Upon the start of my second week in Omaha I was already starting to feel settled in. Our house was almost completely furnished (still missing dining room chairs) but my own space is finally mine! I put up all my posters (yes, JT is on my wall) and arranged my room. Yay, new temporary home! In Omaha, there are these super nasty spiders that are scary looking. We left our outside light on once when we were coming home late at night and one of the spiders put up a web by our front door that was INSANE. I almost walked right into it, thankfully Kelly didn't let me. We made Kyle get the web down in the daytime but another spider formed a web right over our back window in the kitchen. The spider hides during the day, but at night it is giant and terrifying. I just hope that it stays outside and does not venture into our house.
I explored a restaurant Roja that has Margarita Monday! They have $1.99 Margaritas! Yum. When you're living on an AmeriCorps budget, you've got to find the cheap ways to explore new restaurants. I went there with some new friends that I've made here (hallelujah). I also went to Crescent Moon which is right by our house. It's a cool bar that I can definitely see myself spending time at here. It's laid back and leaves room for good convo.
Before I came to Omaha, I was already looking up opportunities for a small part-time job. Half of my reasoning is for extra income, the other half is just so I have something to do on the weekends. I found a position to work in the nursery at a church and pursued it. Upon arriving here, I was recruited by the same church to actually be their Youth Leader. It's a small outside job (only Sundays and every other Friday) but it's perfect for my schedule. It doesn't interfere with the time I want to dedicate to my students during the weekdays and still gives me time on the weekends to unwind/explore Omaha.
I just happened to stumble across a small advertisement for something called "Educator's Breakfast" in my first week here. Every few months there is a morning session hosted at the Jewish Community Center where people from the education community come together to learn more about a topic. Team Omaha attended the breakfast and had the opportunity to watch the documentary "When We Stop Counting" about Crete High School in Crete, NE. They followed a few Latino students in the high school through their year of school. Each of the students had a unique story that was intriguing to learn about. Check out the trailer -->
Finally, we toured University of Nebraska -Lincoln! Here, people refer to it as Nebraska. Like there are no other institutions. The campus is flooded with "Big Red" banners and gear. It is the biggest school in NE and definitely has a strong reputation here. Also, the Huskers are a religion. I think that in coming from the Twin Cities (where we have multiple professional leagues) to NE (where they really only have this one football team) it is easy to see that it brings together so many people. You pretty much have to like the Huskers. Bad news for me though, the Huskers just joined the Big Ten so they actually go against the U in football. Also bad news, the Huskers will probably kill the Gophers. Yay, homecoming...
I also watched my first Huskers game on that Saturday too! I was invited over to a friend's apartment in Old Market (cool part of Omaha) to watch the game. While I don't have any shirts that say "Huskers" or "Big Red" on them, I did rock some red earrings. That counts, right? The Huskers won, of course, and I thought it was a good game. I feel like everywhere I go, I run into more people from MN. I met two different girls from MN that day- one from Willmar and the other from Lakeville. Crazy, right?
Kelly and I also discovered a Goodwill in Old Market that is the PRIME Goodwill. They actually go around to all the Goodwills in Omaha and take all the cool retro/vintage stuff and put it in this one! It was definitely a little pricey, but I found a few things I considered buying.
Team Omaha also made an AmeriCorps video, I'll try and post it when I find it!
Friday, September 23, 2011
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Week 1, Pt.2: Making Friends
To sum up the rest of my first week, it was a lot of meeting people and seeing new things. We got to tour the University of Nebraska- Omaha campus and meet with multicultural services and financial aid. Each time that I meet new partners in our field, I become more reassured about what I'm doing here. Most ask challenging questions about our program but we are able to answer them thoroughly and become more confident about what I'm doing and who I'm serving. There is another program in Omaha called Avenue Scholars that serves youth in a similar capacity to us, but works with students who might not be able to make it into a 4 year college. Whereas we recruit youth who have the potential to gain admission to college, but may just be missing people to help them with applications, the FAFSA and scholarships.
It was my roommate's, Kelly, birthday last week so we went out on Friday night to celebrate! We went to Upstream Brewing Co. as a team and enjoyed trying out a new restaurant here. We also met up with a few new friends at The House of Loom and danced to a new dj set that is based off of The Faint, a local Omaha band. Here they refer to it as a 'hipster bar' but it's still no comparison to hipster bars in Mpls.
We continued our search for free/cheap furniture into the weekend. I actually managed to get a $5 desk off of Craigslist. So far, I've spent under $50 on furnishing my room. Impressive, right? Kelly and I went out to Elkhorn (far west part of Omaha) to pickup my craft and desk stuff from my friend Emily's house. I am still in disbelief at how far spread out the city of Omaha is and their method of annexing in small local cities to increase Omaha's tax base. Anyway, Kelly and I went garage sale-ing on Saturday and found pretty much nothing. We were originally looking for some plates, bowls and other household items but any kitchenware we found was way too overpriced. It's a garage sale, people!
On Sunday, to commemorate 9/11, we attended a Civil Liberties lecture put on by a bunch of local organizations. It was intriguing to hear someone who actually worked at the Department of Homeland Security's take on how our lives have changed since that tragic day. I listened to NPR and tried to watch CNN on that day to try and be a part of what is happening in NYC with the newly opened site. I am still in disbelief that it's been over 10 years. I remember sitting in my first period math class in 7th grade when my teacher got a phone call and immediately turned on the television. I can't remember exactly, but I think we actually saw when the second plane hit the tower. I do remember having only seen one plane because our class was speculating if it was an accident, and how someone could make a mistake like that. Just to think that on that day we lost the population of a small town in America. It gives me the shivers. After attending the lecture I went to a free concert put on in a park by my house. The Omaha symphony performed and it was great. They performed the overture from West Side Story, so I was hooked. We actually saw the Mayor of Omaha at both events that day! He doesn't know who we are, but we will be in his office next Monday so hopefully we can meet him then.
Overall, week 1 was a success! I've been taking advantage of any opportunity I can to meet new people or see new things in Omaha. I've had even more experiences this week, so watch for a new post soon. I love getting mail here, so if you want my address please send me an email at brokawkd@gmail.com.
It was my roommate's, Kelly, birthday last week so we went out on Friday night to celebrate! We went to Upstream Brewing Co. as a team and enjoyed trying out a new restaurant here. We also met up with a few new friends at The House of Loom and danced to a new dj set that is based off of The Faint, a local Omaha band. Here they refer to it as a 'hipster bar' but it's still no comparison to hipster bars in Mpls.
We continued our search for free/cheap furniture into the weekend. I actually managed to get a $5 desk off of Craigslist. So far, I've spent under $50 on furnishing my room. Impressive, right? Kelly and I went out to Elkhorn (far west part of Omaha) to pickup my craft and desk stuff from my friend Emily's house. I am still in disbelief at how far spread out the city of Omaha is and their method of annexing in small local cities to increase Omaha's tax base. Anyway, Kelly and I went garage sale-ing on Saturday and found pretty much nothing. We were originally looking for some plates, bowls and other household items but any kitchenware we found was way too overpriced. It's a garage sale, people!
On Sunday, to commemorate 9/11, we attended a Civil Liberties lecture put on by a bunch of local organizations. It was intriguing to hear someone who actually worked at the Department of Homeland Security's take on how our lives have changed since that tragic day. I listened to NPR and tried to watch CNN on that day to try and be a part of what is happening in NYC with the newly opened site. I am still in disbelief that it's been over 10 years. I remember sitting in my first period math class in 7th grade when my teacher got a phone call and immediately turned on the television. I can't remember exactly, but I think we actually saw when the second plane hit the tower. I do remember having only seen one plane because our class was speculating if it was an accident, and how someone could make a mistake like that. Just to think that on that day we lost the population of a small town in America. It gives me the shivers. After attending the lecture I went to a free concert put on in a park by my house. The Omaha symphony performed and it was great. They performed the overture from West Side Story, so I was hooked. We actually saw the Mayor of Omaha at both events that day! He doesn't know who we are, but we will be in his office next Monday so hopefully we can meet him then.
Overall, week 1 was a success! I've been taking advantage of any opportunity I can to meet new people or see new things in Omaha. I've had even more experiences this week, so watch for a new post soon. I love getting mail here, so if you want my address please send me an email at brokawkd@gmail.com.
Monday, September 12, 2011
Week 1, Pt.1: Rough Start
Wow, I honestly have no idea how the last week went by so fast! I intended to document occurrences every couple of days but each day slipped away from me. Right now, I'm sitting in my completed bedroom typing this out. I have a desk, bookshelf, dresser and a rug (along with the bed we shoved in my car). My room is almost complete, I'm just missing a couple of random things (extension cord, printer ink). Nothing too riveting.
Last Sunday, Day 1, went surprisingly well. I woke up around 5:30 a.m. due to my acid reflux (expected) and managed to not freak myself out too much with anxiety and worry. I did have a 6:05 a.m. crying jag, but held out until 7:30 a.m. to actually call anyone (people need their sleep!). After chatting with my grandma for a while, I got out of bed and actually forced myself to start unpacking a few things. Shortly after Kelly was up, we walked over to a swanky hotel that her parents were staying at. It is literally 3 blocks from our house. I swear, you walk 3 blocks north of our house and you can't afford to buy anything (couture shops) and you walk 3 blocks south and you're at a rundown Family Dollar. We live on the edge of a neighborhood that I fear is being slowly gentrified, and I pray that it is not the case. Prior to our move-in, our landlord told me that next year they hope to DOUBLE the rent it costs for our townhouse. I can't imagine paying that much for our house. Anyway, Sunday was a day of randomness. We went thrifting for a few hours and came out with very little. We did, however, scope out a sofa set. Later, Kelly and I had the opportunity to hangout with some of Maureen's (coworker) friends. I did not pass up the chance to meet Omaha people and make some connections.
Monday, was our massive clean out and splurge day. I woke up super early again, thanks to acid reflux, and got myself going to Starbucks to be around other people and read the paper. It was very relaxing to be in an environment that doesn't seem to change. All Starbucks are almost the exact same. The same drinks, tables and music. I needed consistency and comfort at that point, so it was very reassuring. Our landlord came over in the late morning to go down the list of tasks we had for him. Mainly, we wanted the cat pee smell removed from our home. Also, the mold in the shower was freaking me out a little bit (I ALWAYS find mold in the shower when I move in). Our landlord is such a nice guy though, you can tell that he really cares about us and wants us to be safe and happy. He let us borrow is pickup truck to go back to thrift store and buy the sofa set that we wanted. I'm telling you, these couches are pretty nice. They look almost identical to the ones that my parents have in our living room in Hudson. Almost to a tee. We worked on getting some other stuff put away, but that was pretty much it.
Tuesday, was our official first day of work in Omaha. It was rough. I got up, with no real tasks to complete. I was supposed to work on a scavenger hunt, which I did. It was pretty boring, but I was also very anxious about EVERYTHING that was happening in Omaha. No supervisor, no school, no office. Kind of terrifying. Anyway, Tuesday was kind of a wash. Oh yeah, also, I spent quite a bit of time chatting with Sprint regarding the fact that my phone is ROAMING in my neighborhood. I didn't even know that phones still do that! So, now I have to work on trying to get off my plan and get on someone else's. It's just one thing after another here. I did go to a Bible study that some of Maureen's friends are a part of and managed to make a few solid friends. We ended up going out to Eat the Worm afterwards, which was a lot of fun. It's a bar/restaurant in the Old Market area of downtown. The Old Market has lots of cutesy shops along with good restaurants and bars. It's the hip scene in Omaha.
On Wednesday, we finally had things to do here. I woke up and was not feeling sick, so I knew that I had officially made the transition to feeling comfortable calling Omaha my home for the next 10 months. We had a tour of Creighton University and met with admissions and student services. While I enjoyed the campus, I got more out of just having something to make me get going in the morning. We had a few great meetings and got a chance to see more opportunities that our students can have in college. I was impressed with their dedication to their students, but then again, their students are paying quite a bit of money to attend. You get what you pay for. Later that day, we went over to pickup some furniture that we managed to get for FREE! A sister of someone I know from Hudson lives in Bellevue (10 min from my house) and held onto some furniture for us. They gave us a dining room table, a console, and kitchen cart and a dresser. All we had to do was get there to pick it up. Thus far, we've spent a grand total of $125 to furnish our living room and dining room. Not too shabby for having lived here for about 4 days at that point.
Last Sunday, Day 1, went surprisingly well. I woke up around 5:30 a.m. due to my acid reflux (expected) and managed to not freak myself out too much with anxiety and worry. I did have a 6:05 a.m. crying jag, but held out until 7:30 a.m. to actually call anyone (people need their sleep!). After chatting with my grandma for a while, I got out of bed and actually forced myself to start unpacking a few things. Shortly after Kelly was up, we walked over to a swanky hotel that her parents were staying at. It is literally 3 blocks from our house. I swear, you walk 3 blocks north of our house and you can't afford to buy anything (couture shops) and you walk 3 blocks south and you're at a rundown Family Dollar. We live on the edge of a neighborhood that I fear is being slowly gentrified, and I pray that it is not the case. Prior to our move-in, our landlord told me that next year they hope to DOUBLE the rent it costs for our townhouse. I can't imagine paying that much for our house. Anyway, Sunday was a day of randomness. We went thrifting for a few hours and came out with very little. We did, however, scope out a sofa set. Later, Kelly and I had the opportunity to hangout with some of Maureen's (coworker) friends. I did not pass up the chance to meet Omaha people and make some connections.
Monday, was our massive clean out and splurge day. I woke up super early again, thanks to acid reflux, and got myself going to Starbucks to be around other people and read the paper. It was very relaxing to be in an environment that doesn't seem to change. All Starbucks are almost the exact same. The same drinks, tables and music. I needed consistency and comfort at that point, so it was very reassuring. Our landlord came over in the late morning to go down the list of tasks we had for him. Mainly, we wanted the cat pee smell removed from our home. Also, the mold in the shower was freaking me out a little bit (I ALWAYS find mold in the shower when I move in). Our landlord is such a nice guy though, you can tell that he really cares about us and wants us to be safe and happy. He let us borrow is pickup truck to go back to thrift store and buy the sofa set that we wanted. I'm telling you, these couches are pretty nice. They look almost identical to the ones that my parents have in our living room in Hudson. Almost to a tee. We worked on getting some other stuff put away, but that was pretty much it.
Tuesday, was our official first day of work in Omaha. It was rough. I got up, with no real tasks to complete. I was supposed to work on a scavenger hunt, which I did. It was pretty boring, but I was also very anxious about EVERYTHING that was happening in Omaha. No supervisor, no school, no office. Kind of terrifying. Anyway, Tuesday was kind of a wash. Oh yeah, also, I spent quite a bit of time chatting with Sprint regarding the fact that my phone is ROAMING in my neighborhood. I didn't even know that phones still do that! So, now I have to work on trying to get off my plan and get on someone else's. It's just one thing after another here. I did go to a Bible study that some of Maureen's friends are a part of and managed to make a few solid friends. We ended up going out to Eat the Worm afterwards, which was a lot of fun. It's a bar/restaurant in the Old Market area of downtown. The Old Market has lots of cutesy shops along with good restaurants and bars. It's the hip scene in Omaha.
On Wednesday, we finally had things to do here. I woke up and was not feeling sick, so I knew that I had officially made the transition to feeling comfortable calling Omaha my home for the next 10 months. We had a tour of Creighton University and met with admissions and student services. While I enjoyed the campus, I got more out of just having something to make me get going in the morning. We had a few great meetings and got a chance to see more opportunities that our students can have in college. I was impressed with their dedication to their students, but then again, their students are paying quite a bit of money to attend. You get what you pay for. Later that day, we went over to pickup some furniture that we managed to get for FREE! A sister of someone I know from Hudson lives in Bellevue (10 min from my house) and held onto some furniture for us. They gave us a dining room table, a console, and kitchen cart and a dresser. All we had to do was get there to pick it up. Thus far, we've spent a grand total of $125 to furnish our living room and dining room. Not too shabby for having lived here for about 4 days at that point.
Saturday, September 3, 2011
The Great Move Pt. 2
I am now officially blogging in OMAHA!
After waking up at 5:30 a.m. to get on the road from Wisconsin, we made it here around 1:30/2ish. Good ol' Goldy (the Buick) stuck it out through the Iowa highways and was way more reliable than normal. If you didn't read my previous posting, my parents managed to fold my mattress in half and shoved it into my backseat. A little crazy, right? I was paranoid the whole way that the mattress was going to rebel and flip open and knock me out. Obviously, that didn't happen. When we were driving through Iowa, around Ames, a torrential thunderstorm rolled in and made it almost impossible to navigate the freeway. You know what made it even harder? When people driving tan vehicles didn't turn on their lights. Really? You're not going to turn your lights on when it's POURING outside? Really? Ok. Fine.
Upon arriving in Omaha, we met my landlord: Bob. He's this super cool guy who is in-the-know about Omaha. He invited my parents to stay at his house when they visit and he's already mentioned having the roomies and myself over for dinner. Also, he's just giving us random furniture. He left a table in the house for us and is bringing chairs over at some point. In summary, he's awesome. Our house, however, is semi-sketch. It's an older townhouse, built in the 70s (I believe). It's on the edge of being in a not so great neighborhood, but I think that will give us the opportunity to really live in the community that we are serving this year. It currently has a cat smell lingering from the previous tenants but we're working to get rid of it. Our bathroom needs a little recaulking action and we need a possible rodent hole to be closed up in the kitchen. It's an old house, I get it. Life isn't perfect. I was hardcore cleaning the bathroom earlier and am now suffering from a bleach headache. Note to self, layoff the bleach.
My plan for tomorrow is to go to a church that is about 3 blocks from our house and scope it out. I know that for my own personal faith and health, I need to get involved in a spiritual community immediately. There's a possibility that I could be working in the nursery at this church on Sunday mornings, but it's not for sure yet. I'm going to rope Kelly in and make her go shopping/thrifting with me to get some random junk that would be super helpful to have (she doesn't know of these plans yet). I think that will be a pretty solid day first day in a new city.
On Monday, Bob is going to come and do some cleaning and fix random things that we have compiled on a list. Kyle is also moving in then, so hopefully we can all start to get in sync and get started on our year of service. I just want to be at my school and learn more about my kids!
Today, I'm feeling surprisingly ok with being here. My acid reflux has been flaring up due to anxiety and I've been having trouble sleeping the past few nights but I'm feeling settled right now. I'm currently sitting in the Barnes and Noble at Crossroads Mall (yes, I already ventured to the mall). I think that the more I drive around and feel things out, the more it will feel like home. No guarantees that I wont be crying later tonight, but I know I can do this! It's going to be tough to be away from my family for the next 10 months, but I know that I will come out of this stronger than ever. Keep the prayers coming my way, I definitely need them!
After waking up at 5:30 a.m. to get on the road from Wisconsin, we made it here around 1:30/2ish. Good ol' Goldy (the Buick) stuck it out through the Iowa highways and was way more reliable than normal. If you didn't read my previous posting, my parents managed to fold my mattress in half and shoved it into my backseat. A little crazy, right? I was paranoid the whole way that the mattress was going to rebel and flip open and knock me out. Obviously, that didn't happen. When we were driving through Iowa, around Ames, a torrential thunderstorm rolled in and made it almost impossible to navigate the freeway. You know what made it even harder? When people driving tan vehicles didn't turn on their lights. Really? You're not going to turn your lights on when it's POURING outside? Really? Ok. Fine.
Upon arriving in Omaha, we met my landlord: Bob. He's this super cool guy who is in-the-know about Omaha. He invited my parents to stay at his house when they visit and he's already mentioned having the roomies and myself over for dinner. Also, he's just giving us random furniture. He left a table in the house for us and is bringing chairs over at some point. In summary, he's awesome. Our house, however, is semi-sketch. It's an older townhouse, built in the 70s (I believe). It's on the edge of being in a not so great neighborhood, but I think that will give us the opportunity to really live in the community that we are serving this year. It currently has a cat smell lingering from the previous tenants but we're working to get rid of it. Our bathroom needs a little recaulking action and we need a possible rodent hole to be closed up in the kitchen. It's an old house, I get it. Life isn't perfect. I was hardcore cleaning the bathroom earlier and am now suffering from a bleach headache. Note to self, layoff the bleach.
My plan for tomorrow is to go to a church that is about 3 blocks from our house and scope it out. I know that for my own personal faith and health, I need to get involved in a spiritual community immediately. There's a possibility that I could be working in the nursery at this church on Sunday mornings, but it's not for sure yet. I'm going to rope Kelly in and make her go shopping/thrifting with me to get some random junk that would be super helpful to have (she doesn't know of these plans yet). I think that will be a pretty solid day first day in a new city.
On Monday, Bob is going to come and do some cleaning and fix random things that we have compiled on a list. Kyle is also moving in then, so hopefully we can all start to get in sync and get started on our year of service. I just want to be at my school and learn more about my kids!
Today, I'm feeling surprisingly ok with being here. My acid reflux has been flaring up due to anxiety and I've been having trouble sleeping the past few nights but I'm feeling settled right now. I'm currently sitting in the Barnes and Noble at Crossroads Mall (yes, I already ventured to the mall). I think that the more I drive around and feel things out, the more it will feel like home. No guarantees that I wont be crying later tonight, but I know I can do this! It's going to be tough to be away from my family for the next 10 months, but I know that I will come out of this stronger than ever. Keep the prayers coming my way, I definitely need them!
Friday, September 2, 2011
The Great Move Pt. 1
I move to Omaha in the morning- WHAT?! I have no idea how this happened. Training flew by and I honestly don't even remember really packing for today. I had the chance to say goodbye to almost all of my best friends in the past 24 hours and am so blessed with their support. This week has been a little rough with my anxiety about moving and starting a whole new adventure. Everyone has asked me to either call when I get there or to set up a Skype date (btw my skype name is brok0030).
Currently, my mattress is folded in half in the backseat of my 94 Buick Century and my box spring managed to fit into my dad's car also. Who puts a mattress folded up in the back of their car? Only the Brokaws. All vehicles traveling to Omaha are completely stuffed. Absolutely no room for anything extra. Thankfully, one of my friends from high school is currently living in Des Moines and her parents are coming to visit her this weekend. They were gracious enough to take my random non-essentials: sewing machine, knitting supplies, a mirror, a painting and a shelf. I'm definitely learning how to live on less each time I move around and I keep remembering how different things were in 2007 when I moved into my first dorm room at Morris. That summer, I worked to make sure I was set and ready for moving away to college and probably bought a bunch of random junk I didn't need. This time around, I'm trying to lose as much stuff as possible.
My family is planning on driving to Omaha, moving me in and then driving back- all in one day. Kind of crazy if you ask me, but if they want to drive for over 13 hours then that's their prerogative. Sorry for the short posting, tired and need to get to bed for the big move in the morning!
Currently, my mattress is folded in half in the backseat of my 94 Buick Century and my box spring managed to fit into my dad's car also. Who puts a mattress folded up in the back of their car? Only the Brokaws. All vehicles traveling to Omaha are completely stuffed. Absolutely no room for anything extra. Thankfully, one of my friends from high school is currently living in Des Moines and her parents are coming to visit her this weekend. They were gracious enough to take my random non-essentials: sewing machine, knitting supplies, a mirror, a painting and a shelf. I'm definitely learning how to live on less each time I move around and I keep remembering how different things were in 2007 when I moved into my first dorm room at Morris. That summer, I worked to make sure I was set and ready for moving away to college and probably bought a bunch of random junk I didn't need. This time around, I'm trying to lose as much stuff as possible.
My family is planning on driving to Omaha, moving me in and then driving back- all in one day. Kind of crazy if you ask me, but if they want to drive for over 13 hours then that's their prerogative. Sorry for the short posting, tired and need to get to bed for the big move in the morning!
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