For the past week, I have felt like I am ready to go home. I've been mentally checked out, primarily because I haven't really had ANY days off since I've been down here. I live at the school, so my job has become a 24/7 type of deal, as opposed to when I house-sat for a staff member. That means, whenever there are any problems, I can't just hangout in my room, I have to solve them. If there is an intense discussion going on, I'm kicked out of my room because there aren't really any walls.
I guess I can describe my new (and by new I mean the past week or two) living conditions. I am now on the upper floor of the building, which is nice because I have my own space. I have my own room, and I don't have to deal with the 35 volunteers that come in and out of this place at any given time. However, The room doesn't have a screens, so I have to choose between being EATEN ALIVE by mosquitoes or sweating in my sleep. There isn't really a wall between the bathroom and my room, just clothes and some shower curtains. It's a little awkward, but I can deal. Sometimes I think that living at Carleton, with some of the most awkward people in the world has desensitized my awkward-radar. Or maybe I'm just kidding myself.
I've felt cranky and frustrated, because I find that the volunteers aren't really doing anything to my satisfaction. They mess things up, or don't know what to do, or they get bored and go inside. Perhaps the most frustrating part of it all is, I used to be one of them. I had a higher work ethic, but I still didn't know what to do. I think that what this place needs is a revamp in the work schedule structure. There need to be scheduled breaks and rotations so that everyone remains engages. It would be nice if it reflected more of a Youth-Adult Partnership, instead of the shoddy communication that is going down right now.
Because Brennan, the farm manager, has been gone the past couple of days to evaluate the property up in Hammond, I've been left down here to held execute the list of things that she left for us to do. In other words, I and one other intern (who just arrived this past week) had to run this joint. IT WAS SO STRESSFUL. It was challenging and it was hard, but at least we go a whole lot of work done. A lot of the work was centered around making the space look incredible, for the Will Allen event. Will Allen is the man who essentially STARTED urban farming:
http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1984685_1984949_1985243,00.html
He is going to come down to OSBG in early August, and see what we're all about. I think that there is potential for us to create some sort of partnership, but at the very least there is a LOT that we can learn from this man. My personal goal in regard to farming to to get this place looking as INCREDIBLE as possible. I want all rows planted and healthy. I dream of an OSBG world without weeds. I want the tools/wood shed to be organized and beautiful. Sadly I won't be here to see him, but I will do all that I can to make this place look great!
On the non-farm front, regarding the partnership with Dulac, here is what I have to say: Since the interns and I left Dulac, we've been talking to some of the staff about what we saw and they are really excited about creating a partnership between OSBG and Dulac. However, right now the staff is stretched pretty thinly, so the interns are the ones that will be doing a lot of the initial foundational work. We want to be sure that the Dulac Community has an interest in partnering with OSBG, so we would like to start canvassing the neighborhood to see if they are interested, and to get an idea of what they think that partnership would look like.
In order to do this, we were needed a BUNCH of information. Things like:
* The best way to ensure the largest volume of responses. We were thinking about going door-to-door, hanging out at the Center, or even leaving surveys for people to complete.
* If going door-to-door is the best way to get in touch with people, what areas of the neighborhood are more densely populated?
We're also applying for the Crescent Foundation Grant for Environmental Work (or a title that approximates that). Tomorrow, the letter of intent is due, so much of the past two days has been filled with composition of the letter and a LOT of editing. (I'm so thankful to all of my Carleton professors for challenging me to write WELL! It's such an important skill to be able to convey ideas explicitly and concisely!)
We're trying to get the foundations down and turn over something more substantial to the OSBG staff before all of us leave in the fall, so there is some sense of urgency. Quite a few of the other interns have already left, and I leave in 6 days (Not counting today....but who is counting anyway?)
Because of all this, I find that my mental energy towards this place is BEING VAPORIZED! I need a vacation; at the very least, I need to get out every once and a while and not be trapped in the building. So, I've been checking out the parts of New Orleans that are much more geared towards the more cushy side of life. The other night, I went to eat at a place called Hare Krishna's. It's a temple located in New Orleans, but every Sunday they have a free vegan meal. I was absolutely in heaven. I was so happy that I even tried to eat beans (my mortal enemy).
Another night, I rode my bike into Frenchmen Street, and checked out the music scene a little bit. Pretty much all of the cheapest/free musical shows are in bars, which is unfortunate. I'm under 21, so I wasn't really allowed into many. Luckily, there was a bar that had an 18 to enter, 21 to drink policy so that I wasn't completely missing out. In some ways, riding my bike around here brings up images that I've seen in anime. A bunch of young people riding around on their bikes alongside railroads and levees, with the summer cicadas chirping along to the whirring of pedaling.
Maybe not.
Anyways... I have to think pretty seriously about whether or not this is a program that I would recommend to Carleton. On one hand, this has been one of the most meaningful ways that I could have ever spent my summer. I have been challenged every day here on an emotional, physical and mental level. My way of viewing the world has undergone entire shifts, and my constructed reality will never be the same. I don't mean to say that I've been brainwashed, just challenged to think critically. Everyone who works here has strong opinions, and I recognize that I may not agree with their opinions fully, or think they're too close-minded. Despite that, it has provided me with food for thought. On the other hand, it takes a very specific kind of person to flourish here, and by 'here' I mean the program and the city. I'll probably have to return to this question once again after I've had a while to unwind and process my experiences. I want to have enough time to think about things more deliberately.
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