Sticky Situations 10/17-10/21

Can I say just one more time that each week, somehow, is entirely different than the last?

So far, working on Mary’s house has been pretty smooth sailing. One phase of construction is finished, and we go on to the next phase (which often covers up our ‘mistakes’ from the first) and we waltz on.

This week… well, it was a bit more…challenging.
Errr…interesting….
No- entertaining.
Yeah…entertaining, that’s it-

Let me start by confessing something…I had no freakin’ clue how to do our assignment this week. We were to lay laminate floors in the 2 bedrooms, the hallway, and the kitchen – and vinyl tile the bathroom & back utility room. Wha? Huh? Oh sure, i'll lead that project- HA!

I scrambled on Monday morning trying to find the more obscure jobs to do for my 3 volunteers until Johnnie would arrive to teach us flooring. Vick & Toni are a couple whom volunteered a year ago with SBP and decided to come back to volunteer this year while amidst a roadtrip from Michigan, through New Orleans, to Florida. Our other volunteer was Gail, a semi-local, hailing from Slidell, and has spent the past 3 Mondays (as part of Women’s Build Month) volunteering with SBP. Pretty cool stuff.

When Johnnie, my project manager, got onto site to teach us flooring, we discovered that I had installed all the doorways too low – apparently Miss Mary is receiving thicker-than-normal flooring… and we didn’t have a tool to cut the bottom of the jambs off to allow for the extra ½ inch… lovely! We spent the day painting and cleaned up a half-hour early & figured we’d tackle the flooring the next day on a full-nights sleep, and with a Japanese hand-saw. No big deal.


Vick & Toni's couple-bonding-time

Tuesday morning rolls around & Gail has left, but a couple of New Yorkers from Long Island enter the mix. There is something about that city – so many volunteers come down from NY, and with all my accounts- are always a hoot! Valerie & Maryanne are high school friends who made a pact that they (and their 4-5 other friends) would take a week-long vacation and help rebuild New Orleans. Turns out that only the 2 of them were able to take the vacation, but they played up all week that their friends just keep calling them the "Do-Gooders". Kinda like the kids who are called Teachers Pet, I guess? haha

So Tuesday mid-morning Johnnie brings this ridiculously large and seemingly flimsy Japanese saw, which to my surprise works beautifully at cutting the door jambs- and we are given the ‘go’ to install floors. Easier said than done.


Maryanne & Val tackle flooring Miss Mary's bedroom

So the laminate floors are the kind that just, "simply" ‘click’ into each other. Ya know? They have a ‘male’ end and a ‘female’ end and without a lesson in the birds & the bees, they’re to just link together like peas n' carrots...err something like that.

We had a lot of ‘trouble in paradise.’ We’d hammer one end of a board in, only to find the other side popping out. They’re called ‘floating’ floors too – so a nice big THWAP with the hammer only shifted the entire floor, which would then undoubtedly pop out the seam of a piece you had done 30 minutes, or maybe an hour, previously. To which then you'd curse, kick a couple things, walk outside for a breather - and then get back to it.

So, on that note, I said ‘peace’ and I let my volunteers go-go-go. Haha ok not really, but having more than 2 people work on a section of flooring was a little much, and since we all knew about the same amount, I did some quality control but let my volunteers just go to town. It took about a day before everyone had their own method to get everything clicking together- and I believe there were a lot more curse-words thrown down this week than the last! Haha

The next day Vick, Toni, Val, and Maryanne finished up the floors in the hallway and bedrooms, and finished painting the bathroom. Paint was everywhere- on the walls, but also all over clothing, and in hair. We deemed the one woman ‘cruella deVil’ as she had big white paint marks in her hair. When the bathroom paint had dried, we hung the bathroom door, only to discover when Johnnie came a day later that I should have made some extra cuts to its frame too – and so the door came back down. Yippee.


The crew

We had finished the flooring everywhere but in the kitchen – so I decided that getting the vinyl tile going in the Utility Room would be a good idea, as then two of them could have a break from the frustrating laminate floors, and we needed to spread out anyways.

Lucky for Toni & Vick, I had them finish cutting pieces of baseboard and continue working on the flooring in the kitchen (though that didn’t come without its frustrations for them too- dang floating floors!). Unfortunately for Val & Maryanne, I asked them to conquer the vinyl tile in the utility room.

It was kinda like what you’d see on Saturday Night Live. There’d be a commotion – either yelling, fist pounding, kicking & screaming – or hysterical, tear-producing laughter. I’d walk over to the room (or run depending on the fit), to often find Val stuck. Stuck to herself. Stuck to the walls. Stuck to water bottles. Stuck to her trowel. The lid of the adhesive at one point was stuck to her bum, while painters rags dangled from her pants, and rubber gloves were stuck to her shoes. She was an absolute mess. I’d find Maryanne, sticky but still functional, standing in the corner, consoling Val to just ‘do 3 more’, just ‘3 more’ Val… I didn’t know whether to laugh, or be heart broken for sending this woman back into her childhood, like when your mom finds you with gum in your hair & lollipops stuck to your pants. Of course, I chose to laugh, but I hope these ladies after a week of crazy frustrations, realize the huge difference they have made in someone’s life.

So, despite a few set-backs, a couple curse words, and a bunch of consoling donuts – we finished the week off in super high spirits. The house TRULY looks like a house. The bedrooms have their floors, the bathroom floor is nearly completed, the utility room is tiled, the bathroom door is reinstalled, and the kitchen is already 1/3 of the way complete. Sophie & Rodney installed cabinets this week, and Porter has been doing construction on the back patio.


Rodney & Sophie install cabinets in the kitchen!

The house is wrapping up. We’re looking at a goal of finishing in just 7 days of work- October 31st. Can we do it? I dunno…but we’re sure gonna try!

… and best part about next week?

My mom is coming to visit. :-D

(p.s. more photos coming...)


The Kitchen!


Oooo look at that beautifully vinyl tiled floor! phew!

Pure, blissful, exhaustion. 10/10-10/15

It’s incredible how different week-to-week can be. The stages of the house are completed, changed, progressed. Volunteers are from different backgrounds, different states, and here for different frames of time. Even just the sheer number of volunteers can completely change the dynamics of the house, regardless of the personality behind the ‘number.’

I’ll start out talkin’ bout my Number #1 Man this past week – Mr. Virginia (as the FTC ladies called him), or Leo, as his mother named him. As the National Chaplain of the Korean War Vets Association, a Volunteers of America member, Leo was full of passion for the project – and for an 80 year old, full of spunk. Leo could be caught all week either painting, taping around windows, washing tools…. Or eating ice cream. The twirp ‘had to go to the bathroom’ only for me to find that he drove to Wendy’s for a mid-day Frosty… haha! He treated me to ice cream twice during the week, so I figure…I’d let it slide.
Leo was the only person who was with me all 5 days.


Leo, left, buys ice cream for the girls - Cheryl, Lynn & Jackie

Monday was a quiet day in comparison to last week, with the whole day comprising of just Leo, me, and a past volunteer, Kay. It was a great way to spend more time connecting with Leo and Kay, and working closer together to get specific tasks accomplished. The three of us enjoyed lunch at Camp Hope for the weekly kick off of October’s Women’s Build month.


Juvil, Hao, Me, and Leo!

Tuesday we had 3 more volunteers added to the Leo-Kay-Leisl mix. Anne is from the Finger Lakes of NY, but has a place she is fixing-up in the NO area, and spends part of her time working on her own house, and the other part with SBP when she visits. Juvile & Hao were 2 girls down from Philadelphia to live-it-up in New Orleans, but wanted to spend a day of their time volunteering too. We got a lot done that day, though we had to push through some tougher times being that one of my volunteers discovered she was severely allergic to fire-ant bites ☹ Leo drove her to the health clinic, and she ended up leaving with an epi-pen, steroid shot, and prescriptions… she’s a trooper, but I certainly hope that that never happens to anyone again. Leo went out and bought some ant spray immediately…thanks Leo!

Wednesday the NFT ladies joined Leo and me. ‘Goodbye’ to the quiet, calm, chill work week… Hellllooooo Queens, New York! There was no mistaking that these Christians from the A.M.E. were from the Big City. An influx of spice, flare, attitude, and intensity permeated Miss Mary’s house. Jackie, Joyce, Lynn, Debbi, Cheryl, Lydia- and they met Helen at Subway & invited her to join us! They arrived at our site around lunchtime, to which I asked “You want to take a lunch break soon, or get straight to work?” … “Oh no, baby, we’re gettin’ to WORK! We’re here to WORK!” …


Cheryl & Lydia chop sawin' it up

Throughout the day I heard things amongst them like:
“Hey – we ain’t here to take pictures. We’re here to work! What’re you doin??”
“No, we’re not stopping. They (other half of group at another site) can wait. We’re finishing this! I’m not leavin’ til this is finished.”
“Hi, I’m Helen. I met the girls at Subway for lunch & they invited me – no, I haven’t volunteered with SBP, but I’m here to work!” (yay Helen! Followed by 2 days of volunteering!)


Helen just jumps on board within an hour of learning we were volunteering in her neighborhood

I felt pulled all over the place, but only because the ladies were interested in doing their very best – and they were fast at it – so I had a hard time keeping up!

Leo and the ladies worked W-F and finished installing all the doors (except the bathroom & closets) and all the baseboards. They were a powerhouse of a team, and I was really proud of them & how far we came in just 2 ½ days.

I was a little worried about my energy for Saturday. A cold really wiped me out all week, and I was looking forward to Saturday at 4:00, simply for rest. My roommate, Marissa, had gone home for the weekend, but her sister church, Grace Lutheran, was to be volunteering with SBP – luck of the draw placed their group of 6 in my care on Saturday. I had attended their church on my 2nd day in New Orleans, so it was really wonderful to reconnect with them. We finished up a lot of odd jobs for the day so that Monday we’ll be ready to place in the flooring! Benny (a feisty 84-yr-old and handy-man by trade), Ken, Beth, Charlotte, Brian, and Pastor Leon were great conversationalists, and hardworkers – no hour-long lunch break for these guys! A fantastic day had by all, and the day flew by without need for energy drinks or Leisl Injections. ;)

As for me, I’m so happy with my life right now. I don’t think I’ve ever been so anxious to wake up in the morning. Now that I’m over 2 weeks into leading groups at Mary’s house, I find myself dreaming about working on the house. On several nights, I’ve woken myself up over all the things I hope to get done the next day. It kinda ticks me off, but I can’t really think of anything that I’ve cared so much about to be thinking about it 24/7. And I imagine that many of our waitlist homeowners lose a lot of sleep over the state of their houses too…so I’m taking this lack of sleep as a lesson.

It’s such a cool feeling to see what needs to be done, get it done, and move on…and know that someone is waiting for you. Today though, I’ve decided I really need to pace myself… I’ve been fighting a very nasty cold for about 9 days now, to no avail. Waking up in the middle of the night thinking about work is probably not the best thing for my health– especially since I still have a full 8 months of intense site supervising left.

In any case, I couldn’t be happier ☺ Mary’s house looks great, I’ve had awesome volunteers, and tonight, I finished the week with ‘Beer & Dog’ staff party. YeehaW!


Mary's Bedroom


Hallway


Utility Room!


Front spare bedroom


The ever-lagging, but still progressing, bathroom!

Hellllooooo CALIFORNIA! (and Chicago...and Seattle)

Whoa.

What a blur of an AWESOME week.

For one thing, we got a TON done. a TON. I wouldn't have imagined getting as much completed as we did, had it not been for 7 unruly, rugged, hardcore, get-that-werk-dun-type volunteers. Haha ok maybe that's not the most accurate description for them, but they WERE a little crazy, and I DID have a few days where I had to coax them to STOP.


One Brick Volunteers- Toni, Raj, Horst, Miss Mary, Charlotte, Kim, Vicky, Eric, Me

"We'll stay late, Leisl" ...
"We'd rather be here working after 4:30, than waiting in traffic" ... "
"We almost came back last night and broke into the house to keep working" ...

Are you kidding me??? How did I get the lucky straw to have such a motivated & fun group for a whole week? This was my first group of volunteers to be leading for a solid 5 days, and I couldn't have asked for a better group to kick-it-off.

Their first words to me were "What's your least favorite vegetable?" ... little did they know that the key to my heart is to talk about produce ;)

The week in a nutshell:

Mud, mud, mud.
Sand, sand, sand (lucky Kim)
"we'll stay late!"(thanks, Vicky!)
Ice cream truck break...(somebody got the drivers number! haha)
mud, mud, mud. (with 45- RAJ)
Eric inspects the work.
Toni breaks down dancing.
Clawfoot tub taken out
Drill, drill, drill
Bathtub in
Drill, drill, Drill
Bathtub walls back out
Go git after it, Horst!
DAiQuiRi's!!!!
Bathtub walls IN
Mudding DONE
Sanding DONE
Raj's black shirt is white AGAIN!
PRIME PRIME PRIME!!!
Textuurrrrreeeee it girl! (Charlotte)
PAINT!!!!!
(Frenchman celebration!)

Mary's bedroom, painted.
Front (spare) bedroom, painted.
Hallway, painted.
Bathroom, new tub installed, most of the room done floating.
Utility room taped & sanded ready for texture.

All 7 of the volunteers were with St. Bernard Project through an organization called "One Brick" which organizes volunteer trips all around the country. Five of the group were from California (majority from the Bay area), Raj was from Chicago, and Toni was from Seattle. Their personalities meshed well together. Each one was truly here for the right reasons. I think they sucked more out of their experience here in the bayou, than probably most people or most groups will. In true New Orleans style, they worked hard AND they partied hard. It's really cool to have a job that makes me a part of such powerful experiences. I'm so blessed to be here.

So, here are a few pictures of the house at the end of the week (my camera broke mid-week so i'm stealing them from Erik)

Miss Mary's Front Bedroom (This is just before we applied a layer of 'antique white')


Utility Room ready to be textured & primed!


Miss Mary's New Tub! (then we had to take down the walls... we'll be tiling the walls, and adding handicap railings!)


Typical.

So, many thanks to Erik, Kim, Charlotte, Toni, Horst, Vicky, and Raj - you guys were awesome, and you've truly helped Miss Mary get one more step closer to moving home!!!

APTA & Local/Traveling Volunteers

Miss Mary didn't come by the house last Friday. She ALWAYS comes by the house. Sometimes it's in a cab, sometimes it's on foot with her walker, but she always makes it. I told my volunteers that she undoubtedly would be coming by to inspect their work, but she never showed, and I came to find out that my heart was indeed making a connection with Miss Mary's case. I was worried about her.

My volunteers on Friday were 7 of a group of 10,000 people who were traveling to New Orleans for the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) Conference. Over 180 people in their organization signed up to volunteer with the St. Bernard Project... 180!!! and they would have had many more, but we simply couldn't manage any larger group (at this time of year) than 180! Having the support of the corporate world, and being able to see in-person all the outside-of-making-money work & volunteering that they do is pretty awesome. Thank you, APTA.


Cliff, Eve, Rachelle, Linda, Rick, Mike, Me & Kelly

We had a really great day, and finished many of the first layers of mud in the front bedroom, as well as the bathroom, and the hallway. There was lots of video'ing with this group, which was really fun - and it was Cliff's birthday, so we made sure to sing to him. Since he was quite the character, we hassled him a lot on camera for always slacking...which, for the entire group, was quite the contrary. I didn't need to crack any whips to get motivation going with this group! By the end of the day, the house looked like so:


Kitchen (no work done in here today)


The front bedroom (her deceased brother's bedroom)


The tub is coming out so Eve spent part of the day demo'ing the wood frame surrounding it


The hallway between the two bedrooms & bath


Miss Mary's bedroom that we primed today!

On Saturday, there was a small but mighty group of 4 that came to Mary's house to help out. EVERY ONE of them had volunteered with the St. Bernard Project before. It's one thing to dedicate your time for a day (and it's awesome!), but it's another to volunteer consistently, and all 4 of these volunteers had done just that.

Clark is a New Orleans native, and had 8 feet of water in his own house after Katrina. It took him over a year to get back home, and it was even longer and more frustrating to get his mother back into her home after the storm. I love working with volunteers who are from Nola, because I learn soooo much from them. Paola & Don were staying in New Orleans for a week, in midst of a long cross-country road trip, and had donated 2 days of their time earlier in the week to volunteer, and Kay just moved down to nola for nursing school, and has found SBP to be a great outlet for meeting people, helping people, and finding something meaningful to do for the community. It's amazing how much give-and-take goes on when you volunteer. You get back what you put into it, truly.

Here are some action photos of the mighty group of 4:


Don learning how to tape corners


Clark was blessed to drywall the HVAC unit. 8 ft tall, about 2.5'x2.5'. I think he hated me for it? haha


Paola helping Clark... with a little more experience, I would have set things up differently so the two of them weren't crawling under already-hung-drywall and having to spend lots of time in the tub...oops!


Kay mudding away

We were able to finish the drywall everywhere except the back utility closet! And the first layer of mud was almost finished in the front bedroom! So happy for all the work we completed :)

Thank you everyone for supporting St. Bernard Project with the Chase Community Giving campaign (via facebook) - we received 3rd place, which did not win us any money for more projects, but we'll try harder next time!

And thanks to my APTA volunteers and Clark, Paola, Don, and Kay!