Home

I am home.

I am sitting in my living room, watching Good Will Hunting on Netflix, still getting over the surprise that my parents actually got a dog they are allowing in the house and overjoyed at the fact that I get to spend time with so many friends this week.

Aah, this is the life.

The Happiness July Brings

Dear World,

Thank you for making the month of July in Baltimore SO fantastic thus far. I've thoroughly enjoyed every moment. Really, this whole summer has been a constant continuation of bliss, one form right after the other. A quick recap is in order, for those who are curious and for me to process all the fun times I've been enjoying.

Now, where to start? The end of June brought in a swell of adventure with a weekend bus trip to the Big Apple. Exploring the city, staying with fellow Menno volunteers and walking miles upon miles made the time feel short but satisfactory (especially after my feet swelled to sizes bigger than my shoes).

Then July happened.

It's been a whirlwind of fun events, listed below in chronological order:

House-sitting for a good part of a month
First Thursdays free concert in Mt. Vernon Park
Pirate Cruise
Independence Day in Washington D.C.
Being a part of multiple sessions of affirmation and appreciation
Cookout hosted at the House Sitting House, complete with a Little Debbie birthday cake
Consuming Rosemary Garlic Fries
Sailing in the Chesapeake Bay off of St. Michaels, MD
Camping at Assateague State Park with wild ponies
Visiting Ocean City, MD for a bit during a downpour
Watching the World Cup Final and more free concerts in Patterson Park
Harry Potter movie marathon

And more is yet to come!

Mates of State concert?
A visit home to O-H-I-O
Two of my best friend's wedding (to each other)
More house sitting

July, I love you. Stay classy.

My New Hero:

Axe Cop

Hot Dogs, Fireflies, & Highlights

Summer.

This season brings relief and joy. My cares fly out the window along with some sense of responsibility. I feel like a kid again, young and free. Not sitting in an office, or in my hot, stuffy room. I don’t worry about what’s next because it will come when it’s ready. I just want to enjoy this time and have FUN! To spend time with people here, do loads of exciting things and eat as many grilled hot dogs as possible for the next few months is all that’s on my mind.

Some ways to accomplish these goals are to continue “Spring Training.” With a light-up Frisbee on hand, getting ready for some serious games of summer toss means congregating to our back yard and going over the following rules.

1. Always be prepared.
2. Use both hands if the Frisbee is coming at your face.
3. Dive!
4. Don’t talk about Fight Club.

With the exception of Rule #4, I think we’ve really got something here. Along with Frisbee, there’s volleyball, which I might add I excelled at this past weekend during a pick up game. And when I say excelled I mean the exact opposite. But no worries, it was a mighty enjoyable time for all.

I’ve also begun a not-so-strict-but-still-pretty-important-walking-around-the-lake-at-Druid-Park-everyday-after-work-and-sometimes-on-Sundays regimen. That’s being followed pretty accurately. The best part of the walk is when it’s getting to be dusk and the fireflies come out and light up the ground surrounding the water. Round 2 happens in our backyard, when they appear as a form of a night light upon return to the house. What beautiful creatures.

Another great summer activity is the lightening of hair due to sun exposure. Or for those impatient or adventurous types, dye from a box. Unfortunately for me, my first attempt at creating new “blond” hair ended up to being more of a secret, not easily seen by those unaware of the change. Fortunately, I felt really inspired and tried again, this time being more strategic about placement and adding a few streaks on the top of my head. My only hope is that this didn’t screw up my chances to some day donate these locks of mine for love. We'll see.

Let's Play Dress Up

You know when an unexpected surge of inspiration and motivation hit you? This is what I do with mine. 2 blogs in one day, I'm on a roll!

After that last, heavier blog, I thought I'd share a little about how summer has been progressing for me. Even thought the Summer Equinox has yet to arrive, the fireflies are out, humidity is at it's highest along with the temperature, swimming is a top priority and ice cream/snow balls/anything cold is much appreciated. Summer is here in my book.

Festivals and fun events are popping up everywhere and the joy of sunshine and breezes are making my days bearable against the heat wave that never seems to leave, even if it pours. Despite the ever increasing thermometer, dressing up in costumes and gallivanting the streets has been a thrill for the past while. I want to share some pictures of what's been happening recently. Again, I will take suggestions of any new dress up ideas that anyone has, thank you. Also a reminder to those faithful patrons of my blog, some of these fabulous photos can be viewed on my other blog found here.

Here goes:

80s Dance Party, back from February, but still a great time! Aerobic Instructor.

Preakness Party at my BFF Anita's. Classy middle-aged woman.

'Tea Party' themed going away party for fellow DC volunteer. Mock Sarah Palin and pre-birth daughter Bristol.

In most recent dress up endeavors, HonFest. Leopard print, pink flamingos, bee hive hair dos', blue eye shadow, hot pink boas and the kitschiest weekend around!

Motto: "The higher the hair, the closer to God."

Have a great day, Hon.

Continuous Flow

These past 10 months or so have been part of a really great learning year. I've had a lot of new experiences. Seen a lot of different things that are such an intricate part of this world. I don't know if I'd be the best at verbally explaining everything I feel about this place I've called home since September, but as I've come to understand myself better, I know that it's ok. I will try my best in this blog to make sense to my audience. I'm not even sure who you are, but enjoy!

I've been faced with poverty every day. It's so blatantly screaming in my face whenever I walk out the door. If I go to work, or to a fun event, or driving down the street. It's everywhere. There are so many connecting factors as to why this is a huge issue such as illiteracy and systemic family violence, that it sometimes seems so hopeless. Being able to see it and live with it has been a way for me to really know what poverty is. Just reading about it in books is not enough.

This is something I will take with me for the rest of my life I think. But memories fade and life changes, making the past a blur. I don't want to move on from here to a place where none of this will seem real anymore, and just a figment of my imagination. I want to enjoy life and try new things until I'm ready to settle somewhere, but where I'll go I don't know. If anyone has suggestions please feel free to send them my way.

As much as I've soaked in while in Baltimore, I'm still learning. I'm still figuring out who I am and how to express myself. I think it's so important to have freedom to share your emotions, feelings and thoughts with the world and know that you're safe doing it. If you don't you're cheating yourself and others from knowing who you really are. While spending my time at work with the GED class I was able to share these thoughts with the women, and most of them were so impressed by what I had to say. I hadn't prepared anything beforehand (which is something I usually do), so I wasn't sure what would come out. Being able to inspire them with my words was a beautiful moment, since they inspire me every time I'm with them. I want to remember what we talked about and never forget it. I want to go from here and know that even if the future is unclear, I can still love life and keep learning. I also want to encourage everyone I meet to find a way they are comfortable speaking their truth.

This is what I want in life and I will be happy.

Some Really Great Things

I know what you’re all thinking, “finally, the much needed update is here!”

Well, I can’t promise you’ll get every detail, just more of a broad overview of what’s happening in life for the past month.

May: a time of adventures and travels.

Preakness Party at my BFF Anita’s house was the beginning of a series of very fortunate events. Part of the Triple Crown horse races, guest pooled their money, getting assigned a horse number and hoping for a win. Black-eyed susans were adorned by all who attended, and after a few minutes mixed with eagerness and anxiety, my lovely housemate Beth won a share of the pot. Getting served dessert on a platter, dressed in the genre of middle-aged woman and man, Athos, Porthos and Aramis joined together for a celebrated weekend.

Visit to the city of Philadelphia for a Mumford & Sons concert, whose crowd turned out unexpectedly filled with college bros and yuppy girls who took pictures the whole time. Still a very enjoyable experience. Except when we bumped into our Arabic coffee shop owner “friend” after the show who had previously forced us to stay in his shop, take pictures with him, and write a review on google.com right in front of him. A pretty uncomfortable time.

MVS Retreat in Divide, CO at Rocky Mountain Mennonite Camp was beautiful! While traveling across the country with our DC counter-part, for the next few days I met and reconnected with some fellow volunteers around the country, relaxed because it was hard to catch my breath due to acclimation of altitude (0 to 9,000+ feet in 5 hours), did a little contra dancing and hiked a mountain. No big deal.

Memorial Day weekend for me meant visitors from the Midwest! Mom, Carla and really great friend Danielle all came to visit for the long weekend. After hopping in the car at 6 am, they all arrived safely at 4 in the afternoon ready to paint the town red after a quick rest. Taking them on a driving tour of the city, trying the famous crab cake, picking up some “souvenirs” at the Book Thing, visiting the touristy spots of Baltimore gave them a good taste of the city. We made a special 2.5 hours trip around DC to see some of the important sights of our Nation’s capital. While getting stuck on the opposite side of the road from a street vendor who’s Polish Sausage we were craving by a gang of bikers called “Rolling Thunder,” we celebrated Memorial Day weekend. Stopping at IKEA on the way back made for a number of first for Danielle.

Once the family and friend were gone and headed west, I relaxed the rest of the week at a HSH (stands for House-Sitting House), were AC, movies and a hot tub were available. Last night was the end of that “week away” from my regular house, sad to say. But, life goes on.

Good news, I’m getting a new bed for the next few months I’ll be here! A frame and possibly mattress/box spring. I’m hoping I’m motivated later to assemble the whole thing since the temperature this week is only supposed to be in the 70s. That means my new walking-around-the-park-after-work regimen will be off to a good start.

Here’s to more adventures in the months to come! I love toasting.