Where to Begin

Hi! I am back from my trip to DC. It was really great, and I'm not sure where to begin with recapping it here. For the class I am taking in accompaniment with the trip, we have to write six reflection journals, so I will probably put them up here as well, along with lots of pictures of all the cool things we got to do and people we met, including my wonderful team members. For now, a bunch of pictures!

- From the desk of Mrs. M

DC Check In

Just checking in with a few photos from the trip so far! Though we've been up until past midnight every night, I haven't had too much time to put a post together, but maybe one of these evenings I will. You can follow along on Instagram or twitter @mrssmcp, or check out the Texas Hunger Initiative Facebook page.

- From the desk of Mrs.M 

Flowers and Baltimore

I made it safely to Baltimore yesterday afternoon! I may have stayed up until 3:30 am, hanging out with old friends and new ones. I will write more about this little jaunt in Baltimore later, but I had to share this photo. This is Abigail's bouquet from our wedding party almost a year ago! I didn't even keep my flowers, so I was impressed to see hers still hanging on her wall. They still look quite beautiful, don't you think?

On to DC this afternoon!

-From the desk of Mrs.M

Posted with Blogsy

Off to Washington

I'm flying out this morning, to visit friends in Baltimore for a quick 24 hours, and then it's on to DC with the rest of the group! I'm not sure how frequently I will be posting during the trip, but I imagine you will be hearing from me. You can follow along on instagram in the meantime if you like, @mrssmcp.  :)

PS- How'd you like that Office finale? I thought it was perfect (minus baby abandonment). Absolutely stunning.

"There's a lot of beauty in ordinary things. Isn't that the point?" 

- From the desk of Mrs. M

Flyer

I'm so excited to share the flyer that the communications team created for the A Place at the Table viewing on June 10th! 

- From the desk of Mrs. M

What The Office Means to Me

Today the final episode of The Office will air. I have been saying for weeks, maybe months, probably since this was announced to be the final season, to my husband, "I'm going to cry. A lot." Regardless of what happens in the episode, if I'm left happy or sad (likely both, the show has a talent for doing that), there will be tears.

While I have not been a part of the show, the show has become a part of my life. I started watching it during my freshman year of undergrad, and fell in love fast. I started collecting the seasons for Christmas gifts, and I have watched them all many times. My senior year I lived alone and didn't have cable, so I watched a lot of The Office repeats; often I would just put it on and let it play while I was doing other things. And then when Kyle for basic training and began our adventure in the Army, I started watching it even more, most evenings. It was a comfort to me when I couldn't chat with Kyle as I usually would. Three years later, and on the verge of our second deployment, it is still my comfort show. It is reliably the one thing that will make me feel...better. The Office somehow means that it will be OK, that I will be OK. "It's more than a show, it is." Thursday evenings certainly won't be the same. Thank you for The Office.



- From the desk of Mrs. M

Week in Photos

kiddo books/ Breakfast in the Classroom data collection in Dallas/ Starbucks break/ accident

kiddo breakfast- data collection/ storm damange/ striped shoes/ tasty lunch

 run/ couch kitty/ <3 this movie/ smoothie dinner

box of old postcards and letters to Kyle/  also this/ DC trip shopping/ obsessed with a new rug

outfit planning/ baked fries/ much needed wine

lap kitty/ Cafe Cap/ internship visit/ Waco town

a favorite picture of husband/ Darwin/ Hux stretching out/ Hux likes Ann Taylor too

- From the desk of Mrs. M

Before Washington, DC

I wanted to get down some of my thoughts on hunger and food insecurity prior to this trip I am soon embarking on. For me, right now, hunger is abstract. I have read so much about it- news articles, books, reports, and studies. I have analyzed and organized data, watched documentaries and YouTube videos, talked about it, planned an event around the issue, and, I still don't know hunger. I went to an elementary school in Dallas and talked to kiddos, collecting data on school meals, and I think I got a little bit of a better idea, though I wouldn't say I know hunger. I know that there are 50 million food insecure Americans; I can tell you about the negative impact going to school hungry has on students; I can share with you some displeasing facts about how the government has addressed the issue by simply shifting funds from one federally funded food assistance program to another, but I still don't know hunger. I'm not even sure what would be required or what it would look like to know hunger. I think it can look like a lot of different things, and it is important to know each individual and each family might experience hunger differently from the next. Hunger is complex and tied in to issues of poverty, education, family planning, homelessness and health care, to name a few. As with any issue, we look at it through our own lens, formed from our values and experiences.

My lens is still a bit blurry; the picture is, too. I don't expect that from this trip alone they will become crystal clear, but I think it will help bring the image into better focus. I am hoping to learn more about policy and the perspective of the decision makers in Washington. I think it will be very revealing to volunteer with a couple groups, see hunger firsthand, and act on it. I'm very much looking forward to visiting with different advocacy organizations to hear more about their efforts. To be honest, it is kind of my dream to, at some point in my career, work in DC for a hunger organization or food policy group; something to lend my social work perspective and skills to the political arena. I just can't get this idea from the A Place at the Table book out of my head: "...what if we were to create a Department of Food Policy, as many experts have called for? Such a department, comprising federal and state agencies, would take over the distribution of the food discarded by America's food industry and carry out federal and state policies that provide incentives for supermarkets to open up in food deserts and regulate the advertising of junk food to children on the Internet and all media platforms, as it does with television," (p. 10). What if, eh? I would like to find out. 

- From the desk of Mrs. M

Welcome to the World

This is probably definitely a bit of a downer among all the cheery mothers day posts, but Why Poverty? posted this video; I hadn't seen it before and had to share. It is sad, and honestly terrifying to watch some of the scenes, but usually these important things are not easy to watch. Just try to imagine how difficult it is for those actually living these lives and experiencing this pain. Warning: there is nudity, blood, and babies being born, alive and dead.

- From the desk of Mrs. M

Crash

Kyle and I have not been having the best luck with these Texas roads lately. Yesterday, I was in Dallas with a small research group doing data collection, and we made it back through the rain to Waco, and I made it back driving to Temple from Waco, and as I was close to getting home, stopped behind several cars at a light, I was rear-ended. I should mention, I made it back to town driving through what I think is the worst rain storm I've driven through, and that's saying something considering PA weather and how much I commute down here. Alas, when you think you're out of the worst of it, the accident happens. What happened was the KCEN news van (on their way to report on the fallen Taco Bell sign) actually  ran into the car behind me, which then slammed into me. The van tried to break, but it's a big vehicle and the roads were slippery, and it just didn't make it in time. The car in between us could not be driven. My car had damage to the back bumper, but I could drive away after all was said and done. Everyone was very nice; the newsman and a reporter were friendly, and the pregnant driver of the car behind me and her passenger were nice too. The firemen came out, and then the police a little later, as there were several accidents around town due to the weather. The accident happened on a busy street through town, and several passers-by were waving as they saw the news van, haha. Everyone was OK.

Apparently there was a lot of hail here in Temple; it looked like there were piles of snow on the side of the road. When I got home I discovered the storm did some damage to the house. Texas weather can be quite intense.

hail at my door

- From the desk of Mrs. M