I'm Really Bad About Updating This...

Yea, it's been a while, huh? Well I'll just give y'all a basic run down of what's happened since my last post.

I have: turned a year older, had a visit from my dear friend Leanne,  had visit from my father, eaten my first raw oyster, learned how to put siding on a house, learned how to build walls for a house, had a 24 foot ladder fall on top of me (I was just bruised, no "real" injuries), been to a Budweiser party (and was treated to free drinks!), seen Steven Tyler in Jackson Square, cheered on the Saints even though they win some and lose some, been to Memphis and walked around Graceland, been homesick, gotten in a car accident (no "real" injuries again, Carl the Cobalt was just bruised), consumed a portion of the world's largest mac and cheese, put in baseboards in a few houses, swam in Lake Pontchartrain, run a Habitat site all by myself for an afternoon, gotten one hell of a crazy sock tan, seen Charlie Daniels play "The Devil Went Down to Georgia" live, and danced the night away on Frenchmen Street.

So there are the highlights (and some lowlights?) of the past month and a half.

I'm still loving it down here despite the pangs of homesickness that come from time to time. I really miss all my friends back in Raleigh, the rowdiness of home games at Carter Finley and cheering on the Wolfpack, working indoors and relishing the A/C, and most importantly, I miss the beach. I never realized how much salt air soothes my soul. I plan on driving to Biloxi once my car is fixed and soaking in as much salt air as humanly possible. Also, my family is coming here for Thanksgiving and that'll cure some of the homesickness as well.

New Orleans is really amazing and the people here are so gracious. When the group from Budweiser came to volunteer last weekend (they brought 260 volunteers!) I led neighborhood cleanup. Basically I just walked around the neighborhood and chatted with all the locals and Budweiser people. The people in the neighborhood were so grateful that we were not only building houses but helping clean up the area as well. They shared stories of their experience with the Katrina disaster and their die hard love for the Saints. The Budweiser people were so eager to clean up and help out in any way that they could. They did joke about not wanting to pick up any competition's products (i.e. Miller High Lifes and Heiniken) but they knew that what they were doing was meaningful to the community and they couldn't have been better sports about it.

I love days like that.  Days where the volunteers are eager, the sun is shining and there's a gentle breeze, hard work gets done, and I can end the day by celebrating with the wonderful people I've met or just peacefully drifting off to sleep.  On a side note, I no longer work with my other AmeriCorps friends.  We've all been split up and are working with our own site leaders, so now the training is over and the "real" work begins.  I am paired up with Catfish, aka Andrew, who was my house leader for the Katrina Anniversary Build in August.  We're quite the pair and I've already been dubbed with the nickname Nemo because of my small stature and constant struggling on the worksite. Haha. I'll be the only AmeriCorps to help build a two-story house which is exciting and daunting. I'm not really bragging about it because at some point I'll have to roof that two-story house and we all know how terrified I am of that.  (If you don't know, see my last blog entry.)

In a nutshell, that's my life here in the Big Easy so far. Living free, working hard, and loving (just about) every minute of it.

Roofing, Roommates, and Realizations

So I've been pretty awful about updating this thing since I got down here.  I promise I'll try and be better about it; starting the new job and the five day build kept me pretty busy.

The build was awesome.  I loved having Mom here and being able to show her New Orleans (post-Katrina) and she worked damn hard during the build.  She said that when she got home that she understood how I felt when I came back from my first ASB trip; that desire to come back and help finished what you started.

I think that doing the five day build was great preparation for my job, which funnily enough is titled as Construction Assistant.  I really never thought I would do construction but I'm starting to enjoy certain things about it here and there.  I'm pretty handy with power tools and a hammer but roofing is a whole other story.

I'm such a whimp when it comes to roofing.  It's not the height that bothers me but more so the fear of falling off the roof to an imminent death or terrible spine injury.  I think it's pretty normal to have that fear, right? All I have to say is that feeling when you slip on a piece of tar paper on a 6 x 12 roof is not pleasant and makes you want to scurry down that ladder at a high rate of speed.  

Also, the roof gets pretty dang hot down here, I mean our weather wizard back home on the OBX would sometimes register that the roof was like 140 degrees, I can't imagine what the temperature is on roofs down here.  Last Friday I was gingerly walking around on the roof, nailing in some tar paper here and there, feeling a little light headed from the heat and went down for lunch.  During lunch I realized that the tread on my sneakers had melted and moved to a whole other position, so I wasn't encouraged to go back on the roof for the rest of the day, which I took no offense to.  

In summary, roofs are scary but I'm starting to get the hang of it.  I helped finished shingle a whole roof today, which I consider a large accomplishment on my part.  Tomorrow we'll be starting to lay some blocking down at a different site.  Should be interesting.

That's about all the exciting stuff about the job thus far.  My roomies/co-AmeriCorps Directs are awesome.  We're from all over the United States from all different backgrounds so it's been fun learning about each other and our histories and what brought us to this point.  We know how to have a good time as well, making the weekends and time off enjoyable.

On a random side note; here are my addresses.  The first one is for letters and the other is for packages.

Elissa Trotman

4320 D'Hemecourt

New Orleans, LA 70119

Elissa Trotman 

Habitat for Humanity

c/o Cynthia White

7100 St. Charles Ave.

New Orleans, LA 70118

I have to say that I really love this city.  Everyone I've talked to here about working for Habitat has been so thankful.  From Harry Connick, Jr. (swoon) to a shop owner in the French Quarter, the response has been the same, "Thanks. We're so grateful that you're here."  

A lot of things comprise my love of this city: the food, the jazz music that you can hear most anywhere you go, the pride for the Saints, the people, Bourbon Street with all it's craziness and vomit/beer/urine odor, the Southern Decadence parade (which is absolutely wild and entertaining), the view of the Mississippi from the river walk in the Quarter, and lastly (for now, there will be more as the year goes on) driving to work on I-10 East and looking to my right and seeing the sun shine on St. Louis Cathedral in the distance and knowing that I'm a part of the rebuilding of this city that means so much to so many people.

I'll post some pictures soon. Come visit if you get a chance!

I love and miss you all. :)

Elissa & Laura's Adventure to the Big Easy

Oh South of the Border

Bridges in Alabama

Biloxi, Mississippi

The Habitat House Jungle Room! (not mine obviously) 

So to sum up the pictures I'll just say that Mom and I had a wonderful drive down here with lots of laughs and good times.  We made it to New Orleans safe and sound.  We're currently sitting in a McDonalds off of Canal Street eating a greasy albeit delicious breakfast and watching the trolley cars go up and down the street.  There isn't internet at the house yet but hopefully that will be up soon.  Our plans for the day are to finish getting my house set up and then head into the Quarter and be tourists for the afternoon.  Maybe we'll eat a beignet or two. :)

Excitement and Nerves.

Tomorrow morning my mom and I begin the drive to my new home in New Orleans.  As I leave the comfort of my home in its idyllic beach setting, I'll be headed for new adventures, friends, and memories.

Although I know I'm leaving, it still hasn't hit me yet.  While we drive towards I-95 in Rocky Mount tomorrow I'm sure I'll feel like I'm headed to Raleigh to begin a new year at NC State.  I'll get the urge to call my girlfriends and plan a night out or see what everyone else is up to. But then we'll take the 95 exit and head south and I'll feel like we're headed to Columbia, SC to see Hunter, my little brother, at college and spend some time with him.  But then once we pass the exits for USC, I know it'll hit me.  I'll be smiling from ear to ear knowing that the next chapter is beginning right there and then.

Lately everyone I've bumped into back home has asked me if I'm excited about the move and the job and yes, I am. I'm also a little nervous about it.  I'm plenty social, always have been (my report cards every year said that I talked too much in class), so making new friends and meeting new people isn't daunting to me.  I think it's simply that I'm moving to a place far from home and that I won't know anyone right off the bat. My excitement certainly outweighs the nerves.  I kind of enjoy pushing my comfort zone and nerves are just something that comes with that.

So for now I am all packed and ready to go.

Get ready New Orleans, I'm on my way.

:)

It's a bittersweet symphony, this life.

As the most recent chapter in my life comes to an end, I couldn't be more excited about where the next one begins. Like I said in the last post, living in New Orleans and working for an organization like Habitat has been a dream of mine for some time now. How lucky am I that at only 21 years of age, one of my dreams is coming true.

Leaving Raleigh is definitely bittersweet. The people I have met in the last four or so years have truly shaped the person I am now. My co-workers, friends, teachers and everyone in between have impacted my life in ways that they probably aren't even aware of. I couldn't imagine my life without them. Which is making this whole "big move" thing a little sad.

The beginning of my junior year at State felt like my slate was wiped clean. I had moved on from a relationship and some friends that I had grown a part from. I was no longer living in the dorm and got my first job outside of working for my parents. My job was a courier/office assistant at a law firm and boy did I luck out. My co-workers were fun, witty, and all around wonderful people. I knew within the first week that I would love working there. And I did for two years. Saying goodbye to them is probably one of the harder things about leaving Raleigh. Work felt like being a part of a big, goofy family.

Now my friends, they are my saving grace. Each one of the them means the world to me and I would be there in heartbeat if they ever needed me. They all are so vibrant and fun and a joy to be around. While saying goodbye to them is hard as well, I leave knowing that many of them are moving on to new things in their lives as well. They're following their own dreams and I can't wait to see where they all end up. Many of them have promised numerous visits to New Orleans and I'll be holding them to that, even though I have a feeling they'll all end up coming at Mardi Gras. :)

Although my heart feels like it is breaking a bit here and there having to leave, it also feels warm and fuzzy at the same time. People do come into your life for a reason and they teach you things and whether they left a fingerprint or a footprint, they've made an impact. So now it's time to head home to the OBX for a few weeks for some R & R before I head off to the Big Easy.

I guess I could have just simplified this post by saying, my cup runneth over. :)

For the next ten and a half months...

I will be working as an AmeriCorps Direct member with the New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity. My term begins September 1st but I will be moving there at the end of August. I will also be volunteering for the organization's five day Build-a-thon. In commemoration of Hurricane Katrina's five year anniversary, we will be building five homes in five days. I can't wait to be thrown into the mix of things as soon as I get there!

My living accommodations will very minimal but exciting nonetheless. I will be living in Habitat type homes with 8 other people. There are two homes for the group of us, so one person will end up having a roommate. Probably one my favorite things about where we are living is that it is right in the heart of New Orleans and only a short walk to Canal Street (one of the main drags in NOLA).

I think I should clarify how all of this happened since many of you have asked, prior to this news, what was I going to do now that I graduated? What AmeriCorps program was I applying to? Where would I be? I'm pretty sure everyone got varied answers from me because I had no idea, until last Friday, what my future for at least the next year was going to look like. I happened upon this opportunity with extreme luck. I looked up the New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity (NOAHH) website just to see if they had any kind of job openings and it just so happened they were looking for new AmeriCorps members. I immediately sent an e-mail that I was interested in this and got a quick reply with an attached application. I got the application packet out in the mail the next day, had interviews a week later and found out Friday that I had gotten the position. I blame it all on luck!

I'm so excited to get down there and get to work and explore the city some more. I fell in love with New Orleans when I went down there with my first Alternative Service Break trip back in March of 2009. The culture and lifestyle drew me in and when I came back I swore that one day I would live there. Mom would tell me almost every time I brought up living in New Orleans that I would have frizzy, curly hair all the time because of the humidity (as if it was a threat). Haha. To me, having frizzy, wild, lion-like hair is a small price to pay to live in a place as enchanting as New Orleans.

Another reason of why I feel so tied to New Orleans is Hurricane Katrina. Looking back, five years ago, I was so wrapped up in starting my senior year of high school and still boy crazy that I barely remember the news coverage of what happened. I knew it was bad and, ignorantly, I thought it was all the storm's fault for what happened to the city. It just never really phased me what had really gone on and how people's lives were completely changed.

When I went to New Orleans last year we took a tour around the city and St. Bernard Parish (where a lot of the damage was) and saw the effects of Hurricane Katrina. It was on that tour that I learned that the flooding of New Orleans was a man-made disaster. Something that had been years in the making and it took just the right kind of hurricane to make the faulty levees break. (I compare the levee system in New Orleans pre-Katrina to the Oregon Inlet Bridge and its safety rating.) While on the tour we saw where the levees broke and the remnants of the houses that were directly behind them. There were houses that we passed that still had markings on them indicating if anyone had been found there and some had water lines up to the roof indicating the water level. I was taking it all in and became so frustrated that this had even happened.

Coming from an area that has had its fair share of hurricanes and seeing plenty of destruction, what happened in New Orleans hit home. All I could think was "Why hasn't more been done?" and "What can I do to help rebuild this city?".

I now know what I can do to serve the city of New Orleans and I recognize that a lot has been done and the city as whole has come along way in the past five years. NOAHH alone has built homes for over 300 families. I hear that Mardi Gras and Jazz Fest, along with the Saints winning the Superbowl have helped New Orleans stay alive.

So to keep in touch with me, just follow my blog and I promise to keep it updated as frequently as possible.

39 days until I arrive in New Orleans!

Laissez les bon temps roules!!!

Don't listen to them when they say you're just a fool to believe you can change the world...

I'm moving to New Orleans at the end of September to begin a year of service with Habitat for Humanity!!!!!

Thanks everyone for all the good wishes, prayers, vibes, etc. I couldn't do it without all of your support!