Vegetable oil and whacking
Man, it is completely unreal at how fast the time is flying. Already I'm on the verge of completing my first week as a VISTA, woo! Time flies when you're in this meeting, when you're writing, writing, writing, when you're out of the office....which I was yesterday.
My boss and I headed up to Greenhouse 17 in rural Lexington; we're going to be building three high tunnels for them, and the first one is under construction right now. GH17 is a domestic violence shelter who's basis is that being out in the fresh air and working the garden is part of the healing process, in addition to the other services they offer. Immediately upon arriving, I felt an ambiance of peace, like nothing could hurt me. It was beyond peaceful and beautiful. I could very easily picture countless women and families seeking solace there. While they have a rather abundant veggie garden, their forte is flowers, which has really worked in their favor: they've started a co-op-like project that has garnered a lot of success, in addition to making arrangements for weddings and other events in the area. Trust me, I'm looking them up when I get married- their arrangements are gorgeous!
Anyway, when I arrived at the work site, the hoops were already in place (I do have pictures of all of this, but they're saved on the GA camera, and they haven't made it to my GA blog yet, so please bear with me as I'll do my best to describe everything as best as I can with no pictures. Perhaps pictures will come later). The MAJOR challenge of the day was getting the ridge pole in place: the ridge pole is essentially a pole that runs through the top pieces of the hoop, in order to provide stability for the "roof" of the tunnel. The challenge associated with this is that the size of the hoop piece loops and the diameter of the ridge pole are pretty much the same size, so there's really no margin for error. Even if you're just a tad off, the pole won't fit. Using a ladder and a makeshift scaffold (a cattle trailer with some 2 x 4's running across it...yeah, we're super creative here), my boss and Jessica (a GH17 staff member) finagled this way and that way trying to get that frigging pole set up. The suggestion then came for a substance to grease the hoop pieces and the pole, so as to provide some more give and leverage. After debating some particular substances, a few GH17 people went off in search of the perfect salve. The contender: vegetable oil! Hey, it worked! Granted, it was still a challenge getting the darn thing through. That's when the whacking came in: using an old and larger piece of pipe to whack the hoops in either direction so as to "feed" the pole through. Yes, I used the term "whacking". It was whacking in every sense of the word, and it provided a heck of an arm workout. And could also be used as a future stress-relieving and aggression-release tactic, who knows?
We had a great work day, got a good bit finished, and overall I enjoyed my visit with GH17. Jessica was an absolute riot, and I was totally floored at the amount of help we received. People would come up to the work site, check in with Jessica, and then just jump right in to lend a hand, no questions, no prompting. Totally awesome! I've been told that that doesn't happen all the time, so the extra help was definitely appreciated. I'm really, really enjoying this part of my VISTA service: the traveling and connecting with our partner sites! :)
One lesson learned: A fair skinned person such as I is no match for a day-long outside adventure unprotected, even in the overcast breezy day we experienced yesterday. Having said that, if there are any temporary Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer vacancies in the area, please forward them on to me, as I can provide my own red nose :) Thank you all for reading. More adventures to come!!
My boss and I headed up to Greenhouse 17 in rural Lexington; we're going to be building three high tunnels for them, and the first one is under construction right now. GH17 is a domestic violence shelter who's basis is that being out in the fresh air and working the garden is part of the healing process, in addition to the other services they offer. Immediately upon arriving, I felt an ambiance of peace, like nothing could hurt me. It was beyond peaceful and beautiful. I could very easily picture countless women and families seeking solace there. While they have a rather abundant veggie garden, their forte is flowers, which has really worked in their favor: they've started a co-op-like project that has garnered a lot of success, in addition to making arrangements for weddings and other events in the area. Trust me, I'm looking them up when I get married- their arrangements are gorgeous!
Anyway, when I arrived at the work site, the hoops were already in place (I do have pictures of all of this, but they're saved on the GA camera, and they haven't made it to my GA blog yet, so please bear with me as I'll do my best to describe everything as best as I can with no pictures. Perhaps pictures will come later). The MAJOR challenge of the day was getting the ridge pole in place: the ridge pole is essentially a pole that runs through the top pieces of the hoop, in order to provide stability for the "roof" of the tunnel. The challenge associated with this is that the size of the hoop piece loops and the diameter of the ridge pole are pretty much the same size, so there's really no margin for error. Even if you're just a tad off, the pole won't fit. Using a ladder and a makeshift scaffold (a cattle trailer with some 2 x 4's running across it...yeah, we're super creative here), my boss and Jessica (a GH17 staff member) finagled this way and that way trying to get that frigging pole set up. The suggestion then came for a substance to grease the hoop pieces and the pole, so as to provide some more give and leverage. After debating some particular substances, a few GH17 people went off in search of the perfect salve. The contender: vegetable oil! Hey, it worked! Granted, it was still a challenge getting the darn thing through. That's when the whacking came in: using an old and larger piece of pipe to whack the hoops in either direction so as to "feed" the pole through. Yes, I used the term "whacking". It was whacking in every sense of the word, and it provided a heck of an arm workout. And could also be used as a future stress-relieving and aggression-release tactic, who knows?
We had a great work day, got a good bit finished, and overall I enjoyed my visit with GH17. Jessica was an absolute riot, and I was totally floored at the amount of help we received. People would come up to the work site, check in with Jessica, and then just jump right in to lend a hand, no questions, no prompting. Totally awesome! I've been told that that doesn't happen all the time, so the extra help was definitely appreciated. I'm really, really enjoying this part of my VISTA service: the traveling and connecting with our partner sites! :)
One lesson learned: A fair skinned person such as I is no match for a day-long outside adventure unprotected, even in the overcast breezy day we experienced yesterday. Having said that, if there are any temporary Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer vacancies in the area, please forward them on to me, as I can provide my own red nose :) Thank you all for reading. More adventures to come!!
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