For some reason I have to learn my lesson the hard way on everything! I came home from work last night and Jesse gave me some "bad" news. As of yesterday we thought we had 6 interviews, but we really have 5. We lost Hibbing, MN!!!!!!! Jesse received an e-mail from the Hibbing site and he read it like he had an interview. I was totally excited!! I really wanted to go there! It sounded like a cute little town up in the back woods of Minnesota! My Uncle Brad even wanted us to go here - great fishing holes!!
Last night he received another e-mail from them saying that they were not going to offer him an interview at this time. I guess you could say I was bit heart broken! But, I am no longer picking a site - what we get, is what we get!! I had already been looking at apartments in Hibbing. I only had 8 to choose from, but I was looking. I was looking to see what kind of jobs they had to offer. Long story short, I need to be patient and wait to see what we get.
So, we have 5 interviews in 5 days. (January 8 - 12)
Iowa (I can't remember where)
Chicago
2 in Milwaukee
and I think our last one is in Minneapolis.
And for some happy news!!! We leave on Friday to head back to Wisconsin to spend the holidays with our family and friends!! Whooohooo!! We are so excited it has been about 6 months since we have seen everyone!!
I wish you all a very Merry Christmas!!
Tuesday, December 19, 2006
Wednesday, December 13, 2006
What can happen when your neighbor's heater quits working.
Posted By Jesse:
Sunday evening I saw my friend and neighbor, Ryan, walking by our apartment. He told me that he was over by Liz, another one of our neighbor friends, trying to fix her heater. He was unsuccessful in fixing the heater, so I decided that I'd offer one of my electric space heaters to her since it would get pretty cold in her apartment by the time morning came.
As I walked down the steps toward Liz's apartment I noticed a man in the shadows of the garages, it was about 9:30 PM and it was raining in a typical Portland fashion. I immediately recognize the tall slender gentleman as another one of my neighbors that I knew through my casual conversations with him. I proceeded to Liz's back porch, to find her smoking a cigarette and chatting on the phone as she often does. I briefly interrupted her conversation to ask if she needed a heater only to have our conversation interrupted by the man I had just noticed in the shadows. He yelled to ask if I'd come over by him. I asked him to wait a moment and finished my conversation with Liz. Within seconds I walked over to him. I could tell something wasn't right, but only because I don't typically see this guy outside of his home walking around, especially on such a dreary Sunday evening. As I walked up to him, I asked him what he was up to and then I noticed a large fillet knife in his left hand. His response was, "Do you know that girl (Liz)?" I said, "Yeah, she's my friend." He replied, "Tell her to get of the phone." Why he said that still doesn't make any sense to me. He seemed very upset, his eyes were wide open, his posture was very guarded, he smelled of alcohol, and he didn't seem to be playing with a full deck of cards. Everything about him was rather eerie. With great concern and fear I asked what he was doing with the knife. He told me he was going to kill himself. I'm not ashamed to say I was very scared. Not only scared for him, but also feeling a bit scared for myself, like I said, I'm not sure he was in his right mind. I'm also not ashamed to say that between every word I muttered, I was praying to God. In the moments before I prayed, I felt completely overwhelmed and helpless. I realized that no one could help me; not my father, not my wife, nor any of my friends. It was just me and this man with a knife standing in the rain. All I had was my own knowledge and a God that has always been there for me in the past. My prayer was brief, I simply asked for wisdom and the ability to protect myself if I needed to.
I asked him what was happening in his life that he wanted to die. Two days earlier I had talked with him and he told me about some major health complications he'd been having. He also has little money, it's the holidays, and he'd just had a fight with his wife. All of those were reasons he wanted walk down to park, slit his wrist, and leave the pain of this world behind him. I knew that he and his wife just had their first son about 5 months ago; I also knew that he grew up not knowing his own father. I asked him if he thought it would be fair to his son to also grow up without a father. He didn't answer me; instead he looked around and appeared to be confused. At this point we have been talking for about two minutes, and a group of three people just walked past. I can't help but wonder what they were thinking; seeing two guys standing in the rain, one of them holding a 10 inch fillet knife. He never responded to my question about his son, we just sat there for a while in silence. I asked him if he'd give me the knife, he refused. Now there is a car coming down the way, he takes a step back and rests his back on the garage door. We weren't blocking the roadway, but I though he'd stepped back to make more room for the oncoming car. Turns out he wasn't. Since he'd stepped back, I decided that I'd also step toward the garage. He instantly said that I'd better not come any closer. I then realized that I wasn't his ally, but just another threat to him. He talked some more and in a typical psychologist fashion I just listened, knowing that's what he probably wanted most of all. His situation was heart breaking, it didn't seem fair, I couldn't help but think I could have been in the same place had I experienced the same life.
Our conversation went on for about 5 minutes, perhaps longer. Then I noticed three cars coming down the way, they were moving exceptionally fast, but then again a lot of people drive really fast through this area. But these cars weren't just some reckless kids; it turned out to be three squad cars coming without their lights or sirens on. It happened so quickly. The three squads came to a screeching stop and they were out of their cars so fast. Within seconds this man and I were looking down the barrels of two pistols and a shotgun. I still clearly remember the sound of the officer cocking his shotgun. They yelled for us to get our hands in the air. My hands, as they often are, were in my pockets. It seemed like slow motion as I pulled my hands out, thinking that I should be careful to not make any sudden movements. I'm glad he was still holding the knife and that he refused to give it to me, or the situation could have been very different. I can just imagine my stuttering words as I try to explain that I'm not the guy they're after, even though I'm holding the knife. The officers quickly spotted the knife in his hand and told me get out of there. I stepped away as the officers closed in, repeatedly asking him to drop the knife. He was slow to comply and that's when I remember the part of our conversation when he mentioned suicide-by-cop. Thank God, he was willing to drop the knife. However, he was even less willing to drop the cigarette he had been smoking. All said and done, the officers handcuffed him and took him to Saint Vincent's Hospital for a psychiatric evaluation.
I told this story to my friends Ben and Brandon. Ben asked where the cops were from. The one I spoke to was from the Beaverton PD. Ben made a great point. The cops in this area received a similar call about a man with a knife about a month ago; however, that situation ended with the armed man shot to death. As Ben pointed out, "I'm sure that whole situation is still fresh in their minds." Unfortunately Ben witnessed part of that shooting as it went down at his apartment complex just down the road from here. You can actually read Ben's account of that night by clicking on Ben & Katie's blog located on the right side of our home page.
Police shootings are pretty common in this area, but I don't blame them for it. However, it's really a different experience when you are the one at the end of the barrel. You really start to hope that all the police shootings are not the result of some trigger happy cops.
If this man's story has touched you and you believe in God, please say one prayer for him. He has multiple health concerns, psychological issues, a wife and three children, and little money. In the past he's been a very laid back and fairly happy individual. The stress and pain of this world is breaking him. He needs a lot of things and one of those things is prayer.
Sunday evening I saw my friend and neighbor, Ryan, walking by our apartment. He told me that he was over by Liz, another one of our neighbor friends, trying to fix her heater. He was unsuccessful in fixing the heater, so I decided that I'd offer one of my electric space heaters to her since it would get pretty cold in her apartment by the time morning came.
As I walked down the steps toward Liz's apartment I noticed a man in the shadows of the garages, it was about 9:30 PM and it was raining in a typical Portland fashion. I immediately recognize the tall slender gentleman as another one of my neighbors that I knew through my casual conversations with him. I proceeded to Liz's back porch, to find her smoking a cigarette and chatting on the phone as she often does. I briefly interrupted her conversation to ask if she needed a heater only to have our conversation interrupted by the man I had just noticed in the shadows. He yelled to ask if I'd come over by him. I asked him to wait a moment and finished my conversation with Liz. Within seconds I walked over to him. I could tell something wasn't right, but only because I don't typically see this guy outside of his home walking around, especially on such a dreary Sunday evening. As I walked up to him, I asked him what he was up to and then I noticed a large fillet knife in his left hand. His response was, "Do you know that girl (Liz)?" I said, "Yeah, she's my friend." He replied, "Tell her to get of the phone." Why he said that still doesn't make any sense to me. He seemed very upset, his eyes were wide open, his posture was very guarded, he smelled of alcohol, and he didn't seem to be playing with a full deck of cards. Everything about him was rather eerie. With great concern and fear I asked what he was doing with the knife. He told me he was going to kill himself. I'm not ashamed to say I was very scared. Not only scared for him, but also feeling a bit scared for myself, like I said, I'm not sure he was in his right mind. I'm also not ashamed to say that between every word I muttered, I was praying to God. In the moments before I prayed, I felt completely overwhelmed and helpless. I realized that no one could help me; not my father, not my wife, nor any of my friends. It was just me and this man with a knife standing in the rain. All I had was my own knowledge and a God that has always been there for me in the past. My prayer was brief, I simply asked for wisdom and the ability to protect myself if I needed to.
I asked him what was happening in his life that he wanted to die. Two days earlier I had talked with him and he told me about some major health complications he'd been having. He also has little money, it's the holidays, and he'd just had a fight with his wife. All of those were reasons he wanted walk down to park, slit his wrist, and leave the pain of this world behind him. I knew that he and his wife just had their first son about 5 months ago; I also knew that he grew up not knowing his own father. I asked him if he thought it would be fair to his son to also grow up without a father. He didn't answer me; instead he looked around and appeared to be confused. At this point we have been talking for about two minutes, and a group of three people just walked past. I can't help but wonder what they were thinking; seeing two guys standing in the rain, one of them holding a 10 inch fillet knife. He never responded to my question about his son, we just sat there for a while in silence. I asked him if he'd give me the knife, he refused. Now there is a car coming down the way, he takes a step back and rests his back on the garage door. We weren't blocking the roadway, but I though he'd stepped back to make more room for the oncoming car. Turns out he wasn't. Since he'd stepped back, I decided that I'd also step toward the garage. He instantly said that I'd better not come any closer. I then realized that I wasn't his ally, but just another threat to him. He talked some more and in a typical psychologist fashion I just listened, knowing that's what he probably wanted most of all. His situation was heart breaking, it didn't seem fair, I couldn't help but think I could have been in the same place had I experienced the same life.
Our conversation went on for about 5 minutes, perhaps longer. Then I noticed three cars coming down the way, they were moving exceptionally fast, but then again a lot of people drive really fast through this area. But these cars weren't just some reckless kids; it turned out to be three squad cars coming without their lights or sirens on. It happened so quickly. The three squads came to a screeching stop and they were out of their cars so fast. Within seconds this man and I were looking down the barrels of two pistols and a shotgun. I still clearly remember the sound of the officer cocking his shotgun. They yelled for us to get our hands in the air. My hands, as they often are, were in my pockets. It seemed like slow motion as I pulled my hands out, thinking that I should be careful to not make any sudden movements. I'm glad he was still holding the knife and that he refused to give it to me, or the situation could have been very different. I can just imagine my stuttering words as I try to explain that I'm not the guy they're after, even though I'm holding the knife. The officers quickly spotted the knife in his hand and told me get out of there. I stepped away as the officers closed in, repeatedly asking him to drop the knife. He was slow to comply and that's when I remember the part of our conversation when he mentioned suicide-by-cop. Thank God, he was willing to drop the knife. However, he was even less willing to drop the cigarette he had been smoking. All said and done, the officers handcuffed him and took him to Saint Vincent's Hospital for a psychiatric evaluation.
I told this story to my friends Ben and Brandon. Ben asked where the cops were from. The one I spoke to was from the Beaverton PD. Ben made a great point. The cops in this area received a similar call about a man with a knife about a month ago; however, that situation ended with the armed man shot to death. As Ben pointed out, "I'm sure that whole situation is still fresh in their minds." Unfortunately Ben witnessed part of that shooting as it went down at his apartment complex just down the road from here. You can actually read Ben's account of that night by clicking on Ben & Katie's blog located on the right side of our home page.
Police shootings are pretty common in this area, but I don't blame them for it. However, it's really a different experience when you are the one at the end of the barrel. You really start to hope that all the police shootings are not the result of some trigger happy cops.
If this man's story has touched you and you believe in God, please say one prayer for him. He has multiple health concerns, psychological issues, a wife and three children, and little money. In the past he's been a very laid back and fairly happy individual. The stress and pain of this world is breaking him. He needs a lot of things and one of those things is prayer.
Thursday, December 07, 2006
Christmas Tree Stories!
I was driving into work the other day and I was noticing all the Christmas tree for sale signs. So, I thought it would be fun to share a few tree stories. Feel free to share yours too!!
I had to be in middle school when we (Mom, Shannon, Adam and I) talked Dad (aka: Mr. Grinch) into going out into our woods and cutting a tree down ourselves!! We were so excited!! This was going to be the cool way of doing it!!
I think there was a little bit of snow on the ground (not much) and we dressed in our snow suits and headed out to the woods. Of course my Dad is grumbing the whole way - he didn't understand why we needed a tree at all. But, he loves us and did it anyway.
I can't remember how long we looked for that perfect tree but I know we found one. And, I should just tell you that these are just trees growing in the woods. No one has trimmed or shaped them - Ever!!
We get our perfect tree home and decorate it all up...
I have to say that this was NOT the perfect tree. Ranks up there as the most ugliest tree. We put the tree right in front of the front window facing the road and when we would turn on the tree lights at night you could see it from the road - it was a scary site!!! I am pretty sure the neighbor girl, Jodi, questioned me. What's wrong with your tree? Where did you get it?
It may have looked perfect in the woods next to the other "perfect" trees. But once we got it in the house it was almost a Charlie Brown tree.
I have one more story and then I am done. Our first Christmas tree we got in Oregon we decided to cut it down ourselves. Except we went to an actual tree farm!! We get it home and we are decorating it and we start to notice a few spiders. That tree was full of spiders!! I had bug spray that I was using on my plants that summer and I sprayed that whole tree and we were still finding spiders. It was so gross!! When we took the tree out we had pest control come in and spray our apartment!! YUCK!
The next year we thought we would just get one that was already cut - maybe they didn't come with spiders. WRONG!
We have learned our lesson and we are not getting a tree this year!! I am not a fan of bugs so no tree at all is way better than a tree full of spiders!! Apparently this is normal out here because when I complain about this to Oregonians they just laugh and say "Yeah, one year we had a family of wasps in our tree."
I had to be in middle school when we (Mom, Shannon, Adam and I) talked Dad (aka: Mr. Grinch) into going out into our woods and cutting a tree down ourselves!! We were so excited!! This was going to be the cool way of doing it!!
I think there was a little bit of snow on the ground (not much) and we dressed in our snow suits and headed out to the woods. Of course my Dad is grumbing the whole way - he didn't understand why we needed a tree at all. But, he loves us and did it anyway.
I can't remember how long we looked for that perfect tree but I know we found one. And, I should just tell you that these are just trees growing in the woods. No one has trimmed or shaped them - Ever!!
We get our perfect tree home and decorate it all up...
I have to say that this was NOT the perfect tree. Ranks up there as the most ugliest tree. We put the tree right in front of the front window facing the road and when we would turn on the tree lights at night you could see it from the road - it was a scary site!!! I am pretty sure the neighbor girl, Jodi, questioned me. What's wrong with your tree? Where did you get it?
It may have looked perfect in the woods next to the other "perfect" trees. But once we got it in the house it was almost a Charlie Brown tree.
I have one more story and then I am done. Our first Christmas tree we got in Oregon we decided to cut it down ourselves. Except we went to an actual tree farm!! We get it home and we are decorating it and we start to notice a few spiders. That tree was full of spiders!! I had bug spray that I was using on my plants that summer and I sprayed that whole tree and we were still finding spiders. It was so gross!! When we took the tree out we had pest control come in and spray our apartment!! YUCK!
The next year we thought we would just get one that was already cut - maybe they didn't come with spiders. WRONG!
We have learned our lesson and we are not getting a tree this year!! I am not a fan of bugs so no tree at all is way better than a tree full of spiders!! Apparently this is normal out here because when I complain about this to Oregonians they just laugh and say "Yeah, one year we had a family of wasps in our tree."
Wednesday, December 06, 2006
Uh-oh Chicago!
I came home last night and Jesse told me that we have another interview to add to the list. One of our Chicago sites, I think it was the Meier Clinic, would like to interview us!! That makes this 4 sites total - just in case anyone is counting!! : ) We were told that we should get 6 interviews total - almost there!!!
I know those cousins of mine are hoping for this site - we could all go see Oprah if we land here!!! I would love to see Oprah too, but I am not sure I am ready to live here. If I moved 1/2 way across the US to Oregon, I can live in Chicago!! All the bad thoughts I have of Chicago are from my good ol' brother-in-law Jerry!! He lived there for a couple years while he went to school and he doesn't have nice things to say! I have never been there - so I can't judge, right!!? I am trying not to - I just need to stop talking to Jerry!! Sorry Jerry, I am going to have to cut you off until after this is all over!! Love ya!!
This site has already scheduled an interview for Jesse on the 19th of January. Right now we are in the process of having to coordinate all these interviews for when he is actually going to be there. This could get ugly. Worse case - we just have to fly him back for this interview.
Whoohoo!! Just wanted to keep you all updated! It was real hard when we got that first no - but it has been all up hill since then!! Praise the Lord!!
I know those cousins of mine are hoping for this site - we could all go see Oprah if we land here!!! I would love to see Oprah too, but I am not sure I am ready to live here. If I moved 1/2 way across the US to Oregon, I can live in Chicago!! All the bad thoughts I have of Chicago are from my good ol' brother-in-law Jerry!! He lived there for a couple years while he went to school and he doesn't have nice things to say! I have never been there - so I can't judge, right!!? I am trying not to - I just need to stop talking to Jerry!! Sorry Jerry, I am going to have to cut you off until after this is all over!! Love ya!!
This site has already scheduled an interview for Jesse on the 19th of January. Right now we are in the process of having to coordinate all these interviews for when he is actually going to be there. This could get ugly. Worse case - we just have to fly him back for this interview.
Whoohoo!! Just wanted to keep you all updated! It was real hard when we got that first no - but it has been all up hill since then!! Praise the Lord!!
Saturday, December 02, 2006
Miranda Lambert and Dierks Bentley
Thursday night my friend Katie and I had the opportunity to see Dierks Bentley in concert at the Memorial Coliseum in Portland. The Randy Rogers Band and Miranda Lambert were going to open for Dierks. We had to go!!! We purchased our tickets the second they went on sale and we ended up with Floor, Row 1, Seats 31 & 32!!!! Row 1 on the floor!!!!!!! You have no idea how excited we were and how long we had to wait for this concert to finally get here!!
The day of the concert we e-mailed each other all day counting down the hours until we were done with work and could go see Dierks and Miranda from the front row!!!
We walked into the Coliseum and headed right to the front row! We knew where we were going! One of the security/workers stopped us to see if we needed help finding our seats. Nope, we showed her our tickets and she said "lucky" and let us go right on up to the FRONT ROW!
We get to the front row and it wasn't right up to the stage like we thought it would be. We had a fenced-in area in front of us without chairs and there were people standing in there. Apparently they had Floor, General admission tickets and that is how they got in there. We still had great seats and were totally giddy with excitement!!!
The Randy Rogers Band came out and they were so good! I never heard any of their songs until that night and I put their CD on my must have list. They were really good!! They had this fiddle player that was awesome. He didn't look like a fiddle player at all and he hopped all over stage. They introduced him as "the coolest kid at fiddle camp". He was the coolest!!
While they were changing the stage for Miranda Lambert, her band was standing off to the side of the stage and we could see them. It looked like they were looking right at us!! We waved. They waved back. We tried to send hand signals that said "can you get us back there" and they sent hand signals back but we couldn't figure out what they were saying. We felt pretty cool, Miranda's band was talking to us!!!!!
Miranda finally came on stage and she was awesome!! She is such a cutie!! She came out in just a pair of jeans with an awesome belt, a t-shirt with a long sleeved shirt on underneath. Totally relaxed but very stylish and cute!
It took forever for them to set-up the stage for Dierks - at least it felt like forever! As soon as the lights went out and his band started playing Katie and I turned into school girls. We grabbed on into each other and started jumping up and down and screaming!! A little too excited!
Can I just tell you about the couple next to Katie? Good, I have to! They looked like they were 18/19 years old and they were all over each other. They were dancing very close and it was very disgusting. For those of you who know what the word "grinding" means - that is what they were doing the ENTIRE time!! Not even kidding when I say ENTIRE!!! We had a fence in front of us to separate us from the "general admission", they walk up to the fence to take a picture and they stayed there!!! So now they are in front of us dancing like this!!! It was totally disgusting and very distracting!! Then they had the urge to kiss!! Oh boy! Not sure you can call it a kiss - more like a bath!! The girl next to me says "It isn't even a slow song". Dierks just has to sing "come a little closer" and they go at it even more! It was so gross!! We couldn't take it so we went up to the fence to get away from them.
While Katie and I are standing up at the fence Dierks sees us!!! He holds his guitar pick up at us, points it at us, winds up and throws it at us!!! We lost it in the light and never seen where it landed!! We felt pretty cool that he seen us! I am not even imagining things either!
Dierks has this song that is called "light domestic and cold" and before he sings the song he says he needs to grab something light domestic and cold. He walks over to what looks like a speaker and opens it up. It is a mini-fridge filled with beer! He grabs one, takes a drink and starts singing his song. Of course the crowd went crazy - you could drink at this concert. Beer bottles and beer classes were all raised up!
The concert was great. Every one did a fantastic job and we had so much fun!!
The day of the concert we e-mailed each other all day counting down the hours until we were done with work and could go see Dierks and Miranda from the front row!!!
We walked into the Coliseum and headed right to the front row! We knew where we were going! One of the security/workers stopped us to see if we needed help finding our seats. Nope, we showed her our tickets and she said "lucky" and let us go right on up to the FRONT ROW!
We get to the front row and it wasn't right up to the stage like we thought it would be. We had a fenced-in area in front of us without chairs and there were people standing in there. Apparently they had Floor, General admission tickets and that is how they got in there. We still had great seats and were totally giddy with excitement!!!
The Randy Rogers Band came out and they were so good! I never heard any of their songs until that night and I put their CD on my must have list. They were really good!! They had this fiddle player that was awesome. He didn't look like a fiddle player at all and he hopped all over stage. They introduced him as "the coolest kid at fiddle camp". He was the coolest!!
While they were changing the stage for Miranda Lambert, her band was standing off to the side of the stage and we could see them. It looked like they were looking right at us!! We waved. They waved back. We tried to send hand signals that said "can you get us back there" and they sent hand signals back but we couldn't figure out what they were saying. We felt pretty cool, Miranda's band was talking to us!!!!!
Miranda finally came on stage and she was awesome!! She is such a cutie!! She came out in just a pair of jeans with an awesome belt, a t-shirt with a long sleeved shirt on underneath. Totally relaxed but very stylish and cute!
It took forever for them to set-up the stage for Dierks - at least it felt like forever! As soon as the lights went out and his band started playing Katie and I turned into school girls. We grabbed on into each other and started jumping up and down and screaming!! A little too excited!
Can I just tell you about the couple next to Katie? Good, I have to! They looked like they were 18/19 years old and they were all over each other. They were dancing very close and it was very disgusting. For those of you who know what the word "grinding" means - that is what they were doing the ENTIRE time!! Not even kidding when I say ENTIRE!!! We had a fence in front of us to separate us from the "general admission", they walk up to the fence to take a picture and they stayed there!!! So now they are in front of us dancing like this!!! It was totally disgusting and very distracting!! Then they had the urge to kiss!! Oh boy! Not sure you can call it a kiss - more like a bath!! The girl next to me says "It isn't even a slow song". Dierks just has to sing "come a little closer" and they go at it even more! It was so gross!! We couldn't take it so we went up to the fence to get away from them.
While Katie and I are standing up at the fence Dierks sees us!!! He holds his guitar pick up at us, points it at us, winds up and throws it at us!!! We lost it in the light and never seen where it landed!! We felt pretty cool that he seen us! I am not even imagining things either!
Dierks has this song that is called "light domestic and cold" and before he sings the song he says he needs to grab something light domestic and cold. He walks over to what looks like a speaker and opens it up. It is a mini-fridge filled with beer! He grabs one, takes a drink and starts singing his song. Of course the crowd went crazy - you could drink at this concert. Beer bottles and beer classes were all raised up!
The concert was great. Every one did a fantastic job and we had so much fun!!
Meet Calvin.
Last night we went to Bridgetown again with our care group from church. I have to say I wasn't excited about going. Either was Jesse.
We met the Bridgetown team at their church where we sorted clothes and prepared the meal. After all our tasks were done we were assigned our "job" for the evening. I really wanted to serve food! They called off all the jobs and I raised my hand for serving food and handing out clothing and he didn't pick me for any of them!! So, that left me with hosting a table. This was way out of my comfort zone!!! As a host you were suppose to sit down and eat with the folks at your table, get them more food/drinks, and talk with them. Oh boy!! I was not excited. I pouted to Jesse and he gave me a few tips - ask them how their week has been. You won't have to ask them anything else, they will carry the conversation from there. Easier said then done if you ask me.
We set up all the stations and I stood by a table and waited for people to come and sit at my table. No one came to my table so I decided to walk around and my find someone who looked nice and friendly!! I seen this guy who had a sandwich in front of him and he was wearing a hockey jersey with a stocking hat on. I felt like I could talk to this guy. I asked him if I could get him some coffee because he was rubbing his hands together trying to stay warm. (It was a cold night.) And he told me no - he already had some. I asked if I could go find him a pair of gloves from the clothing station and he said no. It was like pulling teeth to get this guy to talk to me. Well, I wasn't leaving! This was the first person I had enough guts to make the first contact, he was going to have to deal with me the rest of the night!!!
I stayed and talked with him the rest of the night!!! I didn't move!! He eventually warmed up to me and told me a lot about himself. His name is Calvin and he is 27. He has 4 children, 3 sons and a daughter who is the apple of his eye!! Daddy's little girl he said. He had pictures of his kids and he showed them to me, and I said there are only 3 here where is the 4th. He had a hard time telling me the story. One of his sons past away at 5 months old, he had a heart condition and didn't make it. The heart condition runs in his family.
Calvin dropped out of high school after his freshman year. He was very into track and cross country, but got into a lot trouble and didn't want to be there anymore. He still enjoys running. He also enjoys hunting and fishing. I of course told him my only hunting story and he had a good laugh. (Where the deer practically ran me over!! If you ask my Dad about it he has a different story, but I swear that I could of jumped on that deer's back and went for a ride. It was so close to getting me!!)
I asked him if he had any family and he said that his Dad lived in Vancouver, WA but they didn't get along all the time. They were too much alike and would butt heads. He had seen his Dad on Friday and would be seeing him again today. He was helping him paint a house. He had a brother that lived in New York and a sister that lived in the Midwest (I can't remember where). His kids lived in Portland with their mom's uncle. The kids were taken away from the Mother because she was into drugs. Calvin said he is trying to clean up his life and get off of drugs so that he can get his kids back. I asked him how he was going to get the kids and he said he would have to go talk to the Uncle. Calvin and the Uncle do not get along. He said he would have to apologize for things he never did. Breaks my heart - he seemed like such a good guy.
Calvin has been on the streets off and on for 16 years. He just got a place he can call home on Thursday. He doesn't have anything to put in it but his sleeping bag. His first night there he put that sleeping bag in the middle of the floor and stretched out!!! What a great feeling that had to be!!
While Calvin and I were chatting there were 2 other guys sitting by us. One of the guys was going to be turning 40 and he was dressed in very nice clothes and had a very nice looking sleeping bag. He was carrying around this very nice blue button down shirt and I asked him what he was doing with that shirt (stupid question I am sure, oh well) and he said it was for interviews. He had an interview at a restaurant in Sherwood. He had hitch-hiked/walked to Portland from Newport, OR (which is on the coast). 400 some miles! He was so excited to go and get his feet washed! I told him my husband is over there he should go to him!! As soon as I said that Jesse showed up at our table and told us that they were running out of water. I watched his sleeping bag and shirt while he went to check out the water situation. He came back a bit later and said that he was able to get them washed!! He was pretty excited!! He thanked me for sitting down and talking to him and thanked us for everything that we did with this organization. He really appreciated it! I think his name was Dell.
The 2nd guy that was sitting at my table was a bit strange. While I would be talking to Calvin he would look at me and raise his eyebrows and either shake his head or smile. I couldn't figure out what was going on. I ignored it for a while but he kept doing it. He said something about not having sugar in his coffee so I asked him if I could go get him sugar and he looked at me weird again and said no. Then he says, "Do you have a younger sister with brown hair?" I told him yes, but she doesn't live in Oregon. He tells me that he knows this girl named Chelsey and she works at a bar that he went to. Apparently this girl looked exactly like me! He said we had the same eyebrows, eyes and smile. I asked him if that is why he kept looking at me funny. I can't remember his answer. He made those faces and shook his head and smiled the rest of the time he was at my table. Finally I said, "She looks that much like me, that it is that hard to look at me?" He said yes. He finally walked away and I was relieved - the guys was starting to freak me out! And then I couldn't figure out if he was one of the Bridgetown helpers because he was sitting in a circle with some of the other helpers that were singing songs and playing the guitar. I'll never know.
In the end I had a great time and so did Jesse. It is just getting me there that is the hard part! It is so interesting hearing their stories and learning how they ended up on the streets. Before we went down to the bridge last night one of the leaders said something very true and very intersting:
The only difference, if there is a difference, between you and them is that their sin is on the outside. Our sin is on the inside covered and protected by our nice clothes, our nice house, and our stuff.
We met the Bridgetown team at their church where we sorted clothes and prepared the meal. After all our tasks were done we were assigned our "job" for the evening. I really wanted to serve food! They called off all the jobs and I raised my hand for serving food and handing out clothing and he didn't pick me for any of them!! So, that left me with hosting a table. This was way out of my comfort zone!!! As a host you were suppose to sit down and eat with the folks at your table, get them more food/drinks, and talk with them. Oh boy!! I was not excited. I pouted to Jesse and he gave me a few tips - ask them how their week has been. You won't have to ask them anything else, they will carry the conversation from there. Easier said then done if you ask me.
We set up all the stations and I stood by a table and waited for people to come and sit at my table. No one came to my table so I decided to walk around and my find someone who looked nice and friendly!! I seen this guy who had a sandwich in front of him and he was wearing a hockey jersey with a stocking hat on. I felt like I could talk to this guy. I asked him if I could get him some coffee because he was rubbing his hands together trying to stay warm. (It was a cold night.) And he told me no - he already had some. I asked if I could go find him a pair of gloves from the clothing station and he said no. It was like pulling teeth to get this guy to talk to me. Well, I wasn't leaving! This was the first person I had enough guts to make the first contact, he was going to have to deal with me the rest of the night!!!
I stayed and talked with him the rest of the night!!! I didn't move!! He eventually warmed up to me and told me a lot about himself. His name is Calvin and he is 27. He has 4 children, 3 sons and a daughter who is the apple of his eye!! Daddy's little girl he said. He had pictures of his kids and he showed them to me, and I said there are only 3 here where is the 4th. He had a hard time telling me the story. One of his sons past away at 5 months old, he had a heart condition and didn't make it. The heart condition runs in his family.
Calvin dropped out of high school after his freshman year. He was very into track and cross country, but got into a lot trouble and didn't want to be there anymore. He still enjoys running. He also enjoys hunting and fishing. I of course told him my only hunting story and he had a good laugh. (Where the deer practically ran me over!! If you ask my Dad about it he has a different story, but I swear that I could of jumped on that deer's back and went for a ride. It was so close to getting me!!)
I asked him if he had any family and he said that his Dad lived in Vancouver, WA but they didn't get along all the time. They were too much alike and would butt heads. He had seen his Dad on Friday and would be seeing him again today. He was helping him paint a house. He had a brother that lived in New York and a sister that lived in the Midwest (I can't remember where). His kids lived in Portland with their mom's uncle. The kids were taken away from the Mother because she was into drugs. Calvin said he is trying to clean up his life and get off of drugs so that he can get his kids back. I asked him how he was going to get the kids and he said he would have to go talk to the Uncle. Calvin and the Uncle do not get along. He said he would have to apologize for things he never did. Breaks my heart - he seemed like such a good guy.
Calvin has been on the streets off and on for 16 years. He just got a place he can call home on Thursday. He doesn't have anything to put in it but his sleeping bag. His first night there he put that sleeping bag in the middle of the floor and stretched out!!! What a great feeling that had to be!!
While Calvin and I were chatting there were 2 other guys sitting by us. One of the guys was going to be turning 40 and he was dressed in very nice clothes and had a very nice looking sleeping bag. He was carrying around this very nice blue button down shirt and I asked him what he was doing with that shirt (stupid question I am sure, oh well) and he said it was for interviews. He had an interview at a restaurant in Sherwood. He had hitch-hiked/walked to Portland from Newport, OR (which is on the coast). 400 some miles! He was so excited to go and get his feet washed! I told him my husband is over there he should go to him!! As soon as I said that Jesse showed up at our table and told us that they were running out of water. I watched his sleeping bag and shirt while he went to check out the water situation. He came back a bit later and said that he was able to get them washed!! He was pretty excited!! He thanked me for sitting down and talking to him and thanked us for everything that we did with this organization. He really appreciated it! I think his name was Dell.
The 2nd guy that was sitting at my table was a bit strange. While I would be talking to Calvin he would look at me and raise his eyebrows and either shake his head or smile. I couldn't figure out what was going on. I ignored it for a while but he kept doing it. He said something about not having sugar in his coffee so I asked him if I could go get him sugar and he looked at me weird again and said no. Then he says, "Do you have a younger sister with brown hair?" I told him yes, but she doesn't live in Oregon. He tells me that he knows this girl named Chelsey and she works at a bar that he went to. Apparently this girl looked exactly like me! He said we had the same eyebrows, eyes and smile. I asked him if that is why he kept looking at me funny. I can't remember his answer. He made those faces and shook his head and smiled the rest of the time he was at my table. Finally I said, "She looks that much like me, that it is that hard to look at me?" He said yes. He finally walked away and I was relieved - the guys was starting to freak me out! And then I couldn't figure out if he was one of the Bridgetown helpers because he was sitting in a circle with some of the other helpers that were singing songs and playing the guitar. I'll never know.
In the end I had a great time and so did Jesse. It is just getting me there that is the hard part! It is so interesting hearing their stories and learning how they ended up on the streets. Before we went down to the bridge last night one of the leaders said something very true and very intersting:
The only difference, if there is a difference, between you and them is that their sin is on the outside. Our sin is on the inside covered and protected by our nice clothes, our nice house, and our stuff.
Friday, December 01, 2006
Another one!
We have another interview!!!! This is so exciting and fun!! It gives me a little sneak peak into our future of where we could be moving next year. I know there is still that chance that we don't get any of these sites, but it sure makes me excited!!
This interview is with the Wisconsin Dept. of Corrections.
I have a proud wife moment to share with you: Jesse had mock interviews yesterday and he nailed them. The teacher/supervisor that was conducting the interview told him that she would hire him on the spot!! And the students that were sitting in and watching said that he was very professional, knowledgeable, and confident!! This gave him a little boost and helped him get ready for the the real deal!!
Tonight we head to Bridgetown again to work with the homeless. I am going to try my hardest to serve food. They only need about 3-4 people to serve food and I can never raise my hand fast enough. I hope I get picked tonight!
Happy December!!!
This interview is with the Wisconsin Dept. of Corrections.
I have a proud wife moment to share with you: Jesse had mock interviews yesterday and he nailed them. The teacher/supervisor that was conducting the interview told him that she would hire him on the spot!! And the students that were sitting in and watching said that he was very professional, knowledgeable, and confident!! This gave him a little boost and helped him get ready for the the real deal!!
Tonight we head to Bridgetown again to work with the homeless. I am going to try my hardest to serve food. They only need about 3-4 people to serve food and I can never raise my hand fast enough. I hope I get picked tonight!
Happy December!!!
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