Just call me Hurricane LILY

Hello yet again!
Well, we left Lake Charles August 5th for Pensacola, Fl for what they like to call, "Disaster Relief". We were all a bit sad to leave such an AWESOME project, but we were excited for the challenges that awaited us Florida. We were also extremely jubilant to know that we would be working nearby Phoenix 2, aka The Baywatch Knights, aka Team Seepage: Pump and Rub, aka BRADLEY's TEAM!!!! WEEEEEEEEEE
Well, we set off 2 days later, bid farewell to Louisiana, and looked ahead to Flo-Rida. All I knew about our project is that we would be setting up some sort of database for volunteers.. something.. somethingggggg. We were baffled to say the least. I am, to this day a bit confounded about our task. We did gain 3 additional members from different teams: Meghan, Wolf 6, Lesley, Raven 7, and Katrina, Badger 5. Having those ladies added to our teams was really great to help break up the recent bout of insanity I have been experiencing; the people on my team are great people, but being around the same people day after day, after day, after DAY can make a person a wee bit nutty.
Luckily, we have been spending our off time at the really cool beaches nearby, and we've been hanging out with Team Seepage a lot too, which is great! Unfortunately, we will be missing transition, so I won't be able to see any of my friends, which is very disheartening, but as I told a certain Jeremy Goldmeier, I didnt join, "IwannaseemyfriendsCorps" I joined AmeriCorps, so I have to learn to make sacrifices.
I plan on going home in about 3 weeks, and taking all my days of leave to spend a good chunk of time with my friends and family to get much needed R&R. I'm excited! I was reading over another blog I have, and its from right before I left for AmeriCorps. I was so excited, so idealistic, so giddy with naivety. I thought the AmeriWorld would somehow transcend my real life; dont get me wrong, this has been a blessing. I have met amazing people, I have gained amazing experiences I will never forget, but being away from the people you know and love, and being away from the place you have grown up, and all the things you know, and the memories you have built, and just LEAVING them, its been really tough for me. Alas, this is the when I learn to deal with other people, this is when I grow.

more later..
Lily

Back to LA! (Louisiana that is)

Hello again,

Yes, it has been quite a while since we last rendezvoused, I really can't explain except sheer tiredness, and the lack of internet didn't help much either...

Well yes, as the title of this post suggests, Badger 4 is back in Louisiana- this time in Lake Charles, working for... drum roll please.... HABITAT FOR HUMANITY!!!!!!!!! The reason for such excitement is because I applied to work for Habitat a while back, but they declined me! So I joined good 'ole AmeriCorps instead; maybe the Gods of fate had something to do with it? Well, it is only the first week of our project so far, and I am loving it! Don't get me wrong, its hot. And when I say hot, I mean HOTT. So far we have completely painted the inside of 2 houses that were erected by previous teams- and tomorrow, we put in wood flooring! As well as leading a few volunteers that will spend the day working with us.

I was going through a little bit of the homesickness blues, but I think I have worked it all out that I will visit in September! It's a hard thing to be separated from the ones you love, and the places that are familiar to you; I think I overestimated my will with that one.. But don't get me wrong, AmeriCorps was the right decision, I just don't think I was ready to completely disconnect myself from my world back home.

We are going to try to visit NOLA at some point, there are a bunch of teams down there, and I would love to hang out with them in one of my favorite cities on the PLANET.

Just thought I would write something really quickly, we are still missing Bradley, and now Matt, who is a fire fighter this round.. Boys Boys Boys, can't live with 'em, can't.. well you know.

Till then!

Lily

En Pointe, Perry Point that is.

Well we left NOLA on May 5th- just in time if you ask me. It was starting to get humid, and dont get me wrong, I loved what I was doing down there, but the beauty of this program is that we get to travel all around the country, doing DIFFERENT projects. We started doing some research on our next project, you know, the one in NEW YORK, and it sounds FANTASTIC! Pretty much the project I had been dreaming about. And the sponsors seem really organized, and they have a lot of support from the government, which will be nice; it's amazing how much funding and support can change the whole attitude of a program...

We are back in Perry Point, MD. What a change from when we left! Its beautiful out here! Green, green, GREEN! And lucky us we have the glittering lake right outside our front door! OHHH what a life I lead! I wouldn't change a thing- well maybe a few things... But it's great to see my friends again, we've been insuperable since we got back. We are just waiting for Marlee and Kelly to get back so then our friend circle will be complete!

I'm so excited for our next project, but Bradley, our firefighter will have to stay behind on the composite team. He says he wont miss us, but he loves us- mainly me, so theres no way thats true.. I try to rub it in his face as much as possible that we are going to one of the most amazing cities in the world while he has to stay behind and pull ticks out of his silly beard.. TAKE THAT!

Other than that, there is not too much to report, just lots of lingering around the Point in anticipation for whats to come, and using other peoples cell phones to conduct important business; like asking Clinton what to do about blisters on feet..

TEAM iCLINTON FOR THE WIN!!

talk to you soon,

Lily

Start spreading the news...

NEW YORK!

We just found out that out next spike will be in NEW YORK CITY!!!!!!!!!!! Well, more like Yonkers, but its only 20 minutes away, so its more like a New York minute. Anyway, here is the link for our project sponsor: http://www.groundworkhv.org/

This coming week is our last week in the wonderful NOLA. It is pretty bittersweet; I love this city, but I am SO excited to move on, and finding out we are going to amazing New York couldn't have been better news. (well Puerto Rico wouldn't have been too bad...) This past weekend we volunteered at the Jazz Fest. It wasn't as great as I had hoped- MUD MUD MUD, and I didnt get to leave my volunteer post to see Simon and Garfunkel. I did however get to see Drake as we were leaving- not terribly exciting for me, but I guess it was cool...

On Friday we went on a volunteer guided tour of the 9th ward- and all the other parts of New Orleans that are hidden from the tourist eye; Treme, Mid City, and like I said, the 9th ward. Its amazing all the horror stories that Katrina caused- who would have thought something like that would happen, you loose everything, and when you try to get back on your feet, there are so many obstacles in the way to break your spirit that you don't even want to try anymore. My heart and soul goes out to these people, and I want to do anything and everything I can to help them. I dont know how, and I dont know when, but I will come back here..

Ok, well things are going as expected, learning a lot, having adventures, and optimistically looking forward to my future and the future of my teammates. Ok, well I have to go, I hope your lives are going well, good luck, and much love.

Lily

Fun times winding down.

Hello,

So we have about 2 weeks left in this lil' ole town of NOLA. It rained REALLY hard last night; complete with thunderous thunder and striking lightning. We got yet another batch of volunteers- YAY teenagers! Not really, this should be interesting...

Tomorrow we start a new project, and I am supposed to be leading it. We are going to this place where people with mental illnesses live, and we are painting 4 housing units. I just hope we can do this in a timely order, but something tells me it might take a while.

We are volunteering at the Jazz Festival this weekend, hopefully I can sneak away from my shift to catch Simon and Garfunkel, I love them!! I hope we get free food and swag; one good thing about being a volunteer is that people like to give you treats along with lots of praise, its lovely. I found out I gained 5 pounds, some people guess its in muscle, but my guess is jambalaya and desserts.. Oh well.. This past weekend we volunteered at the Iron Man race, I gave the athletes their packets and swim caps. It was nice, they gave us sandwiches and drinks! (see, that 5 pounds just snuck up on me!)

We are just watching movies after work, but I think the anticipation of leaving soon is looming in the air, so I have a feeling I will spend as much time as possible outside and spending as much money as sanely possible, which is about as much as a non AmeriCorps person would spend on a lunch.. but anyway... Yes, yesterday some of the girls and I just laid in Audubon Park for a few hours, it was lovely. I cant complain about too much, except we have to wake up at 5:30am 2 times a week to do stupid physical training.. ARGGHHHHHH you do NOT want to mess with me this early in the morning as I have learned from my team mates. RIDICULOUS!!! I will NEVER let anyone forget how much I hate working out that early, I must prove my point!!!

Ok, I will try to write soon!

Check out our pictures!!

http://s838.photobucket.com/albums/zz305/badger4xvi_album

And friend us on facebook

Badgerfour-ameriCorps Atlantic Region

Love,

Lily

Spring Break??!!

Hey hey!!

Its been awhile, I know. I'm sorry!! But I couldn't possibly explain what I have been up to. Lots of working, which is making me so incredibly tired during the week, but the weekends are a different story... Lots of walking around, exploring, eating and all that good stuff.. Everyday I find something new about this town, and everyday I fall more and more in love, and become more and more comfortable living here.

We had beignets and smoked some real Cuban cigars yesterday with some of the other team mates that are in the area, it was so nice seeing all of them, they are really cool people, and I missed them more than I realized.. And now we know that Zais can't handle cigars too well..

Tonight we are going to try to go to French Street and hang out there, its a really cool little area. Ohhh man I love this place.. I will really try to add more fun pictures up here really soon!

Love,

Lily

Bonjur!!

Greetin's from New Orleans!!!!

We made it! I love it here, I thought a letter to my mom I just wrote would best fit for this blog:

Hi mom,
Hmm, lets see.. I have so much to write its not even funny. Lets start off with the weather, shall we? Well, its really cold today, and SUPER windy, but its blue skies and sunshine, so its basically my favorite kind of day. It rained terribly last night, my friends and I went to the local pizza place, "slice"; I like it A LOT, and it wasn't that expensive. I had pizza with pineapples, smoked ham, and jalepenos.. DELISH.


Hmm, we are well fed here, we get lunch and dinner, and some local people come in and make food for us: jambalya, dirty rice, gumbo, sausage, and things like that, so I hope I dont come back chunkier than when I left, but the food is deRicous.

One of my team mates is going to put all of our pictures online, so when she does that, I will let you know so you can actually SEE what I have been up to. I love this area so much, Mom. LOVE. People think i'm crazy for talking about moving here after only being here for a week, but I just have that feeling.. Just like I belong here, theres so much to do, I can walk to downtown, I can walk to the supermarket, lots of cute shops, beautiful architecture and parks ALL around, so much history, and music, and FOOOOOOOOD. LOVELOVELOVE.

I'm growing everyday, I'm learning patience, I'm learning how to survive on my own, as well as depend on other people that aren't you. We have done a lot of construction work too, so i'm learning some useful skills like that. I dont want to leave!! I'm also meeting a lot of volunteers from all over that are around my age, so I'm making friends with them too. Hmm, what else? well, I dont know if I told you, but we have 2 dogs: Huey and Buck. They're boy dogs, so they're not really cuddley, but they kind of help me not miss the kitties so much.

okay, well thats it for now, its actually REALLY hard having a blog.. My team mate kristen is starting an online picture thing for us, so I will figure someway to add those soon!!

Love,

Lily

UPDATE OF THE CENTURYYYYYY

Hello all, quick update again:

NEW ORLEANS!!!

Yes, my dreams have come true. We are leaving March 13th (and coming back on May 5th) to New Orleans, Louisiana to work with a program called: United Saints. I'm super excited, super hopeful, and SUPER MOTIVATED MOTIVATED DOWNRIGHT MOTIVATED HUHHHH!!!!!

More later, I'm so jittery right now from all the things I have to do to prepare for next week!!!!

Love,

Lily

Delaware, here I come!!

Hello all!!

Yes, long time no see! Things have been very, very busy here at "The Point", and the fact that I have to trek so long for an internet connection doesn't help too much. I just thought I would write a quick update: I am going to Rohobeth Beach, Delaware tomorrow on what is called a, "mini- spike". We will be restoring a museum or something like that, pictures and a better explanation to follow!!

I am still having an awesome time, loving my life, loving AmeriCorps!! Getting things done as usual!!

Lily

Where do I begin?

Hello friends,

Well, a lot has happened since I last updated. There are no words to explain my experience here so far; and it hasn't even been a week. First off it is cold here. When I say cold, I mean C-O-L-D. Snow, snow, snow, ice, etc. Ok, so beyond that, this place is beautiful; quaint houses, the Susquehanna River right in front of our dorms, deer wondering about, and did I mention snow? So much snow in fact, that the first 2 days here, a statewide emergency was declared in Maryland and in neighboring Delaware- which means SNOW DAY!!!!!! YAYYYY. So knowing me, I of course challenged everyone to a snowball war, then subsequently became ill because of the freezing wind.. But it was worth it? I think so!

The first 2 days we were fed the usual pasta and salad, then we were sent off to make a grocery list with our "pod" (temporary group of 10 + 1 leader) and 2 members went shopping for food for the week. We have been eating VERY well, like I could never have eaten this well at home (sorry Mom). Yesterday I made hamburger helper for everyone, and they all showered me with praise. It was wonderful.

I have AMAZING room mates. I love them. I feel like I have known them for years. We have late night giggle sessions, and we are planning a movie day this weekend. I know I am forming life- long friendships already, and in such a short time?? Why didn't I do this sooner?!

So the only thing I know about my team, which will be announced this Tuesday, is that I am a BADGER. WOOT WOOT!! So we badgers eat together, hang out with each other, have yoga meetings, dance parties, movie nights, etc etc. We are pretty amazing if I do say so myself. The other teams are the Ravens, and the Wolves. UGHHH SOO MUCH TO EXPLAIN!!!! Just know that everyone I have met is fantastic, and eccentric; just my kinda people!! Lets just say I have been laughing non- stop since I got here.

We are going to get some training with FEMA on Tuesday, which means that we probably wont end up getting it until 3 or 4 years from now, if at all... And some other training too, like how to build houses, and maybe even how to handle a chainsaw! Ohh the skills I am gathering.. Lets see, got my physical today, BOOO but at least its over with. I have nothing of significant nature to add, oh wait, there is an ALBINO DEER walking around. Stuff of myths, but I had the divine pleasure of seeing it the other day. Good times. I also trekked a mile in 33 degree weather to use the internet, so I hope you are impressed.

Well, thats all I have for right now, I kinda feel disconnected from the internet world, like I just want to be active and not sit still.. I know, WEIRD!! But I will try to keep you updated every week or so, so you know I didn't "drink the Kool-Aid" or anything.

Thanks for reading!

Love,

Lily

the calm before the storm. literally.

Hey all,

Well, here I am, 4 days till showtime, and I really don't feel much of anything yet. I mean, it doesn't feel quite real yet. I still don't have appropriate shoes, and I cant fit all of my stuff into my tiny suitcase; which is BEYOND stressful for me. I never thought about the luxury a 2 person sized walk in closet is until I have to pack my entire life into 1 carry on, and 1 shoulder width suitcase. They have sainted people for less!!

Well, I just thought I would post a little something to document my feelings before I go, I leave this Monday Feb. 8, 2010 at 6:45 am from John Wayne. 6:45? Really? lets see how it goes, those of you who know me know that 6:45 in "Lily Time" means 6:58 in real time.

ok, more later FOR SURE!

Lily

ps 3 followers?? AWESOME!!

11 Days

Heyo!

If you are reading this, you probably already know me. If you are one of those people who doesn't, allow me to indulge you: my name is Lily Dover. I am 20 years old, and hail from Tustin/Santa Ana, California ( lets just say "The OC"). I was accepted to this little organization called "AmeriCorps NCCC" in early November, after months, and months of uncomfortable waiting, and trying to come to terms with the fact that I would not be accepted, and I would be stuck living my drone, unsatisfying, yet comfortable-by-standards life.

For those of you furrowing your brow, AmeriCorps NCCC is: National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC), a full-time, residential team-based program for men and women ages 18–24. Members serve at one of five regional campuses located throughout the United States (Perry Point, MD; Vicksburg, MS; Vinton, IA; Denver, CO; and Sacramento, CA). Each campus focuses efforts on states within its region but may travel to other areas in response to national crises.

(thank you wikipedia)

AmeriCorps NCCC requires an intensive, 10-month commitment. Members serve in teams of eight to twelve and are assigned to projects throughout the region served by their campus. They are trained in CPR, first aid, public safety, and other skills before beginning their first service project.

AmeriCorps NCCC serves communities in every state. Members are based at one of five regional campuses and travel to complete service projects throughout those regions. Sponsoring organizations request the assistance of AmeriCorps NCCC teams by submitting a project application to the regional campus that covers that organization’s state. The campuses provide assistance in completing the application, developing a work plan, and preparing the project sponsor for the arrival of the AmeriCorps NCCC team. (thank you AmeriCorps.gov)

States Served: CT, DE, MA, MD, ME, NH, NJ, NY, RI, VT

So, yes, that about sums it up!

This blog I am starting today, sitting on my bed, eating top ramen, is for me to record the goings on of the next 10 months or so, and for you- dear reader, to follow along, and experience the craziness that IS my life. Thank you, and Godspeed.

p.s. Dont get mad if I don't write often, for those of you who know me, I am not the most diligent of creatures when it comes to stuff I am supposed to do.. oh come on, you know you love it!

Lily