Getting Oriented
Today was my first full day at camp. Lights on promptly at 6am. We are sleeping in a huge room, so the noise immediately wakes you up. This morning I felt a little disoriented, trying to organize my stuff, etc.
We head to HQ for registration. It is notorious for inefficiency, but I get through the process relatively quickly. I make it known that I'm interested in driving an ERV, but I'm not sure if I will be accomodated. It seems like ERV driving is the hot job, so everyone is asking for the same thing. The other interesting is that the HQ is in a Masonic temple (the Shriners). There are all these pictures of old white guys wearing elaborate fez's on the wall. They have titles like "potentate"I took a picture of the parking spot for the high priest/prophet, which is obviously right out front. Apparently the prophet drives a Mustang into work.
Soon I'm told that I will be assigned to mobile feeding (ERV driving) starting tomorrow, but for now a few of us are needed to takes some inventory at another kitchen. As it turns out, we never do that but instead 7 volunteers pile into a van to go on some guy's mail run. We do, however, get dropped off to kitchen 34. We are given no instructions, but it is an opportunity to help out so the 7 of us (Paul and I, some old people, a young parole officer from Canada named George) try and make ourselves useful. It was a complete progression in level of work. My very first job was picking up trash, which included old wood and dirty cardboard. Next, I helped reorganize the inventory of powdered drinks, seperating by flavor. It seemed pretty pointless since I doubt victims are going to care whether they get fruit punch or lemon drink, but at this point we are just following orders. The final job was probably the highlight of the day: one of the ERV's came back with a flat tire, which I replaced. It was good on several fronts. First it made me look slightly more useful than the other new people to the supervisors. It also allowed me to
make friends with the driver, Don, who then went about trying to get me to go on a run with him on the ERV. For some reason this old man loved me, probably because he realized the tire wouldn't have gotten fixed if I hadn't helped him (it was a heavy duty tire). I was this close when John, the supervisor of the kitchen asked that another lady, who's last day was today, go instead. But I was encouraged that I got so close to my goal so quickly.
I ended the day with helping to load the ERVs. Food is served from Campbros, huge heavy-duty tubs that can keep temperature of the food it holds. They are pretty heavy, so again I came in handy with all the lifting my young body is capable of doing. I also went out and washed the supervisor's car, which was more of an ass-kissing errand. As of now I see myself continuing to gain brownie points with John and the other heads of the kitchen to eventually take over an ERV route. It looks promising so far.
The "kitchen" deserves description. It really is nothing more than a series of tented stations built around loading and unloading ERVs. It's located in an abandoned parking lot of a broken down "Winn Dixie" store, which seemed similar to a WalMart. On one side there are a series of semis where the raw food supplies come in. Those are then unloaded and piled for the cooking station, which is run by the Southern Baptists. After they place cooked food in campbros, they are brought over to another loading station where they are lifted into awaiting ERVs. It
's all pretty chaotic at first glance, but somehow it works.
I was dead tired after the day. Fixing that tire ravaged my fingers and I bruised my back on an ERV door. But in general I'm fine. Before I go to bed I shower and try to meditate on my cot after lights out. It's pretty funny since I'm in the middle of a huge room with hundreds of other people, but my concentration wasn't too bad. I had a feeling it wouldn't be.
Quote-of-the-day:
"People see the Red Cross, and they expect miracles"
- John, the supervisor of Kitchen 34 during his orientation speech
Other tidbits:
- my hair is a HUGE nuissance. It constantly gets in my face and my hands are usually filthy when I try to get it out of the way. I have a hat, but I can't wear it comfortably for any long period of time. Maybe I'll chop it off before this trip is over. I am on a military base, after all.
We head to HQ for registration. It is notorious for inefficiency, but I get through the process relatively quickly. I make it known that I'm interested in driving an ERV, but I'm not sure if I will be accomodated. It seems like ERV driving is the hot job, so everyone is asking for the same thing. The other interesting is that the HQ is in a Masonic temple (the Shriners). There are all these pictures of old white guys wearing elaborate fez's on the wall. They have titles like "potentate"I took a picture of the parking spot for the high priest/prophet, which is obviously right out front. Apparently the prophet drives a Mustang into work.
Soon I'm told that I will be assigned to mobile feeding (ERV driving) starting tomorrow, but for now a few of us are needed to takes some inventory at another kitchen. As it turns out, we never do that but instead 7 volunteers pile into a van to go on some guy's mail run. We do, however, get dropped off to kitchen 34. We are given no instructions, but it is an opportunity to help out so the 7 of us (Paul and I, some old people, a young parole officer from Canada named George) try and make ourselves useful. It was a complete progression in level of work. My very first job was picking up trash, which included old wood and dirty cardboard. Next, I helped reorganize the inventory of powdered drinks, seperating by flavor. It seemed pretty pointless since I doubt victims are going to care whether they get fruit punch or lemon drink, but at this point we are just following orders. The final job was probably the highlight of the day: one of the ERV's came back with a flat tire, which I replaced. It was good on several fronts. First it made me look slightly more useful than the other new people to the supervisors. It also allowed me to
make friends with the driver, Don, who then went about trying to get me to go on a run with him on the ERV. For some reason this old man loved me, probably because he realized the tire wouldn't have gotten fixed if I hadn't helped him (it was a heavy duty tire). I was this close when John, the supervisor of the kitchen asked that another lady, who's last day was today, go instead. But I was encouraged that I got so close to my goal so quickly.I ended the day with helping to load the ERVs. Food is served from Campbros, huge heavy-duty tubs that can keep temperature of the food it holds. They are pretty heavy, so again I came in handy with all the lifting my young body is capable of doing. I also went out and washed the supervisor's car, which was more of an ass-kissing errand. As of now I see myself continuing to gain brownie points with John and the other heads of the kitchen to eventually take over an ERV route. It looks promising so far.
The "kitchen" deserves description. It really is nothing more than a series of tented stations built around loading and unloading ERVs. It's located in an abandoned parking lot of a broken down "Winn Dixie" store, which seemed similar to a WalMart. On one side there are a series of semis where the raw food supplies come in. Those are then unloaded and piled for the cooking station, which is run by the Southern Baptists. After they place cooked food in campbros, they are brought over to another loading station where they are lifted into awaiting ERVs. It
's all pretty chaotic at first glance, but somehow it works.I was dead tired after the day. Fixing that tire ravaged my fingers and I bruised my back on an ERV door. But in general I'm fine. Before I go to bed I shower and try to meditate on my cot after lights out. It's pretty funny since I'm in the middle of a huge room with hundreds of other people, but my concentration wasn't too bad. I had a feeling it wouldn't be.
Quote-of-the-day:
"People see the Red Cross, and they expect miracles"
- John, the supervisor of Kitchen 34 during his orientation speech
Other tidbits:
- my hair is a HUGE nuissance. It constantly gets in my face and my hands are usually filthy when I try to get it out of the way. I have a hat, but I can't wear it comfortably for any long period of time. Maybe I'll chop it off before this trip is over. I am on a military base, after all.
posted by Neil Patel at 7:15 PM
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