| I've fought to get to this point, so why do I feel this way? |
[Aug. 11th, 2006|12:07 am] |
It's over.
It is officially over. As of 7pmish tonight, I was no longer a Tarrant for Senate intern.
One would think, from reading this blog, that I would be celebrating. But oddly enough, there is a pain of sadness that sits upon me tonight. I had such a clear vision to the end, one that I had determindly kept for the entire internship. And in just a few days, it was interrupted and I was sent reeling. Now I'm sitting here, across the finish line, looking back at the trail of dust.
I'm glad I didn't place bets on my emotions on the last day. I would have lost for sure. I'm actually sad about this job ending. There has been so much that has happened, so many realizations, so many genuinely wonderful people that came into my life that I'm standing still, questioning how so many wonderful things could result from something that has caused me a constant stress and aggrivation over the past few months.
But I look back now and I can see all the good that has come out of this job. And I could sit here and compare the good and the bad and weigh out my final ruling on this job, but I'm not going to. The good things may have been few and far between, but they more than outweigh the aggrivation.
1. I've met new friends. I've met not only a plethora of interesting individuals all over Vermont, but I've met some of the best people through this campaign. Even the people that I didn't mesh well with have brought something into my life that has changed me in one way or another. I've learned to tolerate more. that people who don't seem as knowledgable upon first impression can, in fact, be very smart. that there are many, many, many interesting life stories out there. I've learned that I can be respected. I can be laughed at and with. that I can have wholeheartedly amazing times doing the most mundane things.
I've met people who are different. People who are the same. People who live, laugh, love like no others I've met before. I've met people I don't like, people I will remember for the rest of my life. People who make me smile and fill me with warmth, whether they know it or not.
These people have given me a new outlook on life, a new view on the future. They've shown me that not all the people in my future are like those of my past. To all the people I've met- all the random strangers I've talked with, the other interns I've had the pleasure of working with, all the true friends and mentors I've been allowed to connect with- Thank you.
2. I've learned a great deal about myself. During the past few years of my life, I've really tried to take the time to reflect back upon experiences, tried to see just how I've gone from point A to the present in my life. And I'm always trying to discover just who I am. My image of myself has been burned and singed, masked, tortured,and tormented for a long time, and I've been trying to strip all of that away and show the world and myself just who is the person hiding beneath the insecurities, the stereotypes. I've also had to prove my true self to the biggest skeptic out of them all- me. And for better or for worse, this job has allowed me to do that.
I don't like late night hours if I have to spend them working:
Working the odd hours of 1pm-8pm has shown me that if I'm working, by 5 or 6pm I am sick of working and tired, and all I want is to go home and eat dinner and watch some tv.
I like to talk to people and am pretty effective at it, but I don't like to do it in mass quantities:
I always knew I could communicate with others, but being forced to do it for hours on end every day has really fine tuned my skills, and I've done it through trial and error. Within the first few seconds of meeting the person on the other side of the screen door, I found myself instantly adjusting my approach based on who they were. If they were shy and timid I would stand back and talk to them slowly, in a quiet voice. If they were boisturous and energetic, I took a more firm approach and laughed while conversing with them. Elderly ladies would make me speak softly and sweetly while smiling. Crotchity cinics would bring out the aggressive and argumentitive side of me. Bernie know-it-alls caused the tactful bitchy side of me to surface. I remember one day, I mentally took a step back and retraced a conversation, how I had reacted; my tone of voice, my distance away, my body posture, everything. It had all changed from the last house in that split second. It was weird, but at the same time empowering.
But, towards the end of the day, after I had talked to 50-60 people, I became tired of saying the same thing over and over, tired of plastering a smile on my face and dealing with the same issues I had faced at every other house. The last hour or so was especially a challenge, and I had to push myself on.
Other things I've learned or discovered? Windsor county like the back of my hand. My deep rooted love for Vermont and its beautiful surroundings. More set schedules, less randomness. I've greatly improved my driving skills. My confidence. My tolerance to long days. My willingness to open up, really be myself without holding back.
I've discovered that I can be treated like a real person,and that I can stand up for myself if I need to. I've learned how to listen to others, and how to get my points across effectively. I've also learned when I need to realize a line is crossed, when I should swallow my pride and admit I'm wrong.
I've traveled all over Vermont. I've learned new areas. I've learned old areas better. I've driven through all types of terrain, at all hours of the day. I've seen breathtaking views and interesting sites. I've seen a broad spectrum of art, decor, housing,and neighborhoods. I've found hidden treasures, tucked deep within quiet communities. I've also found some sketchy situations and awkward moments, but they've just taught me not to live in fear of them. All the miles slapped on my car over the past few months may have caused the car bill to increase slightly, but to think of all the land I've covered, the crawlspaces of Vermont I've crept into, it was worth it.
When I started this blog, it was more about the physical things that I discovered throughout my travels rather than the deeper emotional and mental effects it has had. I never looked at this job as a life changing experience, as a growth opportunity. I simply saw it as a unique opportunity that had presented itself to me that would allow me to have a zesty pallete of people and places to look back on and use in future writings. It has proven to me that 'fun' can be the foundation of a working day.
I think the most eye opening experiences I've had have been in the past couple of days when I've worked with other interns. Whether they know it or not, they've made me face some of my biggest challenges head on. I've never been able to be the only girl in a group of guys, let alone strangers, and not feel inadequate. Ever. But for the first time, I felt like I belonged. I wasn't looked down upon, I didn't feel as though my presence was a stick in the spokes of the operation. We laughed. We cracked jokes. We worked together as one. They showed me that I can be respected. As strange as it may seem to some, it's something that I look for the most in my friendships and really value, because I feel as though for me, it is often few and far between. They were unlike any guy friends I have now. They cracked wholehearted jokes. They cared about my opinions, and didn't treat women in their conversations as pieces of meat, to be chewed on, tossed around, spit out. They never built off of someone's insecurities for a laugh. There were some slight sexual joking conversations, but only in good humor, never degrading to anyone.We had intellectual conversations, interesting conversations. It was just good, wholesome humor to lighten up a serious job. For the first time, I didn't have to keep a tough guard up with the thought of being verbally attacked for anything. They truly brought a light to my life at a time in my life when I really need it the most. I don't know if anyone reading this can understand truly what I'm saying, the sense of security I had, but what is most important is that I understand. It's a difficult thing to express in words, but the bottom line is that I've found some genuine people, people that I hope will continue to remain in my life.
So this my folks, is the end of this post; the end of the blog, the end of this incredible journey. I joined it on a whim, ignored my fears and threw myself into the ring to see what happened. And, I wasn't disappointed. I honestly believe that everything happens for a reason, that everything we choose leads us on our path to destiny- there are no accidents. So I urge all of you to do a little soul searching and discover your true self. It's not something you can discover overnight- I believe that it is a lifelong process. But the more opportunities you take to discover yourself, the more you will learn, through the good times and the bad. You are not experiencing life if you are driving with cruise control, under the speed limits. Once in awhile you have to take off the cruise, put the pedal to the floor and just go. Take back roads, make wrong turns. Back up into a ditch or two. Sure, you may find some dead ends. You'll probably run into lots of construction, drive behind a million slow drivers and get a flat or two. But ultimately, in the end, just remember all the sights you saw, all the people you met. Remember every sound of laughter that rang throughout the car on the journey, every conversation engaged in down each path. Forget about the road blocks and just drive. Eventually you'll end up back on the main road, or you'll find the interstate. You will be able to make it home. There are rest stops along the way if you feel overwhelmed. And there are always people that are there, watching over you, making sure that your journey doesn't end. It's a ride that you'll never want to end and you'll never forget.
Talk to people. Watch people. In order to build a strong web you have to take your one piece of silk and put it out there, interweave it with others to create a work of beauty and support. Run around, try new things. Heck, try new jobs. Steal some political signs. Do everything for the experience, and the bittersweet story you'll have to pass on to others. I hope that my saga has enriched your life in one way or another. And if it hasn't, I hope it has provided at the very least, a smile or chuckle. So the infamous "canary_T" may be laid to rest, but the memories and experiences it has shared will never be forgotten. I'd like to close with one final quote, from an inspirational and successful woman, Dr. Bertice Berry. I live by it, and I hope that it can help you on your path of self discovery as much as it has helped me.
"When you walk with purpose, you collide with destiny."
Thank you for this journey, and I wish you all the best of luck on yours. Good night.
- Canary_T |
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| Wow. |
[Aug. 2nd, 2006|12:42 am] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | here, again | ] |
| [ | mood |
| |  numb | ] |
| [ | music |
| | the ladies of Makin' the Band 3 singing | ] |
And the count down begins to the end.
Wednesday.
Thursday, Friday Saturday- off for New York.
Sunday.
Monday.-Computer. Yes.
Tuesday.
Wednesday.
Thursday.
I talked to Scott today, told him how I was hurting for money for college. He said to look into the Tarrant Foundation. He said he'd check around and see what he could do. So, if by some miracle that all works out, this job will have been worth it I suppose. If not, well, there's nothing I can do about it. When this job is done I just want to sit back for a day, reflect on the whole thing. I really have to weigh out everything, see if this job has hindered or helped me. And right now, I'm really leaning. I think this job, deep down, has hurt me more than helped. With all the aggrivation, stress, anger, and just general confusion, its reall really hurt me, emotionally and mentally. I don't know anymore- about anything. It's caused me to not give two shits about life. It's totally consumed it. When I'm not working, I'm always thinking about this job and it just makes me fume, boil, scream inside my head. I'm just....tired.
Like I said, I'm counting down the days.
At this point, we're just blind shooting it, going random places and just hitting random houses. And, we found out we have to step it up because other kids in our region arn't working as hard. hmm. nice.
But I'm not going to fight anymore. I'm not going to scream, yell, argue, rant or anything of the like, because I can't do it. I can't deal with everything else that's going on in my life right now and have this to deal with on top of it. I'm just numb to everything right now.
I think I'm going to need some support because when this job is over, I'm going to fall, and I'm going to fall hard.
I probably won't update this again until the end. There's no need, there's nothing worth talking about anymore, until the end.
It's been an experience to say the least.
until the end,
canary_T |
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| (no subject) |
[Jul. 27th, 2006|01:37 am] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | Where else | ] |
| [ | mood |
| |  just plain exhausted | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Incredibly Small: The Kenadie Story on TV | ] |
I basically hate this job. The end. I am counting down the days until its over. I can't think anymore. I can't imagine anymore. This has consumed my life, physically, mentally and emotionally. Year to date, after taxes, I've made a little over $1,000. So much for the 3k. I just keep looking at the bill from Champlain college, the debt I owe my dad, and the upcoming school year expenses, and then I look at my bank account and want to cry. And when I don't want to cry, I just want to quit everything- quit the job, quit school, quit everything and just stop life for a few days. Then I want to just work, and work, and work, and feel what its like to have money, to not have to worry for once. And the worst part? Nobody in this job can even comprehend what its like to really, truly NEED money. My coordinator? Both parents together, both lawyers. My braindead partner? Doesn't need the money, just wants it to spend on mundane and useless things.
AND, we're working 40 hrs a week and still getting paid for 36. Oh, and that financial bonus we've been working our asses off with the hopes of winning? Now that the deadline is almost here, now everyone gets a bonus. a whopping $50.
Somebody please sedate me, let me sleep for a few days. But please wake me up for New York. Nobody in their right mind or otherwise would want to miss that. Thanks.
until whenever I can calm down enough to make another post,
Canary fucking_T
Too bad the shirts aren't even canary yellow anymore, the new ones are more like Day-glow f'n yellow. I'm surprised they don't glow in the dark. |
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| okay, this is pretty much the final straw in the nest. |
[Jul. 18th, 2006|11:41 pm] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | H-E-R-E | ] |
| [ | mood |
| |  tired, angry, and just RAWR! | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Secret Window on TV | ] |
So, after everything that went on the past couple of days, you'd think it'd be done. Whoah no.
SO I'm driving along today and get a phone call. It's my coordinator person, asking me if I called headquarters and complained to the campaign manager. He tells me that there's word going around that I called and complained. I'm genuinely confused, because I've only called headquarters once, to try and reach him. I didn't know how to use the campaign directory so I just let it ring, asked if he was there, was told he wasn't, said thank you and hung up. Other than that I've never called up there.
Now, I'm being told that I have to have a conference call with the another field staff member and the campaign manager. I'm ready to flip out, because first of all, I didn't do anything. Second of all, this means that someone is tossing my name around for things, and I don't want my job to be in jeopardy. I can't afford to lose it, no matter how much I want to at this point.
Okay, so great. I go about my business, driving for 7 hours going door to door. fun. I am getting so tired, literally exhausted, mentally and physically and emotionally. working 9am-8pm, trying to have a life inbetween. Now, having to deal with all of this drama on top of all of that. So, I finally get home at around 8:30pm, exhausted, sweaty, hungry, and pissed off. Then I get a phone call. It's my coordinator, basically asking me what I'm going to say tomorrow. Why, nervous I might say something bad? He tells me that he thinks another field staffer is trying to sabotage him by using me, but he hasn't said anything bad about her since he's known her, except for that one time when he said blah blah blah and she said blah blah blah, etc... DRAMA. But he basically asked me not to say anything bad about him because hey, there's only 3 weeks left of the program, why ruin it now? Save the peace, just say he's doing a good job, etc.. So lie? You, the one who's given me such a hard time all the time, want me now to lie to save your job and your ass. Wow, that's nice. How did I respond? So, how about those days in August and the last weekend in July? He paused, sighed and said fine. I told him that if I didn't have the days off for August, I'd quit the job. I was serious.
So now I'm stuck in between a rock and a hard place. What do I do? Tomorrow I have the conference call- I can tell them everything that's been going on. But, I don't want to be the one responsible for getting someone fired. Because even though I will have a nice sense of satisfaction, I will have an even bigger sense of guilt. But do I pretend to be totally nice, act like everything is fine, let him keep his job, and still be pissed off in the end? I don't know where the happy medium is. I guess we'll see tomorrow. Either way, I can't WAIT for the end of this.
This bird is ready to leave the nest ( and politics in general) for good. Hell, this bird is ready to put anything political in the nest and torch the hell out of it, just to watch it all burn. Yeah.
Until tomorrow,
Canary_T
p.s.- there are some sweet views on Skyline Drive. And, we got invited in twice today, it was nice. One guy gave us some gingerale and shot the shit for while, then at our last stop a nice older couple invited us in and gave us iced tea. But it was interesting because she was an interesting character- when she prepared the iced tea, she took out two glasses and set them on the counter. THen, she took out a measuring cup and put it up to the fridge door to get crushed ice. Then, instead of pouring it she went into the drawer and pulled out some metal tongs to pick up the crushed ice and place it in the glass. But hey, they were nice. Plus, were were parched.
That's it, or thats all I chose to remember I guess. |
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| Time to ruffle some feathers. |
[Jul. 17th, 2006|11:13 pm] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | here, again | ] |
| [ | mood |
| | angry as fuck | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Hell's Kitchen on TV | ] |
So. Let's just say that I'm basically fed up with this job.
And here's my rant. Enjoy.
Forget the past couple of days. I didn't update, I don't remember what went on, I don't care. Every day is starting to blend together, its too hot, and I've come really close to passing out from walking around in the heat.
Tonight- Justin and I finish up, and we head into McDonalds to bask in the AC and write up some thank you for speaking with us cards. Scott calls, wants to meet us there. Fine. Then, we all proceed to sit there for the next hour talking about this f'n job.
Basically, Scott tells us that all the work we've done doesn't really matter that much towards the financial bonus. FOrget the fact that I've been at his beckon call every day, showing up where he wanted me to no matter how much or how little (emphasis on the little) notice I've had. I've done whatever I needed to, been where ever I was told to be, done everything that I've supposed to.
I'm sick of the lack of communication. Don't know whats going on, who's where, what we're doing. I'm supposed to hold my entire life until somebody figures out what time I'm supposed to be somewhere. I'm supposed to change my life around to accomodate for the Tarrant for Senate campaign.
-ANd to think, I should have noticed something when I called for a job about 6 times and nobody called me back. It wasn't until one of our family friends called and bitched at them that they called back.
-What time is the training day? I was told 10am. So, I drive 2 hours to get there, only to be told it starts at 1. Okay, leave, come back at one. Oh whoops, wrong again, apparently it started at 12.
-don't have walking lists for the first week. Go blind, walking around with no direction, no plan, running around like a chicken with head cut off.
-finally get walking lists. Looks like its going in the right direction. Get a call to list all of previous week's numbers because someone forgot to write them down at headquarters. too bad nobody informed me that I was supposed to be keeping a record, not just calling in with the day's numbers. My fault.
- Walk from school to Price Chopper during Heritage days on a call to pick up helium tank. Apparently nobody told the people there, nor did they even need any help. Nobody knew why we were called to go down there. But, none the less, we;ve just walked all the way down there to find nothing but the tent left where the booth was set up. Fuck. walk all the way back.
- Next day, called at 8am to be at Heritage days at 10. Fine. 5 minutes later get a call back to actually be there at 9. Roll out of bed and rush to Windsor. Hey, what do you know, nobody there. Stand around, walk the entire route of Heritage Days, nobody there. Call. Call some more. Nobod y knows anything. 10:30 things finally get rolling. Stay there till 4:30. Too bad there's no over time.
- Hey, don't work Sundays. No wait, now do work them. Oh nope, just kidding. Actually, do work them.
- Now today. Find out that supervisor is pissed because I reminded him that I need last weekend in July off and 3,4,5 of August. Wait, I think I clearly remember telling you before it started that I needed it off. And, I talked to you just a few weeks ago about the last weekend in July, you said it was fine. I said I'd work on Friday ( our one day off) to get the hours in. Now you're threatening to withhold pay and laptop and put financial bonus in jeopardy because I'm taking days off? No. You're not getting away with this anymore.
-NO. I told you the days off. I'm taking them. Do what you want, you're an idiot. I'll go over your head, simple as that.
-Don't tell me I need to work extra hours. I'm not paid for them, I'm not working them. I'm sorry I'm not made of money and I need to work extra jobs. Besides, I thought one of Rich Tarrant's issues was education. Well, if I'm made to work extra hours for his own benefit, I can't afford my education. Now does that make sense? NO.
- Figure out what's going on, thats why you're in charge. Otherwise, you wear the friggin yellow T and walk around and let me handle the manager duties, because as of right now I seem to be able to handle them better than you.
- Don't threaten to withhold anything. You're not a dictator, in my eyes I haven't done anything that would even come near grounds enough to do that. And if you do, do not think I'm going to let you get away with it.
- Don't fuck me over. I WILL work hard, I HAVE worked hard, I do what needs to get done. Work with me, and this will be a breeze. Step up to the plate or just step down.
-phew.
I don't even remember most of the arguement anymore. I don't want to. I just want this job over with. Yes its been an interesting experience, yes I've met some interesting people. But in the end, after all the struggles, the pointless escapades, the lack of organization, the arguments, the same phrase said over and over and over and friggin OVER again, is it worth it? Its not really looking like it in my mind.
But, I don't give up. Keep on keepin' on. We've got a new list, a different list, a better list. Now, the competition for the real competition begins for the financial bonus. And even if it kills me, we're going to get it, just as a final "fuck you".
Now I'm off to bed. Tomorrow- Weathersfield. If I come to your door, please take a yard sign. Please take a bumper sticker. Please do something. Thank you.
Oh yeah, and today we went to some mega rich houses. They were nice, I wanted them. Kickass views. And we went to a house with literally 27 cats in one room, and thats all we could count ( and see) through the screen window. The house also had 2 dogs, 2 donkeys, and 4 sheep.
What a day. What could tomorrow POSSIBLY bring. fuck.
Until tomorrow ( maybe, if I make it that long),
Canary_T |
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| Update on the last week of my life...wow, that sounds morbid |
[Jul. 13th, 2006|12:06 am] |
| [ | Current Location |
| | where else? | ] |
| [ | mood |
| | cranky, cold and tired | ] |
| [ | music |
| | So, You Think You Can Dance? on TV | ] |
Okay, so here's the update on the last week of my life...as in last week, 4th-present. Not as in the last as in final week. Wow, glad we got that cleared up.
So all the days are starting to blend together, it kind of sucks. At first I thought this job was going to be really interesting, like spice for the mind. An intellectual buffet. Whatever you want to call it. But recently I've stopped taking in all of the sights and sounds and everything associated with actually experiencing the job and I've just put on a smile and gotten through each day. I don't even want to think about the fact that I have 4 more weeks of this. Buh. This job is wearing on me, it really is. I don't know if its having to say the same thing over and over. Maybe it's the mindless chatter I have to endure with my partner for 7 hours. Possibly its just the fact that I still hate politics. I thought maybe this would make me learn more about the political process, and by learning more I'd start to like it. Nope. I like making the connections that I have, and the fact that I get the laptop. Plus not having to start work until 2pm is pretty sweet, too. But other than that, the job can suck it.
I'm beginning to think it hasn't been worth the effort. I got my first bi-weekly paycheck, today. I was a little shocked when I called my account line for my bank statement and discovered that over $100 was taken out for taxes. That sucked. But, I guess that might happen anywhere. Still, it was a little disheartening.
Anyways, moving on. So, this weekend I thought we were supposed to work Heritage days, but turns out on Saturday we had to go door to door. Since we didn't have a map of White River yet as we hadn't finished Windsor, we had a little bit of trouble finding any houses. Our strategy was just to drive around, looking for street signs, and see if we could find them on our walk list. We found a few, but not many. Then Scott called us and told us to head on down to Heritage days to pick up a helium tank. So, we did. Unfortunately we didn't know that one could drive past the detour to find parking closer to heritage days. We drove all the way to the end of the detour and parked at the school. THen, we started our lovely hike down to the center of town. When we got there we walked almost down to the Diner and the white church, but the Tarrant for Senate booth was nowhere to be found. We phoned Scott, and he told us it was at the other end, down by Price Chopper. nice. So, we start walking on down. Once we get there, we find the spot where the booth was. Everything was packed up, gone, done. Oops, oh well, another lack of communication. So, we start our long treck back to the car. Another day, another dollar.
SUNDAY- Sunday we were scheduled to work Heritage days at noon. Okay, fine. But at 8am I get a lovely phone call, asking me if I can be at Heritage days at 10am. Okay, thats fine, it will give me a little bit more time to sleep. Just as I closed my eyes and was almost asleep, my phone rings again. Actually, they want me there at 9:30am or before. Okay, so...out of bed. fsck.
So, Sunday was spent sitting in the scalding hot sun for about 6 or 7 hours. I realized very early on that it was going to be a long day, as apparently sunscreen was an afterthought as I was driving down the road to Heritage Days. And, I realized as I sat there in the sun beating down on my neck, face, legs, etc.. that at the end of the day, I was probably going to be a sun dried tomato. Poop.
Monday- More of White River. I don't even remember what happened on this day. It was just...normal.
Tueday- Lots more of White River, again. Lots of houses up in the boondocks, and you know what that means- long, winding, steep, and narrow driveways! There was cool walkways, with stone sides that came up on either side of the steps. There was an old guy who had the purest turquise eyes I have ever seen. He also had the scratchiest, post-cigarette voice I'd ever heard. He was wearing cutoff jean shorts and no shirt and sitting in a plastic lawn chair on his little patch of grass in front of his trailer. That somehow added a whole nother level to the situation. Lots of houses looked like those seasonal campers in the campgrounds, with the little knick knacks, lawn gnomes, plastic flamingos, signs that said the last name, and other such thingeys scattered around the front yard. Some of them even brought back memories of spending summer weekends in the campgrounds as I stared at the knick knacks and the cool pineapple lights and stuff like that. It was creepy. Oh, and we found a house that is a Wolf sanctuary. We didn't get to see any of them, but it was a cool thing. They house 5 wolves who were abandoned and they take care of them, feed them, charge the public to see them.
TODAY, Wednesday- rain, rain, and more rain. I hate the rain in general, but to have to go out and walk around ( and be pleasant and smiley and all that crap) makes it even worse. Apparently we found the Beverly Hills of Hartford/White River, too. We drove to the top of this hill and there was what looked like multimillion dollar house after multimillion dollar house. Okay, so maybe I'm exagerrating, but just a little. Beautiful houses, just beautiful. I was slightly jealous. More winding driveways, most of which I had to back out of. One of them had a little hidden ditch just off to the side of it that I didn't know about until I was backed into it because I was trying to see if there were any cars coming on the main road. I put it in drive and spun out, and almost thought we were going to have to get out and push. But, I put in reverse and after a slight spin out, I was able to regain traction and pull up and out of there. Luckily the only damage was a bunch of grass shoved in the little creveses. Yay. Then we found this cute little housing development, kinda thing. It wasn't the Burlington tons of houses smushed together kinda thing, but it was little houses kinda spread out that were actually duplexes. But from what I saw on the inside ( of course I peeked through the window a little) they were very spacious, big, and lovely. AAANNDD, there was a lot of people who were living in them that had money. So much so that when I saw an old rusty van sitting in one of the driveways, I was shocked and thought something was out of place. Of course it was; the house was being renovated and it belonged to the guy doing the work. Aaah, that explains it. After we finished the little housing development we decided to hit the road, as we were soaked to the bone, cranky, and tired. I hate the rain, hate it, hate it, hate it. There is one good thing about it, though. Since it was raining, we had on rain jackets and couldn't see the ginormous Tarrant for Senate that is printed across our shirts. Therefore, more people opened the door and kinda made our treck to the porch kinda worth it. Kinda. More of the same routine tomorrow. Poop.
Until next time, just as always,
Canary_T |
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| Happy 4th! |
[Jul. 4th, 2006|10:43 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | really tired | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Real World/Road Rules on TV | ] |
Happy Birthday, America!
And what better way to spend America's birthday than to go to a parade? But at 7am?! poo!
So, I rolled out of bed this morning at 6am, ready to leave by 7am. I picked up Justin at the meeting point and we headed south for a nice hour long drive to Brattleboro. Surprisingly, we didn't get lost, even after Scott's directions lol After we found the place we headed inside where we found other interns ( most of which I had met at training day) who were already in full swing blowing up helium balloons. Justin and I jumped in, cutting ribbon and tying the pieces to the some of the balloons. Once the entire room was filled with helium balloons, we gathered them together and stuffed them in the back of one of the intern's car ( and it just happened to be a white Escalade...sweet huh?) and drove to the beginning of the parade route.
Now, a little background information on this parade. This parade is the most famous 4th of July Parade in Vermont, lasting about 2 hours long. I don't know how long the route is, but it seemed very very very long as we walked from the end of the parade route, all the way back to our office, which was only a short distance from the end of the parade. So much so that the parade was going by us and a few minutes later we were seeing the same people walk back by us to leave. So, where was I...yes, walking the parade route.
So I met this really nice girl Sam who wasn't at the training day, and she and I basically hung out most of the day, walking together and handing out ballons and stickers. We also discovered ( much to our pleasure) that there happened to be a running race before the parade, and as we walked the route we saw a bunch of nicely built guys running by without their shirts. Mmmmm...somedays I love this job. :) Anyways....
Even though we had a bunch of balloons, we actually ran out rather quickly, getting just down the hill from Price Chopper(where we parked) before we ran out. So, we spent the rest of the parade route handing out stickers. When we reached the end we met up with some of the other interns who had handed out balloons on the opposite side of the parade route as us and then had walked back. When we were all gathered together we decided to watch the parade for a little bit. We saw plenty of men in uniform walk by ( mmmm :) haha) and we applauded out of respect. Just behind them was a group of students, all wearing Bernie stickers, and they proceded to shout at us to vote for Bernie and other such remarks. We just stood there clapping, not saying a word. Then, one of the students came out of the crowd and confronted one of the interns, asking them straight out what Rich Tarrant was going to do in Senate. I think he was trying to catch them off guard and make them look stupid, but luckily the intern was able to talk to him calmly without even missing a beat. He got on the topic of healthcare, and the student called over a girl who was straight out of Ireland to ask her what it was like trying to see a doctor in Ireland. She responded, " well, it takes about 2 years and a fortnight to get in" and then went on to talk more to the student and our intern. It was so cool listening to her accent, I wanted to keep talking with her just to listen, but she ran off to catch up with the rest of the group.
ALso during the parade we saw an elderly woman faint across the street, and Scott and I rushed inside, grabbed some bottles of water and rushed across the parade to give them to her. Once the ambulance pulled up we went back across the street to give them some room to work.
Just when I thought my day was over, Scott told me that he needed us in Brownsville. He had no idea how to get there, so we hopped on the interstate and he followed Justin and I out to Brownsville. When we pulled up we saw that the parade was already beginning, so the cop directing traffic allowed us to park on the side of the street, next to the resort entrance. We pulled over ( on the wrong side of the street, mind you) and bolted out of the car. Scott threw Justin and I the banner and we all tore down the road, running to get to our spot. We made it with plenty of time to spare, right in front of Martha Rainville (who's running for Congress...vote for her, she's nice) We held the banner, waving at everyone in the parade and trying to avoid the piles of horse poop littered along the road. Once again, I saw a lot of people I knew, and it felt cool to say hi and wave as we walked down the road. 15 minutes later we had reached the end of the parade route, and we stood around for a few minutes to figure out what to do. Once we determined that we were pretty much done in the town, we started the treck back to our cars. Since we had all worked so hard, Scott took us all out to lunch. Since he was craving Chinese and was going to drive all the way back to Springfield, I told him I Claremont was closer. So, everyone hopped back into the cars and drove over to the Imperial Buffet to talk and laugh over Chinese food and fortune cookies. Then, I led them back to Ascutney so they could get on the interstate back home, drove Justin to his car, and then headed home for a few hours.
Even though I was pretty tired, my day wasn't over yet. Towards 7pm I headed to Hartland with Amanda to watch the fireworks. Since it was early, and I was still wearing my Canary Tee, we headed down by the library to walk around. We saw a person riding around on a bike wearing a Bernie for Senate shirt, and later on that evening we saw the same person selling glow necklaces. I joked to Amanda that he had to do that because he needed to earn extra money due to the measly $3.25 an hour Bernie pays his interns.
Once it got dark we headed up to Louises, where we kicked back in her field and watched the firemen light off the fireworks. ( yeah, we had some pretty sweet seats)
And that, ladies and gentlemen, was my 4th of July.
Tomorrow off so more on Thursday,
Canary_T |
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| Another day, another Windsor |
[Jul. 3rd, 2006|11:11 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  awake, unfortunately | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Fresh Prince of Bel-Air on TV | ] |
Wooow, today was a hot one. Phew. Again we walked around Windsor today, hitting up more houses. I think I've another name for Windsor. " The land of the missing or rotten teeth" because that's all we saw today. ALmost every house we went to it was crooked chompers or missing canines. Sometimes it was just one big jumbled mess of teeth. Sometimes it was lack there of. Either way, after we finished each house I found myself running my tongue over my teeth just to make sure they were all there and in the right place. Crazy. It also seemed like each house had a front porch filled with junk and garbage ( literally). At times we had to stop breathing for the entire time, just hoping that nobody would answer the door so we could get off the porch and back into the fresh air. Buhhh.
short entry tonight because its late and I gotta get to bed, early to rise tomorrow for a fun filled 4th! parade in Brattleboro at 8am! eeeek!
Until Tomorrow,
Canary_T |
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| Don't Rain on My Parade |
[Jul. 2nd, 2006|10:31 pm] |
yaaaaaaaaaaaaaay parade today.
It was pretty fun, as fun as a parade in rain/no rain/rain/no rain/rain/rain/no rain could be. After parking in different places about 5 different times, we finally found a place where we could park and stay. Then, we all helped decorate the GOP truck and hung up our Tarrant for Senate signs ( no having to fold up the bottom and hide the Senate part like last time) and then we got our stickers and such ready. We were going to have balloons, but I guess there wasn't enough communication to bring a helium tank AND a regulator. Instead we just had 2 helium tanks and nothing to make the helium go into the balloons. Oh well, we still had stickers, and kids love stickers.
So, after about an hour of standing around, the parade finally got started. We walked along, handing out stickers to all the kids and waving to people up on the hills. Surprisingly enough, I saw a bunch of people I knew, so that made it really fun. The nifty thing that they do at Reading that they don't do anywhere else that I've been is announce each group/float that walks by the announcer booth. So, we're walking along, and they announce over the loudspeaker that we're the Tarrant for Senate group. Okay, cool. We all stop walking and wave, and go to move along again. But then, the guy at the microphone asks " So where's Rich Tarrant?" Kate, the girl in charge of the campaign, resonds that he's not here. So the guy says " What, is Rich Tarrant too good to come out to our little town of Reading?" Before anyone could respond, the parade begins to move again. Kate was soo pissed. Because if you think about it, there is one man trying to campaign through the entire state of Vermont during the biggest political holiday of the year. He can't be everywhere at once. And to turn out to a parade with an audience of maybe 200 people would be a waste of his time. Not that he doesn't care about earning their votes, but it's just common sense. He was in Burlington at that parade, with a turn out of like 2,000. Yeah.
After walking by the announcer boothwe looped around some back streets and then ended back towards the center of town. Then, since the whole chicken coop's worth of chicken grilling on the huge grills smelled so good, Kate treated Justin and I to a chicken dinner thing. But, just as we went to sit down to eat, the rain that had been off and on all morning decided to start just a little. Before we got caught in the rain, we decided to start walking back towards the vehicles. Along the way we found Scott down by the pond who was letting his dog go for a swim. So, Justin and I sat down and ate and chatted with Scott until we decided to head back to the car.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, was the Reading parade in a nutshell. |
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| Don't Rain on My Parade |
[Jul. 2nd, 2006|10:15 pm] |
yaaaaaaaaaaaaaay parade today.
It was pretty fun, as fun as a parade in rain/no rain/rain/no rain/rain/rain/no rain could be. After parking in different places about 5 different times, we finally found a place where we could park and stay. Then, we all helped decorate the GOP truck and hung up our Tarrant for Senate signs ( no having to fold up the bottom and hide the Senate part like last time) and then we got our stickers and such ready. We were going to have balloons, but I guess there wasn't enough communication to bring a helium tank AND a regulator. Instead we just had 2 helium tanks and nothing to make the helium go into the balloons. Oh well, we still had stickers, and kids love stickers.
So, after about an hour of standing around, the parade finally got started. We walked along, handing out stickers to all the kids and waving to people up on the hills. Surprisingly enough, I saw a bunch of people I knew, so that made it really fun. The nifty thing that they do at Reading that they don't do anywhere else that I've been is announce each group/float that walks by the announcer booth. So, we're walking along, and they announce over the loudspeaker that we're the Tarrant for Senate group. Okay, cool. We all stop walking and wave, and go to move along again. But then, the guy at the microphone asks " So where's Rich Tarrant?" Kate, the girl in charge of the campaign, resonds that he's not here. So the guy says " What, is Rich Tarrant too good to come out to our little town of Reading?" Before anyone could respond, the parade begins to move again. Kate was soo pissed. Because if you think about it, there is one man trying to campaign through the entire state of Vermont during the biggest political holiday of the year. He can't be everywhere at once. And to turn out to a parade with an audience of maybe 200 people would be a waste of his time. Not that he doesn't care about earning their votes, but it's just common sense. He was in Burlington at that parade, with a turn out of like 2,000. Yeah.
After walking by the announcer boothwe looped around some back streets and then ended back towards the center of town. Then, since the whole chicken coop's worth of chicken grilling on the huge grills smelled so good, Kate treated Justin and I to a chicken dinner thing. But, just as we went to sit down to eat, the rain that had been off and on all morning decided to start just a little. Before we got caught in the rain, we decided to start walking back towards the vehicles. Along the way we found Scott down by the pond who was letting his dog go for a swim. So, Justin and I sat down and ate and chatted with Scott until we decided to head back to the car.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, was the Reading parade in a nutshell.
Tomorrow its back to the old Door to Door and then to Brattleboro on Tuesday for the 4th. Sounds like its going to be a fun week!
Until Tomorrow,
Canary_T |
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