Biloxi Mississippi 2008
I warn you that these journal entries are in a stream of consciousness format. I simply wrote my thoughts, and recorded details about what went on during the day so some are quite long. I think I'll post them in twos.
1-9-08
Dad and I set out early Tuesday morning so we could move all my stuff into the dorm by 8am. We made it with time to spare, and surprisingly I didn't even forget anything aside from my roomate's christmas present. I also had to leave the plant from Dave's mom behind. Hopefully it survives. We met the bus at the Student Union, and Dad and I got our pictures taken for the Chronicle in Willimantic right off the bat. After that the gang took a group picture and set off with the Biloxi or Bust lunchboxes we recieved from the president of Uconn. They had fruit and chips and a water bottle. It was a pretty awesome gesture on the president's part. Props to him. I was a little nervous about my seat on the bus I won't lie. When I went to put my stuff down nobody was on yet though most of the seats had been claimed with bags. I had no idea where anyone was sitting never mind the people I knew. So I decided to go for an empty seat and this just so happened to be at the back, not the three seater but the other side. The bus ride actually turned out to be quite awesome. Though the seat choice got to be quite smelly from the bathroom by the end of the ride, the company was quite pleasant. A random boy ended up sitting next to me which made me quite nervous at first. After about two minutes however this wore off and we were engaged in more conversation than those around us who knew each other. His name was Tom, and he's a junior transfer student from East or West Haven. He had an awesome tan hat as well. He's a political science major so we talked a little bit of politics. We played some fun games and wrote a pretty awesome back and forth rhyming story about a car crash and a swallow. We also played hangman and rummy. I taught him Egyptian-Ratscrew which he loved. We tried to play the checker set he bought at the dollar store but the thing was missing pieces. You get what you pay for I guess. We both got pretty good at hangman, and he even guessed George Washington without any letters once we started played with categories. It was cool to meet a new friend, and it turns out he's on my team which I found out was the awesomest color, royal blue. Chris, Andy, and some other cool people are on my team as well. We watched some decent movies including I Am Legend, Knocked Up, and Big Fish during the bus ride. I also got to see the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial for the first time in DC. We went through Jersey, Delaware, DC/Maryland, Virginia, North and South Carolina, and Georgia followed by Alabama and Mississippi to the West. We went through 3 bus drivers which we met up with at hotels on the way. We also made some food stops for lunch, and I had fried chicken at Roy Rogers. Dinner was a burger at Wendy's, and breakfast the next morning was at Waffle House. The Roy Rogers was in Jersey I do believe. Wendy's was in Virginia. I got Chris a superball, and we got a bunch of people to toss it around with us. We also went for a walk with a group of people and got honked at by some Virginians. The Waffle House was in Alabama. I couldn't help feeling giddy about being in Alabama after My Cousin Vinny. The Waffle House was also next to a Mcdonalds and a baptist church which amused me greatly. The food was actually really good. I had never been to a Waffle House before that, and I had a chocolate chip waffle with chocolate milk and a side of bacon. We also found a puppy who had no collar that was clean and well trained. I hope he wasn't abandoned. We were served lunch once we got to Biloxi. I had a yummy wrap with hot peppers, lettuce, tomato, and pickles. We ate out on the bleachers because it was already crowded, and afterwards we played a bit of frisbee. Next we had a group meeting and were introduced to the people at the head of our Salvation Army site. They went over the rules and told us about our rooms and stuff. The rooms are pretty nice. Mine is called Cottonwood. There are 4 bunk beds to a room and on the two sides of the common room are the boys and girls sections. In my room with me I have Kristen and 6 other girls whose names escape me because its late and only the 1st night. I'll have them all in a few days I'm sure. (Maggie, Marissa, Allison, Jill, Leslie, Krista, Lindsey...got them now!) They're all asleep now I'm pretty sure. I'm writing this entry by flashlight up in my bunk. I got decent sleep last night despite the fact I was on a smelly bus. I even slept through the bus driver switch in Atlanta whcih I'm a little disappointed about. Marissa and I ran 3 miles on the track. I haven't run in quite some time so it felt good. Afterwards I shot around at the basketball hoop. I even stopped Chris one time during a 1-on-1 drive to the hoop. After that I took a shower. The bathroom is really nice but showering is a little awkward because there's no place to put your stuff, and you can't wear a towel over to the room. After the shower we had another quick group meeting, and some people headed to Walmart and other to the beach after our stuff was unloaded from the bus. I on the other hand played ping pong, did a puzzle, and played air hockey with Chris. It was fun. We started a chess game but were interupted for distributions of bandanas and t-shirts. After that was dinner. I had a cheeseburger, baked beans, and potato salad. I guess I don't have much to worry about in the food department. It seems like it will all be yummy. After dinner we had this silly introductory activity where you had to come up with a song that describes you and sing it with or to the group. It was pretty funny, and I chose "I believe I Can Fly" as my song. After that we broke into our small groups and did an activity with a worrybag. I wrote how I hoped I'd know enough about my assigned task not to screw up anyone's home. After the activity we played capture the flag. My team didn't have as many faster guys, and the game was hard with like 50 people and a small field, but I still had fun. After that Chris finished beating me in chess and then went on to beat me in another game. I'm determined to beat him over the course of the week. We seem about evernly matched. I made some silly moves though. After that Alyssa, Andy, and some others joined us for a game of Apples to Apples. Andy's cards were hilarious. I actually did pretty well at the game because I picked funny answers as well. We played until about 12 then I talked to Dave for a bit and started writing in this journal. Even though we're in the Central time zone its still getting pretty late, and I have to be up bright and early tommorrow for breakfast. I'm genuinely really excited for the work we'll be doing. I'll write lots more about it. My last comment of the night will address the Southern accents which I love. Everyone around here has one. Its awesome.
1-10-08
Today was another awesome day. I had cheerios, bacon, and a hashbrown from breakfast, and then it was out to the bleechers for a pep talk from the coordinator of our building projects. He had us sign so our pictures can be taken, and so we can't get sued and people can't sue us. He also reminded us to listen to people's stories about the hurricane, to do our best work, and to be safe. Apparently there were some drive-by shootings at a store called JR's close by. It was an ongoing joke throughout the trip that people would be sent there. Infection, Staph in particular, is also common in the area. The man giving the talk, as Meg pointed out, had a last name very similar to Spiderman. We hopped on the bus after that and then split off into groups and respective work sites. My group worked with Jim and Derek who were both really cool. Jim had a neat cowboy hat, and I loved his accent. Our first mission was to tear down the wall supports which extended out to the middle of the house. I found this really fun and was surprisingly good at it. I'd say I even got a lot accomplished. We went back to the Salvation Army Village by bus for lunch. I had another wrap. Back at the site we unloaded and carried sheet rock. After that I pretty much helped Derek out for the rest of the the day. Chris got a lot done on the closet in the middle of the house. Sarah and I nailed some extra supports on the ceiling. The wood was tough to get through, especially the older stuff, but Derek was patient with us. One part of the day that struck me was when I overheard Jim talking about the lady who owned the house's old door. It had broken windows yet we weren't supposed to get rid of it. Apparently it had been in her family for years, and she even brought it with her when she moved into the house. This was a powerful story to me because it showed how it wasn't just the things lost but the memories and sentiments behind them as well. Jim and Sarah were also talking on the way to pick up the new door about how there were two kinds of angels: the kind like us who come and help and the kind that inspire that help like the lady we were building for. We all got to ride in Jim's truck on the way back. It was cool because we sat in the back of the pickup and could see the neighborhood really well. Some houses were still in horrible shape, and there was a lot of vacant lots where houses used to be. On a more positive note, I'm an expert at pulling nails our of wood now that's for sure. The other groups did some cool things too. Some did mold removal, others flooring, and another group put up some walls, not bad for a first day if I do say so myself. Dinner was really good tonight, chicken alfredo pasta of sorts with Italian bread and salad. I was quite pleased. I played a bit more chess and ping pong with Chris. I also finished quite a bit of the Golden Compass and played some Apples to Apples again. We also had our small group reflections. People gave me shout outs for all my nailing and Jason called me Derek's apprentice. It was pretty cool. Andy drew a sweet picture of Mulan with a power tool. I love that kid. Plus he knew the song lyrics to Lets Get Down to Business when we were on site. I'm in bed at a better time tonight, and the light in the room was left on. I think that's all for now. Tommorrow perhaps I'll write letters.