So I have arrived in Tucson, Arizona! Finally, my wait is over and my MVS has officially started. I flew in from Goshen on Monday night and got picked up by two of my roommates, Amy & Ana and my leader Sue. I had already met Ana in San Antonio as both of us are the only first year VSers in Tucson this year. It was nice meeting Amy and Sue after talking on the phone and email throughout this past summer. Upon arrival at the VS house, I met my third roommate Audra. Currently it is only us four in the house as the fifth roommate and final woman Miriam is not coming until late September. All the girls are super swell and we are getting along quite well for it being only my third day in town. Both Amy and Audra are graduates of Goshen so it is no surprise we mesh well. The night I got in, I was initiated in not just the house but also our "community pool" as the girls took me swimming at a neighbor's pool who lives within walking distance and lets us use it anytime. I could not have asked for a better first night then cooling off in a sweet pool, under the stars while relaxing after a long day of traveling.
Thankfully, Sue and CHRPA gave me Tuesday off so I was able to sleep in a bit, get my room situated and unpack my two suitcases of clothes. Sue and her husband Mark then took me out to a Mexican lunch that was delicious and overly filling. We got to know each other a little better and I also got to learn some good things to know about VS and hear about our schedule and the really awesome things we'll be doing throughout this year. The rest of the afternoon I spent with Ana because she does not start work until next Monday. We drove into downtown, I saw some of University of Arizona's campus, went to a super cool bookstore, checked out a bike shop and walked around a main street called 4th Avenue. Just a step below NYC's 5th Avenue I'd like to think ha. I got a bike map and heard about some community rides that I am definitely interested in checking out. I am currently in the process of deciding if I want to ship my touring bike, or the single speed I built this summer. It's quite the pickle but I'm hoping to salt it soon.
Today, Wednesday, was my first day of work. It continues to feel strange that everything I do, or experience I will be doing or experiencing for an entire year. Being around the house, or being at work it is going to take a while for me to fully realize that this is not just a week long service project or a month long stay but a long term residency. At least long term to me, I do know a year is not actually not that long. But today was my first day at CHRPA and I met all the co-workers, majority of who are ex-VSers. Amy works at CHRPA too as well as Miriam when she comes, but me and Amy went over at 7 am in the morning to start the day. We start at 7 am in the summer to stay out of the heat a bit, but once fall/winter comes around we move back to 8 am. I my first day was with Dan, a former VSer and we spent all fixing a leaky roof and broken water cooler. It was hot, sweaty and tough work but I could not have had a better time. I drank probably 7 or 8 quarts of water, and it still seemed difficult to stay ahead of my thirst. It was a long first day, but I had a good time, learned a lot and also got to know Tucson better as we drive a lot to get to the houses and hardware stores.
Now, some things you may be wondering, as I did when I got here too. First, why is the blog called Ralphie in Tucson? Well, it all started in San Antonio when the leaders handed out name tags to help us all get to know each other and me, who likes to be unique and there being four Daniels, wanted to create, jokingly, a new name for myself. Hence, the name Ralphie was manifested. It was fun for the week as most people already knew my name to be Daniel, but some enjoyed the joke calling me Ralphie. Fast forward to today, my first day of work, and at CHRPA there are two Daniels, both who are older and have worked there longer so I was asked if there was something else I'd like to be called. And what did I say? Yep, Ralphie is what I said and so from now on I am known as Ralphie at CHRPA and other random spots around Tucson. We will just have to wait and see how far it spreads. Another thing you need to know is that a water cooler is what people use down here as make shift air conditioners. It takes water, soaks filters with it, then blows air through it, naturally cooling the air and then cooling a house. The downside to this fairly cool idea is that they mix water, metal and electricity together so they can be a bit dangerous while also being quite a high maintenance product.
I'm sure there are many other questions people may have about my time here, Tucson, my job or other things I can't even think of so please let me know what they are and I can answer them. I put my email and address over on the right below my picture and "About Me". If you have a quick question or just a small inquiry I'm pretty sure you can comment on this post, otherwise feel free to email me.
Ralphie in Tucson, spread the word.
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