C. Dogg Gets A Flute

Recently my bro Chris bought a $5 flute called a “sweet potato.” Upon finding out that he has become quite the self-taught flautist, I demanded a private concert. Halfway through the performance, his phone rang. Of course I took the reigns and did the best I could, as his big sister, to be as annoying as possible. Video courtesy of Don Don the Mom.

Unemployment

What have I been doing for last 2 weeks, you ask? Let's see, visiting with old friends and colleagues, watching hours of TV and movies on Hulu and Netflix, organizing my entire iTunes music library, and applying for jobs. In the last 3 days I have picked up the pace, in fact, and applied to 12 positions at museums, colleges, and non-profits around the city. I have tweaked my resume and cover letter so many times that my brain is about to explode from the amount of B.S. I had to conjure up and store in there while figuring out how to sell myself. I stopped the V.I.S.T.A. search after being offered a position in Arizona that, upon careful consideration, I turned down. And I'm just realizing that if I really want to get serious this year and figure out a career game plan, do some traveling, AND pay off my debt, I'm going to need a full time job with better pay than AmeriCorps can offer. But it's freaking me out that, being the holiday season and all, people are not exactly rushing to review resumes and set up interviews. Even the temp company I signed up with is not having any luck finding me a gig. Hopefully I will start to get some interest in my applications after the new year, because at some point my limited funds are going to run out. The thought did occur to me recently to apply to a sleep study, but the problem there is, that while in the study you don't have access to your phone to see if real jobs are trying to contact you. haha You laugh, but signing up to be a research subject has actually helped me to make a few extra bucks in the past. During one study I learned I am allergic to dust mites. During another study, I laid in an MRI machine while scientists put acupuncture needles in my hand and watched my brain waves. Desperate? Maybe. Weird? Definitely. But an interesting way to make money for sure. and there is only so long I can sit around in Kate and Nick's spare bedroom watching Hulu before unemployment loses its allure. To mix it up yesterday, I went on a tour of the Massachusetts State House. I think I will try to figure out when certain museums in the city have free visitor nights. Then maybe if I hang around at the Museum of Fine Arts enough, they will offer me a job. Fingers crossed.

Christmas Tree Shopping!

For the next couple of months I'll be staying with my friends Kate and Nick in the spare bedroom of their Boston condo. This is incredibly generous of them, and not the first time that the Sambuco's have helped me to get back on my feet whilst unemployed. This weekend Brian Jessie is visiting from upstate NY, and we kicked off the holidays right with some booze, Mexican food, and Christmas tree shopping for the Sambuco pad.


The tree farm had hay rides, hot apple cider, a bonfire and even holiday emus! It's also possible that I tripped and fell over a wagon hitch at one point.

Pets of the Eastern Seaboard

My travels over the last couple of weeks have taken me along the east coast to visit friends, family... and their pets. Yes, I am mildly obsessed with other people's pets. Typically, I embarrass loved ones by stopping in malls, on street corners, in gas stations, and other awkward locations to lovingly caress animals that do not belong to me. Here are some of my new friends. Lara's cat, Gato, who rules the apartment with an iron paw:


My dad and step mom's new dog, Katana. The friendliest pitbull I've ever been acquainted with.

Fellow team leader D.J.'s dog, Oscar. Very cute. Very old. Scraggly hair. Best dog in Connecticut.


Christina's 3 labs are New Hampshire's finest. I also got a chance to meet her friend Nicole's collection of pets that includes 2 huskies and a cat named General O'Mally. There are photos floating around of me wearing her birds like a pirate.


I just realized that I neglected my mom's cat Nubster. But he's more like a human anyway, so we'll give him his own post later.

Big Apple

Sometimes in NYC I feel like a small fish in a big pond. Even after years of visiting friends who live there and completing a summer internship near Columbus Circle, I always feel a bit overwhelmed. Last weekend Lara and I drove back from her parent's house in Michigan to the apartment she shares with her husband, Dave, on the Upper West Side. In a stroke of luck we ended up with an un-metered parking spot right in front of her building. We ate some of the most amazing Indian food I have ever had. At one point I was walking through Central Park and saw this guy in the photo below playing jazz saxophone. Then down the street at the zoo I hung out with a polar bear. There are museums everywhere. I checked out the NY Historical Society and saw a pretty sweet video about the city. On our way to pick up sodas from the grocery store we walked out of Lara's apartment and into the city's biggest winter festival, with musicians and a tree lighting, which we had just been watching on TV moments before. All of these things served to remind me of why New York is such a great place. Even though it can sometimes be a lot to take in, there is always something fantastic to do or see right outside your door.

Thanksgiving in America's High Five

Maral and Farouk Salahi are the generous, funny, welcoming parents of my best friend Lara who, for a second year now, invited me to spend Thanksgiving with their family in Michigan. So Wednesday morning I drove from Iowa to Chicago and spent a few hours checking out the Field Museum of natural history. Then I kept driving until I hit Rochester Hills, MI. That night I slept for 11 hours straight. It was glorious. Thanksgiving at their house was a treat with turkey and the usual suspects, plus special treats like pomegranate.


It turns out that my team leader friend Buck lives about an hour away from Lara's parents, so we were able to meet up with him for a tour of his hometown, Brighton. We hung out with his dad for a bit during which time he questioned whether I am a "red blooded American" due to the fact that I don't like beer, baseball or hot dogs and drove up in a foreign-made car (he worked at Ford for 30 years). What a hoot. Here we are with a reportedly controversial naked guy statue and Buck's buddies, the town ducks.



Over the weekend the Salahis took me to Greektown where you can experience Greek culture, food, and music, or... just gamble. haha I had moussaka, a baked eggplant dish, and for an appetizer they brought us a plate of flaming cheese. Then to round out the trip Mama Salahi won $70 bucks at the slots.



Shukran, Salahis!!! (Thanks a ton for a great visit!)

Let's Be the Clarks

If my teammate Lil Greg were here right now, he would say, "Darcy, you tweakin." And friends, he'd be right about that. I am indeed tweaking. I've gone through a lot of emotions this past week. From the fun celebration moments, to the Debbie Downer ones where I've cried or sat listlessly watching on at half of the functions we've attended. I need to snap out of it and be more like Clark. Let me explain.

On my drive back from a trip to South Dakota during Round 3, I stopped at at a Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center in Mandan, ND and happened to purchase a book on tape about the expedition. I listened to it twice on my drive, and even gave it to my unit leader for him to experience. I was enthralled by this 5-hour account of Lewis and Clark's travels through the Louisiana Territory, which included many of the same areas I have visited over the year. I'm not going to nerd out too much here, but the take-away from this blog post is that Lewis and Clark, despite having largely the same experience during their 2.5 years traveling the country, took different courses post-expedition. Meriwether Lewis, who was originally chosen by Jefferson to lead the journey, was made governor of the Louisiana Territory. But the job was a poor fit for him. He more or less became a depressed drunk, engaged in questionable politics, and ended up committing suicide only a few years after the Corps of Discovery's triumphant return.

William Clark's deal was a bit different. Now, he was no angel, mind you, as is evidenced by his bringing a slave, York, along on the journey at a pay rate of $0. And according to Wikipedia, he was terrible at grammar and spelling. But he had the savvy enough to get his crap together upon returning home. He took a job as Superintendent of Indian Affairs, got hitched and had a slew of babies. Then he lived to be 69, which I'm pretty sure was considered a ripe old age 200 years ago. As we leave campus and head home tomorrow morning, I'd like to make a suggestion to myself and fellow team leaders: Let's Be the Clarks. Whether it's continuing the AmeriCorps journey in another program because your expedition's not quite over, jumping into a Peace Corps stint, starting a new job in the public sector, moving home to your family, or getting prego with your special significant other a la Clark. Whatever success means to you. Yes, this was a great year of our lives, but it won't be the best. Not if we have anything to say about it. I'd like to close off this thought with some words of wisdom from another wise William.

Big Willy once said, “If you are not making someone else’s life better, then you are wasting your time. Your life will become better by making other people’s lives better.” Big Willy would be proud to see what we've accomplished for others this year. Keep up the good work, and remember to care for yourselves in the same way you've cared for your team, TL friends, and project beneficiaries this year. Let's be the Clarks.