The First Weeks

In the past three weeks, I have flown to San José with only one suitcase, attended a five-day JVC orientation in Aptos, driven down the coast with six strangers to Los Angeles, moved into a clutter- and trash-filled house with said strangers, been thrown into the fire in the first two weeks of my new job, and begun exploring L.A. with the 19 other JVs here...it's been a whirlwind of excitement, anxiety and fun, and overall, it's been great.

Orientation was a necessary transition for me. After traveling for an entire day, the first thought that crossed my mind when I landed was something along the lines of, "what am I doing here?!" I remembered what one JV told me to keep in mind: "People are always worth it." So, I was greeted by JVC staff and some fellow JVs at the airport (including a few Georgetown alumni and a weird amount of Milwaukeeans), and we were off to a retreat center on the ocean in Aptos, CA. All the JVs from the Southwest region of JVC were there, which includes California and Arizona (about 80 people total). I met my six casamates (those living with me in Casa Maura Clarke) and we spent the week thinking and talking about social justice, spirituality, community and simple living -- all in the context of our upcoming year. It was good to have some more concrete details of what our year would look like.

After waking up at 5 a.m. on the last day of orientation to retrieve rental cars from the airport, we drove down the coast for about 7 hours to make our way to Los Angeles, making a pit stop at In 'N Out for an "animal style" burger. I think everyone was glad we chose the slightly longer route, because it afforded us these views:

 


We were welcomed at Casa Maura Clarke (aka CMC) by a few former JVs (FJVs) from last year's group as well as our two support people, who are FJVs that meet with us on a regular basis to help guide us through the year and help us sort through any problems we come across within the community. The next morning we toured everyone's job placements with our supervisors, which was really great. I'm really glad I got to see where all my casamates are working throughout the year; everyone is at awesome non-profit agencies, and two are actually at St. Joseph's Center with me (working in different programs than Bread and Roses).

We ventured to the beach a few times in our first weekend. We're only about six miles from Santa Monica and Venice Beaches, and our workplaces are all only a few blocks from the beach. I have to say, I could get used to relaxing on the beach at the end of a long workday.

Santa Monica Beach and Pier at night

Here I was just experimenting with camera settings, and I thought this girl was adorable...

The last photos I have to share right now are from our hike to the Hollywood sign near Griffith Park. We met up with all the Los Angeles JVs for a hike and picnic at the top! The panoramic views of the city from the sign were great, but notice the thick visible layer of smog...yum.

I've had two full weeks of work at St. Joseph Center, but describing that right now would make for a very long blog post. Suffice to say that it was baptism by fire from day one. It's been fun, albeit overwhelming at times, and I can tell that it's going to be a great year! More on the casamates of CMC, L.A., and Bread and Roses to come...

A Blog Introduction

I had great, ambitious plans for this blog, but if the past three weeks are any indication of how busy I am going to be this year, it's clear to me that I might fall short of my intention to blog regularly. Regardless, I'm going to do my best to use the blog as a place for the following:

• updates on the happenings of Casa Maura Clarke, of Bread and Roses Café, and of my adventures living in Los Angeles
• reflections on the tenets of JVC (social justice, spirituality, community and simple living), particularly how they're weaving into my daily life in L.A.
• posts of quotes, songs, photos and facts that inspire me along the way

If I tried to explain the title, it probably wouldn't make sense to most, but I'll leave it by saying that it's an allusion to Arrested Development, a hilarious show that no one realized was on TV during its short three-season run. When people outside of JVC learn about the "simple living" part of this year (i.e. the monthly $100 personal stipend and $90 food stipend), they freak out a little...to which I say, "there's always money in the banana stand." 

¡muchas gracias!

A practice I've learned through Ignation spirituality is to start and end the day with gratitude...so with a nod to the guy behind the Jesuits (St. Ignatius), I will start my blog with gratitude, too.

I want to say a huge thank you to all my sponsors. I was absolutely overwhelmed with the donations I received just from writing letters. The money I raised ($2656.66!) will help JVC support us throughout the year and help organizations like St. Joseph Center be able to afford supporting Jesuit Volunteers like myself.

And thanks, too, to everyone who supported me in other ways getting to where I am in JVC in Los Angeles. I couldn't have made the decision to spend this year in service (to "step off the boat," as several said at JVC O.) without the encouragement of my friends, family and mentors, who, I am convinced, often know me better than I know myself.