...When We're On The Road

Tomorrow is the day that Sun Four (the fourth team in the Sun unit) begins our three-day road trip from Denver to New Orleans, where we will spend the next two months leading volunteers and assisting Habitat For Humanity. As I've mentioned before, this is my dream project. The ten-person team I'm on is great, even with two of our original members out with injury and illness. And I mean, come on...it's NEW ORLEANS.

Americorps NCCC is an intensive and difficult program requiring a great deal of commitment to the work being done and the mission of the program. It seems that the people that signed on would tend to be mature and knowledgeable about global issues...but unfortunately that's often not the case. I've noticed a real lack of maturity from some of the people here, and it worries me. Thankfully, none of them have found their way onto my team, but they are out there. There are times that I feel like I'm back in 8th grade, with all the gossip and drama going around. Not only is it annoying, it speaks to a greater lack of dedication and maturity that, while not a real problem during training, might end up causing real problems on a disaster relief call or after two months camping out in a national park.

Don't get me wrong. The vast majority of the people here are intelligent, capable, and very mature, and I'm very glad to have the opportunity to talk and work with them. However, as always there is that small number who are apparently unable to grow up and act their age.

Bitching aside, we of Sun Four are the proud owners of a brand-new Chevrolet 15-passenger van (less than 50 miles on the clock) that looks and drives brilliantly (for a van, I mean). I cannot wait...three days of roadtripping across the Heartland and down to the Gulf.

Lord I was born a ramblin' man...