arriving late in the evening with my rideshare buddy mike, we were greeted with a funny situation of the house of our host being used for some scenes of a low-budget film. every time they did a take we were asked to 'settle in' and be 'quiet on the set'. i found it humorous, but it did get very late and we were getting a bit tired of it when we finally got to go in and settle in for rest. mike, who drove all day, was at the end of his rope.
andrew and his housemate brian were very kind to let me crash at their housefor three nights and use the kitchen. my first day in new orleans i went to city park with mike and andrew to toss the frisbee a bit! dream come true. some folks were playing a pickup ultimate frisbee game and i decided to join in while the others went off and did their own thing. i had a lot of fun and met some sweet folks. one guy invited me to stay with him if i needed to during my visit!
the first folks i contacted regarding volunteer opportunities in new orleans were common ground relief. i found them through the profile of one of the members on couchsurfing.org when i was searching for folks to stay with. they ask $20 a day to cover expenses of temporary volunteers, so i decided not to room and board with them, but i did go over there on my second day in town.
that day i had the honor of being part of the very beginning stages of a community blueberry patch in the Holy Cross ward. there was sand blowing in our eyes and the work was strenuous, but i was really happy to be there. one task i performed was pounding in with a sledge hammer the two-by-four stakes that hold up the walls of the new raised beds. it is a lot like chopping fire wood. just the kind of workout i had been in need of.
through my hard work as a volunteer that day i impressed this man who was also helping out there, a local carpenter, who said he might be able to give me some paid work. the next day i worked for him on a house he is renovating! in the middle of the day there was a downpour like i have never experienced before. the kind that soaks you to the bone in five seconds! thunder and lightning nearby too! it was great. we sat inside and ate lunch, then worked inside for most of what remained of the workday.
i also found the new orleans food coop, which is conveniently located near to the places i have been spending my time. they have a decent selection of good quality salt in their bulk herbs and spices department.
after going into this store many times during the visit i finally ran into an old coworker from the coop i worked for in seattle! AJ Neff is a hard worker with strong leadership skills. she is helping get this New Orleans coop flying.
another group i hoped to work with while here but did not hook up with is nola green roots. i found them when searching for online community gardens in NOLA on my first day here. each time i was going to make my way to their headquarters something else came up. wasn't meant to be.
i heard from edible schoolyard NOLA that they are too busy to give me anything to do. seems funny, but understandable i guess.
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