My first week in PA!

Howdy all! Well, I’m in the good ol’ city of Pittsburgh, PA now! Other than the fact it is extremely difficult to drive in Pittsburgh (I got lost five times getting here and all five times it was in Pittsburgh.) I love Pittsburgh! Thanks for those who warned me about the driving! It’s beautiful here! I can already tell this is going to be a HUGE growing experience for me!! The Pittsburgh Project is a very laid-back organization and you kind of have to go with the flow. When I got here I was hot and sweaty from driving in my car with the AC on only occasionally for 7 ½ hours. I was hoping for lots of structure because I didn’t know anyone or anything about what was going on. The structure I wanted was not there. It was overwhelming but I overcame it! (I didn’t cry!)

By the next (Wednesday) morning I was excited and ready to conquer the day! We have two weeks of training before real work begins. So, on Wednesday we went to a local park and did some group games for the staff to get to know each other more and instill into us the importance of communication. We split up into groups and my group was group five. I got to know my group really well. They laughed at me a lot, which is good because that means that I was being myself! J There’s a lot of summer staff here at the Pittsburgh Project. After dinner on Wednesday the girls took a trip into town and went to Station Square. They had this awesome light and fountain show where the lights and fountain was synchronized to music. We were totally being tourists! Then we went up the incline which is a little train that you can ride up Mount Washington. Once on top of the mountain you can see the sky line of Pittsburg perfectly. BEAUTIFUL! I still haven’t convinced myself that it’s more beautiful than Indy but who knows what can happen. While we were up there we got some ice cream and waited till the sun went down so we could see the sky line at night. Again, BEAUTIFUL! I took lots of pictures and made some new friends.

Then, Thursday, we went from door to door inviting people to the block party we are having tomorrow for the neighborhood and we picked up trash while doing it. It was fun… Pittsburgh houses are so different from houses in the mid-west. They are all so close together and weird looking but I’m excited to get to experience new things. After lunch the IT guy came around and hooked us all to the internet. YAY! Then I met with my supervisor for the first time (I told you the Pittsburgh Project was a very laid-back organization). For some reason though I got this feeling that my supervisor, Bethany, thinks of me as this really insecure girl who she has to apologize to all the time. I mean sure I have some insecurities but I'm not someone who is needy or anything like that. I talked to my roommates about it and they said that Bethany is naturally the type that apologizes for everything, so that made me feel better.

Yesterday was Friday and it was crazy! We had our block party and so the whole day was preparing for the party. I was in charge of games for elementary age students. The leaders of the Pittsburgh Project found out that I was a clown in my former life...lol... so they put me in charge of making balloon animals. I didn't bring my costume but I brought my nose so I was able to come up with an outfit that made me look like a clown. The kids loved it! My finger that I used to tie off the balloons is bruised, but hey, now I have a battle wound for Christ. After it was all over, Saleem, the leader of the Pittsburgh Project took all the summer staff out to a restaurant and paid for our bill! I had so much fun! I also met a guy who has never kissed before and says he is saving his first kiss for his wife. That is so rare these days and is to be admired. But just so you know, I still love those people in this world who have already been kissed :) All in all, this week has been a growing experience and an amazing journey of friendship, trust, peace, and joy!