uh WAT.
I'm not entirely sure how an entire month's worth of shittiness can be negated so quickly, but starting earlier this week life just got hyper-awesome. Let's elaborate, shall we?
We want everything we see, and once it's gone we just want more.
- My dad has basically been sick and in and out of the hospital since the beginning of January. While this experience has been terrifying and humbling (and guilt-ridden, seeing as the issues started from a meal I bought him for Christmas... good daughter fail), I am ecstatic to see that he's getting better and I suspect will be back to being my dear old dad in no time. As a result maybe I can stop stressing myself out to the point of acid reflux and insomnia. Time will tell.
- I booked my tickets earlier this week to head back to New Orleans, this time with Katie and Simon in tow. Simon is in the US from England and while he was originally planning on coming to NJ to see me for his spring break (from Kansas, no less), I remembered how cold and shitty it is here in March and also thought maybe he could do something more fulfilling. Helping to rebuild is something I think is extremely indicative of the charitable nature of Americans. That's a lot coming from me because I don't speak positively about many things in this country, but something can definitely be said about what I saw in New Orleans: where the government stops caring, people from all over the country will mobilize in the face of administrative shortcomings and pick up where they left off, especially where progress is an obtainable goal. The crew chiefs working with the volunteers have spent a long time living on a very small stipend in free housing from the Episcopal Diocese of Lousiana, the organization that we'll be working through. They are college graduates, or they're not, but I can guarantee that they could probably find something even a little better paying but they'd rather hang out in New Orleans, helping disenfranchised people put their life back together. I think that's a part of the American culture that's not too prevalent in international media, and it's a pretty important thing. Also, AWESOME I GET TO SEE ONE OF MY FRIENDS FROM UEA HOLY SHIT.
- When we booked our tickets, we didn't have housing lined up. Stupid, I know, but how fucking hard could it be to find a place for volunteers to stay for a week? Answer: four days later, after calling a few places and e-mailing like five different places, someone from the Episcopal Diocese e-mails me tonight and tells me that he's lined up housing for us somewhere... which is amazing of him and completely unexpected. Check plus.
- Last night I went on a spontaneous adventure to Brooklyn with a few awesome people to see Kevin Devine at a show that could have been free, but it was a Haiti benefit and I'm not trying to roll up into a benefit and not donate anything, but it was still dirt-cheap for the show he put on. He and the Goddamn Band had tons and tons of energy, not to mention how great and poetic Kevin Devine's songwriting is. It was practically coming out of their pores. Also, he's cute... really, really cute. I think it doesn't come across too well until you see his stage presence, but man on man, what a great night. I've been listening to Put Your Ghost to Rest pretty much nonstop ever since.
- I applied a couple weeks ago to an internship at an art gallery in SoHo and I have an interview on Saturday. I am so stoked it's absurd. Not just that I have an interview, but that I didn't write a super-formal cover letter to get it: I was just myself. Attempts to be funny were made. I'm glad someone appreciated it because it seems like being all businesslike doesn't work, ever, considering this is my second interview for anything in the eight months I've been a graduate...and the first time was at a restaurant. Durr. I'm slowly learning that there's a difference, a big one, between being professional and being stuffy, and those two things don't necessarily have to co-exist.
- I saw Mahindra tonight for the first time since he got back from Guyana on Sunday. This is clearly a simple pleasure but seeing him never fails to make me really, really happy.
We want everything we see, and once it's gone we just want more.