Life and Other Oddities

I realize I maybe give the impression that I no longer use this blog. This is incorrect. Like any child of the 21st century, I feel obligated to maintain, at least sporadically, each social media outlet I have begun. Consider this, then, my sporadic update.

I have been part of AmeriCorps now for close to 3.5 months. It has been an interesting experience thus far, although being an Individual Placement (IP) member has drawbacks. Exhibit A - networking activities for 20-somethings planned by 50-somethings. Think crosswords about AmeriCorps history and Karaoke and you'd be about on target. I did the crossword for lack of anything more substantive or pertinent to do and avoided the Karaoke like the plague. I also learned Yakima has the 6th highest automotive crash fatality rate in the nation - down from 3rd highest last year! What improvement!
My AmeriCorps presence at my actual service site has been much less...unproductive. In all honesty, I absolutely love my job. We provide nursing and rehabilitation services and social programs to vulnerable adults through adult day health. It is one of the most worthwhile things I have ever done and, as the baby boomers age, it is an area of expertise that will only come in more handy as time goes on.
My age, though, is the one thing that I felt surprisingly tender about and I have only recently began to be more comfortable with it in this setting. First of all - all of our clients are at least 30, with the average age being 74 (or is it 76?) Then, all of my co-workers are far, far older than I. The closest co-worker just turned 23 but even she has already gone to college and is probably going to be getting married next year. I feel very misfit at times, which is why I avoided telling anyone my age for a few months. Gradually, however, it leaked out and I had to endure people gasping and saying, "I had no idea! You act SO much older."
I'm getting used to that now, I think, so I just shrug it off, laugh at their surprise, or make a joke about it. Still, it is awkward when my co-workers talking about their kids in front of me and I realize that they are my age and the encounter begins to feel very much like I'm talking to my mother's friends. c'est la vie.
But enough about work! It takes up enough of my time as it is. Besides work, I am now judging high school debate - a position I happen to like very much. I also had a brief stint in the UW-Bothell's Ultimate team and will be playing mixed winter league which I am very much looking forward to. (I ended my sentence with a preposition. Sue me.) I am also a lector and EM at Church and play the piano, cook, etc. This is starting to feel like a mini bio. Which it is not.

Well, I think Louie is finally awake. Time to rot our brains out playing WiiSports. Viva the Weekend!!