Work/casual

So, I've uploaded some of my photos from the AmeriCorps conference I attended in Estes Park.  I snagged a few from the Good Works for Youth album - GWFY is the umbrella organization for VISTAs (AmeriCorps members) in CO organizations focused on youth and the environment...roughly.  It's complicated, but I was in Estes Park for 1) a conference for all AmeriCorps members in Colorado and 2) a conference for GWFY VISTAs.  Anyway, you should be able to view the pictures here: 

http://picasaweb.google.com/gates.sarahk/EstesPark?feat=directlink

We stayed at a YMCA, which was pretty amazing!  And I went roller skating - no big deal.

Overall, the conference helped a lot in terms of connecting with other people who are doing work similar to mine. Some of the other VISTAs (AmeriCorps members; it stands for Volunteers in Service to America) have done a lot of curriculum development in their programs, which is something I'm interested in pursuing.  This would be anything from environmental education to civic engagement to job readiness training.  A lot of people were generally knowledgeable about affordable recreation activities (if you discount the gas money it takes to get to them) throughout Colorado, like these classes that REI (an outdoor store) offers on everything from mapping to snow survival skills for women.  Pretty cool, hmm?

My mom was here this weekend, and we had a good time visiting the Denver Art Museum, eating upscale tamales, and seeing the debut run of House of Spirits at the Denver Performing Arts Center.  I stuck around in Denver on Sunday morning and bought 2 books...so what? 

Today I met with a lot? of high school counselors at the main district building to talk about WCYCC's (Weld County Youth Conservation Corps) AmeriCorps program for 17-24 year-olds, and it was interesting, but strange.  I felt weirdly comfortable, which is rare, but I think brought on partly by the fact that I was so tired and feeling slightly sick.  I thought about buying a cup of tea afterwards but then I didn't. 

From this sickness, or something, I'm feeling a bit bummed and stressed - so I'd appreciate any words of encouragement you might have to send along.  I think I might try to lessen the load, or the feeling of it, with a new pair of work/casual pants..um.
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(Here are some links that might clarify what I'm doing: http://www.cyca.org - Colorado Youth Corps Association;
http://www.co.weld.co.us/Departments/HumanServices/EmploymentServices/YouthServices/WeldCountyYouthConservationCorps.html - WCYCC)

Proof

A quick note before I go to bed to say that I've been in Estes Park this week for an AmeriCorps conference, so I have lots to tell!  Today I went hiking before I left... This is proof. 

Butternut squash

The car that is always parked right there, which we would fear being moved, since it would mean that our 90-some odd year old neighbor had gone for a drive. 

So these aren't quite pictures of butternut squash, but two of them have been cooked in our house since last Sunday.  Somehow both my roommate and I managed to cut ourselves in the process, so it's hard to tell if it's worth it.  After I finished my soup, I thought so - with ginger, apples, and curry.

I feel like I'm finally starting to adapt to my job - last week I had a meeting with some case managers at this organization called Youth and Family Connections to tell them about some of our programs for youth.  After saying "y'all" about fifteen times, the director asked me where I was from.  I think I turn the accent on higher when I'm nervous so people will pay more attention to that instead of what I'm actually saying.  But apparently I convinced them I was a real employee from a real organization... On Thursday, I went to an open house for another youth organization, where I didn't know anybody, so I took some networking professional's advice and introduced myself to a woman, and it worked.  Though I said, "Can I introduce myself to you?" so there wasn't really any hiding what was going on. 

I wish this were more fascinating than "butternut squash," but I think I'm trying to rest for whatever is coming next.  This week I feel I have all of these actual work things to do, involving me acting like a young professional, which seems kind of like lifting weights. I'm giving a presentation at a high school in the county and meeting with some different people about different things.  Habitat for Humanity and a garden in town.  Oh, and I started taking Spanish lessons with the county, which gives me an opportunity to ask really specific questions about the sounds vowels make.  Then next week, I'm going to Estes Park, a sort of mountain town that is actually vacated in the winter, for a conference, and my mom will be here for the weekend. But today, I think I'm just tired, or allergic... 

Inconspicuously

I may have mentioned that I went to a conference on volunteerism in Ft. Collins a few weeks ago.  Then I looked at the conference materials online and realized I'd walked into someone's photo...

I, unfortunately, do not have one blob of a thing to say, but a few minor things.  First, my roommate and I found a dairy about twelve miles away where we can buy fresh milk, cheese, ice cream, etc.  I also went to see Jamie and Shannon, who used to baby-sit for Will and me, in Parker, south of Denver, and read to their Will before he went to bed.  I was in high demand, since Will's brother wanted me to read to him too, but I was let off on the promise of "next time." 

A few weeks ago I went with my supervisor and two women from the Department of Weed Management to walk along the Poudre River where one of the conservation crews has been working to clear Russian olive and Tamarisks, which are invasive plants.  Now I've been noticing the Russian olives more than usual and they really are everywhere!  It's intimidating to think about trying to eliminate them for a living.  I read up on them so now I'm Russian olive/Tamarisk literate - really, ask me anything...

It's certainly strange to not be in school, and still tiring.  I said to myself last week that I would try to run in the mornings now, which means waking up even earlier.  Now that I have my bike (sort of) back together I am planning to ride to work too.  What am I thinking?  I don't know.  Try to send energy my way and the will to go to sleep early.  Or chamomile tea. 

Fort Collins is really a nice town, and I feel a pull to go there often.  One street contains all the stores, just south, I think, of Colorado State University.  There you find crammed restaurants and the enticing chocolate cafe.  My roommate and I have been there twice now. 

I've been thinking about a need to photograph, especially since I haven't really taken a picture of anything since last October.  I'm still waffling on this layout business, but I think it will be easier once I've taken pictures of things more reflective of my surroundings, instead of Greek statues and fruit wallpaper.

More importantly, though, I really need to get on a trail and walk for long enough to see pleasant things.  We are in the foothills, but close enough are mountains and trees.

I'm really in the mood to read something by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, but maybe just because of the lure of seeing the debut of this play based on Isabel Allende's House of Spirits when my mother comes to town.  And from writing that long paper on 100 Years of Solitude around this time last year.  Ah, and I want to see an opera!

This Little Light of Mine

Kathleen Battle!  That's all I have to say about that.  Well, also that she is incredibly gracious.  The Boettcher Concert Hall, where I saw her perform, is circular, so that you can be positioned (like I was) so that you are slightly behind Kathleen Battle, although with a fair view of the conductor.  Her voice still carried, despite its "limpid" quality (program notes) and the orchestra, but during her encore she turned to sing to those of us on the towards the back. She wore curtain-like shawls, one light blue for her arias and bright pink for Gershwin and spirituals.  It's very difficult to describe, but her voice is so bell-like and agile that it sounds capable of doing anything.  This quality came out especially in "This Little Light of Mine" and other spirituals, where she had a lot of freedom to improvise.  In addition to her songs, the Colorado symphony also played the overture to William Tell by Rossini, which is so relaxing at the beginning before jumping into those themes which sound more like horse races.  But I really, really enjoyed it and want to hear it closely again.  Generally, I sometimes think that I feel more comfortable in an audience than anywhere else.

O mio babbino caro

I've bought a ticket, the cheapest one possible, to see Kathleen Battle at the Boettcher Concert Hall in Denver next Saturday.  I still feel like it's a joke, and I'll show up to find that it's Kathleen Battle's stand-in or a clown.  She's singing my favorite song (next to Midnight Train to Georgia), which is O Mio Babbino Caro from Gianni Schicchi by Puccini. Also some things by Gershwin, but I didn't want to look at the list too long so that it will be somewhat of a surprise. 

Next week, I'm going to a conference on mobilizing volunteers in North Colorado.  The conference is in Fort Collins, and I still have to decide whether I want to book a room for Thursday night.  To be honest, staying in hotels always unnerves me, but it would make it easier to get started on Friday morning at 8 if I didn't have to make the 30 minute drive, park, etc.  We'll see... I also need to write a convincing proposal that will persuade the county to let the Youth Corps use facebook as a promotional tool.  Personally, I feel pretty weird about facebook, but I can understand its use better professionally.  The Colorado Youth Corps Association has a facebook page with updates about youth corps activities throughout the state as well as conservation news.  I have a fear, though, that spending so much time on the computer is making it pretty difficult for me to fall asleep at night.  It's like there's a constant whirring in my head, that is slowly spreading to my arms and legs, which should be an indication that something is not quite right, so I am thinking about trying to visit some more conservation projects on site so I will have something to write about in newsletters and the promotional materials I am trying to create... Um.  Jobs. 

Also, to the cousin who doesn't have a blog, if she happens to read this -- the shoes that gave you blisters give me blisters too.  But I think I am going to try to stick it out because I like them so much.

I want to write a story, but I don't know what it will be about.  Whenever I try to do this, I usually get really attached to one very specific idea or image and only slowly let it become something better.  Right now, the image is basically a woman with short, curly hair who moves her hand in concentric circles over her stomach whenever she is anxious or afraid.  Um.  You see why this might be difficult to turn into a story.