Location: Freeport, TX
Howdy from Texas! I have been here for almost a week, and am absolutely loving it! We are about 5 minutes away from the beach, and yes we have already spent a day there, and yes despite my wearing sun screen, I am already burned. I am living on a cot in the back of the administrative buildings with 9 other people. It has been quite the experience so far. I am always the first to go to bed, which is sad, but luckily I can sleep through a lot of things so that doesn't bother me. We shower in another club that is 2-3 blocks away. Another interesting experience. But so far so good!
We started work yesterday, and so far it is amazing. Anthony and I are at a traditional club about 20 minutes away from where we live. It is a little rural community, and the kids that come are mostly between the ages of 3rd-6th grade. They are adorable! Quite a handful, but I'm already in love with all of them. The second I walked in they nicknamed me "Miss B" because they think I look like Brittany Spears... hopefully before her downfall. And Anthony has been nicknamed "Elvis" cause of his poofy hair. I love it. :)
I had my TL interview the other day. It went well I think.../ I hope.... We'll see. I rambled a lot when I was nervous, but I hope they found it endearing. Haha I will let you know! I should know about May 23rd... so give me a few months.
The team is amazing still. Its been wonderful being on a normal team. Not that i don't miss my other team dearly, but I really do love my new team. We all are getting along wonderfully, so hopefully it will continue that way!
Well, that is all for now. I hope that everyone is doing well.
Update soon!
Kris
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Sunday, March 13, 2011
A New Beginning
Location: Denver, CO
So, it has been exactly a month since my last post. Sorry about That. Things became crazy the last 2 weeks of work and I honestly didn't have time this past week for an update. But here I am, back in my dorm room packing for my next adventure- Freeport, Texas where I will be working at the Boys and Girls Club!!! I am super excited. We are exactly 15 minutes away from the beach, where you can just guess, I will be spending all of my free time. We are 2 hours away from Houston and 4 hours away from San Antonio- so Road Trip!!! It will be an amazing experience being able to work with people again. Don't get me wrong, I love my fire management projects and have become a pretty decent sawyer, but I miss the interaction with people. It's easy to lose track of why you are doing what you are doing with environmental projects, where as you can actually see the difference you are making in the children's lives. I have heard that it is a challenging, but completely worth while project, and I can't wait.
My new team is absolutely amazing too. Everyone is thrilled to be going to Freeport. They all seem really nice and out going, so as a whole I feel like we are all going to get along very well. My new team leader is Heidi, the UDA for the Water Unit. We are the first team that she has had all year and she seems just as excited as we are to be going. It is funny seeing the difference between how Alex runs things and how Heidi does. Both have completely different leadership techniques, and I know I will learn a lot from each of them. It will be nice to have a few months away from my old team to regroup and refresh, but I will miss them dearly. It will be weird not seeing them everyday for the next 2 months. But I feel like it will make us appreciate each other much more when we are reunited!
I have officially applied to be a team leader next year, and I have my interview next week! I'm a little nervous because 18 people from the Water Unit alone applied, and only about 4-5 of them will become team leaders next year. So, wish me luck!
On a fun note, Denver had a HUGE St. Patrick's day parade yesterday downtown. So Meg and I went down early and watched about 2 hours of it- the thing lasted almost 4. It was hysterical people watching too. There were old men in kilts, children dressed as fairies, and lots and lots of drunk people wandering the streets cheering on the parade. It was a blast to watch. We ended up staying downtown for the rest of the day, enjoying the weather and the city before going out that night with everyone from campus. It really made me appreciate Denver, and realize how much I am going to miss it over the next few months. Who knows- maybe this is where I will end up after AmeriCorps!
Well, that is all. I start my 3 day van ride down to Freeport tomorrow, so I will try to update as soon as we get to the Boys and Girls club! I hope everyone is doing well.
Love,
Kris
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Timmmber!
Location: La Junta, CO
Lake George was filled with not doing a whole lot, and our sponsors trying to find busy work for us to do. I am now a pro at shortening blinds, sharpening tools, and cleaning the kitchen... Amazing isn't it? We started our real project this Monday with a trip to Picketwire. We are here for 10 days working on cutting down an invasive species... which is a lot more brutal than the honey suckle was back in Gray Summit. This stuff actually fights back... and I have the bruises and cuts to prove it. But I have become a lot more comfortable with a chainsaw and am now able to carry it/use it easily for a full tank of gas (which is about an hour or so). At first I was barely able to hold it long enough to cut down a tree, now I am demolishing them all over the place! Picketwire is absolutely beautiful. We are in the middle of a canyon and everywhere you turn there are picturesque landscapes. And what is even better? It is 50 degrees outside!!!! Feb 13th, and its 50 degrees. We went from -30 in Lake George to 50... it is like Heaven outside. I'm not even minding running at 8 AM since the weather isn't below freezing. I will be very sad to leave, but I am excited for the next part of our adventure in Lake George.
Shuffle round is approaching! For our third round, we get to choose our projects! This means our team will be split up and we will be mixed up with everyone, and even have a new TL. Which I am very excited about. I love my team, but it will be very nice to have a break for a few months. Our unit got projects that I am actually really excited about, though not everyone is... My top two are Boys and Girls clubs in both New Mexico and Houston. There is also a habitat project in Oklahoma City (Which sorry my Tulsa friends.. I didn't rank that number one), rebuilding a city in Kansas, and two other trail type projects... one in Arizona and one in southern Texas. I wanted to try to escape the outdoors for a project round before we start our firefighting in May. I will let you all know as soon as I find out my project!
We got to go camping and hiking this weekend! Which was so much fun... freezing at night, but amazing. We set up camp up on the top of one of the canyons and had the most beautiful view. It was great bonding with the team, and I am becoming relatively good at gracefully falling down mountains and avoiding cactus :).
I think that is all for now! I will be without phone service for another 5 days, but I will try to update once I get back to civilization :)
I hope you all are doing well! I miss you!
Love,
Kris
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Officially Red Carded!
Location: Lake George, CO
Well, the past two weeks have been absolutely crazy! We have been living in a classroom for 8 hours a day... I have not missed being in a class at all. We finished our S-130, S-190, and S-212 classes. Meaning, we now have our Red Cards for Wildland firefighters!!! We can work for the US Forest Service as Type 2 Hand Crews during fire season. We also received our A Sawyer certification. Meaning we can operate chain saws as long as there is a B Sawyer supervising. It is hard to believe that the first time I have ever touched a chain saw was on Thursday, and now I am certified to use them all the time for the next 3 years if I so choose. Though my body tells another story! Lifting those things for 8 hours a day is crazy. They way about 25-30 lbs and you are basically supporting them off of one arm.
For our certification, we had to successfully "fell" (or cut down) two trees, as well as limb them and buck them. Which is harder than it sounds. :) The way they teach you is to do a face cut (aka a horizontal cut into the tree the way you want it to fall) and then a 45 degree sloping cut to meet that (a diagonal cut that meets with the other side) that way you have something that looks like a mouth on the tree to help lay it where you want it to go. Then you have to put a back cut in there about 2 inches above your face cut. ... Let's just say it is a lot to think about under pressure.. as well as making sure that the tree doesn't fall early, nor will it land on anyone.
Ren, Megan, Jeremy and I went to explore the Garden of the Gods last weekend.... It was so beautiful. I have never seen anything close to it... well maybe Red Rocks in Denver, but this was everywhere. We had fun climbing up rocks and exploring around. Meg and I had an even better time watching all the puppies go exploring the Garden too. The views were so beautiful. It amazes me that places like that really exist. I could probably go back every weekend and not get sick of it.
That is about all for now... I will try to update soon about my first week of real work!
I miss you all..
<3
Kris
Well, the past two weeks have been absolutely crazy! We have been living in a classroom for 8 hours a day... I have not missed being in a class at all. We finished our S-130, S-190, and S-212 classes. Meaning, we now have our Red Cards for Wildland firefighters!!! We can work for the US Forest Service as Type 2 Hand Crews during fire season. We also received our A Sawyer certification. Meaning we can operate chain saws as long as there is a B Sawyer supervising. It is hard to believe that the first time I have ever touched a chain saw was on Thursday, and now I am certified to use them all the time for the next 3 years if I so choose. Though my body tells another story! Lifting those things for 8 hours a day is crazy. They way about 25-30 lbs and you are basically supporting them off of one arm.
For our certification, we had to successfully "fell" (or cut down) two trees, as well as limb them and buck them. Which is harder than it sounds. :) The way they teach you is to do a face cut (aka a horizontal cut into the tree the way you want it to fall) and then a 45 degree sloping cut to meet that (a diagonal cut that meets with the other side) that way you have something that looks like a mouth on the tree to help lay it where you want it to go. Then you have to put a back cut in there about 2 inches above your face cut. ... Let's just say it is a lot to think about under pressure.. as well as making sure that the tree doesn't fall early, nor will it land on anyone.
Ren, Megan, Jeremy and I went to explore the Garden of the Gods last weekend.... It was so beautiful. I have never seen anything close to it... well maybe Red Rocks in Denver, but this was everywhere. We had fun climbing up rocks and exploring around. Meg and I had an even better time watching all the puppies go exploring the Garden too. The views were so beautiful. It amazes me that places like that really exist. I could probably go back every weekend and not get sick of it.
That is about all for now... I will try to update soon about my first week of real work!
I miss you all..
<3
Kris
Monday, January 10, 2011
Firrrre!!!
Lake George, CO
Greetings from Lake George, CO! For those of you who don't know, Lake George is a small little town a little South (?) of Colorado Springs. It is located in Pikes Peak National Forest. This is where We will be spending the next 2 months of our lives doing fire training and fire mitigation work.
The last I talked to you, it was prior to my pack test... well... I passed!!! 43.25. 3 minutes under the required amount. It was so much harder than anticipated, and I was left with some pretty awesome blisters. But I passed. And I never planning on doing it again. Once was enough for me. The walking was fine, but you throw in 45 lbs of sand in a pack on your back and it creates major problems.... But it's finally over.
When we pulled into Lake George, it appeared to be something out of a postcard. Snow capped foothills with mountains in the background, and little wood cabins where we will be living. We have 7 people living in one house and then 3 living in the other. Meg and I are roommates! YAY! We got one of the biggest rooms in the house, which is really nice, but we have no curtains... which poses problems for people who have modesty issues. Luckily I do not. But none the less we didn't want people staring into our windows at night and watching us sleep, so we created some using duct tape and towels/ scraps of fabric.
It took getting here to realize how much I have truly missed my team. They have become my family over the past few months and I have missed being around them, playing games, and working with them. We are all so different in so many ways but some how we work. I am very thankful to have them. They have been especially wonderful the past week when I have been going through some personal issues... But no fear! I am getting better.. thanks to my team and for being away in Pikes. Hopefully the next two months will not only be challenging, but healing.
We started classes today, with our S-190 (intro to Wildland Fire Behavior/ intro to fire), and we will proceed to take classes and training for the next two weeks. It was very interesting, until after lunch when our teacher went off on tangents about weather and wind. The day ended with a test.. which I really hope I passed... wish me luck! :) After these two weeks, we will hopefully have our Red Card and be Type Two Wildfire fighters! Which.. let's be honest... is pretty awesome.
Well, that is all for now... I hope you all are doing well!
Love,
Kris
Greetings from Lake George, CO! For those of you who don't know, Lake George is a small little town a little South (?) of Colorado Springs. It is located in Pikes Peak National Forest. This is where We will be spending the next 2 months of our lives doing fire training and fire mitigation work.
The last I talked to you, it was prior to my pack test... well... I passed!!! 43.25. 3 minutes under the required amount. It was so much harder than anticipated, and I was left with some pretty awesome blisters. But I passed. And I never planning on doing it again. Once was enough for me. The walking was fine, but you throw in 45 lbs of sand in a pack on your back and it creates major problems.... But it's finally over.
When we pulled into Lake George, it appeared to be something out of a postcard. Snow capped foothills with mountains in the background, and little wood cabins where we will be living. We have 7 people living in one house and then 3 living in the other. Meg and I are roommates! YAY! We got one of the biggest rooms in the house, which is really nice, but we have no curtains... which poses problems for people who have modesty issues. Luckily I do not. But none the less we didn't want people staring into our windows at night and watching us sleep, so we created some using duct tape and towels/ scraps of fabric.
It took getting here to realize how much I have truly missed my team. They have become my family over the past few months and I have missed being around them, playing games, and working with them. We are all so different in so many ways but some how we work. I am very thankful to have them. They have been especially wonderful the past week when I have been going through some personal issues... But no fear! I am getting better.. thanks to my team and for being away in Pikes. Hopefully the next two months will not only be challenging, but healing.
We started classes today, with our S-190 (intro to Wildland Fire Behavior/ intro to fire), and we will proceed to take classes and training for the next two weeks. It was very interesting, until after lunch when our teacher went off on tangents about weather and wind. The day ended with a test.. which I really hope I passed... wish me luck! :) After these two weeks, we will hopefully have our Red Card and be Type Two Wildfire fighters! Which.. let's be honest... is pretty awesome.
Well, that is all for now... I hope you all are doing well!
Love,
Kris
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Transition Week #1
Denver, CO
Back on campus and half way through our first transition week. Spirits are off all around the corps, including my own. Some of the members didn't return after the break which has been a sad event for all. The transition week has been busy as always. We all thought that we were going to get to spend time with people that we will not get to see for the next months, which turns out not the be the case. After spending ours with our team on Monday working on the Debrief, presenting the Debrief Tuesday, starting the Brief Tuesday, as well as Wed, pack test Wed, Brief presentation Thursday then packing on Thursday and Friday with final prep... and leave Saturday for our next Spike. Throw some meetings in there, and you don't have a whole lot of time to spend with other people. It is really sad, especially for me not to be able to spend time with my "AmeriFamily".
Though I love having my team back together, I'm really not enjoying the reminder of the type of environment that AmeriCorps is. You make really close friends during CTI and then you have to leave them for months at a time. While each of you is having an amazing adventure, you still feel a slight awkwardness and distance when you return. Don't get me wrong, it is still an amazing experience and I wouldn't trade it for anything, it's just enough to put you in a funk.
I leave for Pikes Peak on Saturday for my second round project. I will be there from Jan 10th-March 4th. I am not sure about internet access, it seems the only type of computer that we have will be far away. But I will try to update when possible, and let you know how everything is going. Hopefully by then spirits will be raised, and we will all be excited and enthusiastic about our Fire training and project!
I should probably get back to working on the Brief, but I just wanted to update you all with how it is going!
I love you all and miss you,
Kris
Back on campus and half way through our first transition week. Spirits are off all around the corps, including my own. Some of the members didn't return after the break which has been a sad event for all. The transition week has been busy as always. We all thought that we were going to get to spend time with people that we will not get to see for the next months, which turns out not the be the case. After spending ours with our team on Monday working on the Debrief, presenting the Debrief Tuesday, starting the Brief Tuesday, as well as Wed, pack test Wed, Brief presentation Thursday then packing on Thursday and Friday with final prep... and leave Saturday for our next Spike. Throw some meetings in there, and you don't have a whole lot of time to spend with other people. It is really sad, especially for me not to be able to spend time with my "AmeriFamily".
Though I love having my team back together, I'm really not enjoying the reminder of the type of environment that AmeriCorps is. You make really close friends during CTI and then you have to leave them for months at a time. While each of you is having an amazing adventure, you still feel a slight awkwardness and distance when you return. Don't get me wrong, it is still an amazing experience and I wouldn't trade it for anything, it's just enough to put you in a funk.
I leave for Pikes Peak on Saturday for my second round project. I will be there from Jan 10th-March 4th. I am not sure about internet access, it seems the only type of computer that we have will be far away. But I will try to update when possible, and let you know how everything is going. Hopefully by then spirits will be raised, and we will all be excited and enthusiastic about our Fire training and project!
I should probably get back to working on the Brief, but I just wanted to update you all with how it is going!
I love you all and miss you,
Kris
Saturday, December 18, 2010
California Here We Come!
Location: Denver, CO
So I am currently sitting in my dorm room, praying my computer doesn't die on me before I finish this. The campus is almost completely dead. Everyone has left for home and it is eerily quiet in the halls. We got back on Thursday from our Spike projects, and were greeted to hundreds of hugs and small conversations. It was so weird but amazing to be reunited with everyone again, even if it was only for a day. I forgot about how much I love the energy and the dynamic of the corps as a whole. You become so used to those 9 other people that you are living with, that the amount of people can be overwhelming, but amazing at the same time. I got to see my roommate and the rest of my AmeriFamily.
We all traded stories about our adventures in different cities, and we got to hear about what was accomplished over the past month.The stories were truly amazing. Some of them were incredibly heartbreaking, but it was a firm reminder of why we are here, taking 10 months out of our lives to "Get Things Done" for America. I am so thankful for the experience that I am having. Parts have been challenging, but I know it has just begun. I have already began to feel myself changing slightly, and I can't wait to see what will happen for the rest of our time here.
It still amazes me on how attached I have become to my team. I thought Thanksgiving break was weird when Ren, Megan, and Alex were gone... it felt lonely. But now spending 2 weeks without them is going to be even more so. We were all saying goodbye last night, and it hit me how weird it is going to be not seeing these people 24/7 for the next 2 weeks, and then after graduation. We have become so close already, I cannot even imagine how hard of a goodbye it will be after 10 months of knowing these incredible people.
The project ended wonderfully. I will really miss John and James and their crazy antics at the Shaw Nature Reserve. As menial as the work was, I have learned to cherish and appreciate the small beauties in the world. Like waking up every morning and going to work outside in a prairie or in the woods, learning to embrace nature (even when the temperature is below freezing). It was such a great experience and I would not have changed it for anything!
So big news. 2 things really. 1st- NEXT PROJECT I WILL BE IN PIKES PEAK, CO doing fire management training and work. We will spend 2 weeks in Pikes Peak working with the fire service doing our training, and then we will be going to Kansas for a month working there doing cuttings and hopefully prescribed burns! The last month will be spent back in Pikes Peak. This project is going to be very intense and very hard, but totally worth it. Pikes is above 8000 ft high, meaning we will be super humans by the time we get back. Especially since our sponsor is making us to PT every morning before work. And then we will have to hike 2 miles or so in to and out of our work space. It will be nice to work outside again, but I am hoping for the 3rd round (our shuffle round) I will be able to actually work with people and children.
2nd piece- I get to be an Assistant Team Leader with Jeremy for the rest of our projects. This means we get to help Alex with paperwork/ get a taste of what it is going to be like as a Team Leader. I am very excited and honored to be able to do this position. The team got to vote on it, and they voted for me, something I didn't really expect. It will be a lot more work than we are used to, but I can't wait! :)
That is all for now! I need to finish getting ready/ packing so I can go sit in the Denver Airport for 7 hours! YAY! Ha. But returning to California tonight for the last time... Very mixed emotions about it. But I will make the most out of the 2 weeks that I am there.
I love you all and I will update soon! Have a happy holiday!
Kris
So I am currently sitting in my dorm room, praying my computer doesn't die on me before I finish this. The campus is almost completely dead. Everyone has left for home and it is eerily quiet in the halls. We got back on Thursday from our Spike projects, and were greeted to hundreds of hugs and small conversations. It was so weird but amazing to be reunited with everyone again, even if it was only for a day. I forgot about how much I love the energy and the dynamic of the corps as a whole. You become so used to those 9 other people that you are living with, that the amount of people can be overwhelming, but amazing at the same time. I got to see my roommate and the rest of my AmeriFamily.
We all traded stories about our adventures in different cities, and we got to hear about what was accomplished over the past month.The stories were truly amazing. Some of them were incredibly heartbreaking, but it was a firm reminder of why we are here, taking 10 months out of our lives to "Get Things Done" for America. I am so thankful for the experience that I am having. Parts have been challenging, but I know it has just begun. I have already began to feel myself changing slightly, and I can't wait to see what will happen for the rest of our time here.
It still amazes me on how attached I have become to my team. I thought Thanksgiving break was weird when Ren, Megan, and Alex were gone... it felt lonely. But now spending 2 weeks without them is going to be even more so. We were all saying goodbye last night, and it hit me how weird it is going to be not seeing these people 24/7 for the next 2 weeks, and then after graduation. We have become so close already, I cannot even imagine how hard of a goodbye it will be after 10 months of knowing these incredible people.
The project ended wonderfully. I will really miss John and James and their crazy antics at the Shaw Nature Reserve. As menial as the work was, I have learned to cherish and appreciate the small beauties in the world. Like waking up every morning and going to work outside in a prairie or in the woods, learning to embrace nature (even when the temperature is below freezing). It was such a great experience and I would not have changed it for anything!
So big news. 2 things really. 1st- NEXT PROJECT I WILL BE IN PIKES PEAK, CO doing fire management training and work. We will spend 2 weeks in Pikes Peak working with the fire service doing our training, and then we will be going to Kansas for a month working there doing cuttings and hopefully prescribed burns! The last month will be spent back in Pikes Peak. This project is going to be very intense and very hard, but totally worth it. Pikes is above 8000 ft high, meaning we will be super humans by the time we get back. Especially since our sponsor is making us to PT every morning before work. And then we will have to hike 2 miles or so in to and out of our work space. It will be nice to work outside again, but I am hoping for the 3rd round (our shuffle round) I will be able to actually work with people and children.
2nd piece- I get to be an Assistant Team Leader with Jeremy for the rest of our projects. This means we get to help Alex with paperwork/ get a taste of what it is going to be like as a Team Leader. I am very excited and honored to be able to do this position. The team got to vote on it, and they voted for me, something I didn't really expect. It will be a lot more work than we are used to, but I can't wait! :)
That is all for now! I need to finish getting ready/ packing so I can go sit in the Denver Airport for 7 hours! YAY! Ha. But returning to California tonight for the last time... Very mixed emotions about it. But I will make the most out of the 2 weeks that I am there.
I love you all and I will update soon! Have a happy holiday!
Kris
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