Month 1.

so, blogging is proving difficult again the second time around. my apologies. i cannot believe how exhausted i am at the end of the day. a 3month hiatus from working is taking its toll! but it feels SO GOOD at the end of a long service day. we have been having some really great group projects and some really good weather! on thursday i had a "site visit" -- at the beach! and it was 60 degrees & sunny. rough life.

we have been clearing a lot of invasives.....phragmites and japanese knotweed....clearing some trails........planting beach grass......and it is the start of WET Fest season (water festivals for grade school kids). at my IPs, i am busy researching the water quality of brewster ponds.....not as exciting as i had hoped, but i am looking forward to putting everything together to make a website. with the chatham conservation foundation (CCF), i meet craig at his house, hang out with his family for a bit and then we get to work....going out to different land parcels and document abutter violations. the past week we took a trip to hyannis to go to HOME DEPOT! exciting. i felt like i fit right in wearing my carharts & work boots. we purchased chains and 4x4s to block off access to some private land that locals are using for their own pleasure. we got it done! it was a good day.

i have been also trying to get some hours with IFAW. i spent my veterans holiday day there helping with paperwork stuff and then i got to help with a common dolphin necropsy the sunday after thanksgiving! it was great to get my hands dirty again down in woods hole. i helped with sampling the animal, but hopefully will get some cutting time one of these days!

americorps kids also got to hang out at the beach in brewster on tuesday night looking for washed up & stunned ridley turtles. they are the rarest sea turtle in the world and get cold stunned when the temp begins to drop. we didnt find any, but i did see a dead one during the day at my IP in brewster. it was cool, but not as cool as a dead seal, i am afraid.

i stayed here for thanksgiving and had a huge meal with 14 other americorps alum/current members at my friend amanda's house. SO much food. i spent the rest of my time hanging out in hyannis. watched a lot of movies, played some cribbage, sampled some cape cod beer, took a small hike and attempted some shopping on friday in the pouring rain. it was a nice, relaxing 5 day break!

so now i am looking forward to heading back to wisco for christmas and new years. the weather isnt too bad here yet, so i am dreading snow and cold.

i am headed up to portland, maine tonight for a concert with 2 guys from the house. i am excited to leave the cape & explore portland some more. & of course, to continue to bond with everyone in the house. i am finally becoming part of the group and people have been saying that it feels like i have been here the whole time, so thats great!!!

enjoy your weekend!

(& these pictures....)

sunset at low tide at ryder beach

wellfleet alum at thanksgiving

dead ridley turtle at a brewster beach

(only 4,000 left in the world!)

w. dennis beach in w. dennis on a gorgeous 60 degree day in december!

most of the house clearing trash at the ptown community garden site!

BACK IN MASS!

it's true. i am a resident of massachusetts again! what started as an exodus to boston to try & find work turned into employment on the cape.....with AMERICORPS! again. it's a crazy story (kinda) but the short version is: i decided to take a chance & move to boston to try & find a job (2 months of doing nothing is sheboygan was getting to me). i moved on sept. 26th to beantown & set up shop on my cousin, meghan's, fancy, new fold down couch. i enjoyed being back on the east coast and being back in a big city! nothing was really happening in the job-searching area, until one friday in early october when my old americorps supervisor, mary, called me up with an "interesting proposition". they unfortunately (maybe fortunately for me) had to ask one of their current members to leave because she had already served 2 americorps terms (rules right now for americorps state & national (what our program is) are that you can only do 2) so....they needed to fill the spot -- & FAST, so the staff all thought of ME doing nothing up in boston & asked me if i would want to come back & fill the position. i thought about it for the weekend & called back the next tuesday & said YES! i then spent most of october getting ready for the big move which included packing up all my stuff & SHIPPING my RAV out to me on the east coast! (i had left it at home when i moved). everything mostly went according to plan & i now type this latest blog entry from my new bed in my new bedroom in WELLFLEET!

i have been here for a week now. i moved in on sunday, nov. 1st. it has been strangely wonderful to be back. wonderful in that i love this program & this place & this house....strange in that i do not recognize all these new faces! the first night i almost walked into my old room 3 times. for the first couple days i expected my old housemates to be cooking in the kitchen or sitting in the living room and it made me feel almost lonely to be in this great place with all these strangers. HOWEVER, i was not lonely because everyone has been so great & welcoming to me! we had a big potluck dinner on sunday night & had some "house bonding" by playing some charades. the group is definitely a lively bunch....& active! lots of runners........but also active in that they have different house "clubs".....like the "masterpiece theater society" where they rent series from pbs/bbc on netflix & watch them. i partook in one such viewing & fell asleep during it. at least i tried. they also have a few book clubs. i have decided to start a CRIBBAGE club & have some people interested in joining.

as for what i am doing this year. WELL....my week is set up like last year. group service on mondays & fridays. an individual placement (IP) 2 days a week. & a COD (community outreach & development) day at the office. i actually have 2 IPs this year. one day i am with the brewster DNR helping with their ponds and lakes stewardship (PALS) program. i will be gathering info on the different ponds in brewster (ie water quality, how it has been impacted by pollution) & making a website (!!!) so the info can be accessed by the public. i am hopefully going to be helping with sampling water in the spring with their volunteer sampling group. the other day i am with the chatham conservation foundation. i am working with craig, who is contracted through CCF just a few days a week, so i work with him @ his house in harwich....which is interesting, but fun. basically ccf has been acquiring green space in chatham through purchasing it or having it gifted since the 1970s. thats really all they have been doing.....acquiring land & then not doing much with it or keeping track on what is going on with the land. SO.....my project will be helping craig go out to the individual parcels of land & to document what exactly is going on. mostly they want to check on surrounding homes that might be encroaching on the land & letting them know that its not their property to dump on/clear trees & shrubs, etc. for cod day i am helping to plan americorps week again in may!

so far everything has really been great & i love being back in this atmosphere & dealing with the absurdities that arise in our daily lives. just tonight i helped remove an embedded tick on my housemate, margaret's leg. i also found some ticks on me on wednesday after frolicking in the woods with craig for 3 hours. i may have also gotten poison ivy that day on my thigh. its hard to tell....but its red & itchy. i am also all cut up on my legs from green briar (a nasty, thorny plant).

i am also attempting to be a little more domestic this time around. last night i made HOMEMADE BUTTER!! from cream. it was awesome. i also found a book shelf at the chatham swap shop....brought it home, cleaned it, sanded it down & painted it. it is now sitting proudly in my room! i hope to attempt to make my own cheese @ some point & have been really big into buying seasonally.......(more) organically......more locally.......& more socially aware of who i am giving my money to (kraft & all its affliates are the devil). i also read "omnivore's dilemma" & "in the defense of food" both by michael pollan during my 3 month hiatus. READ THEM. they make you think. "a better world shopping guide" is also wonderful!

so, i am attempting americorps cape cod, ROUND TWO! i am excited & eager for the year (9 months, technically) ahead. i know that it will be hard to top last year, but i am confident that this year will be just as rewarding with new experiences with my new housemates!

this is me sitting on top of a dune.....ocean side....in truro!

GORGEOUS!

i am living in the "girls quad" this year. yes.....i am sharing a room with 3 other people!

on the bright side....no more top bunk!

the 2nd photo is a close-up of my little corner of the room....it's pretty cozy!

the last month MONTAGE

sorting oysters & raking clams.......

seal survey in chatham......on the boat!

LOBSTERS!!!! yummy.....

last service project....at the end of the day with all the oyster cages!

"the last supper".....and newcomb hollow beach....oceanside!

singing @ karaoke.....our song....."bohemian rhapsody"


before heading out to THE POND on our last night.....


driving over the sagamore bridge.....good-bye cape cod....

alex standing in our puddle of a campsite next to our tent that turned into a water bed.....



enjoying sebago lake in maine!




alex & i hanging out in boston before taking him to the airport....

under my favorite tree in the boston gardens....the weeping beech

Final Thoughts.

It is August 20th, 2009.
Almost 2 months have gone by since my last post and I have now been living off the Cape for almost one month. I have put off writing this because my experience will seem too finalized if I put it all down in words. The emotions were also running wild in that last month, trying to experience all I could before I left....trying to take things in....slow time down....possibly find a pause button, or better yet, rewind button to do it all over again. As much as I tried, the end inevitably came and I now sit in my bedroom in Sheboygan, WI reminiscing about my year on the Cape.
IT WAS GREAT!
It was probably the hardest thing I have ever done. On September 8th, 2008, I nervously entered a parallel universe of sand dunes, loppers, waders and dead marine mammals. I have always considered myself an independent person, but moving so far away & knowing NO ONE really upped my anxiety. The drive from Boston to the Cape on the first day was a continual Q&A session with myself, the most common question being: "What the f*$% are you doing!?!?" It turned out that I was doing the BEST thing ever! My mom recently asked me what my favorite thing was and like a 5 year old, I answered, "Everything.", because it was the truth....mostly. My least favorite part was July 25th, 2009: The Day I left the Cape.....part 2 of the hardest thing I have ever done. Our last week consisted of exit paperwork, mass cleaning of the house and packing up. It was cold and overcast most of the week (we did not have a summer on the cape) with some drizzles....almost like the Cape was sad to see us go, too and then like some cruel joke it was GORGEOUS, sunny and hot that morning we all said our good-byes. I didn't want to leave....so I stuck around that morning as long as possible and was one of the last ones to go. Alex & I had planned to go camping in Maine for a few days, so I made him drive my car while I tried to keep it together for the long car ride off the cape. It was intense saying good bye to 13 people who you have shared basically everything with the last 11 months. We worked together, we hung out together, we lived together....ate together....slept together. We shared clothes, food, cars, advice, stories, laughs, tears. We occasionaly fought and got upset when someone got the service project we wanted or was sitting in "our spot" on the couch. It WAS a family. & still is. I talk to at least one person from my house in some form every day. I know that this will fade eventually, but right now it is a nice comfort as I am still adjusting to my surroundings....knowing that I am not the only one who feels a little out of place and alone. & I know that I will see them again. I stayed with Sam on my drive back to Wisco. Brian & Korinda stopped at my parents house for a night on their way out west on a roadtrip. Alex is coming to visit in a few days for a whole week...& because so many people are still out on the Cape (returning to AmeriCorps or working) I plan to get out there sometime this year. So I will be OK! I am currently in the market for a job.....& really want to get back out east. I really loved it out there and am missing it immensely. SO....if you know of any great enviro/research/fieldtech/really anything jobs out east & want to hook me up.....feel free! (This also applies to anywhere really because I just really need a job)

But moving on.....
highlights of my last month:
*LOTS of shellfishing! Going through oyster cages, raking up clams, wearing waders....always a good time!
*Our final project was removing old oyster cages that were buried in the sand and hauling them back to shore. It was HOT and the cages were HEAVY. It was definitely a testament to our work ethic.....we got it done!
*Lots of attempts at catching some waves on the ocean side. We broke some boogie boards and there may have been some bloodshed caused by washing up on rocks.
*Frolicking bay side.....swimming in the warmer water, watching fireworks (the town of Truro celebrated its 300th year!), & sunsets.
*4th of July was CRAZY.....tourists everywhere and no where for us to go. I actually got sick and missed the fireworks. oh well.
*LOBSTER! amanda, erin, alex & i bought some live lobsters @ the grocery store and brought them home & steamed them....delicious! & so much fun.
*SEALS! I did a seal survey with IFAW. We rode around in a little boat looking for seal haul outs. We found about 150 gray seals and then attempted to disentangle one that was wrapped up in fishing gear. Little guy was too fast and got away, but it was so amazing to be so close to them!
*THE POND! our favorite place. When the beaches were packed, we walked down the road to the pond. Almost always empty and always a good temperature. Also a great spot to enjoy some beer!
*"Graduation"....we had a ceremony and I gave a little speech about our time at Taylor-Bray Farm and AmeriCorps week. We even had to walk across the stage & accept a "diploma" (certificate verifying that we put in 1700 service hours)
*"The Last Supper"....our last house dinner and meeting took place on the beach! We had a bonfire, some booze and everyone brought a dish to pass! definitely an eclectic dinner.
*Our last weekend.....we spent hitting up our favorite spots......the bomb shelter on friday night and then Drag Queen Karaoke on Saturday night where we sang "Bohemian Rhapsody"....one of the first things we did together to "bond".
*Our last nite we all went and ate at Moby Dick's....the first place we all went out to dinner together (we are all very sentimental, if you couldn't tell)...and then went to the pond one last time.....for skinny dipping!
*Alex & I went to Sebago Lake State Park in Maine after we all said goodbye on the Cape and went camping for 2 nights. We got rained out the first night and had to switch campsites. We spent an afternoon in Portland and then headed to Boston for the night to stay with my cousin and hang out in the city before I took him to the airport.

I then spent 11 hours in a car...by myself...driving from Boston to Aurora, OH (where Sam lives!) and then 9 hours the next day to get back to Sheboygan. It was long and awful, but I made it!

I wanted to thank everyone for reading this "blog" and being interested in what I was up to out there! It was hard to keep up with at times because I was always doing something, but thanks for hanging in there. It was a wild ride & one hell of a year!

& Stay tuned....who knows where I will be next!

Much love,
ABBEY

BIRDS.

last monday our house got the chance to take part in Monomoy's National Wildlife Refuge annual Tern Census. Terns (& laughing gulls) are shore birds that come to rest, mate and lay eggs in the wildlife refuge in monomoy. our job was to work along side other volunteers and the refuge's biological science technicians to count & mark eggs in nests and any empty nests that we encountered. to do this was tricky. we had to wear REALLY flattering helmets with two long flags taped to either side. the birds will attack the highest point on anything that they feel is attacking them (we fit into that description, i guess) so this way they would attack the flags & not our eyeballs. we then broke up into 2 groups of twelve and positioned ourselves shoulder to shoulder while holding onto a rope and walked back and forth in a grid yelling out any eggs or nests we found along the way. the birds were definitely a little put off by us, i got pooped on the hand AND face. gross. but it was a VERY cool experience, & a bit scary at times. just another day to add to list the of things i never thought i would be doing.....

a bird about to attack me!

a video of us in the war zone of birds....

a PS....

((pictures & sickness))

i forgot to mention that i has a NASTY bout of poison ivy for about 2 weeks. i had gotten it while working on the farm on my left lower back and arms, but it spread to my legs and stomach as well. NO FUN. i was so itchy...and still am. where i had the PI, dry, itchy patches of skin have now appeared. such a curse!
& NOW....i have pink eye! so, i went to the eye doctor & got eyedrops & now have to wear my glasses for 2 weeks....sad face. i hate my glasses. but....good news....no one else in the house has gotten it! yay!

i have been slacking on the picture taking, but here a few shots of when my friends came!

tess & i walking at the white cedar swamp......

it took forever to get us all in the air at the same time.....hiking at great island with em & jackie....

goofing around in provincetown.....

the beginning of the end.

i have less than 2 months here on the cape. i remember when i wrote that i couldn't believe that i had been here for 2 months already......it is a cliche, but time really does fly when you're having fun.
so, what do i do with my last moments here? i am definitely trying to soak it all in. just tonite a few of us were congregated in the kitchen making our own individual snacks....just chatting....& then some more joined in and added some playful teasing & then more joined in & added some laughter....& then i was standing there in our war zone of a kitchen filled with dirty dishes, opened boxes of half-eaten snacks and a sandy floor realizing how much i am going to miss happenings like that once we are all gone from our little bubble of a world.
my friend lisa in the house posted a great quote in her blog (which you should check out under my list of "blogs i follow"....she went to school for english & is a far better writer than i!) from a book by wendell barry that reads:

"I have got to the age now where I can see how short a time we have to be here. And when I think about it, it can seem strange beyond telling that this particular bunch of us should be here on this little patch of ground in this little patch of time, and I can think of the other times and places I might have lived, the other kinds of man I might have been. But there is something else. There are moments when the heart is generous, and then it knows that for better or worse our lives are woven together here, one with one another and with the place and all the living things."

i think about this quote often & how it just matches perfectly with how i feel about this program and these people. tess came out to visit me a few weekends back, followed by emily & jackie over memorial day weekend. now.....tess, emily & i have all been friends since kindergarten (em & tess since birth, but really who's counting!?) and jackie & i have now been friends (& once roommates!) for about 4 years now. these girls know everything about me....they could probably tell you what i am thinking at any given time, but it took us years to be that close. my fellow housemates can do that now, only knowing me for 9 months. i can't imagine my life without any of them now, & i am perplexed at how i managed all this time without them. everyday, these people remind me why it is that i am here in this place at this point in my life. i could have stayed in madison. i could have gone to st. louis. i could still be in milwaukee! but i am here, with these people, in this wonderful place and life is great, but day by day i get closer to the end.

(*disclaimer: i also can't imagine my life without tess, emily & jackie....or any of my friends & family back home in wisco! their weekends here were brief & at times chaotic (tess had to endure alumni weekend...which included 60+ people walking around in identical sweatshirts) and at times not the best weather, but i thoroughly enjoyed their company and showing them my favorite spots on the cape!)

so....what is next? i am not sure. i was contacted by my old supervisor in madison who inquired if i was coming back or not....& i said NO. she was very supportive of my decision and even offered her services as a reference for me. they are such wonderful people, so i am glad that they harbor no bad feelings & only wish me the best. but now....i do not have a job. this is scary! but, i am not worried....yet. i am thinking i want to stay on the east coast. first choice is boston. i miss city life & want to get rid of my car! but.....can i realistically find a job that will make me enough money to afford rent? this i do not know. so, i am keeping my options open. i applied for a "forensic lab tech" position in OREGON with us fish & wildlife.....it would be helping with ANY animal necropsy, lab stuff....right up my alley! alas, i got an email saying that while i was qualified for the job (yay!)....i was not one of the most highly qualified, so i am not being considered for the position (booo!) you win some, you lose some. so....i am on the look out for jobs! i am pondering evironmental health & thinking of going back to school...someday.

so this is my life updated. friends = YAY!, future = scary, but not really, housemates = wonderfully amazing
because it is spring, we are getting to do more "fun" projects. i have spent some days shellfishing, digging up clumps of invasive grasses, clearing trails and on monday i get to help with the construction of an oyster reef...amazing! & then next weekend alex & i are going CAMPING at nickerson state park.....finally! i know i already said it in past posts, but.....LIFE IS GOOD!

xoox.

ABBEY