Almost...

I was so excited for a minute or two today. Google.org, the philanthropic arm of Google, finally posted some job positions on their web site. I have a cover letter and resume all set to send them -- but I'm not qualified for any of the current positions. Now, I'm back to deciding if I must go back to school in order to work for one of the organizations that is trying to make social or environmental changes to our world, or do I just give up this dream and continue whatever it is that I'm currently doing. I'm telling you -- one of these days I'm going to work on one of these water or energy projects (or not), and that is going to be fun.

Until then, I've got one or two other irons in the fire. We'll see how that goes and I'll report here.

If you're not familiar with Google.org or the Google Foundation, this article at the NY Times will bring you up to speed.

They need blankets

Two in one day.

If you want to make a difference this Thanksgiving, please donate blankets or money for blankets to Camp Hope (sorry no PayPal link, but instructions are provided at the link). The volunteers (up to 300/week) are staying in a school that was flooded by hurricane Katrina and currently does not have heat. Camp Hope is supported by the New Orleans Habitat for Humanity affiliate and has worked to gut over 1,800 homes in St. Bernard Parish and is now involved in reconstruction. Read a recent volunteer's experience here.

While I don't have the strongest blog following, due in part to my recently infrequent updates, please feel free to pass along this request to those you think may support them. We're reaching out in Baton Rouge to those who can donate blankets, but now every little bit counts.

Thank you.

Old Friends

Two Sundays ago, I took the day off to go to Camp Hope. It was an opportunity to visit my friend Don who returned to volunteer in St. Bernard Parish as well as Emily and Crystal who work at the camp. It was a reunion of sorts. After a tour of the camp, we went to breakfast and swapped war stories about our respective service organizations.

Seeing them was like seeing family. It grounds me. I'm lucky to have met such wonderful people who share such a common vision.

Later the same week, I ran into friends from college. A close friend as a matter of fact, and her sister. It amazes me how old friends can pick up a conversation as though it hasn't been fifteen years since they last talked. Although I only spent a few minutes with them, it was so meaningful for the same reason. Maybe it's just me, but occasionally i find it reassuring to have my perspective and approach validated by others that I trust. I think it's taken me a long time to even get to the point that I can admit that.

I believe I have some new opportunities unfolding, and it is a quite exciting time. I'm grateful that I was able to spend time with people I love because it helps me make better decisions. Thank you.

What a Wonderful World

As some have noticed, it's been a while since my last update. I've been busy working on that software I said would take a week to write. I wasn't certain how interesting it would be to describe the details of designing/writing it would be, hence the lack of updates. It has been a significant undertaking, and will probably end up being one of the more useful pieces of software I've ever written. My best estimate is that I've got close to 400 hours of design/development in it now.

Last week I reached the one-year anniversary of my move here from Virginia. I had high hopes of going on here about what I've learned, what I've accomplished and what I hope to be when I grow up. Instead, the day came and went. I am glad that I came here, and at least accomplished what I originally set out to do. And I am satisfied that I've met others who have done the same thing. I believe that twenty-years from now I will look back on this time and still feel I moved forward in life.

Before I go on to watch the Daily Show recap of today's election results, I thought I would drop in and give an update. I just finished watching the end of Meet Joe Black. Every time I watch the movie I smile, laugh out loud and cry -- and I appreciate it more. It's quite beautiful really. I love listening to Jeffrey Tambor describe love to Death, Sir Anthony Hopkins expressing his contentment with his life, and Marcia Gay Harden expressing her love to her father. All that acting, and I can watch Claire Forlani too.

See, I'm running low on material. I haven't posted in three weeks now? Four? And all I've got is I watched a movie. At least it was a good one.

Guess what?

So, this is old news to some but I will be at the Baton Rouge affiliate for at least another week. In a previous post, I joked that it only takes a week to write good software. Of course that's not true, but I did make quite a bit of progress. So much so, that I've been asked to extend it for others to use. I think I can make the updates in another week or so -- and then maybe I'll feel like my job is done.

I've begun wondering: did I just spend the last year developing domain knowledge so that I can properly address what was a systems engineering problem all along? If so, then maybe I'll just pretend that I intended to do this investigative style, requirements analysis all along. It sounds like a reasonable enough rationalization of my year here. I'll go with that for now.

If any are interested, in the future I'll post about how simple/powerful/extensible Ruby, Rails and PostgreSQL are and a description of how any of this applies to building houses. Be forewarned, I'm an average embedded software guy, a decent engineer, but now I'm trying to tackle MVC, again. ugh.

We get around (in the news, that is)

The New Orleans Saints are 3-1 for the year. Last week, they beat Atlanta 23-3 in a highly anticipated game in the Superdome. To the credit of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, they highlighted the activities of the Atlanta Falcons, the Blank Family Foundation and running back Warrick Dunn and their contributions to Katrina relief in an article last Monday.

In November, I reported that the Blank Family Foundation and Warrick Dunn had contributed to our affiliate in support of hurricane-affected families. The article in the AJC reports that the Falcons have provided over $1.1 million in relief aid. Warrick has demonstrated time after time he believes in helping those in need. In this photo, he is shown with some of our women of Habitat.

The reporter came to Hidden Cove, the site of the Beat the Heat Week Blitz, and interviewed some of our residents. While the article isn't as gripping a tale as you would have if you sat down and listened to Nina, Mrs. Moore, Monique, Mrs. Helen, Della or Cheryl and heard their stories of the storm or the evacuation -- it is still good to hear that their hope has been restored. Lynn attended the interviews, and I'll report that she was moved and re-energized to hear their heartwarming stories of hope. Her hope helps me -- I think that's all any of us are looking for.

It's a matter of taste

This may be my most petty post yet.

So, I read today that Dustin Diamond (a.k.a. Screech) has a sex tape, which led me to discover that he also has a website designed to help him pay the property taxes on a house that he can't afford.

Over the past year, I've been even more aware of celebrities and their causes than I have in years past. To be completely truthful, I've been jealous of their access. In the past I may have been jealous of their access to award ceremonies, parties, sporting events or even money, but no longer. I do however still feel those pangs when I read that Angelina Jolie or George Clooney have access to the U.N. on behalf of those in Cambodia or Sudan. Or, when I read that Jon Bon Jovi or Harry Connick, Jr. have done a good deed by building houses.

Don't get me wrong -- good for them and what they've accomplished. Good for them for raising awareness. Because of them, others in our country are more aware of the opportunities to give and therefore help others.

Last year I decided that giving wasn't good enough for me, I wanted to do. I've been looking for more opportunities to do without much success. I'm tired and cranky, but reading about this latest celebrity development at least gives me a reason to temper my jealousy, and be grateful for those that do see a bigger world and their part in it. I'm jealous because I want to help and because of who they are, they will make a more significant contribution than I ever will.

Mr. Diamond, I don't know anything about you other than what I've read. I would encourage your publicist to get a story about you contributing to the community something other than a sex tape. If you are looking for a place to volunteer, contact me. I could help you meet some people that have actually lost their homes. And finally, if you want to talk about justice, please read this first.

Guilt, or something like it.

Never underestimate my susceptibility to guilt, ability to swallow my pride, or desire to appease beautiful women -- and Mike (who is beautiful, but that's beside the point). Regardless of the reason, I have elected to stay with the affiliate for at least another week.

Oh the rationale seems, ahem, rational enough: we are having a blitz this week and there is another one next week. Or, there is the fact that I am responsible for ordering $52,000 of material from the Home Depot that is trickling in and needs to be accounted for. (You want to know how to get help when you go in the Home Depot? You let them know you're coming in with a check for $52,000. OK, you want irony -- I actually had to wait.) Or, I did promise to provide the affiliate with a slick web-enabled front-end to a relational database full of house information, and then I spent all of my time going out and helping to build houses, or making phone calls, or spending money at the place I've already plugged twice (they deserve it and more because they gave us such a great discount on material. That is in large part due to an employee of theirs who believes in the work that Habitat is doing. Thank you Travis.) Finally, there is the fact that the blitzes take a large toll on the construction staff (the one's out there actually banging their fingers and sweating), and if they need help I'll certainly do what I can for them.

Anyway (bringing it home now, boss), I'll stay next week and help out in the office or on site if necessary. After that, I'll probably work for a week from my apartment getting the aforementioned web thingy up and running (because that's how long it take to develop great software, right guys?), and then I'll finally take my car to the shop, pay my water bill, beg for food and internet access and a job. I promise, I'm not wishy-washy -- just easy.

Last Weekend

The Baton Rouge Habitat affiliate started three builds this weekend. The first is a community build funded by the ReStore and from our "Fund for Humanity", where the mortgages of existing homeowners are used to pay for new development. The other two are sponsored by Formosa Plastics and are a blitz format -- they will be completed this weekend.

I'll let the Formosa sponsors speak for themselves and recommend you visit their 2 Xtreme Blitz Build Blog to view a daily progress report. In particular, you should read this to learn about my mighty replacement, Stephanie. She is a remarkable individual, and in her brief time here has distinguished herself by her attitude and personality.

Coach Rob Spivery of Southern University brought about twenty of his basketball team and coaches to work with us to build a house for Kim. Because it was the first day of the build, Lynn began the day with words of thanks and a blessing, Joan introduced our gracious homeowner and Mike started organizing the volunteers. Just one day before, several of us on the construction staff worked into the early evening getting this site ready preparing the sill- and top-plate and completing the house layout on the slab. This is one of the rare times I have been able to work with our new AmeriCorps, and I really enjoyed the opportunity. Among our new employees are some truly bright spirits and I will regret not having an opportunity to work with them more. This affiliate is better off because of them.

I worked with Mike and Lynn Saturday at the Community Build. For us, it was like old times working together on my last weekend as an employee -- and I was glad to work with them. They have treated me like family since I've been here, and I will never sufficiently express how much I will miss them.

Hey, Hey. I got my 'A'

Now that the end is near, and I have successfully completed my term here as an AmeriCorps with Habitat for Humanity - a friend gave me a wonderful gift, my very own AmeriCorps/Habitat shirt. I finally have my very own A.

What [I have|have I] been doing

As I mentioned previously, I was to make an entry to let you know to which organizations I have applied. Let's not tell either of my current employers, in the event that I have to lower my head and plead for employment (since James asked that oh so poignant question). Without further ado (cliché of the day), the list:

Doctors Without Borders
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
William J. Clinton Foundation
The Carter Center
Save the Children
Grameen Foundation USA
ACCION International
Geekcorps

and two more that I just submitted and don't want to jinx, yet. I think this may just be a partial listing because I think I've applied to a few more organizations than these. These jobs range from IT specialist to a camp coordinator in Darfur, Sudan. I feel confident stating that I am not uniquely qualified for any of them, but they all seemed like something to which I could have adjusted. And, I've only officially gotten rejections from two of them (I seem to recall).

Again, unless you are actually offering me a position, this is the best place to check the online, realtime status of mattfite's non-profit job search.

Three more...

The two Methodist builds and the Women Build kicked off this weekend. I believe that the Women had all of their walls up before the Methodists did, but let's not tell them that. It was a race to finish on Saturday because like most residents of Baton Rouge, our volunteers wanted to be home for the 2:30 kick-off for the LSU/Auburn matchup. The fan loyalty is something we have to plan into the weekends - so we were prepared to knock-off a bit early.

Veni, Vidi, I had my ass handed to me

The Thrivent build started on time, and after two build days, we're still more or less on schedule. Congratulations to the house leader as she's really earning her stripes. That means that this weekend we start three new houses in Hidden Cove.

I say we, but I don't really feel it. It's odd not being a hands-on part of the build, after helping with the previous ones since I arrived. Perhaps that's the reason why I resigned today. September 29 will be my last day at Habitat for Humanity of Greater Baton Rouge.

Oh, I'm certain that some (all three) may be curious 'what's next.' And, if I knew I would tell you. I will continue to seek a job with a non-profit or other organization that is trying to improve the quality of life for someone else, that can provide me with some way of finding something I do well, and using it to help others.

One year ago, I was working with a team of volunteers in Kauai building a dust wall to enclose a 150-house development during its construction. We were rushing to reinforce the wall because there were three tropical storms moving toward us. I was incensed at what I felt was a lack of coherent response at the time to the devastation of hurricane Katrina, and within another week - Hurricane Rita would begin to threaten Texas and Louisiana. One week later I determined that I had started something that I wasn't going to be able to finish anytime soon. I am thankful for that group of friends that I made and the new ones that welcomed me in Baton Rouge. Frankly, I'm grateful for everyone that I've met for this entire year. In one year, I began and ended my time with AmeriCorps, and I have completed the hardest year of my life, and the best year of my life.

I have no idea what the future holds. But I promise that I will spill it here first.

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Faith Court is done

So we finally dedicated Faith Court and turned the street over to the city. The mayor of Baton Rouge, Melvin L. "Kip" Holden, attended the ceremony where we presented him with a plaque commemorating the event. The family that donated the land to Habitat, and subsequently the city, also attended. The ceremony didn't last very long, but it was still very meaningful. After the event, the mayor stayed around to mingle with our staff before they went off to continue preparing for this weekend, when we start building the first of the remainder of the houses we will build this year.

Last night, I was asked to give an orientation to the ladies that will participate in our Women Build that begins next Saturday. Minutes before I was to attend, Lynn told me that last year there were more than 90 women who attended a similar reception, a point she neglected to tell me when she asked me to speak. Fortunately for them, and me, there were no more than 25 who attended. Not only was I asked to talk about construction, I was also the only male there - no pressure whatsoever. The Women Build is one of the builds we do that doesn't have a sole sponsor, but instead is developed of funds raised by functions like our Pink Toolbelt Bash, auctions, a raffle, and selling sponsorships by the square foot. For a mere $55, you too can sponsor one square foot of the house they will build.

Now that September has begun, there will be little rest until November. I'll do my best to keep this site updated as there should be more than a few upcoming photo ops.

Televised

The first Friday of every month, a local news affiliate, WAFB Channel 9, gives us a few minutes at 5:53 a.m. to plug what we're doing at the affiliate. Lynn has been our face on the news for a long time, but this month, our new executive director made his appearance to discuss the upcoming build season and give a report from our dedication at Faith Court. I'll plug here that although the photos are uncredited, they are mine and show some of our staff, AmeriCorps (both HFHI and *NCCC) as well as the house sponsor, Exxon Mobil. Enjoy.

Weekend Watch

It looks like news, but I think it's just an advertisement for a program this weekend. CNN will air a special report on world poverty and will feature three organizations trying to help in different ways.

The article illustrates an example of a Bangladeshi woman using microfinance to improve her family's well-being. Microfinance is a term used to describe providing small loans to individuals in developing nations. Often, the value of the loan is less than $200. These loans are intended to allow individuals and families to improve their economies by promoting entrepreneurial behavior. Additionally, there is no collateral required to grant one of the loans. An example of an institution that provides these types of loans is the Grameen Foundation. One barrier to providing this type of loan is that the transaction cost is such a significant percentage of the loan value. These costs can be mitigated by providing a larger loan to an individual, who will then work with the community to disperse it.

In addition to microfinance, the show will highlight the work of Heifer International, an organization that also embraces the principles of helping build economies for individuals and families. What distinguishes them from other organizations is that you can 'shop' through their catalog and give livestock, among other things. For example, for $250 you can donate a water buffalo to a farmer in Asia. Heifer International also believes in microeconomics, agroecology, animal well-being, gender equity and combating HIV.

Finally, President Clinton will discuss his organization's commitment to these principles.

Anyway, although I'm plugging all three of them, none of them have responded to my requests for employment. Regardless, I still think they're doing good work.

Another Dedication

Although we were scheduled to dedicate the last house on Faith Court, and the street itself today, we rescheduled at the last moment to only dedicate the house. This was mainly due to weather, as we had the threat of rain all day and the mayor's calendar wasn't suited for an outside, rainy event. Hopefully, next Tuesday we'll dedicate the street that Habitat built.

Even without all the pomp and circumstance we would have had, it was a very nice celebration. Although we had many of our new AmeriCorps, it was much like the celebrations we had when I first arrived, our hard-working staff, a sponsor and homeowners that we have really grown to love. It was a very special day.

Paul & Bernice are such warm and genuine people. The wonderful part of this story is one of the first houses that I worked on in Baton Rouge was for their daughter, and today we dedicated the house we built for them just three doors down. In fact, the first time I tried to take Bernice's photograph, at Omeisha's dedication, I had to beg her to be in the photo. Today wasn't much different in that regard. For me, today was a wonderful reminder of what I came here to do, and like all good stories, the end of this one came full circle back to Faith Court.

Katrina: One Year Later

While President Bush calls for a return to New Orleans and southern Mississippi, one gracious hotelier has provided a place for them to stay.

In honor of those that died, and those whose lives were immeasurably altered, I'm proud to announce the opening of the Beau Rivage casino and hotel. Nothing says "I'm a survivor" quite like opening a hotel and casino. "We scoff at natural disaster." Finally, Mississippi can begin recouping their tax base and those who never settled with the insurance providers on their houses have recourse. Let it ride...

I know, I know - I'm being naive and this message marks a return toward prosperity. They spent a lot of money in the community getting it up and running and the revenue provides a tax base. Now, tourists have a place to stay and eat when they come look at the devastation, or to swim in the ocean - sorry, I haven't quite beat the cynic in me down as much as I hoped. Perhaps it's because of this report by the U.S. Census Bureau that announced today that 12.6% Americans live in poverty and that 24.9% of black Americans live below the poverty threshold. Further, Mississippi's poverty, at 21.3% is the highest in the country. Louisiana is not far behind (currently number 2 (or 49 depending on your perspective)) at 19.8%.

The positive spin here is that these rates have remained relatively unchanged since 2004 and "marked the end of four consecutive years of increases in the poverty rate (2001-2004)."

Thoughts on a Rainy Day

Yesterday was a nice day for me, because the staff at the affiliate threw a surprise birthday party for me. At my last job, occasionally, I would take off on my birthday or even go out of town, just to avoid any celebration. But yesterday's celebration was nice and thoughtful. I really don't like being the center of spectacle, but these were people that were genuinely wishing me well and maybe now that I'm a bit more comfortable in my own skin, I can accept it as that.

Today, I don't feel as though there is anything new and interesting to report from Baton Rouge. That, and because it is my birthday are probably two of the reasons why I even read my horoscope. Now, I don't usually do that - it really is an indicator that I'm bored and I'm actually sorry to share it here. But, it seems poignant (to me and the approximately 6.6e9/12 other humans who share my zodiac sign).

"Today you could learn a lesson ... and that lesson is that positive collaboration can move mountains. You have power and passion, but if you can gather up one or two other people who share your passion, your power will grow exponentially. Do what it takes to make a healthy group dynamic -- focus on the big picture and encourage other people to keep personal issues out of things."

Ahhh, hope!

Which made me think to share a few other quotes I've collected over the past year. Ones that continue to inspire me, and give credit to those I've collected them from.

First, is the famous quote attributed to Margaret Mead:

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has"

Next, is Nelson Mandela's charge against poverty and challenge to the G8 to respond with action:

"Like slavery and apartheid, poverty is not natural. It is man-made and it can be overcome and eradicated by the actions of human beings. And overcoming poverty is not a gesture of charity. It is an act of justice. It is the protection of a fundamental human right, the right to dignity and a decent life. While poverty persists, there is no true freedom."

When I was young (real young) I remember the bitter disappointment when I learned that there wasn't really a Spider-Man, Superman, Justice League or Jedi/Starfleet Academy. I like talking about justice. I like watching "Who Wants to Be a Superhero". Hero is a word that often gets tossed about by publicists and media campaigns, but I really do get the same sense of exhilaration that I got when I was young learning and reading of real champions of justice and equality.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. stated when accepting his Nobel Peace Prize,

"I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. This is why right temporarily defeated is stronger than evil triumphant."

I won't even attempt to summarize it, but his Nobel lecture, "The Quest for Peace and Justice" is as appropriate now as it was then, as he describes poverty, war, nuclear threats and racial and religious discord. Again love - not the "sentimental and weak response which is little more than emotional bosh", but the love that is the "supreme unifying principle of life" plays a pivotal role in his challenge.

So, in my year of living from the heart, I want to thank Leigh Ann for posting this:

"Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can."

- John Wesley

and this:

"All men and women are born, live, suffer and die; what distinguishes us one from another is our dreams, whether they be dreams about worldly or unworldly things, and what we do to make them come about... We do not choose to be born. We do not choose our parents. We do not choose our historical epoch, the country of our birth, or the immediate circumstances of our upbringing. We do not, most of us, choose to die; nor do we choose the time and conditions of our death. But within this realm of choicelessness, we do choose how we live."

- Joseph Epstein

and to Scott for posting this:

"If we are to have peace on earth ... our loyalties must transcend our race, our tribe, our class, and our nation; and this means we must develop a world perspective. No individual can live alone, no nation can live alone, and as long as we try, the more we are going to have war in this world. We must either learn to live together as brothers or we are all going to perish together as fools."

Martin Luther King, Jr. 1967

and finally to Monica for reading this to me last year in front of a house in Kauai:

"People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.
If you are successful, you will win some unfaithful friends and some genuine enemies. Succeed anyway.
If you are honest and sincere people may deceive you. Be honest and sincere anyway.
What you spend years creating, others could destroy overnight. Create anyway.
If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous. Be happy anyway.
The good you do today, will often be forgotten. Do good anyway.
Give the best you have, and it will never be enough. Give your best anyway.
In the final analysis, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway."

Although these are credited to Mother Teresa (three Nobel laureates in one post), they are a modified version of Kent M. Keith's Paradoxical Commandments, the real inspiration for the title of this blog.

It's Almost September

In just over two weeks, we'll be back in full-swing. You may recall that we've produced twenty houses this year, with all but two houses occupied at Hidden Cove, and the dedication of the remaining two in the next week.

Next week, we will dedicate the last house on Faith Court as well as hold a dedication of the street itself, as we turn it over to the city. This is a big event because it marks the completion of a multi-year effort to develop a new street and the end of this fifteen house development. I'll provide a special report on the dedication of Faith Court next week. Next week also marks the end of my ten-months as an AmeriCorps with the Baton Rouge HfH affiliate.

This September we start the following:

• September 9 - one house sponsored by Thrivent.
• September 16 - four houses. Two sponsored by local Methodist churches, one Women's Build, and one community build - sponsored by our ReStore.
  
• September 23 - two houses sponsored by Formosa.
• September 30 - five house, two-week blitz, sponsored by Baptist churches.

October we slow down a bit. We finish all of the above and pick up one, one-week blitz sponsored by a local Presbyterian church. That will make thirteen total, and then we begin fifteen additional houses in November and December.

There's a lot of work to come, and it's a unique time here in Louisiana - the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina's impact in the region. This time last year, I was preparing to come visit a friend in New Orleans before I was to leave on a Habitat Global Village build. My flight and subsequently my plans were altered as a result, and here we are a year later. Come to think of it, United still owes me for the airfare. Anyway, there will be a lot of memorials and celebrations here in the next week, and I'm certain there will be a lot of reflection on the past year.

It's been an interesting year.