On the Move, and Settling In
If I'm being completely honest, it kind of feels as if I've been adrift for the last few weeks, trying to navigate foreign seas. I suppose that's as good of a reason as any to explain why I haven't written a post, despite professing I'd do so as far back as a month ago. I usually follow through when I speak out loud my intentions, but I guess the changes of the past few months have had more of an impact on me than I'd like to admit.
But where to begin? By now it's been several months since Princeton has been put behind me. I spent a considerable amount of the summer at home, where, as I mentioned before, I took advantage of being close to the ocean to go surfing, and when not at the beach or reading in my hammock, I tried to help my parents with their ambitious landscaping projects, including one to reinstate the raised beds behind the house. I planted red beets, butternut squash, sunflowers, cilantro, tomatoes, and more! I hear the tomatoes are doing particularly well, and part of me is sad that I don't get to reap the fruits... of my labor. But I better get used to it, if that's the line of work that I've found myself in:
Officially, I am now a FoodCorps Americorps Service Member serving at Lake Health District, the hospital in Lakeview, Oregon. Although I never thought I'd find myself spending so much time in a hospital, especially not in a professional capacity, here I am, with hospital ID and a big office all of my own! Once school starts in less than two weeks, however, I'll be spending more time at several elementary schools. That's where I'll be doing the most important work: interacting with the kiddos. For example: demonstrating healthy eating habits in the cafeteria during lunch, teaching lessons in the classrooms, or even taking the kids out to the garden for some hands-on learning in the dirt.
Of these, of course I'm most excited for the latter. Not only do I get so much enjoyment out of being outside and digging my hands in the dirt, I know that kids do, too, and that it's an incredible opportunity to incorporate textbook learning into a real-world environment. Part of this year's goal (and challenge) is to get the two relatively new school gardens going.
Although I could delve much further into the world of garden education, I'll try to spend the rest of this post going back: I'll reflect briefly on the trip to Colorado, my drive from California to Lakeview, and finally, my first few weeks here, in Lakeview. I'm sure there will be plenty of opportunities to talk more about my role as a FoodCorps service member in the future, and I hope that you will reach out to me with comments and questions in the meantime!
A few weeks before I was set to leave for Oregon, Patrick flew out from New Jersey to spend some time with me in California. We took this opportunity to take my car (a red Subaru Forester!) on an inaugural road trip to southwest Colorado, where he lived for three years, working with a School to Farm program (not dissimilar from what I am doing in Lakeview).
On the way to Colorado, we camped out in Comb Ridge, Utah, a linear monocline of ridges and valleys. The following morning we hiked out to explore, coming across one of the numerous cave dwellings where natives used to reside. It was a hot day, but we wandered around the area in awe of the geology as well as of the people who used to live there before the tendrils of white colonization reached so far.
Most of the next week we spent in Montezuma County, where we were graciously welcomed by Patrick's friends, who also happen to be avid board gamers. As a result, we spent most evenings playing games, which sometimes got a little bit out of hand (all four of us being quite competitive!). In addition to meeting (in my case) and catching up with (in Patrick's case) lots of good friends, we did several hikes and went to hot springs that were too hot for comfort.
I can already feel this dragging on, so my apologies; I'll try to keep things brief. We camped along a section of the Colorado River on our way back to California, and stopped through Las Vegas to visit my brother, Ben, who is living and working out of that miserably hot, dry, and touristy city.
As you might imagine, we did a lot of driving:
In sum: what a grand time.
It wasn't long before Patrick left for the East Coast and it was time for me to pack up the car (which had by now earned the name "Big Red") and make the trip up to Lakeview, Oregon. I camped out near Lake Tahoe for one night along the way, which meant I had the opportunity to go swimming in the lake the following morning. The water was clear and not nearly as cold as I imagined it would be, so I took full advantage of swimming around for a bit before I drove the last few hours into Oregon.
Finally, I made it to Lakeview, a town with a population of around 2,300. The town is situated in the southeast of Oregon, which is a high desert region, also known as Oregon's Outback. In fact, much like the Australian Outback, Lake County is one of Oregon's largest counties, as well as one of its most rural ones. When people here find out where I'm from (whether it's New Jersey or California), they chuckle a bit.
Being in a small town has its perks. For instance, it's nice to be just around the corner from a trailhead, pool, bike shop, and pretty much everything else in town. I can walk or bike to most places, and it's not easy to get lost when all the streets are either alphabetical or numerical. Of course, it's taking me some time to adjust to a slower pace of life (given that Princeton is probably the complete opposite), as well as getting to know people in the community. Luckily, I'm already making friends and acquaintances, which is going to be crucial to the work that I'll be doing throughout the year.
I've also done a bit of exploring around the area, going on a few hikes and drives and whatnot. On the way up to Portland for national orientation, I camped at Crater Lake National Park, which is the most beautiful place I've ever seen. The water is crystal-clear and the kind of cold that makes you feel more alive than ever. And yes, I jumped off a cliff into the lake like all the other kids.
You might have guessed at this point that there are some lakes around Lake County and the town of Lakeview. And indeed, I took advantage of this last weekend by renting a paddle board from the bike shop (it doubles as a general sports store) and driving out to Drew's Resevoir, Dog Lake, and Cottonwood Resevoir over the course of the weekend. Still, there are so many more places to see!
For now, Lakeview is my home. When I'm not in the hospital, out at the schools, or trying to explore the area, you can probably find me in the kitchen of my studio apartment, baking or cooking (as always).
So, there we are! I'm incredibly excited for this new journey, but of course parts of me will always be left behind in other places, too: Belgium, California, even New Jersey...
Life goes on, and change is good. But no one ever said it was particularly easy, right?
But where to begin? By now it's been several months since Princeton has been put behind me. I spent a considerable amount of the summer at home, where, as I mentioned before, I took advantage of being close to the ocean to go surfing, and when not at the beach or reading in my hammock, I tried to help my parents with their ambitious landscaping projects, including one to reinstate the raised beds behind the house. I planted red beets, butternut squash, sunflowers, cilantro, tomatoes, and more! I hear the tomatoes are doing particularly well, and part of me is sad that I don't get to reap the fruits... of my labor. But I better get used to it, if that's the line of work that I've found myself in:
 |
| A photo following the "carrot crunch" at National FoodCorps Orientation and Training in Portland, Oregon |
Officially, I am now a FoodCorps Americorps Service Member serving at Lake Health District, the hospital in Lakeview, Oregon. Although I never thought I'd find myself spending so much time in a hospital, especially not in a professional capacity, here I am, with hospital ID and a big office all of my own! Once school starts in less than two weeks, however, I'll be spending more time at several elementary schools. That's where I'll be doing the most important work: interacting with the kiddos. For example: demonstrating healthy eating habits in the cafeteria during lunch, teaching lessons in the classrooms, or even taking the kids out to the garden for some hands-on learning in the dirt.
Of these, of course I'm most excited for the latter. Not only do I get so much enjoyment out of being outside and digging my hands in the dirt, I know that kids do, too, and that it's an incredible opportunity to incorporate textbook learning into a real-world environment. Part of this year's goal (and challenge) is to get the two relatively new school gardens going.
Although I could delve much further into the world of garden education, I'll try to spend the rest of this post going back: I'll reflect briefly on the trip to Colorado, my drive from California to Lakeview, and finally, my first few weeks here, in Lakeview. I'm sure there will be plenty of opportunities to talk more about my role as a FoodCorps service member in the future, and I hope that you will reach out to me with comments and questions in the meantime!
A few weeks before I was set to leave for Oregon, Patrick flew out from New Jersey to spend some time with me in California. We took this opportunity to take my car (a red Subaru Forester!) on an inaugural road trip to southwest Colorado, where he lived for three years, working with a School to Farm program (not dissimilar from what I am doing in Lakeview).
On the way to Colorado, we camped out in Comb Ridge, Utah, a linear monocline of ridges and valleys. The following morning we hiked out to explore, coming across one of the numerous cave dwellings where natives used to reside. It was a hot day, but we wandered around the area in awe of the geology as well as of the people who used to live there before the tendrils of white colonization reached so far.
 |
| Comb Ridge! |
Most of the next week we spent in Montezuma County, where we were graciously welcomed by Patrick's friends, who also happen to be avid board gamers. As a result, we spent most evenings playing games, which sometimes got a little bit out of hand (all four of us being quite competitive!). In addition to meeting (in my case) and catching up with (in Patrick's case) lots of good friends, we did several hikes and went to hot springs that were too hot for comfort.
 |
| A hike we did in Colorado: you can see where an avalanche tore across the mountain this past spring |
I can already feel this dragging on, so my apologies; I'll try to keep things brief. We camped along a section of the Colorado River on our way back to California, and stopped through Las Vegas to visit my brother, Ben, who is living and working out of that miserably hot, dry, and touristy city.
 |
| The Colorado River in the morning light |
As you might imagine, we did a lot of driving:
In sum: what a grand time.
It wasn't long before Patrick left for the East Coast and it was time for me to pack up the car (which had by now earned the name "Big Red") and make the trip up to Lakeview, Oregon. I camped out near Lake Tahoe for one night along the way, which meant I had the opportunity to go swimming in the lake the following morning. The water was clear and not nearly as cold as I imagined it would be, so I took full advantage of swimming around for a bit before I drove the last few hours into Oregon.
Finally, I made it to Lakeview, a town with a population of around 2,300. The town is situated in the southeast of Oregon, which is a high desert region, also known as Oregon's Outback. In fact, much like the Australian Outback, Lake County is one of Oregon's largest counties, as well as one of its most rural ones. When people here find out where I'm from (whether it's New Jersey or California), they chuckle a bit.
Being in a small town has its perks. For instance, it's nice to be just around the corner from a trailhead, pool, bike shop, and pretty much everything else in town. I can walk or bike to most places, and it's not easy to get lost when all the streets are either alphabetical or numerical. Of course, it's taking me some time to adjust to a slower pace of life (given that Princeton is probably the complete opposite), as well as getting to know people in the community. Luckily, I'm already making friends and acquaintances, which is going to be crucial to the work that I'll be doing throughout the year.
I've also done a bit of exploring around the area, going on a few hikes and drives and whatnot. On the way up to Portland for national orientation, I camped at Crater Lake National Park, which is the most beautiful place I've ever seen. The water is crystal-clear and the kind of cold that makes you feel more alive than ever. And yes, I jumped off a cliff into the lake like all the other kids.
You might have guessed at this point that there are some lakes around Lake County and the town of Lakeview. And indeed, I took advantage of this last weekend by renting a paddle board from the bike shop (it doubles as a general sports store) and driving out to Drew's Resevoir, Dog Lake, and Cottonwood Resevoir over the course of the weekend. Still, there are so many more places to see!
 |
| Paddling around Dog Lake |
For now, Lakeview is my home. When I'm not in the hospital, out at the schools, or trying to explore the area, you can probably find me in the kitchen of my studio apartment, baking or cooking (as always).
 |
| My very own kitchen! |
So, there we are! I'm incredibly excited for this new journey, but of course parts of me will always be left behind in other places, too: Belgium, California, even New Jersey...
Life goes on, and change is good. But no one ever said it was particularly easy, right?
Another amazing chapter in your young life is unfolding, love you! ❤️ Mom
ReplyDeletewhen can we visit?
ReplyDeleteYou can visit whenever you want! The county fair is this weekend... ;)
DeleteI loved your blog Helena. Cant wait for you to explore and talk more about our little community. Get yourself some snowshoes girlfriend cause winter's coming.
ReplyDeleteWe are lucky to have you here in Lakeview. The bike shop has snowshoes too!
ReplyDelete