Custard

I know, it's been a very long time since my last post and for my faithful blog followers *que crickets chirping* I apologize.  In my return, I debut the second entry in what I hope is a very long tradition of post about things they just don't have on the West Coast.

This time, the subject is custard.  I could be mistaken, maybe they do have it on the West Coast.  But I've never seen it, especially not the way they make it here.  Custard is a delectable type of ice cream popular in the Midwest.  In Milwaukee, it borders on obsession.  

Chocolate and butter pecan, my favorite is mint.

The difference between custard and standard ice cream is that custard has eggs somehow mixed in during the production.  I don't know too much more about it, other than it's creamier and everyone has their favorite place.  Mine is Leon's, home of the $1.27 cone.  How's THAT for simple living??

Things They Just Don't Have on the West Coast: Cicadas

Upon arriving in the Midwest, it became obvious to me that there are many things we have in this great country that are not universally experienced.  Some of these things are delightful.  Others are terrifying.  I'm going to start this series off with something that's terrifying: cicadas.

When I first stepped off the bus at our retreat center in Indiana the first thing that I noticed (other than the styffling heat and hellish humidity, but that's another post entirely) was a constant and defining droning.  To the uninformed listener, one might have mistaken this noise for a train, a generator, or perhaps an ancient and dying computer not unlike the one I left at home. 

Alas, this racket is simply the natural cry of the cicada, an insect that lives in the trees and does nothing but scream bloody murder all summer long.  Apparently this is normal here.  But to me, it freaks me out.  Not to mention these suckers are about two inches long.  Bugs just don't get that big on the West Coast, and when they do it's abnormal and should freak you out.  Here's a picture and Wikipedia link for good measure.  I can't wait for these suckers to die.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cicada

Where'd We Leave Off?

It's been a few weeks since I've posted on this blog and I know all my avid readers must be thoroughly disappointed with me (aka, my mother.)  However, I assure you this isn't out of laziness but rather because I have extremely busy.  My very limited access to technology is also not a helping factor; I'm writing this from the Milwaukee central library.  Beautiful building but not the fastest computers.  Also won't let me upload pictures, which is a bummer.

So, last I posted I was just about to board a plane for Indianapolis, where I was meeting my JVC coordinators and fellow volunteers for an orientation.  It's a good thing I happened to bump into this group of 50 or so people standing in baggage claim, because I had no idea where I was heading, how I was getting there, or how long I would be there.

After a flurry of introductions, few of which I remembered the first time, we boarded a bus for a quaint little retreat center in rural Indiana.  So rural in fact that we had no cell reception, although it didn't matter as they collected our phones at the beginning of the retreat.  After a few weeks of general informing, group bonding, and overall orientating, we were off to our respective locations, mine being in Milwaukee of course.  But more to come on that later...

Away I Go!

So my JVC experience begins!  I'm boarding a plane for Indianapolis in about nine hours (we have our orientation at a retreat center there.)  I will be out of contact for the next week or so, but appreciate your thoughts and prayers.  I'll update as soon as I'm settled!

A Note on Fundraising

One of my responsibilities as a Jesuit Volunteer is to raise money in order to support my placement.  There are a lot of costs associated with being a JV, including insurance, housing, transportation, and monthly stipends, and the organization relies heavily on generous donors in order to send us to serve.  I've included a link to my personal fundraising page below and I would be very thankful for all donations in any amounts:


http://jesuitvolunteers.myetap.org/fundraiser/smts/individual.do?participationRef=3926.0.362577444


Regardless of whether you make or donation or not, please continue to follow my blog and stay up to date on my adventures on the Fresh Coast! (I hear they call it that...)

The Countdown Begins

It's officially two weeks until I board my flight to Indianapolis for JVC orientation.  I'm more excited than anything else; the nerves haven't really set in yet.  There's still a lot to do: pack, fund-raise, visit friends and families, and not to mention drive the fourteen hours from Sac back up to Lynden.  Looking forward to a break from this heat (although if the current weather patterns hold up, Milwaukee is going to be pretty abysmal.)  Oh well, at least it will be something more permanent.  

Again, very excited!

First Post

Hello all!

This is my first of what I anticipate to be many posts about the next year.  I hope that you find my exploits and written renditions of them at least mildly entertaining and I'll be doing my best to update frequently as the year continues.

For those of you who don't know, I am spending the next year participating in Jesuit Volunteer Corps, a service program rather like AmeriCorps.  I'll be working at a non-profit in Milwaukee, WI and living with a community in the city along with a set of values.  Since this blog exists mostly to chronicle that adventure, we'll be hearing quite a lot more about that later!

I guess I'd best explain my rather obscure title for this blog.  It comes from my first and only knowledge of Milwaukee: a band's name and a beer company.  There's a little indie band called What Made Milwaukee Famous that I used to listen to back in my retail days.  The name itself comes from a song that plays off an old Schlitz slogan: "the beer that made Milwaukee famous" or something like that.  So, throw in a little JVC and social justice and we get What Made Milwaukee Social Justice.  Clever, I know.  *scoff* *scoff*

 A little good-old Americana, just to prove that I didn't make that up.