We can't ignore this problem.

As educators, we encounter a lot of difficult situations. We interact with a large group of children every day, and unfortunately, a lot of kids have pretty difficult lives. I work with kids in foster care, kids whose mom or dad is in jail, kids whose mom or dad (or both) live in a different country. These kids are not carefree, not in the slightest.
Recently I learned that one of my students was removed from his home because his parent was hitting him. He now lives with his grandparents, who live almost an hour away. They have worked it out so he can stay at our school for the rest of the year - his life is already disrupted enough without having to start a new school in May.


I simply cannot comprehend hitting a child. 


I wish I had something profound to say, but that's it. I simply cannot understand it.


According to many news outlets, including CBS, child abuse has been on the rise in the past few years, due to the recession. Parents are stressed out, out of work, and take their frustration out on their children, and additionally funding for abuse prevention and counseling services is being cut.


Want to really feel sick? read the Child Welfare Information Gateway's 2009 report on Child Abuse and Neglect Fatalaties. According to the report, 

"The National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS) reported an estimated 1,530 child fatalities in 2006. This translates to a rate of 2.04 children per 100,000 children in the general population. NCANDS defines “child fatality” as the death of a child caused by an injury resulting from abuse or neglect, or where abuse or neglect was a contributing factor."

Childhelp.org has some statistics that bring tears to my eyes, not the least of which is the graph showing child deaths due to abuse or neglect per day. The number has gone from just above 3 per day in 1998 to almost 5 deaths a day in 2006. Five children died, on average, every day in 2006. More than 3 out of 4 were under the age of 4.

This is not something that is unique to the community I am working in. We can't say "well, Rosie, you work in a "bad" school in a "tough" neighborhood." No. Child abuse occurs in all cities, in all socioeconomic groups, and within all ethnicities. Just because this is the first time I've been confronted with the reality doesn't mean I haven't worked with other kids who have been hurt by people who are supposed to protect and care for them.

These are our babies. Our children. And instead of protecting them, we are cutting programs to prevent abuse. Child Protection Services across the country are understaffed and dealing with higher caseloads.

I can't be eloquent right now, I just need someone to explain to me what makes it ok to ignore this problem.

Calculators at the Grocery Store

Today, I was looking for cooking inspiration on one of my all-time favorite blogs,  Gluten-Free Girl and The Chef. I went back and read Shauna's entry about when she and her family did the United Way Hunger Action Week in January. I wrote about it then, and I'm bringing it up again, because there are good lessons to be learned here. Good lessons that I still need to learn, probably.
I may have mentioned that I ran out of food stamps two weeks before they were set to be renewed. So, for the past week and half, I have been doing two things I hate to do: Buying non-organic fruits and vegetables, and using my "for fun" money to do it.
Clearly, I am still working on this eating for $200 a month thing. I make excuses that it's because I am on a special diet, and need to buy gluten-free foods, but if Shauna and her family can do it, then so can I.
My food stamps get reloaded on Thursday, and I'm going to start taking a calculator to the grocery store. I am allowed to spend no more than $50 a week. I'm going to start planning my meals in advance so I don't go to the store, hungry, at 5:30pm.
My wonderful Grandma sent me an Amazon gift card for my birthday, so I am stocked up on Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free Whole Grain Bread Mix, and an exciting assortment of gluten-free flours. I am taking a baking class tonight at my awesome local Community Food Co-Op. So, even though I made the awesome discovery of gluten free bagels this week, I probably won't be buying any. The Bellingham Farmer's Market (recently voted Best in the Northwest!) is open, so I will be getting awesome local spring veggies every Saturday. I planted lettuce seeds and they are starting to sprout - although it will be a while still before I can harvest salad greens right from my porch. This summer I will be helping out at our school garden, which hopefully means fresh produce for me!
I can do this. I don't need frozen pizzas or meat more than once a week. I can make hummus and salsa. I can find recipes and plan meals in advance. I can eat healthy and enjoyable meals on a budget. It's all about the beauty of simplicity, right?

What comes next

The days are getting longer, the farmer's market has opened, the children are getting restless... all signs that spring is here, and that summer is fast at its heels. There is less than seven weeks of school remaining. After that, three weeks until my term of service is over.
Holy crap.


I have no idea what I'm doing next. I moved up here with the express intention of starting a children's theatre, and I still want to do that. Unfortunately, that won't pay the bills right away. I've been looking for jobs here, in Seattle, and all over, and there's not much out there.
This is the kind of things that give me nightmares. I hate major changes in my life, and I hate not knowing what the plan is.

What I do know is this:
I love working with kids
I love theatre
I love books
I love Washington state, my family and friends, and the whole Pacific Northwest attitude

So, if I can't find a job at a theatre, maybe I can get a job in a bookstore? Or a library? I really don't have any sort of "recession-proof" job skills. Not very good with computers, and I am definitely not skilled in the construction trade - which the radio always tells me is the best job market.

I have come to the realization that I might not find a job which includes all of those things. I have found some jobs out of state that sound amazing. I am applying for jobs that don't have anything to do with theatre. But I worry, if I keep saying "someday I will have a job that makes me completely happy," what happens if that someday never comes?

Simple Rewards

Today I got a good reminder of Why I Do This. Which I needed, I've been feeling very overwhelmed lately.
One of my second graders has been working really hard on our reading program, and her fluency and comprehension has increased a lot. I started working with her in February, and she wasn't writing complete sentences, she was skipping words and losing her place when she read out loud, and she wasn't motivated to get any better. Since then, I've watched her get excited as she reaches a goal reading rate (usually about 100 words per minute), and she's gotten to see her own growth on the graph we keep.
Today she completed her twelfth story and I sent them all home, with a "Super Reader" certificate. She was absolutely thrilled at the prospect of showing all the good work she has done to her parents.
I was a little hesitant to send home a packet like that - the certificate asks the parents to read and discuss the stories with their students. I was hesitant because I so often hear "Oh that kid's parents are never home," "That student has no support at home," and, most often, "No one at home speaks English." However, I did it, and will continue to do it, because I want to offer families every opportunity to be involved in their child's education. Even if parents don't speak English, I will encourage my students to talk about their reading with them. It's all about reading and understanding, it doesn't matter if the discussion is done in English, Spanish, or Pig Latin.

In other news, I have less than $10 in food stamps to last me until the 6th of May. Oops. There will be some creative cooking these next few weeks.

Finding Balance

It seems that in the past month, I have been doing a lot of serving and not quite enough surviving. I've been extremely sick twice, finally using up all of my sick days - this is not good, as there are about 2 and a half months of school left. I haven't been exercising, I haven't been sleeping, and, worst of all, I haven't been blogging. These three things are probably the most beneficial things I can do for my self, for my my mental and physical health  and by neglecting them I have been neglecting personal sanity. Not good.
March seemed to go by in a blur of motion and noise. March 2nd was Read Across America Day, in celebration of Dr. Seuss's Birthday. My awesome team of Alderwood WRC members spearheaded an effort to have a combined, three-school event. We recruited the other two Bellingham teams back in October, and had slowly been working on the event since then. We contacted the Mayor Pike and Sherrif Elfo, asking them to read their favorite Dr. Seuss books at the event. We got donations from several local businesses. We sent out press releases to local media. And on March 2nd, it finally all came together. The turnout for Alderwood was great; we had over 200 people show up. The other two schools didn't have quite as much luck, but we hope that this is just the beginning and the three Bellingham schools with WRC programs will continue to host events like this.
Also on March 2nd I was told that I was not selected for an interview for Teach For America. I was bummed, but I am excited to find some other opportunities, closer to home.
March also saw the final stages of our school garden planning, and on the 27th, a work party of staff, students, and families showed up to make those plans into a real garden. Thanks to a Starbucks grant, we got money for every volunteer that showed up. Money to spend on soil, seeds, and worms! I wasn't there, but I hear it was awesome, and I got to spend most of last Friday in the garden, and am very excited about the future of it.
Why wasn't I at the garden party on the 27th, you ask? Well, I was up at the crack of dawn to drive my Girl Scout Troop to Seattle. We (along with Jenn, another awesome AmeriCorps member), trekked to The Univeristy of Washington and Seattle University to tour the campuses. When you have a troop of teenage girls, you get to do the fun stuff. We had an awesome time, and talked a lot about the girls' plans for their futures. We also talked about everything from boys to the health care bill. It's nice to know that there are teenagers out there that I can relate to and have great conversations with. I feel really lucky to have gotten hooked up with this troop. Jenn and I are trying to convince them to go camping this summer, they so far are not very excited about "sleeping in the dirt." (Crazy, right?)
The day after our college tours, I got sick. Sicker than I have been in a very long time, and sicker than I ever want to be again. The kind of sick that makes you lose ten pounds. That put me out of commission for several days. When I returned to school, several of my students told me how they or their siblings had "puked a lot" that weekend. Thanks, guys.
Luckily, I recovered soon enough to celebrate my birthday. Yes, as of last week I am over a quarter of a century. I celebrated with my friends at trivia night, then dancing, then karaoke the following night, and then celebrating with my Seattle friends on Saturday night. I'm a big supporter of Birthday Week.
Now it's Spring Break, and I am relaxing on the beach. The fifty-degree, windy, stormy, San Juan Islands beach. I'm also applying for jobs and working on a drama program to present to the fifth grade teachers at my school. Hopefully this week allows me the time to relax and remember why it's important to both Serve AND Survive.

Lessons

Sometimes I think ADD is contagious.
I spend all day with these kids who can't pay attention to what they are doing, who can't sit still for two seconds, and when I get home I discover that I'm in the same state. I go to yoga and the whole time I think about stuff. Things of no importance, or things I have no control over at this moment. What I might say to the Teach For America interviewer. Where I might live next year - not what city but specifically what I want my apartment to look like. What kind of thing I might cook for breakfast if I had the time. Whether or not my co-workers like me. And then I remember I am supposed to be focusing on yoga and my breathing. Then the cycle repeats.
So, at least I have sympathy for my students. If I can't be still then how can I expect them to be?
The the same thing goes for interrupting. I hate it when people interrupt me, and I daily tell my students that it is rude. However, I find myself doing it all the time when I am talking with my friends, co-workers, and family. It's a habit I am trying to break myself of, because it is rude. It's like saying "what I have to say is more important than what you have to say," which is just another way of saying "I am more important than you," which I (usually) don't believe.
And again, if I can't stop interrupting, isn't it hypocritical of me to expect them to be quiet while I am talking?

Remember how I said I was feeling burnt-out? Well, last night I slept for over twelve hours. I fell asleep on the couch while watching a movie, woke up at about 9, brushed my teeth, went to bed, and didn't get up until 9:30 this morning. I think my body is trying to tell me something. Perhaps "don't stay up past midnight and then go to yoga the next morning at 8."
 It's pretty amazing how good one feels after twelve hours of sleep. And since I went to bed fairly early I have had all day to get things done. Maybe my mom was on to something when she wanted me to go to bed early as a kid. Just maybe.

End of February Blues

I've been feeling really burnt out recently. Tired all day but can't get to sleep, exhausted by the end of the day, frustrated that my apartment is messy, terrified that I have four and a half months left in AmeriCorps and very little idea what I will be doing next.
The sleep thing - it's stress, I know it. I should be exercising every day but I'm not. I should be getting in bed by 10 every night but I'm not. I know I will just lay there for hours, thinking. So it seems to make more sense to stay up, read, watch a movie, clean my bathroom (really. I did that the other night.).
Yesterday, 3:00pm, I came close to crying. I was exhausted, both physically and emotionally. I realized that Teach For America will let me know if I have made it to the first round of interviews in less than a week, and the whole process (if I make it) will be done in two months. We are having a large, 3-school event for Read Across America day on March 2nd (the same day as invitations to TFA's interviews are sent), which is coming together very slowly. I am turning 26 in four weeks. Life suddenly seemed very heavy.
Luckily, I had volunteered to stay for a school garden meeting. At 3pm, staying at school an hour extra didn't sound like the best idea, but I got to sit and talk with people who are passionate about gardening and community involvement and creating an educational environment with dirt and worms and compost and plants. There are teachers and parents really excited about bringing this program to our school, who won't quit until it is done.
Possibly the best part was talking to one of the younger teachers at my school before the meeting. She is close to my age, and I was telling her that I was trying to remind myself that when I am a "real" teacher, I won't be working with 27 students from grades K-5 in groups of 1-4 over the course of the day, and will be worrying a lot less about being able to pay my bills and still have money left to put gas in the car. We talked a little bit about the money issue, and she said to me "I have friends who are extremely well off. Like private jet well off, and I often can't even imagine what their lives are like. And then I sit back and realize that that is probably what a lot of my students families feel when they look at me."
That is so true, and I think it's fantastic that she realizes that disparity is there. She (along with most of the teachers I am lucky enough to work with this year) is totally aware of the differences between herself and her students, and tries to work through them.
Another big contributor to my 3:00 meltdown is my 5th grade boys. They are the last students I see every day, and they are by far my most difficult students. One of them wants to talk and ask questions about everything except what we are reading, and the other simply wants to know why I don't bring him candy.
We sit in the hallway directly across from a 4th-grade room. This class goes to specialists at the end of the day, so the teacher has planning time while I read with these boys. She often overhears our sessions and gives me tips and encouragement. On Tuesday, after a particularly difficult session, she complimented me on my patience. It's good to know I at least still have the appearance of being patient, even when I feel like my head is going to explode.

$7 a day - Take that, Rachel Ray!

The past few weeks, I've been missing things. Missing the time to write. Missing news stories, missing important dates, missing the news that last week was The United Way of King County's Hunger Action Week. Granted, I don't live in King County any more, but it's still one of those things I feel I should have known about.
The idea is, try to feed yourself for only $7 a day - also known as the maximum food stamp benefit available in Washington State. Also known as what I have done every day since September.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not knocking the idea. I think it's great. I think everyone should be aware of how difficult it is to eat good, healthy food on food assistance. What I really appreciate is that bloggers like The Gluten-Free Girl - who is, as her name implies, gluten free - are participating and blogging about the experience. It's much more difficult to live off of $7 a day when you can't buy a 99cent loaf of bread.
I am completely inspired by The Gluten-Free Girl's entry about her experience this past week, and I am making my own plans. Plans that include baking my own bread, roasting a chicken, and using my awesome new crock pot. Plans that include a real, honest-to-goodness budget for my food.
Because, you see, for the first time since September, I used up all my food stamp benefits before the month was over.
To be fair, I bought five different kinds of gluten-free flours to make a bread that I took a class to learn how to make. And Xanthan Gum, which is pretty much the most expensive white powder that you can buy legally. Now that I made the initial investment, I can make my own gluten-free sourdough bread, and make sandwiches and eat toast... very exciting.
However, this month I also did things like buy lunch at the Co-Op deli counter several times, as well as buy frozen meals to take to school. When you are living off of $7 a day for food, a $5 sandwich is not a good idea.
Planning meals is a big step in the right direction for food budgeting, and buying in bulk is another good way to stretch your food dollars. That's why I was excited to hear that Costco is now accepting food stamps (I am lucky enough to have a membership, I'm tacked on as a "domestic partner" to a family member). While I was searching the internet to confirm the rumor, I stumbled across this article/blog entry, by Aaron Crow, a "freelance journalist," with a lot of opinions. To give you a general idea of this particular opinion, it's titled "Costco accepting food stamps: not exactly a great idea." Some choice quotes:

"There are no 15 items or less lines at Costco to speed things up because no one buys less than 15 items at a time. I've been a Costco member for about six years, and I don't think I've ever walked out of there without dropping at least $100."

"I don't know how someone on food stamps who is shopping there maybe once a month can justify paying $50 for the privilege of shopping there for a year, but the enticing free food samples might make a meal in themselves during a visit and make the membership fee seem cheap."

And the kicker:  (Note: SNAP is the Federal name for Food Benefits)

"I'm all for increasing the purchasing power of shoppers, but SNAP users may have to be protected from themselves. The federal program prevents some items such as liquor and cigarettes from being bought with SNAP benefits. Maybe it should add Costco to the list of banned purchases."

I have to say, even after reading this article several times, I'm still struck speechless by the ridiculousness of that last statement. And of the article as a whole. Basically, Aaron believes that Food Stamp recipients are simply too dumb, or at least lack the self-control, to spend their benefits wisely. Since he himself can't go into Costco without buying a 25 gallon jar of olives, it obviously means that poor people won't be able to do so, either.
I could go on for pages, dissecting this mans logic, but I don't need to. Because he is wrong. I know this because I am on food stamps, and I plan on using them to purchase Quinoa, frozen vegetables, and possibly coffee. I will not buy "four pounds of red king crab for $99.99," because I am not an idiot.

Unfortunately, this attitude towards Food Stamp users is quite prevalent. There is a strange assumption amongst the general population that people who use food stamps are lazy, fat, and stupid. The New York Times had an interesting "debate" about this in December.  - I use quotations because everyone seems to agree. The second paragraph of the introduction sums it up nicely:

If people buy fresh vegetables or other relatively expensive though nutritious foods, they are considered to be living high on the hog at the taxpayers’ expense. But if they buy cheap foods like hot dogs they are criticized for poor health habits.

 Imagine you are feeding a family of four - you jumped through all the hoops to get food stamps, you now have $22 a day to spend to feed your family. You also work two jobs, can't read English at all, get around on the bus or by walking, and are unfamiliar with most of the food you see in the grocery store. How do you feed your family? You find the cheapest, most filling foods you can find, that take the least amount of time to prepare, or that your kids can prepare on their own while you are at work. So: hot dogs, canned soup, microwavable meals if your third grader can read the directions.

We need to teach people how to get the best nutrition for their dollars. We need to teach people how to cook with the food available to them - whether you came from Mexico, Thailand, or India, the food on the grocery store shelves is not going to look friendly to you. We need people to understand that sugary breakfast cereals and soda are not foods that will help them get through their day, no matter what they see in the advertisements.

The PTA at my school is starting a schoolyard garden, something I think all schools need, especially low-income schools. Students and their parents being involved and educated about gardening is how we start a food revolution - and that's what we all need, whether we are on public assistance or not.


**Edited to add:
I just found this article about the United Way Challenge at the Seattle Times website. I almost feel like the people who are "taking the challenge" aren't taking it seriously. They are worried about entertaining? First of all - it's totally possible. My best friend came over for breakfast this morning. Also, why do you think potlucks were invented? Second of all - when you are living off of an income that qualifies you for food stamps, you're probably not worried about hosting the neighborhood cocktail party.

It's beginning to look a lot like... the Pacific Northwest.

It's that time of year. And, as excited as I am for snow and lights and (gluten-free) cookies, I'm not talking about Christmas.
I'm talking about the bad time.
The time of year where AmeriCorps members begin to realize they will have no money to buy Christmas presents for friends and family. When many members just spent their first Thanksgiving away from home. Also, the time of year, in this part of the world, where we get up in the dark and get home in the dark. We haven't seen the sun in what seems like years, and it's starting to get cold.
How do we get through this time of year? With good friends and family. We try to shrug off the fact that we will not be buying gifts for everyone we want to buy gifts for. My friends and family are getting homemade gifts - hats, scarves, gloves, and pickles that I made this summer. The good thing about the current economy is that everyone is cutting back, so I don't feel so bad, but it's still frustrating.

We had our first snow of the season on Sunday. Today school started 2 hours late because of icy roads. I still nearly died getting my car out of my driveway. You would think that, this far north, this city would have better plans for bad weather. At least they have snowplows now - three years ago the city all but shut down for a week due to snow, because, yeah - the city didn't own any snowplows. Now the snow is melting, they are calling this horrible stuff falling from the sky "freezing rain." I parked my car at the top of the hill and walked down to my house, and I felt like I was on Deadliest Catch - the frozen water pelting my face, trying desperately not to fall on my butt (at least I didn't have to worry about the frozen ocean...)
One of my team members is from Florida and had literally never seen snow before. Sorry, Kristine, winter is not all that pretty here. It's mostly wet and grey. As someone who grew up here, I am used to it, but it still gets me down a little. I am trying to focus on the good things - I like my co-workers, I have great friends, I have a fun little Christmas tree and holiday music to listen to. Seeing my students, even the ones who can be frustrating, always brightens my day.
So, although I may not be able to literally walk on the sunny side of the street, I'll be busy finding the metaphoric sunshine these next few weeks. Or months.

Thanks.

I don't usually post blogs from school, but I wanted to share this. Today, the director of the Heritage Flight Museum forwarded me an email that she got from one of the soldiers we sent letters to in October.

"I got the letters in the mail and they were fantastic. Especially now that Afghanistan is the big topic, its great to know that people back home are still thinking about deployed soldiers. I took some down to our CP and everyone thought they were great. I'm glad though that this time there wasn't glitter available, like there was last time. Please send everyone involved my thanks for their time, effort, and thoughts for everyone over here."

It's great to know that something so simple is such a big deal to them. (Also - even soldiers know that glitter is the herpes of crafting.)
Again, this isn't about supporting or opposing a war, it's about remembering that there are people, young people, in a dangerous place far from home.
We will be making Christmas/Holiday cards to send over at the open house later this month. I'm thinking of also finding a small gift for the kids to make and send. Something to send a little cheer.

....and I'm back!

Sometimes, a person just needs a little break.
I have seven blog entries saved that started as great ideas, and fell flat on their faces about two paragraphs in. Things just weren't clicking. So I stopped trying.
But, the break's over now. And here I am, back in the blogosphere.

I am incredibly lucky to have a family friend who is a life coach. A few weeks ago, I posted something on my Facebook about "Trying to figure out what to do with my life." She sent me a message offering to help.
So, last week, I had a session with a life coach.
It was fantastic. I had no idea what to expect, as the only place I had ever heard of a life coach was on the FX show Nip/Tuck. As is to be expected with that show, serious drama revolved around the character. Thankfully, Page is nothing like that.
She had me chart out how I felt about different aspects of my life, and then we discussed what I can do to raise up the ones that I marked as being low. I feel good about my friends and family, as well as my health - now that I've figured out I have a wheat allergy, I don't think I've ever felt healthier... but, the remainder of my life needs a little work.
Instead of saying "you need to do this and this and this to improve your life," we had a discussion about why I don't feel positive about those certain aspects of my life, and what I can do to improve them.
For example: Self-Growth. I am a person who loves to learn things. Right now, I feel like I am learning a lot about bureaucracy and passive-aggressiveness in the workplace. That is not the kind of thing I want to learn about. So, we decided that I set aside some time in my week to learn things. To read a book about a subject I find interesting, or to attend a class, or even to talk to my friends about what they are learning in school. I am also going to set aside some time to create art - crochet, paint, collage, whatever. I bought a book the other day called "The Big Ass Book Of Crafts," and it's awesome. If you know me, you will probably end up with a gift or two from this book.
Then we discussed career. As much as I love what I am doing, as much as I love working with these kids and watching them learn and grow, I sometimes feel like my career is stagnant. I am working the exact same job, for the exact same (tiny!) living stipend as I did when I graduated from college, three years ago. I do not know what I want to be when I "grow up." I thought I knew, and I have some ideas, but nothing definite. I am pretty sure I want to go to grad school... but no idea what I want to study.
The reality check here, was: It's ok. I'm twenty-five years old. It's ok to not have it figured out yet. Even the people who look like they have it figured out at twenty-five probably don't. So, I got another assignment. Leave my house and research things. Jobs that interest me. Graduate programs that interest me. Other opportunities. I have to leave my house, which is good because I am much too easily distracted, especially when I'm surrounded by things that "must" get done.
I was also assigned the "job" of taking at least a 30 minute walk every day. I've found some good places to walk even when it is dark (which happens at about 4pm!), and have had the added bonus of getting to see everyone's holiday lights go up.
So, yeah. I'm lucky. Not only do I have family who are willing to help me out, I have friends - from all walks of life - who are willing to do the same. That's the most important thing, right?

National Service (in which I might get a bit political)

Veteran's Day honors the men and women who have served our country in the armed forces. Many of those veterans went to war for our country, but many of them served in times of peace. My dad is a veteran. Several of my friends are veterans. I even have several friends who are currently serving in the military.
No matter what you think about this "war" that our country is currently involved in, there are still thousands of men and women who are a long way from home, in some pretty scary places, in the name of the USA, and in the name of the freedoms that we enjoy every day — even (especially!) the freedom to disagree with what our government is doing.
Last Wednesday, on Veteran's Day, the Heritage Flight Museum where I volunteer had free admission, activities, and fly-bys by several of the historic war planes that the museum owns. For a few hours in the morning, a local radio station had a live broadcast from the museum, inviting listeners to call in and share stories of service. My part of the event was inviting kids to make cards for a local soldier who is currently serving his third tour in Iraq. This is a program that the previous education director started, and something that I feel is worth continuing.

(Picture by Daniel Johnson, The Bellingham Herald)

In asking people to volunteer at the museum with me, I have gotten a (to me) suprising amount of negative response. People have told me "I just want to distance myself from anything that has to do with the war."
This response confuses the heck out of me. I don't care what you feel about the war, we are writing letters to a young man (my age) who is a long, long way from home. The letters from the kids say things like "I hope you are safe," and "you must miss your mom a lot." If you want to connect these statements - which are written by seven year olds - to a view on the war, to me they seem more anti-war than pro-war. I see nothing pro-war about wanting someone's son to get home safe.

The museum tries to be very clear that it is not a political entity. It is not a military museum. It does not support or oppose the war - it is a nonprofit museum dedicated to the history of American aviation. The thing about American aviation, though, is that a lot of it was developed by the military. Thus, we have a lot of warbirds. Plus, they are pretty awesome:

The way I see it, I am serving my country, for the second year. I am in National Service. I am doing it to help others, to work for what I believe in (education), and, honestly, because the government is giving me a (very) little money to use towards furthering my education. People who join the armed services - another form of National Service - do it to help others, to get an education, to work for what they believe in (such as democracy, human rights, and freedom), and so the government will help them pay for their education. We're really not so different.
But there are differences. I have a family who knows I am safe. They might not get to communicate with their families for weeks at a time. No one shoots guns at me or plants bombs where my car might be driving. So when I can help children make cards to send to someone my own age, who is thousands of miles from home, I jump at the opportunity.

Surviving on a Serving budget

One of the best workshops I took at the SERVES conference was on living well on an AmeriCorps Budget, presented by Washington State University Extension. As an AmeriCorps State member, I make $1050 a month before taxes. Not a lot. Any little bit of money I can save is worth it.

I am always worried that budget workshop teachers are going to tell me to give up having any sort of fun, ever, so I was pleasantly surprised when the first thing the presenter had us do was write down our top ten things we love to do. We marked the ones that cost $5 or more at a time, whether we do them with others or alone, and when we did the activity last. My top 10 things were this:

1. Go to the Movies
2. Go out to dinner
3. Go out for drinks
4. Go out for coffee
5. Watch TV
6. Hike
7. See live music
8. Read
9. Cook
10. Make things/crafts

We then looked over our lists and evaluated them. I like to go out. I like to spend time with my friends and do social things. I also like my alone time (reading). Half of my things often cost $5 or more at a time.

She then had us look at our lists and think about any changes we could make. If I cooked more and went out to dinner less, I would probably save money, especially since I get $200 in food stamps a month. I could invite friends over and have just as much fun. Same goes for getting coffee. I can at least get tea or an Americano instead of a latte.

Going out for drinks and seeing live music go hand-in-hand, as most shows I want to see are at the local bars. I’m not willing to give up on live music, but I can definitely budget myself and even not drink (shocking a concept as that seems).

I really liked that we were not told to give up the things we like doing, and instead we brainstormed how to still do them and afford to live.

We next talked about our expenses: fixed expenses are rent, bills, and car payment – things you absolutely have to pay. Flexible expenses are things that can change: gas and power bills (use CFL bulbs!), food and drink, putting gas in your car, and entertainment. There are also periodic expenses, like holiday gifts, birthdays, and vacations. She suggested figuring out how much you need to save, dividing it by 12, and making that amount a fixed expense. That way when December rolls around, you have been saving for gifts all year. (The same goes for taxes!)

When you subtract your expenses from your net (after tax) income, if you’re like me and most other AmeriCorps members who were in the workshop, you come up with a negative amount. Unfortunately, we are people and not the federal government, so we can’t operate our lives with a negative income.

The solution?

Increase Income or Decrease Spending.

I already figured out some good ways to decrease my spending – cook at home, don’t spend $20 at the bar, etc. I could also give up my Netflix account or my internet, but neither of those ideas sound like worthwhile sacrifices.

Therefore, I’m working on ways to increase my income. I already baby-sit for one local family, I’m sure I could find more gigs. I am thinking about making canvas grocery bags and selling them online or at my school. I have thought about offering my services as a tutor or an editor for college students. I got good grades in Theatre History! And I still have all my notes. I’ve been crocheting a lot as well and thought about either selling my creations or teaching crochet classes.

Do you have any ways that you bring in extra money? What about tricks to decrease your spending? I have looked into some online jobs but most of them seem very sketchy.

**Edited to add: You know that internet I refuse to give up? It hasn't worked in two days, so I'm posting this while sitting at The Woods Coffee shop. Drinking a $3 Americano. At least it's got the prettiest view of any coffee shop around. I'm watching the rain fall over the bay.

Auto-addiction

Today's lesson in frugality is: Stick up for yourself.
This applies to every aspect of your life, but specifically to car repair.
The majority of Americans can't repair their own cars. When I drove Volkswagens from the 80s, me, my friends, or my dad could pretty much fix anything that was wrong with them. Unfortunately, with newer cars the most I can do is change the oil and the filters. 
So, when my Ford Focus wouldn't start on Friday night, I had it towed to the local Ford dealership - Diehl Ford in Bellingham, WA. 
To make a long, frustrating story short, the dealership quoted me a price for the car I couldn't afford on my AmeriCorps budget. When a tow truck (sent by my insurance company) came to take the car to another repair shop, Deihl wouldn't release the car to the tow truck driver because they said I owed $120 for "diagnostics." After several back and forth phone calls, John in the service department yelled at me, refused to let me speak to his manager, and actually called me a liar. 
After work, I showed up at the dealership and met with the General Manager, Mike Diehl. He was very polite, and definitely upset that his employee treated me in the manner he did. He apoligized and offered to do the repairs for $100 less than what they originally quoted me. This is still more than the second shop, and I refused. Mike went back to get my keys from them, and the the service people had a brief pow-wow with him and agreed to do the repairs for the price the second shop quoted me. I made sure to get it in writing from Mike Diehl.
I picked my car up today and paid the price that I was promised. I am happy that my car is fixed, but still amazed that someone in customer service would speak to an employee like that.
The lesson? Don't back down, and stick up for yourself. If I had given in, I would have paid them $120 for doing nothing. I will never do business with them again, given the way their service department treated me. I have worked many retail and customer service jobs, and I can't fathom what would make a person in a service job feel that they can talk to a customer that way. He actually called me a liar! I am still in shock. 

So, when getting repairs done on a car (or anything) - here are my "frugal" rules:1) Shop around. Find the best price. Tell the repairmen/women what the best price you found was.
2) Stick up for yourself.
3) Do your research. Google is your friend - find out how much the parts needed are, figure out what the repair should cost.
4) Stick up for yourself. (Have I mentioned that already?)
5) Get all promises in writing. Otherwise there is no way to prove what they said to you.
6) If you aren't getting what you need, there is always someone higher up you can talk to. 
7) It's okay to cry. I did. But then take a breath, channel that emotion into rightous anger and, yes: stick up for yourself.



I apologize for this entry being about such a frustrating personal experience, but I feel like it is a good lesson for all of us who drive. I personally am rethinking my whole reliance on my car after this. It only rains 80% of the year here, who needs a car?

What A Week!

Happy Halloween!
This past week I went to the SERVES institute for Washington Service Corps. Nearly 1000 AmeriCorps members descended on Yakima, WA - the so-called "Palm Springs of Washington," (I've yet to figure out why they call it that) for workshops on everything from tutoring ELL students to lowering your ecological footprint.
I discovered it is impossible to sit down and write a blog after spending nine hours sitting in workshops. Impossible for me, at least. I am not a sitting-still kind of girl, so the past week was pretty much torturous.
Monday morning I woke up at 5:30 am (so begins the torture), picked up two team members and headed south and then east. After a long drive with several coffee breaks, we arrived at the Yakima Convention Center, just in time for lunch. When I asked one of the catering staff if the tortillas in the enchiladas were corn, she scoffed and asked if I was Vegan. Beyond not making any sense, that did not bode well for my future meals.
A big part of Washington Service Corps mission this year is Disaster Preparedness. Our opening keynote speaker was entertaining, but all I can remember is this: Live next to a Mormon, Have Chocolate and Toilet Paper in your disaster kit, and Women and Children First. Obviously, getting up at 5:30 and driving halfway across the state is not good for my mental capacity.
The second speaker was from the Red Cross and spoke about personal preparedness - having a disaster kit in your household, and knowing what to do in case of a disaster. We should all have some sort of disaster kit at the ready, and I know I myself am guilty of often thinking that's a good idea, and then not doing it. However, I would not do well if my power or water was turned off for any length of time. I have some lanterns and candles and that's about it. My new goal is to have some very basic supplies - water, food, battery or hand-crank operated radio, and first aid kit - in a disaster kit by the end of the year. Here is a list of the items the Red Cross recommends having in your family's kit.
Also, did you know that Washington State has the potential for more different types of disasters than any other state? Luckily we don't get hurricanes.

I took several great workshops that I would like to share with you, and I will over the next few days. I also have a new adventure to share - car repairs on an AmeriCorps stipend. Last night, my car would not start. The ignition tumbler will not turn. Unfortunately, this seems to be a common problem for this type of car, but not common enough to have a factory recall on. The car was towed to the local dealership, where it will hopefully be repaired on Monday. As a young, blonde, woman I am often very wary of dealing with mechanics and car dealers, but I do not have a choice. Luckily I am fairly educated on the subject of cars and it should be a simple thing to fix. One important lesson is this: Roadside assistance is WORTH IT. Whether it is through your insurance company or something like AAA, it is well worth the extra little bit of money to know that a tow truck will come save you when it is pouring down rain and your car won't start. (And you are wearing zombie makeup because it is the night before Halloween and live in a college town.)

No Pig Flu!

So here it is, Friday night. The week went by fast.
Monday I came home early from work - was not feeling well at all. I ended up staying home, with a fever and sore throat on Tuesday as well. Luckily, it was not The Swine Flu, just the regular flu.
Being sick messes up my whole life. Missing one and a half days of work somehow made the week seem longer.
I'm pretty terrified I'm going to get Swine Flu (I guess we are supposed to call it H1N1 now), and be sick for a long time. We are only allowed 8 sick days, and I've taken two and a half. And, children are walking petri dishes. They don't know how to cover their mouths when they cough, they touch everything, and they don't wash their hands. For some reason, I still love working with them. I am planning on getting the vaccine as soon as it is available, and hoping it won't be too late. Several of my team members (not at my school, thankfully) have already come down with H1N1.

Next week my whole team goes to Yakima to SERVES with the whole Washington Service Corps, which comprises about 1/3 of the AmeriCorps members in Washington State. We arrive on Monday and listen to people talk for the afternoon. Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday morning we get to attend a variety of workshops covering topics from using the education award to tutoring ELL students to lessening your environmental footprint. I've been planning out what workshops I want to take and I am planning on a class on Volunteer Management, one financial management on the AmeriCorps stipend, paying for graduate school, living a sustainable lifestyle, and one on avoiding burnout. There are a couple others I want to take but they conflict and I am having a hard time deciding! I am looking forward to the week, and I promise to share the good stuff I learn with you all.

Tomorrow is Make A Difference Day, billed as "America's largest day of doing good." According to the USA Weekend's official website, last year 3 million people participated in Make-A-Difference-Day. Our local Volunteer Center is hosting a big event, with a breakfast beforehand. I will be planting trees with four of my team members, and am hoping that it won't be pouring down rain. Even if it is, I am looking forward to it. I am excited to be doing some service that is different - being outside and not in a school at a desk sounds like a nice change of pace. I've been thinking that I would like to do some environmental education work, so this will be a nice way to dip my toes in and test the water.

So, what are you doing for Make A Difference Day? It's not too late to find a project - if your town has a volunteer center check with them, or your church, your school, check your newspaper, or just look around your neighborhood to see if anyone close to home might need an extra hand.

The Cycle (I ain't talkin' 'bout no bike)

On our Team Friday last week, we talked about the "National Service Cycle," as well as the Stages of Group Development, which both conveniently follow the same graph:

This graph and the "Stages of Group Development" were primarily developed by Charlie Ford, a private consultant for AmeriCorps programs. From my past experience in AmeriCorps, it is spot-on.

These stages describe what an individual in AmeriCorps might be going through, as well as how the entire group is working and relating with each other.

The first stage is Forming. As an individual, you are extremely excited to be starting AmeriCorps or starting another year of it. You have big plans (like writing a blog about it!) and know it's going to be awesome. As a group, you are excited to meet your teammates, and make big plans for the group (like 5 family events in the school year!).

The second stage is Storming. The thing about the Storming stage, and winter in the Pacific Northwest, is they come at pretty much the same time. Storming is when reality rears it's ugly head, nothing is going right, and you hate everything. You might apply for other jobs, cry on the phone with your parents, and eat way too much chocolate. You might. I'm not saying this from experience or anything. As a group, this stage is terrible. Fighting, anger, frustration.... I'm hoping my group has already had our little problems, and gotten through them. Fingers crossed.

Like the new green grass peeking it's head out of the snow (or, let's be serious - mud), Norming is when things start to get good again. As an individual, you begin to realize that this is really worth it. As a group, you begin to realize that yes, you can work together.

Performing! Doing what you came here to do! Getting things done! Kids are learning to read, your group is working together beautifully, life is wonderful.

Adjourning - this is when you realize that, just after it started to get good, your time in AmeriCorps or your time with this group has to come to an end - and soon. People get cranky, especially if they don't know what they are doing next. People get upset when other people get excited about the time being over. This part is TOUGH.

Then, it's done. Hopefully you stuck it out and are still alive to move on to the next step.

Know what? Sitting through this workshop was so much better the second time. Because it is SO TRUE. By the time I was in the middle of Storming in my last year, I had completely forgotten about this. They promised us it would get better! I should have listened.
I distinctly remember going to an interview at the Cingular interview (because I thought I HAD to get out of AmeriCorps), and it was windy and rainy and the power went out, so I had to reschedule my interview. Poetic, huh? In my "Storming" phase in a big storm, which prevented me from getting a job that would take me out of AmeriCorps? Well, I think so.

So, if you're storming: Remember, it gets better! I'm sure I will come back and read this entry several times in the next few months, to remind myself of that very fact.

If you would like to read more about the Stages of Group Development, check out: http://www.nationalserviceresources.org/stages-group

The Wild Things Are Here!

After four weeks of planning (which felt, at times, like four years or four days), we held our first Family Literacy Event last night.

Our theme was the book Where the Wild Things Are, by Maurice Sendak. We planned to have it this week because the movie adaptation, directed by Spike Jonze, opens tomorrow. It looks amazing and I, for one, am really excited to go see it.

Our Family Night included two art projects, readings of the story in both English and Spanish, a raffle, and refreshments.

Since it was Washington Reading Corps first event at the school, we had no idea how many people to expect. I had a brief moment of panic yesterday afternoon when I was convinced that we were going to have fifteen volunteers and five families. As it turned out, we had 47 families attend, and that’s only counting the ones who signed in – I’m sure there were a few who got past us. Forty-seven families – most families consisted of three people, be it two parents and a student, one parent and two students, and even some families with grandparents in tow. So that comes to approximately 141 people attending our very first event! Very exciting.

We have a great community of staff members at our school – we had several teachers and students teachers attend and many of them helped out with parts of the event. Our librarian showed a short movie version of the book in both English and Spanish, and read the book in English. Our Principal Intern read the book in Spanish, which was very exciting for a lot of our Spanish-speaking students and families. Our PTA donated movie tickets and a copy of Where the Wild Things Are for the raffle, and my favorite local bookstore, Village Books, donated two books – Where the Wild Things Are and a bilingual (English/Spanish) book. Each family got a raffle ticket as they walked in.

Many community businesses donated food and supplies for our event, which is awesome. It is great when businesses, small and large, participate in community events such as this. They get great advertising and publicity, and we get things that we wouldn’t be able to otherwise afford. 

Falling into Fall

I know it's been too long, friends, and I am sorry. I wish I could say I have simply been too busy to blog - and that is partly true, I have been very busy - but in fact, it's been a frustrating week.
I am loving working with students (finally) but the whole education system is, in my opinion, pretty messed up. We have spent more time giving these kids different assessments (tests) then we have spent reading with them, and we are more than a month into the school year! The district wants to implement a new assessment program, the Title 1 program uses a different type of assessment, every student in school has to take another kind of assessment so teachers know where they need support... all these kids do is get tested!
Additionally, our site supervisor has just been offered a new job in the district, so now we will be assigned a new supervisor. (Luckily we have already been working with her and she is fantastic, and knows a little bit about what we are doing.) I keep hoping things are going to settle down and then something changes, mixing everything up again.
There have been a lot of little things this week, that by themselves are no big deal, but altogether... well, it was a frustrating week, like I said. I feel ineffective and a little bit unwanted. No, not unwanted - everyone is really excited to have us at the school. I feel like no one wants to deal with us. Which is beyond frustrating.
When I have actually gotten the chance to work with kids, it has been great. I love getting to know the students, and I am still amazed at how excited each and every one of them is about reading. I have never been at a school where so many students were excited about books. I don't know what it is, but something good is happening. Even the fifth grade boys (who, in my experience, don't like anything) are getting excited about the books we are reading.

I am constantly reminded of how difficult these kids' lives are. These are kids with foster parents, who go hungry because there is no food in the house, who don't have warm winter coats. However, they refuse to let life get them down. Every day they tell me something good that happened to them, whether it's playing with their cousin, learning a new game, or being praised by their teacher. I am working with third graders who read at a kindergarten level, fifth graders who read at a first grade level, but each and every one of them is excited to read, even when they think it is hard. If we could all go after things like that, if we could all focus on the good things in our lives, how much happier would we be?

Today I met with the director of the Heritage Flight Museum. I am "officially" their new Volunteer Education Coordinator. To start with, I will be expanding the education programs they have on their open house Saturdays. In the future, I will be creating programs for school groups that come to the museum, and hopefully for in-school programs such as residencies and maybe even after-school programs. I am so incredibly excited for this opportunity, I hope it goes well!

One Month In

Today marks the end of the first month of my second year of service. The beginning of my second month. I am still feeling good about deciding to sign up for a second term. It won't be easy, especially paying my bills in the winter months (when I'm sure my gas bill won't be small - it gets COLD here!), but I know I can do it.
Today was also the first day I got to spend tutoring. I work with third graders first thing in the morning, then first and second graders. After lunch, I go to a fourth grade classroom where I will be working with several students who are just below grade level. When I finish there, I go to the afternoon Kindergarten program for 45 minutes. After the Kindergartners go home, I finish up my day working with two fifth graders. It's a full day but it is so nice to actually be working with students. We will be starting a morning reading program in November as well.
One thing I have noticed while talking with my students today, something that really impressed me, was how excited all these kids are about reading. Every single kid I worked with was thrilled to tell me about the books they are reading, the books they want to read, and the kind of books they like to read.
The fourth grade teacher has asked us to work with his students on choosing good books to read - books at the right level, books that will help them be better readers. My team member and I were discussing how we are pretty sure no one ever talked to us about that when we were in school. A lot of these kids want to read what their peers are reading - even if those books are really too hard for them. It is exciting that they want to read Harry Potter, but if they are reading at a second grade level, Harry Potter is going to be way too difficult for them. They will get there, they just have to work up to it.
I have also been asked to lead a local Girl Scout Troop. I'm extremely excited about that. I was a scout up through Cadettes, in early high school. My troop kind of fell apart, but these girls are all sophomores in high school and want to see it through. I spoke to one of the girls today and she sounded very excited to have a troop leader who isn't a mom. (Because what 15-year old girl wants to hang out with her mom?)
In addition to the Girl Scouts, it looks like I will be volunteering as the Education Coordinator at the Heritage Flight Museum. I am absolutely thrilled to have been offered this opportunity. I will be creating education programs for open house days, school tours, and in-school workshops. Since I am trying to get my private pilot's license, and love to work with kids, it is the ideal opportunity for me. I have an official interview on Wednesday for the position, but I am confident I will get it. I can count the time towards my  required AmeriCorps service hours, and will hopefully stay in the position after my term is up. Simply getting to put "Education Coordinator" on my resume will be amazing.
This year, I plan on taking full advantage of the opportunities that AmeriCorps offers. I have registered for a Grant Writing class at the community college and will probably have the opportunity to write grants for the flight museum. AmeriCorps itself is a great experience, but there are so many more things I can do this year. I look forward to them!