i don't know what it is, but writing has just become a chore lately. i have so much to say, but not the voice for it on paper. i haven't been particularly busy lately, just distracted. now so much has happened that i don't know where to begin...
today my entire immediate family, et al, celebrated christmas--opening presents, one by one, around a freshly-picked, minimally-decorated tree from the High Country (Boone, NC). we're all together this holiday season in our mountain house in Black Mountain, NC. being together and in the mountains is a divine experience. it so rare that we can (1) gather together like this (2) in a place we all consider "home." i love it. it's fun to share stories, laughter, pictures, lessons, gifts, food and good times with them... i am blessed to be a part of this family.
more stories later... for now it's just nice free from work this week.
Monday, December 27, 2004
Tuesday, December 14, 2004
fourth build
From the director of program management (12/10):
[This week] Hope was in Panama City leading a build with The Home Depot and the Boys and Girls Club of Bay County. She and Bobby (her Second)definitely appreciated the good Florida weather. Hope ran a good Build Day and in spite of a lower turnout than expected - throughout the day there were 70 volunteers from The Home Depot and 40 from the community but only 50 of these volunteers worked at any given time. CJ did the install and did an OK job. In addition to building the playground and carrying the mulch, a few volunteers helped to fix up a sandbox and paint logos (of The Home Depot, KaBOOM! and the Boys and Girls Club) on the walls of a building that faced the playground. They volunteers enjoyed the beautiful weather and the edlicious breakfast of French Toast and sausage which was provided and cooked by a Board Member! In addition, the kids inspired the volunteers with the cheers they led at the Board Cutting. There was a lot of media out for the build, including NBC (who came out twice), ABC, The News Herald (a local paper) and 2 radio stations who did live remotes and also helped volunteer! The day ended with an on-time Board Cutting ceremony where the kids did cheers for the volunteers.
[This week] Hope was in Panama City leading a build with The Home Depot and the Boys and Girls Club of Bay County. She and Bobby (her Second)definitely appreciated the good Florida weather. Hope ran a good Build Day and in spite of a lower turnout than expected - throughout the day there were 70 volunteers from The Home Depot and 40 from the community but only 50 of these volunteers worked at any given time. CJ did the install and did an OK job. In addition to building the playground and carrying the mulch, a few volunteers helped to fix up a sandbox and paint logos (of The Home Depot, KaBOOM! and the Boys and Girls Club) on the walls of a building that faced the playground. They volunteers enjoyed the beautiful weather and the edlicious breakfast of French Toast and sausage which was provided and cooked by a Board Member! In addition, the kids inspired the volunteers with the cheers they led at the Board Cutting. There was a lot of media out for the build, including NBC (who came out twice), ABC, The News Herald (a local paper) and 2 radio stations who did live remotes and also helped volunteer! The day ended with an on-time Board Cutting ceremony where the kids did cheers for the volunteers.
Tuesday, December 07, 2004
House Concert
okay, i am still alive and kickin' it. sorry i dropped off my blogspot for a while. it seems as though i'm online so much for work that i haven't devoted any online time to personal webspace. here are some highlights since my last posting:
-assisted another project manager's playground build in Fort Myers, FL
-celebrated Thanksgiving with my parents in Wethersfield, CT
-hung out with two friends in NYC--Marit Milien(a former Swedish exchange student that lived w/ us in 1995) and John Boyd (a childhood friend from summers in western NC)
-have done loads of paperwork, conference calling, emailing and planning for my current project in Panama City, FL (build day = this friday, december 10)
-saw The Incredibles and Ray in the theater
and...
-helped my brother Tony and his fiance Mardie host a house concert with The Weepies.
here's an email about the event that Mardie wrote to friends and family:
From: Mardie Oakes
Subject: The Weepies concert
Hi everyone,
Our house concert was wonderful last night! Hope and Bryan (Tony's college friend) worked with us all day to get the place ready for 60 people to decend [including Julia Butterfly Hill!]. The coolest part for me was when the Weepies were warming up before people came. I was cooking in the kitchen and they were playing in the living room. I often cook and listen to their CD from the stereo in the living room, so it felt very familiar, but every time they stopped in the middle of a song I'd start smiling uncontrollably because it would vividly remind me that they were REALLY playing in the living room. Everyone seemed to really like them - we had about 55 people come (the picture of the crowd is terrible but shows you how we packed them in) and my guess is they sold about 60 CDs - people were getting lots for Christmas gifts. They are just finishing a 40 show 4 month tour, and we were the last of 7 house concerts and they said ours was the best - we had very friendly and open people, great space and lighting, and just a good "vibe" - of course they may tell everyone that but it seemed for real to us!
Love Mardie
-assisted another project manager's playground build in Fort Myers, FL
-celebrated Thanksgiving with my parents in Wethersfield, CT
-hung out with two friends in NYC--Marit Milien(a former Swedish exchange student that lived w/ us in 1995) and John Boyd (a childhood friend from summers in western NC)
-have done loads of paperwork, conference calling, emailing and planning for my current project in Panama City, FL (build day = this friday, december 10)
-saw The Incredibles and Ray in the theater
and...
-helped my brother Tony and his fiance Mardie host a house concert with The Weepies.
here's an email about the event that Mardie wrote to friends and family:
From: Mardie Oakes
Subject: The Weepies concert
Hi everyone,
Our house concert was wonderful last night! Hope and Bryan (Tony's college friend) worked with us all day to get the place ready for 60 people to decend [including Julia Butterfly Hill!]. The coolest part for me was when the Weepies were warming up before people came. I was cooking in the kitchen and they were playing in the living room. I often cook and listen to their CD from the stereo in the living room, so it felt very familiar, but every time they stopped in the middle of a song I'd start smiling uncontrollably because it would vividly remind me that they were REALLY playing in the living room. Everyone seemed to really like them - we had about 55 people come (the picture of the crowd is terrible but shows you how we packed them in) and my guess is they sold about 60 CDs - people were getting lots for Christmas gifts. They are just finishing a 40 show 4 month tour, and we were the last of 7 house concerts and they said ours was the best - we had very friendly and open people, great space and lighting, and just a good "vibe" - of course they may tell everyone that but it seemed for real to us!
Love Mardie
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