Tommorrow is my big day

Finally, it looks like I will begin work again. tommorrow is our first day at our local education project here in charleston, SC. It appears as though my task will be to combat an obesity problem by optimizing the PE/PT program for middle school students here in North Charleston. Well, actually, I am going to be creating the curriculum, because they strangely enough, dont have one. I am pretty excited...feeling similar to the way Andrew probably felt when he first started teaching (andrewinafrica.blogspot.com).

A lot of people are super ticked that NCCC might be pushed to the wayside...and they are all voicing their opinions...so maybe there is a future yet. Regardless, I am going to be able to finish my term here in June. then, hopefully I will make the cut to be a Team Leader, which guarantees I can work until December. Then, if the budget stands, thats when Charleston runs out of money...so dont worry, i am good for somewhile still. Then, if all else falls through I can work the January-April burn window here in the southeast as a nomadic fire fighter (even though its really more of fire starter position).

Last night I benched 155, and I did it 3 times! thats a record for me, and I still cant get over how much weight it looked like. Thats even after doing 135 8 times and then 145 6 times. Yes, its true, I am a beast. I think the new strength is a combination of the power i get from my mohawk and the fact that i now own an ax for chopping wood.

I found a bulldozer in the woods today.

It appears as though I will be in Charlotte for the weekend of March 10th...Ben is getting married and there is a party at the house? I'm bringing some teammates with, so it should be a good time.

be great
--WiLL DAlen "Leroi"

no more NCCC?

Well, we got some bad news monday. Apparently Bush's new budget doesnt allow for funding for NCCC anymore, so all 5 campuses will be closing down in the new fiscal year. A lot of people are ticked about this, so there is still some chance that the uproar will change some people's minds...if you know a senator now is the time to call him/her. This means that I will be able to still finish out my term of service, but then if I become a team leader, I will likely only get to do that a half year before the shutdown. NCCC has been around for 13 years now, so its going to be really hard on all the organization that bank on support from us. Especially hard hit will be all the habitat for humanity chapters, the nature conservancy throughout the country, and all the schools in the carolinas that depend on our work to help their kids. The department of natural resources will lose all the trail work we do thoughout the country, not to mention who is going to provide over 200 volunteers to work 12 hour days for weeks at a time next time a major disaster happens. All around it sucks.

As for how immediate things are going, we are almost done with our project here in GA. Today was supposed to be our last burn, but the rain came...so we arent burning. Tommorrow we go to North Ga to do some planting for a few days before heading back in Charleston, SC. We just got back from AL a few days ago, burning some pitcher plant bogs there. I was able to act as a squad boss for a crew while we there, working on my task book for my fire fighter type 1 (fft1). Once I finish the task book, I will be able to be a squad boss, and my pay would go up should I decide to stay in presacribed fire/wildfire.

Also, I am now officailly famous, as I was on the radio yesterday talking about AmeriCorps. It was pretty neat to here myself.

Soon, it looks like I will get a chance to come back to charlotte for a weekend...and maybe party it up in the party house.

much love to all my friends and family out there. --DAlen (aka WiLL, aka Leeroy)