passenger van (but not our last) and went off to Sacramento Airport where we would meet up with our Americorps Representatives. I met Alex, from Connecticut who seemed like a pretty hilarious dude. And there was that man from TKE. Damian, from NY. Jake, the leader of Nerd Hall and a returner to NCCC. Sean, the 24 year old. NayNay from Brooklyn. And many other wonderful humans who I cannot remember the names of (this has been a travesty my entire life).

Arriving to the McClellan Airfore Base and NCCC Pacific Region headquarters filled me both with a sense of relief and anxiety. The next chapter in my life has officially started, now I've just got to fill the pages.

Let's Make Something Clear

As of right now, I am not going to California. We have been delayed since the start of the shutdown, which began on October 1st. It's day 11 and talks have finally started. I understand that as an employee of the government, I am not allowed to express my "bleeding-heart-liberal" views as this continues. I do want to say that I am frustrated with the furlough. I've been depressed at home considering that a program I was depending on for funding, housing, food, transportation, and loan relief may not be able to operate when this is all said and done. I'm angry that this issue has not been resolved sooner and that it all appears to be over the Affordable Care Act. I am not the biggest fan of the Affordable Care Act, but as it was passed in the Senate, the House, and the Supreme Court, it is already being rolled out. I am also extremely disappointed that just because the Tea Party Representatives in the House do not "like" the Affordable Care Act, they can hold almost a million jobs hostage to try to force their agenda.

Okay, I guess I'm not good with keeping my opinions to myself.

Americorps funding could be cut or canceled. If the shutdown lasts too long, we will be unable to meet our 1,700 hours of community service and Class XX will be shut down in Sacramento and Denver. We could be placed in other classes, but I cannot wait until February and even if I did accept the position at another campus in February, I would fall out of line with college enrollment. After 4 years of being an English major (three of those being English Education), I have finally realized that what I want to do is be an Environmental Engineer. That requires going back to school for a second bachelors degree, which also means I won't be receiving much government aid and I'll have to take those big, bad private loans - which I am not comfortable just jumping right into. So here I am, $40,000 in debt and wondering what I am actually going to do with my life. Americorps was giving me a chance I wouldn't have otherwise.

With that being said, here are some articles and videos that may help anyone reading this blog not only understand how important Americorps is (as the VISTA members are also suffering dearly), but how frustrating living in limbo is as a furloughed employee. Here's hoping this ends before the 17th, when the financial situation really hits crisis.

Americorps Training Stalled by Shutdown, Huffington Post

Senator Elizabeth Warren Voices Her Passionate Assessment of the Shutdown, Upworthy

Making Americorps Cool (Stories About the True Impact of Americorps Volunteers), Buzzfeed

VISTA Members Living in Poverty, The Nation

After 20 Years, Americorps Still Needs Support, The Daily Beast

Some "Essential" Functions of the Government That Might Upset You, Huffington Post

People are More Like Gardens

11 Days Until Liftoff. 

Somewhere during my senior year of college, I began to take this stance of "no excuses." There was no excuse to get my work done, and therefore, there is no excuse from anyone else that would be acceptable. I suppose that might be what happens when I lost a friend from middle school, worked two ResEd jobs, had a full time internship, and I was still a full-time student. My first post also spoke about those accomplishments, but really, I just spent a lot of time pushing myself through the end. College is like a four year marathon and now I'm breathless.

So, while I took up this "No Excuses" stance, I forgot my number one rule: People are beautiful because of all the reasons they're not "perfect" (and not being perfect, means there are exceptions to my college completing rule). People are beautiful for their baggage, their stories, their mistakes. They're eccentric and exciting because of their interests and regions and skills. They're outstanding for every difficulty they've overcome. As an extrovert, I must believe that people are excellent.

People are like gardens. The person standing in front of you is the day's crop, the day's flowers, the day's well-maintained backyard. Of course, there are roots underneath. Each year, each important event creates a new root - new addition is made. While this may seem elementary as a metaphor, it's my way of justifying what is classified as immoral, inappropriate, violent human behavior. Somewhere along the line, an event occurred and the garden wasn't as pure anymore - it's not so well maintained, now there are weeds and no one comes to take care of the garden anymore. There is always the option to come back to your garden, to take care of yourself again, but not everyone is ready go back.

So, how does this apply to Americorps? If I said I wasn't nervous and anxious about meeting new people and making friends, I actually wouldn't be able to make it through the damn sentence as it is such a lie. I get nervous reading the Facebook page, I get nervous thinking about the plane, I get anxious thinking about being away from my blood-relatives and self-made-family-of-friends for the first time in my life. Sure, MSU wasn't my house, but it was still NJ. So, here I am, and I have a choice: Do I leave the garden untended? Do I let the doubts and worries grow in light of the "no excuses" policy? Or do I go back to the garden, get some fresh air, and get to work remembering what I like so much about talking to people?

It's high time for new stories to listen to and to grow a new section of memories in my life. I have a choice, and for 11 more days until liftoff I'm staying positive. 

30 Days to go? Maybe I Should be Honest With Myself

“You're never as good as everyone tells you when you win, and you're never as bad as they say when you lose” - Lou Holtz

With only 30 more days to go, I think it's important to stop and acknowledge whether I've made any progress on the goals I set at the beginning of the summer.

In June, I said I would lose 30 pounds (in addition to the 19 I had already lost) before California, I'd be running everyday and I'd be down to a 10-minute mile. I'd be lifting, I'd have my room clean by September, and I'd have read at least 5 books. Let's discuss.

I've lost 7 pounds. That brings my grand total of weight loss to 26 pounds since I hit my heaviest weight at the end of my junior year. I've been maintaining my weight for almost a month - I'm going to be honest and say maintain and not plateau because I don't necessarily think I've been giving this whole thing the good old college try since camp ended on August 16th. I've ran twice on the pavement since receiving my knee brace the first week of August. Twice. I brought my time from a 15-minute-mile to a 13-minute-mile, but I've only gone twice.

As a side note, I've dislocated my kneecap 3 times and I am not athletically inclined. Years of being teased out of dance, sports, and orchestra left me to theatre in high school, where I was shut down about my singing and dancing. So, here I am: believing I am relatively talentless and extremely uncoordinated. The injuries don't help - hearing the voices of people who have since forgotten what they said to me when I am running is also a mountainous hindrance. All things that I'll have to get over during the hour long group PT I'll be doing 5 times a week starting in 30 days (maybe I should dust off the running shoes?).

The lifting has stuck. I enjoy lifting and I'm already seeing results. That feels great. My room is a mess, my mother will attest to that as most of my possessions are not only clogging up the hallway, but also taking over the house. She'll miss me, but not my stuff. As for my books? I've read one. One hilarious book that while necessary for my mental health and relaxation, did not challenge me in anyway. I feel in some way that I have disappointed my English professors with this fact - I'll get back to challenging literature soon, I promise.

So it sounds like I didn't do a lot and I let myself down in a lot of my goals, but it's not like I've done nothing and I still have 30 days. A lot can happen in 30 days, I've just got to be honest with myself.

Sometime in March I Received a Mysterious Email

I applied for Americorps NCCC at the end of January after speaking to two Americorps Team Leaders. When I applied, I was interning (almost) full time at the Volunteer Center of Bergen County and working two jobs through Montclair State University Residential Education and Services department (Community Assistant [aka RA] and Service Assistant [aka desk slave]). I was also a full time student in my last semester at Montclair State, maintaining my GPA of 3.89 as an English major and Philosophy and Women & Gender Studies minors. I also had a stint being a Education major, but I dropped that the summer before my senior year. Oh, and I was on senior status in my sorority.

Wait, let's start over, I sound boring and really serious. So, while I am really serious about my work (I'm sure there will be more stories at some point), I also like to have fun (no, really, I'm serious about that...wait, here I go with being serious again).

Back to my point, rewind to early January and I'm working over winter break as an SA while the Americorps teams from Sacramento are moving into Bohn Hall to help in Little Ferry and Moonachie for disaster relief (because of my internship site, which was so cool to find out the first day there). I had the pleasure of talking to the Team Leaders from Americorps NCCC Class XIX, Green 6 (Kim) and Americorps NCCC Class XIX, Green 5 (Taylor). I cannot thank them enough for all of their kind words and encouragement - and a special shout out to Liz from New York, who might have been my sister in another life.

Three months later, I was sitting in the front office of the VCBC, working through Spring Break, when I received an email from Americorps NCCC. I shrugged this off immediately because (1) I had already been receiving mysterious emails telling me that my status had changed, go to my page to see, and then I would go to my page and there would be no change AND (2) I had already figured out that I would not be notified of an acceptance into the program until mid-May, close to when I would be graduating. You must imagine my shock when the email actually contained this:

So, I started screaming and crying and called my parents, because that seemed appropriate. 

This has been my dream since the start of my Junior year at Montclair - I started by looking into the Peace Corps, and with much coaxing from my mother, turned to Americorps as my in-state alternative. I had been reading about, talking about, and dreaming about getting accepted for so long that I didn't think it would actually be a possibility: but here I am. I'm 48 days away from Americorps. 48 days away from helping Americans and doing the good work. I'm 48 days from traveling and meeting new people and networking. I'm starting an adventure - my first adventure - at 22 years old. Who knows, maybe I'll even figure out what I actually want to do with my life (thinking of Environmental Science/Environmental Engineer)? But let's not get ahead of myself, right now, I'm still getting ready to start this part of my life.