I actually wrote a post on Thursday night but when I went to save it accidently deleted so I hope the second time I’m writing this turns out as good as the first. In my post titled “Starting Fresh,” I mentioned how my right foot had started to bother me. I went to the doctor and she told me she wasn’t sure if it was broken or if there was just inflammation in my foot. The doctor gave me some medicine and the pain went away, so I thought everything was fine. A little over a week ago, it started bothering me again. It hurt in the same exact spot as the first time and was actually a little bit more painful the second time around. I went back to the doctor a second time and she recommended that I get an MRI done on my foot. Last Friday (February 6th), I had an MRI done, which took a lot longer than I thought it would. They had me lay down completely still on the machine for 45 minutes. I couldn’t really move so I was pretty bored after a few minutes. Luckily they gave me headphones to listen to the radio. The results came back showing that I had a broken seasmoid bone in my right foot, which is underneath my first and second toe. I was given a boot last Monday and saw a podiatrist on Thursday. I’m not in much pain because I was given more anti-inflammatory by the doctor. Wearing the boot isn’t that big of an inconvenience except that I have to take it off when I drive. I have to wear the boot for three weeks which kind of sucks because I’ll have to wear it during Mardi Gras. I’m not going to let that stop me though.
Last Friday night was my friend Pat’s birthday party which he had at his house. We went and picked up the keg of Miller High Life (delicious) after work. It was a pretty big turnout of about 30-40 people which is bigger than the gatherings that we usually have. There was a good mix of people from work and other friends. He had RockBand, beer pong, and a bonfire going, so I think a good time was had by all. With the first Mardi Gras parade the next day, I told myself I was going to take it easy that night, but obviously that didn’t happen. Before the parade, I went to my friends’ Sean V. (my supervisor at work) and Sean M.’s (the Supply Manager with our organization) house to do a little drinking and hang out. People often refer to them as the Seans because it’s just easier. After the Seans’ house, Jon, Patrick, Jordan, the Seans, and me all went to a former Rebuilding Together employee’s (Josh) house. Josh lives right at the beginning of the parade route. So he had a bunch of people over for the parade. It was fun seeing some of the Construction Managers and Warehouse staff at his house because I never get a chance to see them socially. Everyone had a lot of fun and the parade was pretty cool for my first parade. Krewe du Vieux is the first major Mardi Gras parade and took place last Saturday night, a little after 6 p.m.. The parade begins in the Marigny and slowly meanders its way through the French Quarter. The theme of this year’s Krewe du Vieux was “Economic Stimulus.” The Krewe du Vieux is one of the most anticipated krewes with the hand-made floats and adult themes.
The weekend ended up taking a lot out of me and I spent most of Sunday just lying around trying to recover. I’m happy to say that last Sunday, I officially caught up to the current episode of Lost. I watched the premiere episode on Christmas Day when there was nothing to do and it took me a month and a half to completely catch up. And I must say, it was well worth it. The show is absolutely amazing. I used to think that 24 was the best show on TV, but after watching Lost, there’s no doubt that it’s Lost. If you ever have the time, I would recommend watching the series.
Anyways, because of my foot, I spent most of last week working in our office. I found that I’m going to have to wear the boot for three weeks, which is a little disappointing. I like that work that I have been doing and am not looking to working out of the office. The first week there was a lot of copying and I didn’t have a lot to do much of the time. I wrote bios on five of my fellow AmeriCorps which was fun and I think is set to be published in our monthly newsletter. With this injury, I think God is trying to tell me that I’m supposed to work in an office and hang out with my good friend, Microsoft Excel. I am trying to be positive because it’ll only be for a couple of weeks.
This past weekend, there were more parades that took place. I went to two on Friday, the Krewe of Oshun and Krewe of Pygmalion. Oshun is named for the Yoruba goddess of love and intimacy. Pygmalion takes its name from the Greek legend of a Cypress king who sculpts a statue of the sea nymph Galatea. Both were fairly short parades and are more family oriented. I watched it with a group of six or seven friends from work and we made it a good time. I have some videos from the first three parades that I went to that I’ll post later today. The beginning of the parade season has been a lot of fun and it’s only going to get crazier this week. I got the Kantatafish and Big Z heading down here for the weekend so that should only add to the insanity. I also saw the North Mississippi Allstars at Tipitinas on Friday night. Standing on my foot all night was a little uncomfortable but definitely worth it. They played a great show, which lasted almost three hours. The lead guitarist in the band has also been playing with the Black Crowes (the best band of all time) for the last year or so and is very talented. In preparation for next weekend, I decided to skip Saturday’s parades and take it easy. I watched “Zack and Miri Make a Porno” which was very funny (watch the outtakes too, hysterical).
Other than that, I’m just trying to mentally and physically prepare for Mardi Gras, because from everything that I’ve heard, it’s absolutely nuts for a week. I’ll keep you updated on my well being and if I’m surviving. Hopefully, there will be more posts to come. Talk to y’all later.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Hitting the Wall (and trying to push through it)
Right after I made my last post, I headed to New Iberia, LA to do a service week and help rebuild in that area. The New Orleans affiliate of Rebuilding Together that I work for has 25 house captains (like me) from two different grants. Twenty AmeriCorps members are on a state grant and the other five (including me) are part of a national grant. Also included in the national grant, are other AmeriCorps members serving with Rebuilding Together affiliates all over the country. In total, there are 40 people on the national grant (30 of us who started in September and 10 more who just started). The service trip to New Iberia is more of a big deal to all of the other national members because they are coming from all over the country and their jobs are more office oriented. For the five of us from New Orleans, it was pretty much just a normal week except we had to stay in volunteer housing.
The five of us (Leo, Mary, Cat, Dave, and me) carpooled up to New Iberia which took about three hours. Leo is from south Texas and has been raving about Whattaburger for the longest time so we stopped at one near Baton Rouge on the way up. I didn't think it was anything too special and I felt like I was having a heart attack the rest of the way up. We arrived at the volunteer housing late Sunday afternoon (I was pissed at the time we had to get there because I missed both championship football games and couldn't see how my fantasy football championship was going- don't worry I won). The volunteer housing was just one big room with 20-25 bunk beds and long tables for eating in the middle of the room. I already wasn't looking forward to the trip and this just confirmed it was going to be a long weekend. People filed in for the next few hours and it was good to see some of the people again. The last time I was together with this group of people was during my orientation back in September. Sunday night was pretty laid back for the most part. In the middle of the night I woke up to this ridiculously loud noise (I had no idea what it was). After a minute, I realized it was the old guy snoring in the bunk below me. My Dad snores pretty badly but this guy blew him out of the water. I had to listen to my Ipod on over half-full volume just to drown this guy out. I barely got any sleep for the rest of the night (or rest of the week for that matter). I probably only got about 4-5 hours a sleep a night which was brutal.
The volunteer work we did in New Iberia was actually a lot of fun. We learned how to build handicap ramps that led into people's homes. Since most of the other Rebuilding Together members that were there work in an office and don't spend much time in the field, it was a chance for me to show off my skills (which I did). I was in a group with Leo and we delegated jobs out to others when appropriate. Building a handicap ramp is one of the harder things I've done so far. It takes a lot of patience and a math to make sure the angles and spacing are correct. My group ranged from 8-12 people a day and I had a good time working with the people in my group. After working, we would go back to the volunteer housing, where there wasn't much to do. It was a lot of being around people at all times and constantly talking to people and trying to come up with things to do.
Overall, it was an okay week but it really took a toll on me. The lack of sleep and just being in a room with all of those people and germs affected my body. Because when I got back Saturday around noon, I slept for five hours and felt extremely groggy when I woke up. I felt this way for much of the next week. Last week at work, I just didn't seem to have much energy. Leo and Cat missed a couple of days last week because they got sick in New Iberia. I didn't feel sick, I was just exhausted. I kind of hit the wall last week. I was going to take off last Wednesday but felt alright when I woke up so I've just been trying to power through it. Last week was pretty low key for me. I just tried to catch up on some sleep and relax.
By the weekend, I was feeling much better. On Friday night, I went to a bar called Finn McCools (not the some chain as the on in Chicago) which was a good time. It was nice to relax a little bit with some friends from work. On Saturday, I hung around for most of the day (I couldn't get myself out of bed) and went to the French Quarter Saturday night and to a place called Mimi's for a little dancing. Unfortunately for everyone at the bar, I didn't get that drunk and really give them a dancing show. There are two new girls who just started with our affiliate that were with us in New Iberia. I convinced them to come on Saturday night to hang out so it was nice to see them starting to feel comfortable here and get used to the people they'll be working with. I didn't do anything special for the Super Bowl but thoroughly enjoyed the game (I think this is the first year I didn't do squares which was kind of a bummer).
Now that it is February and I'm pushing my way through "the wall," there is a lot coming up that I'm looking forward to. Since a lot will be going on, I'll definitely try and post a little bit more and take more pictures. Once I get a CDs worth of pictures, I'll let you know and I can send one to whoever wants it. The first big Mardi Gras parade is Saturday night so it looks like the insanity is about to begin. Hopefully I'll be alive when it's all over. Talk to y'all later.
The five of us (Leo, Mary, Cat, Dave, and me) carpooled up to New Iberia which took about three hours. Leo is from south Texas and has been raving about Whattaburger for the longest time so we stopped at one near Baton Rouge on the way up. I didn't think it was anything too special and I felt like I was having a heart attack the rest of the way up. We arrived at the volunteer housing late Sunday afternoon (I was pissed at the time we had to get there because I missed both championship football games and couldn't see how my fantasy football championship was going- don't worry I won). The volunteer housing was just one big room with 20-25 bunk beds and long tables for eating in the middle of the room. I already wasn't looking forward to the trip and this just confirmed it was going to be a long weekend. People filed in for the next few hours and it was good to see some of the people again. The last time I was together with this group of people was during my orientation back in September. Sunday night was pretty laid back for the most part. In the middle of the night I woke up to this ridiculously loud noise (I had no idea what it was). After a minute, I realized it was the old guy snoring in the bunk below me. My Dad snores pretty badly but this guy blew him out of the water. I had to listen to my Ipod on over half-full volume just to drown this guy out. I barely got any sleep for the rest of the night (or rest of the week for that matter). I probably only got about 4-5 hours a sleep a night which was brutal.
The volunteer work we did in New Iberia was actually a lot of fun. We learned how to build handicap ramps that led into people's homes. Since most of the other Rebuilding Together members that were there work in an office and don't spend much time in the field, it was a chance for me to show off my skills (which I did). I was in a group with Leo and we delegated jobs out to others when appropriate. Building a handicap ramp is one of the harder things I've done so far. It takes a lot of patience and a math to make sure the angles and spacing are correct. My group ranged from 8-12 people a day and I had a good time working with the people in my group. After working, we would go back to the volunteer housing, where there wasn't much to do. It was a lot of being around people at all times and constantly talking to people and trying to come up with things to do.
Overall, it was an okay week but it really took a toll on me. The lack of sleep and just being in a room with all of those people and germs affected my body. Because when I got back Saturday around noon, I slept for five hours and felt extremely groggy when I woke up. I felt this way for much of the next week. Last week at work, I just didn't seem to have much energy. Leo and Cat missed a couple of days last week because they got sick in New Iberia. I didn't feel sick, I was just exhausted. I kind of hit the wall last week. I was going to take off last Wednesday but felt alright when I woke up so I've just been trying to power through it. Last week was pretty low key for me. I just tried to catch up on some sleep and relax.
By the weekend, I was feeling much better. On Friday night, I went to a bar called Finn McCools (not the some chain as the on in Chicago) which was a good time. It was nice to relax a little bit with some friends from work. On Saturday, I hung around for most of the day (I couldn't get myself out of bed) and went to the French Quarter Saturday night and to a place called Mimi's for a little dancing. Unfortunately for everyone at the bar, I didn't get that drunk and really give them a dancing show. There are two new girls who just started with our affiliate that were with us in New Iberia. I convinced them to come on Saturday night to hang out so it was nice to see them starting to feel comfortable here and get used to the people they'll be working with. I didn't do anything special for the Super Bowl but thoroughly enjoyed the game (I think this is the first year I didn't do squares which was kind of a bummer).
Now that it is February and I'm pushing my way through "the wall," there is a lot coming up that I'm looking forward to. Since a lot will be going on, I'll definitely try and post a little bit more and take more pictures. Once I get a CDs worth of pictures, I'll let you know and I can send one to whoever wants it. The first big Mardi Gras parade is Saturday night so it looks like the insanity is about to begin. Hopefully I'll be alive when it's all over. Talk to y'all later.
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Starting Fresh
I know it's been a little while since my last post but I've been pretty busy over the past few weeks. I'll start where I left off last time. For the New Year’s weekend, we were given a four-day weekend which was a nice little break for me. On New Year’s Eve, a friend of mine had a party at his house. It was a lot of fun because a lot of people that I work with were there and a lot of them are people I don't really see too much outside of work. Around 11:00, we walked from my friend's house to this park in the part of New Orleans called Mid-City. As part of the tradition for New Years, there is a Christmas tree-burning, where everyone brings their Christmas trees to the park and there's a huge fire where people gather and hang out and bring in the New Years. On our walk there, people everywhere were lighting off fireworks which lit up the sky. The bonfire was probably around 12 feet high and I was able to take some great pictures. I'd say that there were definitely over one thousand people there and it was a great way to bring in the New Year. After the fire was over, we went down to the French Quarter and Bourbon Street was packed with people. If New Years Eve is any indication of how crazy things get in the French Quarter, Mardi Gras is going to be pretty insane. I took it easy the next couple of days and tried to recover from NYE and get ready to get back to work.
I've been working on the same house pretty much for the past couple of months and it's getting pretty close to being finished. The first week after New Years, I had some volunteers at the house and we put in the kitchen countertop, upper kitchen cabinets, and did some touch up work around the rest of the house. My Mom and Dad came to visit on that Thursday and they came to volunteer at the house on Friday. I gave them the task of putting finishing on the kitchen cabinets which required them to use a Circular Saw. Given how handy my father is, I thought he'd be able to handle it. But unfortunately he was unable to make straight cuts and not chipping the finishing. So I had my parents’ just do some touch up painting. It was nice having them at the worksite so that they can see what I do on an everyday basis. It was fun telling them what to do for a change. I'm sure my Dad loved it.
When my parents got here on Thursday, I took them around to see some of the houses that I've been working on and gave them a little tour of the city. We went out for Japanese food Thursday night which was delicious since it's been so long since I've had any. On Friday, they volunteered during the day and at night the three of us went out to dinner with three of my friends: Pat, Jon, and Jordan. I had a good time at dinner and I think everyone else did too. My friends really appreciated the good meal and enjoyed meeting my parents (or so they said). It was nice to be able to have my parents meet some of the people I'm closest with down here and get a better sense of my life in New Orleans. After dinner, I met up with friends at a bar. On the walk home, I noticed that my right foot started bothering me but didn't think too much of it. On Saturday morning, I met my parents at their hotel around 10 (which is pretty early for me to be out on a Saturday) and we walked near the pier along the Mississippi River for the bus tour we were going to take. Before we even left for the tour, the guide spent a half hour on the bus talking. Throughout the tour, the woman never took a breath to stop talking. She literally was going on and on for three hours. It was nice to see the city and get its history, but I had such a headache by the time it was over and I still hear that woman's voice in my head (just awful). After the tour, for some reason, my Dad wanted to go to the Civil War Museum (I didn't even know he was interested in that stuff). We trekked over there and by the time we got there, my foot was really starting to bother me but I just kept going. The Museum was pretty small and I guess my Dad saw what he wanted to see (I don't really know). That night we went out for dinner again (I swear, all I did was eat that weekend) and then my Dad and I went to the casino for awhile. By the time we left the casino, I was hobbling down the street back to the parking garage where I left my car. But it had gotten pretty cold, so my Dad starts power walking down the street and there I am, on one foot, trying to keep up. I was glad to see that my Dad was so concerned. My parents left on Sunday and I just spent most of the day staying off and soaking my foot.
It wasn't feeling any better Monday or Tuesday, and of course at work I was lugging around cabinets and moving things all over the place. By Tuesday, I realized that I needed to get it checked out. I went to the walk-in clinic and they took a couple of x-rays and told me that I actually had a small stress fracture in my foot. I really have no idea how it happened. The doctor gave me some medicine and the swelling in my foot has gone down considerably and is feeling much better. I took the day off on Wednesday to rest it and by Thursday, I was feeling a lot better.
My friends Pat and Darren have a friend from high school that is in a Tulane Graduate program and lives down here. She had a party Thursday night that the three of us went to. It was fun to play a little beer pong and re-live some of my college days. Everyone there was real nice, and it was good for me to meet some new people for a change. I usually don't stay out too late on Thursday nights because of work the next day but we were having fun and ended up staying out till around 1. I was pretty exhausted at work the next day but I pushed through.
On Friday night, a bunch of us went to happy hour at Phillips Bar. It's usually pretty packed for happy hour. So we had a few drinks and shot some pool for a little. Jon started talking to this guy who is friends with the person who lives in the Belfort Mansion (which was the house for the MTV Real World New Orleans cast). The guy took us over there because he said his friend was having some people over. The house was absolutely amazing. It was enormous and was probably one of the most beautiful houses I've ever been to. This house had a pool, guest house, balconies surrounding the entire house, and a prime location on St. Charles Avenue. We got to the house and it turned out that the owner of the house lived their with his partner and they had a bunch of gay guys over. I've become better around being around gay people down here but this was just a little too much for me (ha). We stayed there for a little while and then moved on to another bar. It was cool to see the house and they invited us over for their Mardi Gras party but I don't think I'll be attending.
It has been a busy few weeks and it doesn't look like things will be settling down much anytime soon (which is a good thing I guess). Mardi Gras is right around the corner and from everything I hear, is absolutely amazing. I'll definitely write another post before Mardi Gras but if it takes a little time after that, I'm sorry. Besides my parents, I officially have my first two visitors coming down here for Mardi Gras. So now that they've gotten things started, I expect to hear more from people who want to come down here. There are so many things I want to show everyone so I hope as many people can make it here as possible. Talk to y'all soon.
I've been working on the same house pretty much for the past couple of months and it's getting pretty close to being finished. The first week after New Years, I had some volunteers at the house and we put in the kitchen countertop, upper kitchen cabinets, and did some touch up work around the rest of the house. My Mom and Dad came to visit on that Thursday and they came to volunteer at the house on Friday. I gave them the task of putting finishing on the kitchen cabinets which required them to use a Circular Saw. Given how handy my father is, I thought he'd be able to handle it. But unfortunately he was unable to make straight cuts and not chipping the finishing. So I had my parents’ just do some touch up painting. It was nice having them at the worksite so that they can see what I do on an everyday basis. It was fun telling them what to do for a change. I'm sure my Dad loved it.
When my parents got here on Thursday, I took them around to see some of the houses that I've been working on and gave them a little tour of the city. We went out for Japanese food Thursday night which was delicious since it's been so long since I've had any. On Friday, they volunteered during the day and at night the three of us went out to dinner with three of my friends: Pat, Jon, and Jordan. I had a good time at dinner and I think everyone else did too. My friends really appreciated the good meal and enjoyed meeting my parents (or so they said). It was nice to be able to have my parents meet some of the people I'm closest with down here and get a better sense of my life in New Orleans. After dinner, I met up with friends at a bar. On the walk home, I noticed that my right foot started bothering me but didn't think too much of it. On Saturday morning, I met my parents at their hotel around 10 (which is pretty early for me to be out on a Saturday) and we walked near the pier along the Mississippi River for the bus tour we were going to take. Before we even left for the tour, the guide spent a half hour on the bus talking. Throughout the tour, the woman never took a breath to stop talking. She literally was going on and on for three hours. It was nice to see the city and get its history, but I had such a headache by the time it was over and I still hear that woman's voice in my head (just awful). After the tour, for some reason, my Dad wanted to go to the Civil War Museum (I didn't even know he was interested in that stuff). We trekked over there and by the time we got there, my foot was really starting to bother me but I just kept going. The Museum was pretty small and I guess my Dad saw what he wanted to see (I don't really know). That night we went out for dinner again (I swear, all I did was eat that weekend) and then my Dad and I went to the casino for awhile. By the time we left the casino, I was hobbling down the street back to the parking garage where I left my car. But it had gotten pretty cold, so my Dad starts power walking down the street and there I am, on one foot, trying to keep up. I was glad to see that my Dad was so concerned. My parents left on Sunday and I just spent most of the day staying off and soaking my foot.
It wasn't feeling any better Monday or Tuesday, and of course at work I was lugging around cabinets and moving things all over the place. By Tuesday, I realized that I needed to get it checked out. I went to the walk-in clinic and they took a couple of x-rays and told me that I actually had a small stress fracture in my foot. I really have no idea how it happened. The doctor gave me some medicine and the swelling in my foot has gone down considerably and is feeling much better. I took the day off on Wednesday to rest it and by Thursday, I was feeling a lot better.
My friends Pat and Darren have a friend from high school that is in a Tulane Graduate program and lives down here. She had a party Thursday night that the three of us went to. It was fun to play a little beer pong and re-live some of my college days. Everyone there was real nice, and it was good for me to meet some new people for a change. I usually don't stay out too late on Thursday nights because of work the next day but we were having fun and ended up staying out till around 1. I was pretty exhausted at work the next day but I pushed through.
On Friday night, a bunch of us went to happy hour at Phillips Bar. It's usually pretty packed for happy hour. So we had a few drinks and shot some pool for a little. Jon started talking to this guy who is friends with the person who lives in the Belfort Mansion (which was the house for the MTV Real World New Orleans cast). The guy took us over there because he said his friend was having some people over. The house was absolutely amazing. It was enormous and was probably one of the most beautiful houses I've ever been to. This house had a pool, guest house, balconies surrounding the entire house, and a prime location on St. Charles Avenue. We got to the house and it turned out that the owner of the house lived their with his partner and they had a bunch of gay guys over. I've become better around being around gay people down here but this was just a little too much for me (ha). We stayed there for a little while and then moved on to another bar. It was cool to see the house and they invited us over for their Mardi Gras party but I don't think I'll be attending.
It has been a busy few weeks and it doesn't look like things will be settling down much anytime soon (which is a good thing I guess). Mardi Gras is right around the corner and from everything I hear, is absolutely amazing. I'll definitely write another post before Mardi Gras but if it takes a little time after that, I'm sorry. Besides my parents, I officially have my first two visitors coming down here for Mardi Gras. So now that they've gotten things started, I expect to hear more from people who want to come down here. There are so many things I want to show everyone so I hope as many people can make it here as possible. Talk to y'all soon.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
The Year That Was
Looking back on the year that was in 2008, it has been one crazy year from where I started to where I am right now. At this time last year, I was returning from a trip to Europe and was not too motivated for my second busy season at Ernst & Young. Little did I know that a year later I would be on my own in New Orleans.
Going into busy season at E&Y last year, I knew that I wasn’t really happy at Ernst & Young. A couple of months earlier, I had met with an accounting and finance recruiter to see what other jobs were out there and nothing seemed appealing. Along with my unhappiness at work, I was in a rut personally as well. I can be a very anxious person and just felt that my life was kind of at a standstill and every week and month wasn’t much different than the one before it. Throughout my life, I have been on this path that has kept me relatively happy but very conservative and secure. I have never been the type of person to take chances or challenge myself and it occurred to me that I am still very young and that living a conventional life was probably the cause of the funk I was in. By April, I had become even more anxious after working long hours for the prior three months. I had a trip to Arizona in April and a bachelor party in Vegas in May to kind of keep me occupied. I remember thinking on the way home from Vegas that it was time to finally do something. I was unhappy at work and unmotivated to do a lot of things for myself personally. I started writing down some goals for myself and gave myself a July 15th (my 25th birthday) deadline to make some sort of decision on what I was going to do about a job and the next phase of my life. I found that writing goals down really helps me get things done because once I write it down, it’s there and I can always see it. Through talking to my family and friends, I came across AmeriCorps and started looking at possible opportunities in New Orleans, San Francisco, San Diego, Washington D.C., and Boston. I decided that it would be a great time for me to go live somewhere else for a year or two and made this a focal point in trying to find a place to volunteer. I found the best opportunities to be in New Orleans and applied for three or four positions at different programs. I did not get accepted for the first few programs in which I applied.
However, at the end of the day on July 25th (a Friday), as I was sitting at my desk in the office finishing up for the week, I got the call that I had been accepted as a House Captain for Rebuilding Together New Orleans. The organization wanted me down in New Orleans by August 25, so I had exactly a month to get myself ready. When I got home from work that day, I remember thinking to myself (and definitely freaking out) that this was actually happening for me. I was going to live in New Orleans for a year. As soon as I found out I was going, I became very anxious and nervous. I knew the opportunity was going to be a once-in-a-lifetime experience for me, but that didn’t do much to calm my nerves. It was a good nervousness though. I was taking a chance on something in a way that I never had before. And while that scared me, I knew it would be a great thing for me.
The month before I left for New Orleans was a difficult one for me. I had so many things to do just to get myself ready to leave Chicago and physically move to New Orleans. A lot more went into it than I ever had thought. It was also difficult saying goodbye to family and friends that I knew I wouldn’t see again for awhile. I had never lived outside of Illinois and away from family and friends, so it was very hard for me to leave and go to a place where I knew nobody. I drove down to New Orleans on August 21-22 with my Dad and just remember saying over and over again, “What did I get myself into?” Because I really didn’t know what I was getting myself into and who I would meet and what I would be doing on a daily basis.
It has been over four months (in which you can see what I’ve been doing through previous postings) since I’ve been gone and I can honestly say that joining AmeriCorps and moving to New Orleans was the best decision I’ve ever made. Every day here is a new day and I’m having experiences that I never imagined. I have also met so many different kinds of people, which keeps life fresh. There is still so much more of New Orleans that I need to see and experience that I get antsy at times and worry that I’m not going to have enough time to do everything. However, it isn’t always easy. I definitely have days where I want to hang out with people or do something and there’s nobody around or people don’t want to do what I want to do. There are also times when I have nothing to do and just spend the day kind of vegging out. But that’s the challenge. I have learned so much about myself and feel like I have gained a lot of confidence. When you are in a rut and things are the same day after day, it’s easy to have insecurities and lack confidence, which is where I was in my life. But having pride in what I’m doing and having taken this chance has given me a lot of confidence in myself. Also, through the things I’m doing at work, I realize I’m capable of a lot. I am gaining new skills and learning how to manage others. I just needed to push myself and continue to push myself.
And with the New Year coming, we all have the opportunity to push ourselves. We never really know what we are capable of unless we our challenged. Up until I decided to come to New Orleans, I wasn’t doing or trying many things outside of my comfort zone, which made life easy and secure. But it also put me into the rut that I was in. It took stepping outside of the box and trying something new for me to snap out of it. I don’t think I’ll ever be the same person as I was before coming down here. I know it’s definitely not easy, and I’m not saying that everyone needs to make a huge life-changing decision every year or all the time, but I encourage you to try and do one or two things in the next year that you never thought you would do. Take a chance on something. You may like it, you may not. You may succeed, you may fail. But at least you took a chance and went out on a limb to experience something different. I promise that it will be rewarding in some way. There is a whole world of possibilities out there and it’s so easy to fall into a routine that lets us forget that.
I hope everyone can find something new and exciting in the New Year that challenges you and helps you find happiness in a place that you never expected. Happy 2009!
Going into busy season at E&Y last year, I knew that I wasn’t really happy at Ernst & Young. A couple of months earlier, I had met with an accounting and finance recruiter to see what other jobs were out there and nothing seemed appealing. Along with my unhappiness at work, I was in a rut personally as well. I can be a very anxious person and just felt that my life was kind of at a standstill and every week and month wasn’t much different than the one before it. Throughout my life, I have been on this path that has kept me relatively happy but very conservative and secure. I have never been the type of person to take chances or challenge myself and it occurred to me that I am still very young and that living a conventional life was probably the cause of the funk I was in. By April, I had become even more anxious after working long hours for the prior three months. I had a trip to Arizona in April and a bachelor party in Vegas in May to kind of keep me occupied. I remember thinking on the way home from Vegas that it was time to finally do something. I was unhappy at work and unmotivated to do a lot of things for myself personally. I started writing down some goals for myself and gave myself a July 15th (my 25th birthday) deadline to make some sort of decision on what I was going to do about a job and the next phase of my life. I found that writing goals down really helps me get things done because once I write it down, it’s there and I can always see it. Through talking to my family and friends, I came across AmeriCorps and started looking at possible opportunities in New Orleans, San Francisco, San Diego, Washington D.C., and Boston. I decided that it would be a great time for me to go live somewhere else for a year or two and made this a focal point in trying to find a place to volunteer. I found the best opportunities to be in New Orleans and applied for three or four positions at different programs. I did not get accepted for the first few programs in which I applied.
However, at the end of the day on July 25th (a Friday), as I was sitting at my desk in the office finishing up for the week, I got the call that I had been accepted as a House Captain for Rebuilding Together New Orleans. The organization wanted me down in New Orleans by August 25, so I had exactly a month to get myself ready. When I got home from work that day, I remember thinking to myself (and definitely freaking out) that this was actually happening for me. I was going to live in New Orleans for a year. As soon as I found out I was going, I became very anxious and nervous. I knew the opportunity was going to be a once-in-a-lifetime experience for me, but that didn’t do much to calm my nerves. It was a good nervousness though. I was taking a chance on something in a way that I never had before. And while that scared me, I knew it would be a great thing for me.
The month before I left for New Orleans was a difficult one for me. I had so many things to do just to get myself ready to leave Chicago and physically move to New Orleans. A lot more went into it than I ever had thought. It was also difficult saying goodbye to family and friends that I knew I wouldn’t see again for awhile. I had never lived outside of Illinois and away from family and friends, so it was very hard for me to leave and go to a place where I knew nobody. I drove down to New Orleans on August 21-22 with my Dad and just remember saying over and over again, “What did I get myself into?” Because I really didn’t know what I was getting myself into and who I would meet and what I would be doing on a daily basis.
It has been over four months (in which you can see what I’ve been doing through previous postings) since I’ve been gone and I can honestly say that joining AmeriCorps and moving to New Orleans was the best decision I’ve ever made. Every day here is a new day and I’m having experiences that I never imagined. I have also met so many different kinds of people, which keeps life fresh. There is still so much more of New Orleans that I need to see and experience that I get antsy at times and worry that I’m not going to have enough time to do everything. However, it isn’t always easy. I definitely have days where I want to hang out with people or do something and there’s nobody around or people don’t want to do what I want to do. There are also times when I have nothing to do and just spend the day kind of vegging out. But that’s the challenge. I have learned so much about myself and feel like I have gained a lot of confidence. When you are in a rut and things are the same day after day, it’s easy to have insecurities and lack confidence, which is where I was in my life. But having pride in what I’m doing and having taken this chance has given me a lot of confidence in myself. Also, through the things I’m doing at work, I realize I’m capable of a lot. I am gaining new skills and learning how to manage others. I just needed to push myself and continue to push myself.
And with the New Year coming, we all have the opportunity to push ourselves. We never really know what we are capable of unless we our challenged. Up until I decided to come to New Orleans, I wasn’t doing or trying many things outside of my comfort zone, which made life easy and secure. But it also put me into the rut that I was in. It took stepping outside of the box and trying something new for me to snap out of it. I don’t think I’ll ever be the same person as I was before coming down here. I know it’s definitely not easy, and I’m not saying that everyone needs to make a huge life-changing decision every year or all the time, but I encourage you to try and do one or two things in the next year that you never thought you would do. Take a chance on something. You may like it, you may not. You may succeed, you may fail. But at least you took a chance and went out on a limb to experience something different. I promise that it will be rewarding in some way. There is a whole world of possibilities out there and it’s so easy to fall into a routine that lets us forget that.
I hope everyone can find something new and exciting in the New Year that challenges you and helps you find happiness in a place that you never expected. Happy 2009!
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