SuperBowl. Mardi Gras. ReStore. Alligator.

Thursday, February 4th

Hello! I realize it's been quite a while since my last post. Sadly, I wrote a long post last week Thursday at the cafe and when I was about to publish it, my internet connection died and everything was lost!!! Oh, technology :) Anyway, below is my attempt to recap the past couple of weeks since my first NOLA post.

It's funny because even though I have been in New Orleans for over three weeks, and the newness of being here has sort of worn off, there is still SO MUCH to see.

My work-weeks have become somewhat routine. The second week I continued in the warehouse, making deliveries and organizing supplies. This past week, I switched to work in the ReStore, which is like a "Home Depot" type store of donated home supplies. My group and I spent this past week organizing and cleaning the sales floor -- putting like objects together, painting, sweeping, etc. I like it -- I liked being in the warehouse more I think, but work is work. I am glad that we are here to help the staff and support Habitat for Humanity and this "behind the scenes" sort of way.

Here's a picture of part of the ReStore sales floor. They have TONS of stuff in there, from hardware to furniture to windows and doors to sinks and tubs. Some of it would have to be MAJORLY restored, but other items are in really good shape and really cheap. I keep thinking about when I have a house someday how I want to check out a local ReStore to see what types of items I could pick up and refurbish for some unique decor pieces! As you can see, the ReStore is pretty artsy in style, and the people who work there are all really nice and laid back. It's a little difficult sometimes because we have to find projects to keep us busy while the staff comes up with new things for us to do. But for the most part, I am learning new skills and enjoying the work we're doing.

Here's a couple of pictures of me from today at the ReStore. Mary and I were working together to re-hang all of the signs in the store. They were originally hung with twine and nails, but some of the twine was breaking and causing them to fall throughout the store (safety hazard for sure!), so we took them all down and rehung them by screwing them into the beams near the ceiling. This was tricky because in these pictures I was up on a REALLY high ladder. I first had to drill a hole through the sign and the beam, and then I had to switch from the drill bit to a screw bit, and then screw the sign into the wood. I put three screws in each sign, so it took a while and some effort to work slowly and carefully on top of the big ladder. But, I am so happy that I am learning new skills like this and willing to try!

Here I am again -- I look like I am concentrating really hard. Oh, I forgot to mention that the first sign of the morning that I began trying to hang was unsuccessful. I climbed up on the ladder and started doing everything "right," but I just couldn't seem to screw into the wood. I blamed it on "not being as strong" as Tim, who had done the previous one. I pouted over to Ross and asked him to come help me, because I was trying, but apparently I needed a man to help me because I wasn't strong enough. He climbed up on the ladder and tried for a minute too, and it seemed that he couldn't get it to screw in either. I was beginning to feel happy that it wasn't just me until he looked down the ladder at me and said, "Uhh Ashley, you had the drill on reverse." Woops! He screwed that sign in and then I proceeded to do the following three and, what do you know, it worked just fine!

Wow, it's really difficult to think of all of the things that I have done since my last post. I will try hard to remember the highlights.

Like I said, our work-weeks are pretty similar and we don't do very much during the week just because we are tired at night. Our normal schedule looks like this:

Tuesdays: work (8-4pm), PT at the YMCA (4:45-5:45), cook/eat dinner, shower, bed.
Wednesdays: work, PT at the YMCA, cook/eat dinner, service learning activity, bed.
Thursdays: work, FREE TIME -- sometimes people go walk around shops, stop by a happy-hour, or go out for dinner. Honestly, I usually just go home, change into PJ's and hang out with a book or watch a movie. It's nice to have an evening after work with nothing we have to do. Oh, and I also come to the coffee shop frequently on Thursdays (like tonight!)
Fridays: work, PT, cook/eat dinner, relax around the house (games, movies), bed.
Saturdays: work, FINALLY THE WEEKEND!
Sundays and Mondays: days off!

My Saturday evenings are usually spent doing something somewhat low-key. Two Saturdays ago I went to Barnes and Noble with a couple of my teammates who didn't feel like going out downtown. We got coffee and wandered around checking out books for a couple of hours. It was great to get out of the house and just browse for books.

This past Saturday I had a date-night with my teammate Jamie. Her and I were the only two people on our team who weren't going out and staying in a hotel for the night, so we decided to go have some dinner and a glass of wine. We went to a restaurant called "Muriels" in the French Quarter. We split a three course dinner -- we had alligator for our appetizer (which was delicious!), salmon and veggies for our entire, and a dark chocolate brownie with peanut butter gelato for dessert. It was so nice to be out with just one other people and relax over wine and good food.

Towards the end of last week I was beginning to feel slightly claustrophobic being with my teammates ALL the time. It's not that I don't like all of them or appreciate them and the experience we're having, it's just that once in a while I actually realize that I have absolutely no privacy or personal time, and I freak out a little. You take for granted being able to hop in your car and drive somewhere by yourself when you live in AmeriWorld. I think my team has been doing a really great job working together, but coordinating 11 people's plans with a curfew and one vehicle on the weekends can get a little hectic. Anyway, a night out with Jamie was just what I needed. We planned to watch the "Kreuw Du Vieux" parade that was going on Saturday night as well, but by the time we left the restaurant from dinner, we had missed it! We came outside onto a filthy street covered in plastic cups, broken beads, and condoms (strange, I know, but apparently Kreuw Du Vieux is an "adult" parade and it's always filled with sexual and political innuendos.) We were disappointed that we missed the parade, but we enjoyed our night out none the less. We took a cab back to our house and were the only two people home for the night. It was great -- we did laundry, both enjoyed long, hot showers (which we never get to do with everyone home), and went to bed somewhat early. Overall, it was just what I needed to recharge after a long week.

As far as Sundays go, they are probably my favorite day of the week. I usually get dropped off at the coffee shop around 10:30am while some of my teammates go to work at an animal rescue. I am usually there until 2 or 3 in the afternoon, and I really enjoy sipping my coffee, talking online to my sister, Morgan, who is currently studying abroad in Europe, chatting with Eric, who usually gets a ton of time to talk on Sundays, and catching up on emails and facebook messages with friends from home. It's my day to reconnect with my life outside of AmeriCorps, and I've realized that it's really important for me to have this time to myself each week. Like I said, I look forward to it every weekend!

On Mondays, I usually try to get some ISP (individual service project) hours done. I have mentioned this before, but I need to have 80 completed to graduate, and they have to be service projects outside of our normal projects. Two Mondays ago, I worked with most of my teammates with "Project Nehemiah," which is the organization we worked with on MLK Day. We did some yard work and helped to organize a warehouse. It was okay, but I decided after that day that I don't want to do physical labor projects for ISP while I'm in NOLA, just because I am already sore all week from working at the warehouse/ReStore -- my body needs more than one day a week for resting. So I didn't do ISP this past Monday, but I am hoping to find something less physical for this coming Monday.

Well, it seems as if I am in New Orleans at a perfect time. Between Mardi Gras season and the SuperBowl, there is always excitement going on here! I am hoping to find a small, local bar with my teammates on Sunday to watch the game in -- Geaux Saints (as they say!)

Well, I think this is all for updates I have right now. Fortunately, I have no witnessed any more acts of violence in the area in the past two weeks. I am still being extremely careful, but it's nice to not have to mention anything about feeling scared or unsafe this entry.

I need to wrap up my time at the coffee shop quickly and get home to bed. Tomorrow my team is waking up at 4am to head to Jackson Square in the French Quarter to try to get on "Good Morning America!" They are coming to NOLA for a pre-SuperBowl and Mardi Gras special broadcast. We found out about it today at work, and we made a giant banner to hold that will hopefully get us on TV. I will let you know if we make it on there -- hopefully I'll be able to post the link on here as an entry if we do make it.

Sorry this isn't a super detailed entry, but I hope you enjoyed reading. I promise to take more pictures and update more often next time! Take care -- GO SAINTS :)