getting ethical

I  consider myself a good person but I have to admit that my views may not always be the most professionally ethical. Today, I took a course on ethics as part of my internship. I signed up for it only to easily answer one of the points of learning in my internship guidelines. However, I actually learned a lot and it's made me think.

With my job, there are things that I do that may not violate policy but may be under scrutiny when looking at the ethical considerations. I think I'm gonna be better about it. I can justify what I do in a number of ways but when it boils down to it, it makes me less of an ethical worker. I could be all 'radical' and think, "Well, screw the man," or I can just keep my nose clean and do the right thing. Huh, and I thought I knew everything. :)

looking forward

I've been in a rut for a bit. That's part of my excuse for not updating my blog. The rut mainly consists of school and work and the rainy weather. However, we had a semi-dry weekend, I'm skipping school this week to watch the election coverage and I got caught up on my work last Thursday so here's a blog update.

Today, I had a great day, working out in the morning, getting a latte around noon at Powells while I read the latest Walking Dead comic, walking around the hood with Arturo and eating vegan milkshakes at Dick's. I also booked the Gearharts beach house for Christmas with Andrew since I'm not going back to Nebraska until my new nephew's born in January. The beach house is what I'm going to be the light at the end of this school quarter's tunnel.

What else?
I thought about going back to update October but for the most part, my new things consisted of new foods or new experiences at my internship. Here are the exceptions and/or the things that stood out.

On Saturday, October 6th, I went to the last night of the PLGFF in which they showed Cloudburst, a lesbian road trip movie with Olympia Dukakis. I can't recommend it enough. Afterwards, Andrew and I went to the afterparty at Crush which was fun but I liked the kickoff party better.

On Sunday the 7th, I watched the Timbers game at Long Haus on a projector in the back porch which has been nicely redone. Also, I joined Bastard and MLE at Ship's Ahoy afterwards for birthday drinks and good conversation.

On Wednesday the 10th, I woke up to the sound of scratching in the drywall behind my bed.

On Thursday the 11th, I met a new guy, the exterminator named Jason.

On Friday the 12th, Xbox and I had a great conversation about the house. Also, I went to see Margaret Cho who awesome as were her opening acts. So so so funny. I also went to Bare Bones bar with Jen, Ashes and Victory and later Justin and MLE. While we were there, we saw Chris Chandler from OCF. When I stopped him to tell him how much V and I enjoyed his library show at the last fair, he sat down with us and chatted for a while.

On Saturday the 13th, Andrew and I went to Brews for New Avenues. My old internship is really good at fundraising and they almost always incorporate booze into it. :)

On Sunday the 14th, I went to the Walking Dead season premiere at the Academy with Jen. It's a series that's really meant to be seen in the theater! Andrew and I also gave Dean a bath!

On Monday the 15th, I downloaded LibreOffice, a freeware version of Micro-shaft. I like it a lot more and I won't go back.

On Saturday the 20th, I took the day to work on my first paper for the term. I finished it in good time. Sophia made vegan chili so we ate that all day and, after I finished my paper, we played a new game which ended up being a D&D game. Yes, I have crossed that threshold.

On Sunday the 21st, Andrew and I went to see Blood Simple, the Cohen Bros first movie. It was great! We also went to Pastrygirl, the bakery/coffeeshop for the first time.

On Thursday the 25th, I biked to Clackamas for work for the first time since my accident (where the top pic comes from).

On Saturday the 27th, I DJ'ed Ashes' 33rd bday party. Since it was his 33rd, it was a Jesus/religious theme. I went as Lot's Wife (a salt shaker). I was one of only four or five people in costume but I still had fun.

On Sunday the 28th, Andrew and I went bar-hopping up Belmont during the afternoon, lightly drinking and snacking while playing cards. We ended up at Hob Nob Grille for the first time where I taught Andrew how to play Backgammon...and he beat me two times. It was also the 10th anniversary of my coming out. 10 years ago, my friend Joe directly asked me if I was gay and he was the first person I said yes to.

On Halloween, I didn't do a thing except go out to eat with Andrew. I really feel that I failed Halloween this year.

On Friday the 2nd, Ashes and I walked to a client's home on NW 23rd as part of my internship. I love working in the same building with him and getting to do breaks together. It was a lovely day for a walk too!

On Saturday the 3rd, Andrew and I went to the Republic downtown where I ordered a new dish. He's never been there and I haven't been there for years. We also went to Seven Psychopaths which sucked so hard.

And that's it. I'll try to update more often and to take more pictures.

an internship in three parts

Second week at my internship and I'm still loving it.

Since I'm going by bike again, I was able to bike in to the first time (pictured above). They have two bike rooms on the first floor of the building and more bike parking in the basement parking garage as well as several sets of racks out front. The commute was pretty much a straight shot from my house although I don't like biking over the Morrison Bridge that much due to the incline(s).

At my internship, I had three distinctly different contacts with three different clients of my supervisors. One lives in a nursing home and has been diagnosed with "Failure to Thrive." She's 90, unresponsive and only weighs 82lbs. It's jarring to hear the nursing home staff talk about her impending death.

The second person that we saw was a young woman with profound DD that lives in a group home. We were there mostly to check in on the group home and talk to the manager. We looked at the facilities and I realized that I knew one of the other residents there from my real job.

The third person was a client in her 60s who lived independently. She has some mental health issues so we bring her medication to her to take. I guess that will be one of my responsibilities soon which is cool by me.

It really interesting seeing all the variety that this job encompasses. I have to admit that I was out of my element with the nursing home situation but I think I can learn to be okay with it. It'll just take some more time and experience.

my day in court

I spent the morning in court for my internship as a learning experience. A client was in court and they wanted me to see what the trial would look like. I had the chance to see lawyers, witnesses, cross-examinations, pleas to the judge, and a settlement that left everyone satisfied. It was great!

saddling up once more

I haven't worn my bike hat since I crashed on Labor Day.

It's been so long since I've ridden my bike that it almost feels like a new thing. I've been running this week every direction to catch the bus (I'm soooooo tired of the bus) and it didn't really hurt my tailbone so I figured I could start riding again. It was a short ride but I felt great in doing it. I feel whole again.

What else?
My new thing was taking the HIPPA test at my internship today. It was silly but a nice set up for the test and a lot more educational as a course on information releases than I have ever had.

my professional placement

Earlier this year when I interviewed for my last internship, I was really nervous about the prospect of working in cubicle culture. The transitional house for homeless youth where I worked for my first internship was very relaxed as my current job can be. Today, I realized what I've been missing.

My internship is great! I'm so excited about it. Today, I went in with butterflies in my stomach and left with a song in my heart. It's a professional environment but the change from my current job is this place actually appears to be filled with professionals. It appears to be actually about making a difference instead of a dollar. Plus, my friend that got fired from my current job now works at my internship, just one floor above me. This is going to be awesome.

I met with the division's director today who's a cyclist. He was friendly and knowledgeable and easy to talk to for hours. Later on in the afternoon, I met with my supervisor who's also friendly and experienced in the job. She's got a lot for me to do but she seems willing to let me get my feet wet first before just throwing me in.

This year is going to be awesome after all. Yes, it will be busy and challenging but I think I've been missing having a good challenge lately. I think I'm up to it.

good clean fun

Six months ago, before I went to ZomBcon, I gave Dean a bath, he fell in the tub and he sustained a knee injury which was horrible for both of us. He hasn't had a bath since then and Sophia hasn't said that he stinks at all but he felt dirty to touch. Plus, I got in the mood to clean the house yesterday and quickly surmised that Dean was the dirtiest thing in the place so I took him to Pawsitively Clean for the first time today and Andrew was happy to join us!

I'm a dork but I loved this. If we were characters on an 80s or early 90s sit-com, footage of washing the dog and us laughing while he shook off would be in the opening credits montage. It was a good setup too for Dean. I think he'll be getting a bath more often now.

What else?
On Tuesday, 4/17, Andrew and I ate and drank at the Delta.


On Wednesday, 4/18, I had my interview with next years internship at the county. I think I'll be working in the public guardianship department. It should be interesting although I'm a little nervous about the overwhelming cubicle culture there.

Also, I went to my class and forgot to lock my bike up. I came out of a class after 2.5 hours to find that my bike was still there. That, my friends, is a miracle.
 
On Thursday, 4/19, Jen, Donald, Andrew and I went on our first double date to see Cabin in the Woods. I love Joss Whedon and I'm so glad that he's finally able to demonstrate his full talent, outside of the television realm.

On Friday, 4.20, I went to Salem again to help them interview a case manager to hire down there. While there, I got to eat vegan calamari. They didn't get the shape right but the texture and flavor was close to what I remember.

And today, after the dog bath, we went to a BBQ at Andrew's friends' house where I got to meet more of them. I have a lot of friends so I think that it's important that he does too. It fosters a good sense of independence for each of us.

gearhart

I'm on my third annual vacation to the beach for my birthday. This year, I chose Gearhart. Going to California last year was okay but unnecessary. This year, I also chose to bring along Andrew. I normally enjoy just having the time to myself but I have been having a lot of quality alone time at Muffin HQ due to Sophia's work/yoga schedule and I enjoy Andrew's company so I thought it'd be a good idea. So far, it has been.
\
It was a nice drive here from Portland and it was nice to have company for the ride. The beach house is really nice, especially for the price. It has two bedrooms (one for Dean) and a hot tub. It's also in a gated community. It's dark now so I can't see the view but I can tell that there are no houses between us and the beach.

For dinner, we went to El Mariachi, an over-the-top Mexican restaurant in Gearhart. It was nice but I don't think I'll be drawn back to going again.

What else?
This week has been filled with mediocre new things which is why I haven't been posting.

On Monday, my new thing was trying a new BBQ sauce. (See? Weak.)

On Tuesday, I tried the Vikings dog at Zach's Shack which was a mistake.

On Wednesday, I worked with a new person in my class on a in-class group project. I also talked to my teacher about my upcoming policy paper. She seemed to indicate that I could write it on problems with my work. The only problem I can foresee with that assignment is that she wants me to limit it to 10 pages. ;)

On Thursday, I went to the internship fair at PSU and met with two reps from different agencies. I'm looking at possibly interning with the county next year.

getting to know my laundry

My laundry has gone from being a mundane task to something slightly fascinating, interactive and horrifying.

In my new place, the laundry pipe in the back doesn't drain properly.  Therefore, you have to babysit the laundry.  Yesterday, I got trained in how to do the laundry so today I did it on my own.  Since the pipe doesn't drain, you have to leave the lid open on the washing machine.  When it goes for the spin cycle, you take the tube from the back of the machine and put it in the bathtub and close the lid.  Gross water spews out quickly for a few minutes.  When it's done, you have to open the lid back up and it goes through the rinse cycle.  Again, you have to put the tube in the tub during the spin cycle, close the lid and let the slightly less gross water spew out.  Dean threw up a little bit on my quilt this morning so I had to wash the quilt.  Dean is no longer allowed to lay on the quilt since I believe he is primarily responsible for the wash water looking as dirty as it does in the above picture.

Right now, it's a fascinating process but I feel that I may grow tired of it before too long and I'll probably just advocate for the pipe to get cleaned out so laundry can again become a boring task.

What else?
I went to case manager Dave's house today from my internship.  His last day of work was this past Friday.  It was nice to see everyone again but it's also sad to hear that people aren't exactly happy with the way things are being run there right now.

day of change

 It's been a busy month for me so my blog is not updated.  Rest assured, I did at least one new thing every day.  However, between school and my internship ending, moving, getting sick and just trying to be social, the blog's taken a backseat.  I'm going to say that I will go back and update the days that I've missed so far but I'm not 100% positive about that.  It shouldn't be a problem though since most of the things that were keeping me from updating it regularly are no longer an issue.

Today was my last day at my internship.  I have to say that I was looking forward to it being over just because I want to be able to narrow my focus to my work instead of being scattered between school, work and internship.  However, I wasn't looking forward to today.  It was hard to say goodbye to everyone.  Turnover at my internship is particularly high right now so me leaving was just another blow to certain people, youth and staff members.  It was particularly difficult to say goodbye to two of the female youth who I have enjoyed talking to and also to Dave.  I hope to maintain contact with him through facebook and his potlucks though.

They bought Voodoo Donuts for me today as a going-away present and also made me a card which was very sweet.  Plus, for the first time, I got Zee.  Zee used to be an Mr Incredible doll but Zee got a makeover and now has a gender neutral pronoun.  Zee is a trophy of sorts for one of the Assertive Engagement Specialists who have made some good accomplishments or who have had a rough time throughout the past week.  Today was the first time I've got to hold Zee and squeeze his tummy so he could say, "I fight for truth and justice!"

Then, as if my last day at my internship wasn't enough, I had to pack up everything at Long Haus for my transition to Muffin HQ.  I slept at Muffin HQ last night in an effort to propel my move forward more quickly.  We're still working on painting the living room (after we got one of the walls fixed) so Dean has to stay behind.  I figured I should be able to bring him there this weekend.  I cleaned my room and bathroom thoroughly tonight because their new roommate is moving in tomorrow.  I was up til 12:30pm, scrubbing the damn toilet.  That's how I roll on a Friday night.

It was sad but I had a great talk with Ashes about what this means and the significance of me moving.  It made me feel a lot better about it.  I love them all dearly and I will miss living with them but I feel that this move will help me grow up some.  We'll see.

gimme shelter

 

My world was expanded a little today as I got a different viewpoint on local resources for homeless youth today.  First, my supervisor and Iattended the coaltion to end homelessness.  I don't think that they actually believe that they're going to end homelessness though.  It should be called the coalition to reduce homelessness but that doesn't sound as ambitious.  However, it is more practical as I learned that the budget for housing assistance in Portland is being reduced by more than 50% over the next three years.

On the more practical side of confronting the issue, I went to see the homeless youth shelters today.  Since I intern at a transitional housing project, seeing the shelters was very informative.  I saw the steps (almost) all of the youth take before entering trans housing.  They have some fundamental steps to go through first.  There's a lot of youth who aren't able to make those steps.  It makes me even more proud of all of the youth I supervise in Trans Housing because they've come so far.

What else?

In between my coalition meeting and my shelter tour, I had an hour and a half to kill downtown.  I walked NW 23rd a bit and then headed to Couch Park just to chill out.  It's been a gorgeous day weather-wise so it was fabulous for a chance to sit in the sun while little dogs played around me.

I also walked up to the Firefighters Memorial Park for the first time.  It's a nice little place to sit in the middle of so much downtown traffic.

nature of the business

Today I went to the Bridgeport Brewery for the fanciest going-away party I've ever seen for one of the staff of my internship.  I don't interact with him much but he's been at the agency for 12 years which is something to recognize because it's very rare.  It's very common in this industry to have high turnover.  Social services is impacted by the bad job market but it seems like people can't stay in the same field for very often.  I thought my regular job was an oddity in that it has relatively high turnover for the case manager position.  However, in the eight months I have been at my internship, I have seen four case managers leave and two more just announced their impending exit.  That's bad turnover even by my job's standards.

Well, at least I know that if things ever go sour with my current job, I can always turn to my internship for employment opportunities.

What else?
I had to give a speech about two of my clients at my job today in recognition of their 25 and 35 years of service at the company. It went well but one of the guys farted a really long fart after he stood up when they called his name.  I was too busy getting ready to talk about him and didn't notice but he was right in front of the president of the company when he did this.  Also my supervisor who was across the room heard it.  Oh well, that's the nature of my job too.

dave's world

Today I crossed the boundaries of my internship into friendships.  I've went out with my co-workers at my internship before but it's always been for a work-related outing.  It's either been holiday parties or retreats.  However, today, it got personal.

Dave was hosting his monthly potluck at his house for his family friends and decided to invite people from his work for the first time.  He invited all of us supervisors from his house but only three of us showed up and one brought her partner.  Other than that, there was Dave and his partner and their two kids and maybe three other couples with four kids divided up between them.  The people were all really cool.  One of the young children identified as he and had a boy's name but wore frilly apron and ruby slippers.

Dave's house is pretty cool too with a beautiful garden and a great chicken run for his chickens.  It's also nicely painted.  Since I've been working on painting with Sophia, I've been very fascinated by people's painting scheme.  It was very cozy and inviting.  Also, at the end of the potluck, the kids put on a performance and we all got an instrument to play with them.  It was sweet and wholesome and fun.  I kind of need more of that in my life.

vegan pizza month

This whole immersion plan thing that Sophia and I came up with is taking it's toll on me. Salad was a nice change but, while I love Reubens, I ate a lot of them and I can feel the toll it has had on my body.  Fortunately, I like pizza and usually prefer vegan pizza so this month is working for my appetite if not my body.

On Monday, I hit pizza for lunch and dinner.  Hot Lips for lunch was the better than Rudy's for dinner.  Today, I hit Give Pizza a Chance for lunch and Sizzle Pie for dinner.  This is my 2nd time at Give Pizza a Chance and the first time I've eaten there.  Their deep dish Garden Vegan was amazing.  It was also an added bonus that Sophia just happened to be going there at the same time so we got to do lunch together.  Sizzle Pie had a lot of options but they were all mediocre.  One nice thing about the place was the server just dropped off an extra two slices at our table with my two ordered slices. One had meat on it but the other was vegetarian.  I put the meat slice at the counter by the window.  Later on, I saw a couple sit there and hand the meat slice back to the waiter.  The waiter then took it and offered it to someone at the end of the counter who was stoked to get it.

I'll probably try Sizzle Pie again because I need to get their signature fried egg on a pizza slice still. They also have a vegan breakfast slice called Drugs Benedict.  Oof, I'm full just thinking about it.

What else?
I met an awesome new on-call staff member today at my internship.  Actually, I was working with two relatively new on-call staff members in the afternoon and it dawned on me that I was the person with the most clout and seniority there at the moment.  That's an odd position for an intern to be in.

We also watched the Tsunami footage from Japan today at my internship.  I can't imagine what that would be like.  In the footage, they showed houses on fire caught up in the flow, moving along the countryside.  Shit, many people there survived the earthquake just to face a tsunami, flooding, fires and a potential nuclear crisis.  Ashes made a good point tonight though.  An 8.9 earthquake is damn powerful and it hit a heavily populated area.  Yet, the death toll was minimal which is due to their earthquake-sound structures.  Thank goodness for good engineers.

jolly good fun

Ah, I'm alive again.  I love a good group ride, especially one that's costumed (and costumed well at that!).  Today was the first tweed ride of the year.  Yes, there is another.  This was the Virtuous Ride.  I think what made it Virtuous is the fact that it stopped at a tea shoppe.  Next month is the Vice Ride which will probably end up at a pub.

Martin, Tim and I continued the tradition of brunching at Bijou Cafe before the ride.  Unfortunately, Sophia couldn't join us until later due to morning commitments.  I'm going to be glad for the vice ride just because it doesn't meet up until 4pm.  I did enjoy this ride though.  My favorite things were of course the costumes but also the cart pictured above with the dog in it.  She was such a patient dog.  I wish Dean could ride like that.  Maybe one day...  Also, there were a lot more kids this year which was cool to see.  Also, the pictures!  Martin got a great pic of us which you can see here.

I'm kind of disappointed that we didn't stick with the ride longer but the problem with a lot of these mass rides is that they end up parking for way too long of a wait and I wanna ride dammit.  :)  We bailed after the first stop.  Hopefully the Vice ride will be smoother running (or maybe we'll get tipsy and won't mind hanging out.)

What else?
I volunteered for a wine auction for my internship.  I just really wanted a new thing and, if I had realized it was on the same day as my tweed ride when I signed up months ago, I would have thought better of it.  It was okay but the idea of a wine auction carries a lot more prestige than my actual experience did.  I didn't feel up to wearing a tux so I volunteered to do cleanup.  That meant that I worked with two other people who were around my age and 12 or so high school kids.  These aren't kids from the program either.  They're younger and don't really have a lot invested in pitching in.  I kind of felt like I was babysitting.  I'm not sure that I'll do it again next year, even if I did get some free wine glasses this year.

how the pros do it

After writing my paper last week on my internship and my first mental health exam, I felt a renewed sense of purpose in my internship.  Today, I felt like I turned a new path too.  I sat in on a case manager doing a MH exam with a new youth.  It was a great opportunity to learn from people in the field who have been doing the work.  Um, I kind of feel like this is what I was supposed to be doing from the beginning.  Plus, I got to meet a new-to-me coworker.  I didn't have my regular work partner so I got a new guy.  I was less than impressed and then he copped an attitude minutes before he was going to leave.  Well, screw him.  First off, he was wrong, not only in the approach that he took with me but also in what he was pissed at me for.  Second, I'm not there to do that job or for him to train.  I got bigger fish to fry (and that's not a statement reflective of the little one pictured above.  He's just a fish at my internship that I interact with weekly and he was following me around.  Plus, it made a nice statement to tie in the picture.)

assessing their situation

This quarter, I have felt a little disappointed with my internship.  I’ve enjoyed the retreat and such but I feel like I’m missing more this time.  I can hold down the house and make sure the day-to-day operations run smoothly but some of my classmates are giving presentations at their agency.  That may be setting the bar high but I don’t want to completely waste this opportunity.  Although, today I felt like I was getting my money’s worth.

I have been worried for the past several weeks about my next writing assignment which revolves around me doing a mental health assessment.  Two Fridays ago, I sat in on a new client’s initial assessment and, while I did appreciate the opportunity, it isn’t the same thing.  I have been trying to schedule time to sit in on an MH assessment and it keeps not working out.  Out of desperation, I agreed to do a mock assessment with a housing resident where she gave me factual information but the assessment would never be official.

Even as a mock interview, there were still some difficult questions, particularly the ones about abuse and self-harm, that I wanted to see someone ask before I went about it on my own.  However, my supervisor pretty much just pushed me off the high dive and said going for it would be the only way I would learn because you’ve just got to experience it.

I owe her a debt of gratitude (what an odd phrase) though because it totally worked.  It was probably the best interview I had ever done.  I sympathized but didn’t lead or blame.  I listened and asked pertinent questions.  I returned to the question of self-harm after I almost forgot it but still managed to end the interview on a positive and inspirational note. And I completed a successful eco-map!  Go me!

Not only am I thrilled about this because it’s been weighing so heavily on me and it’s good to have it done but I think I did a great job AND it’s the last thing I really have to do before my birthday vacation.  I’m ready now; ready to assess people, ready to finish this assignment, ready for vacation and ready to relax.

What else?

I got another new phone.  Actually, this is the third droid they sent me.  After the green screen, they sent me a ‘like new’ droid that took 30 seconds to load every time you hit the home screen button or back button.  Then, they sent me one that quickly got stuck in a reset loop.  Now, it looks like they may have gotten it right.  Damn, if they didn’t though, I’m going to pretty much insist on a new phone or take all my business from Verizon.

I tried the vegetarian squid balls.  They tasted like $1.69.

the failing

When I got to my internship today, I found out the one client I had on my caseload was leaving.  It's hard not to take that personally.  I know he has a lot of issues which I can't go into here but I can't help but think that I could have done more if I had been there more often.  However, after expressing my feelings to friends and co-workers (obviously omitting any identifying details involving the client), I became more reassured that these things happen, even if the program is really working.  It's just a shame because it can't help but have a negative impact on the client.  Sigh, this is why retail was easier (but I still wouldn't go back).

What else?
It's Reuben month!  Yay!  Sophia and I began at Hedge House.  We still need to get the blog up and running but we're doing it!

I also met a new repair guy (also named Chris) at my internship today who was pretty damn awesome.  I hope we have more things that break down there (just not people).

retreat

Today, I ran around in the sun, played games with fun people and had my first game of ultimate frisbee.  And I got paid for it.  It's a good day to be a Topher.

I don't normally think much about team building exercises because I'm a cynic.  However, my internship retreat today was set up perfect for just that.  Dave picked me up today and we went to Camp Angelos, a retreat camp in the gorge.  Every staff person (except for the on-calls) for the agency were there.  We began the day playing games.  It felt a little forced but it was a good time to chit-chat.  After that, we had an hour or two of planning for the future of the agency and what we want to see happen in five years.  Then, we did challenges in assigned groups which sort of worked for team building but then we were just left on our own.

I stuck close to the people I work with most often but then started to stretch my social capacity and played 'Catch Phrase' with 14 or so other people in the sun in a field.  It was a fun game but, when they declared they were playing Ultimate Frisbee, I chose to switch to something a lot more active.  This was my first game of Catch Phrase and first game of Ultimate Frisbee.  The Frisbee was awesome!  We played six on six.  Dave, Sarah, Tim, Bryce, Austin and I were on the same team.  We ran around for around 45 minutes, getting the adrenaline flowing and working together; team building.  It worked.  It was fabulous.

unrestrainedly

I've had the best of intentions to update my blog this week but it hasn't happened.  I'm not satisfied with writing half-ass crap just to get something out there so I'm gonna sum it up quick and then write about tonight.

On Tuesday, Jan 11, I ate at Sweet Pea Bakery for the 1st time.  I've been wearing a Sweet Pea shirt around for a while and I wanted tea so I figured I could check out the place.  It was okay.  It had some amazing looking gluten-free options.

On Wednesday, Jan 12, I used a new pull-up bar at the PSU gym.  I also think I tweaked my right arm funny.  I may need acupuncture for it.

On Thursday, Jan 13, I worked my internship.  I normally don't do Thursdays but it worked out better with everyone's schedule.  I also worked a late (and long) shift: 11am-8pm.  I haven't had to work an evening in years since I gave up my retail job.  I love doing new things but I like getting off when it's still light out.  I did get the opportunity to sit through a house meeting at the internship.  It was okay but I realized that, if I had to choose a focus between working with adults with DD or working with homeless youth, I'd definitely pick adults with DD.  Luckily, that's what I'm doing on a permanent basis.  It was good affirmation.

On Friday Jan 14, I also had one of the most disturbing encounters with one of my favorite clients.  This guy has been on an awesome streak and out of nowhere, he blows up.  He has never done this before and I had no clue what to do.  I'm used to working with a handful of folks that will freak out, throw things or get violent with others but this guy just had some serious issues with delusions that I was completely unequipped to handle.  Fortunately his mom happened to be there and was able to calm him down enough to get him home.  She also seemed thrown off by his behavior so I don't feel like such a novice but I'm still frightened for the guy.

Also on Friday, I went to a new Lebanese place Bete-Lukas for Bastard's last day in town until March.  I'm not big on spicy food so I really enjoyed the food here.  I could eat everything without having to worry about the payback in the morning.  We also checked out a different bar, North.  Yep, won't be going back. 

Tonight, though, tonight was something special.  It wasn't going to be.  I wasn't sure what I was going to do but I didn't expect this.  Sometime before 5, Justin called and said he could come pick me up if I wanted to go to Bunk Bar and Sandwiches with Sophia, Jennifer and him.  I abandoned all other intentions and decided to go along for the ride, wherever it would take me.

Bunk was okay.  The sandwich was pretty damn good but it was a little too pricey.  The place was also nice with a friendly atmosphere.  I'm pretty sure that it used to be the old Q Center though.

After Bunk, we went to the Star Bar.  It started off being really chill.  Emily joined us and we were able to just sit back and chill.  After an hour or so though, it turned into a hot spot and got loud and obnoxious.  I was ready to bail on the night there and then but that would have meant walking all the way back to my house or taking odd bus routes.

I decided to stick it out as Emily, Jennifer, Justin and I wandered around, looking for another acceptable watering hole.  We stumbled upon Ladd's Inn.  It's a tiny dive bar that I bike by a lot but never really think about visiting.  However, it's perfect.  I love this place.  The drinks were cheap, big and stiff and they had karaoke and a fun KJ.

After closing down Ladd's, we wandered over to Whiffies for some pies.  It was a blustery night but not cold.  Sitting on a picnic bench on a temperate January late night with good friends eating okay pies was just perfect.  I didn't expect this at all tonight and I'm really glad that I went in the first place and that I didn't bail early.  It was a great night.  So far, 2011 has produced some awesome Saturdays for me!