Enjoying Each Other's Laurels

We went to Southpoint Mall today to eat out for Johnny's birthday and for David to swing by J.Crew in search of a new pair of decent pants, a pair that is suitable for his new Vice Presidency. He's shaving again regularly and he's put up his jeans and vintage tees in favor of button-down shirts and better pants. He finds a pair of not-so-cheap cords and I ask them to hold them for a few minutes while we look around at some other stores. The kids get restless, of course, so David takes them off to the bathroom or wherever it is those three like to hang out while I'm shopping. I make my way to the Gap and find a basic pair of khakis that I need as a staple to carry my wardrobe in new directions throughout the year. I need the pants but I don't need anything else. I spy a simple chocolate brown dress that I try on and it fits great. I'm all about throwing on a dress in the chaotic mornings, and the deep chocolate brown can get me through the transitional summer to fall season here. I'm already envisioning wearing it now with bare legs but throwing on a cardigan and tights as it cools off this fall. I phone David to tell him I won't be much longer and to run the potential dress purchase by him. I didn't go to the mall intending to buy a dress or even slacks, but since he was all about a new pair of pants, I thought I deserved one too and just needed permission for my dress dessert.

David hardly ever objects when I buy clothes that actually look good on me so he was all "yeah, whatever. " And then he made a comment that alluded to the fact that under the present circumstances, we'd be able to afford the new togs. Cool! David got a raise=I get a new pair of pants and a new dress! From a store other than a thrift store or Target! A dress that costs more than $5.00 and hasn't been worn by anyone ever before! Yay!

I pay for my clothes and then go by to J. Crew to pay for David's not-so-cheap pants. As I give the clerk my debit card, she asked me in a rote way, "Are you a college student or a graduate student?" I was this close to saying "no" because I've been conditioned to automatically say "no" to such questions as "Are you a teacher? Are you a student? Are you a firefighter? Are you a Republican? Do you want to get 10% off by opening a line of credit?" But then, I caught myself and I replied a little too loudly, "WAIT! I am a graduate student! Yeah, I really am." Not sure if she should believe me due to the level of my enthusiasm, she asked, "Do you have your student ID with you?" "Um, no." (I don't have that yet). "Well then, do you have a student e-mail address?" "YES! I do have a student e-mail address! I just set it up today!"

And by giving her my new UNC e-mail address, I got 10% off of David's not-so-cheap pair of pants. It was the most fun either of has had shopping for ourselves in a long time.

Happy Birthday, Little Prince

Happy Birthday Party

Johnny's b-day party was Saturday. We had some fine entertainment lined up: A water slide, a skateboard pinata and a magic show by the "Amazing Dabs." Unfortunately, my dad woke up yesterday feeling less than amazing and slept through the entire party. Regardless, all the kids had fun, especially Johnny.

Preparing a Meal

Grace: Mommy! Here are your running shoes. Will you come outside and run with me???

Me: Not yet, honey, I'm making pesto.

Grace: Mommy! Now will you come outside and run with me?

Johnny: Yeah and I'm gonna ride my bike!

Me: Well, now that the sauce is ready...David, can you just boil the noodles and roast these pine nuts for a few minutes?

David: Huh, what? Yeah, the noodles and the pine nuts, ok.

10 or 15 minutes later.

Me: Why did you put a bowl of black beans out? We're having pesto. Is something burning?

David: Those aren't black beans. Those are the pine nuts you put in. I guess they really only do take just minutes to roast.

I Think I've Figured it Out

In my current job, I do quite a bit of event planning. We only have events about twice a year, but when we do, they're big, and there's a significant amount of planning involved. I had a dream, rather a nightmare, last night, that centered around a work event. There was a big meeting or conference that I helped organize and when I glanced at my watch it was 3:00 PM and not only had lunch not been served, it hadn't even been ordered and people were hungry and mad. At me. Boy was I glad it was just a dream.

I think I had that dream, because I've been stressing a bit over my first writing assignment for the School of Social Work. I don't have a problem writing once I know what I want to say, but my problem has been knowing what to say. I've been mulling over this assignment for weeks now and the due date is right around the corner, Aug. 1. For years, I've had dreams that I'm either in High School or college and I've spent the whole semester not going to class and then at the end I'm scrambling to figure out how to come out with at least a C. The other night I dreamt that I was a freshman at UNC again, along with all my suitemates, but that we were all our current ages and we already knew each other. I was the only one who hadn't paid my tuition bill and was confused about my class schedule. (I can hear you guys laughing, that's not too far from reality, is it?)

But now, there's a real reason for these dreams. I will be starting back at Carolina in a few weeks, and tuition and this first writing assignment are due on Aug. 1. And I haven't taken care of either yet. And while the tuition solution still elludes me (I just had to pay over $500 yesterday for four new tires!), I think I've finally figured out the basis of my writing assignment.

We are to dream up an ideal social service agency and pretend we're submitting a grant proposal to fund such an agency. We have to make a case for the need for this agency in our community and outline the mission, services, target popluation, staff, etc. My very first instinct was for a parenting co-op for evenings and weekends, then something involving literacy, then a comprehensive employment agency for men re-entering the community after being discharged from Orange Correctional Center. It's been hard coming up with an idea that hasn't already been addressed in some way in Orange County. Then I read some reports that summarize trends in Orange County and the social service strengths and weaknesses and came to this conclusion: How about a "service house" or a place called "Orange County Connects" that is more than a notebook or list or hotline or database of all of the social services available in Orange County, but a physical place to go to connect with live bodies who specialize in connecting the "needers" (I just made that word up) to what's already out there and then creatively with community members, leaders, etc. coming up with ways to fill in the gaps. I don't want to call them "case workers" so let's call them "connectors." You'd have connectors that have their hands on the pulse of what's out there (and needed) in the areas of: healthcare, affordable housing, education and training, obtaining and maintaining gainful employment, crisis intervention, quality childcare, faith-based efforts, etc.

In short: don't re-create the wheel or at least the entire wheel when you don't need to. In a May, 2006 a report on the Orange County Homeless Community, as a result of a UNC-School of Public Health class assignment, indicated the need for comprehensive, transitional housing and employment support for individuals who are re-entering the community. That's exactly what Caramore Commuity, Inc. (where David works) excels at, although their services are specifically for mentally-ill adults. Ok, but at least Caramore staff could consult and train and maybe expand their offerings since their model works. Later in the report, a recommendation is made to have more computers and internet access available to residents of homeless shelters. That's exactly what's available at the Orange County Skills Development/JobLink Center! Why didn't these UNC students know about the OCSDC?? I'm sitting in a Church and Society Committee meeting and committee members are lamenting that there are virtually no rehabilitative programs available to the inmates at the Orange Correctional Center. Well, yes there are! The Orange County Literacy Council has been doing great things up there for over 10 years!

If "Orange County Connects" existed in a friendly, comfortable enviroment on the busline in Chapel Hill, with progressive, creative, educated, qualified, trained, compassionate and resourceful individuals that help people in need find the help they needed, maybe what's out there (and there's a whole lot out there) could be leveraged and the proverbial dogs would quit chasing their proverbial tails.