Disaster Recovery Center #41

     Well folks, good news.  Ocean 7 has officially found permanent work, and it feels great! We are now working at DRC 41 located in Stated Island.  Interestingly enough this DRC is seeing about 160 people every day, which means there is a lot to get done and learn at our new DRC.  We even got reunited with some of our FEMA Family from DRC 9, Leslie and Ricardo. We are glad to be back working with them.  What have we been doing? A mixture of things really.  The first day there I shadowed a reservist and helped him out with the cases.  The next day I learned how to do RIMS (which honestly I forget what it stands for), and it's the system they use to track the who what when where and why in the DRC.  I basically entered in the computer the applicants name and information, the time they came and left and also what they did there/what agencies they visited.  Then the next few days I did reception, which was quite overwhelming since there are just so many people to check in.  I honestly did not think there were any DRC's left that still had this many people coming every day.  It reminds me of why I'm here and I try to help as much as I can.  I am excited to get the chance to do my own casework again.
     This weekend I explored the streets of Manhattan with a few of my roommates and teammates, Nateanna and Casey. We also bought tickets to see a comedy show which we will be attending next weekend.  We went to Central Park in search for Balto, as well as for a tattoo shoppe in search for my friends to get tattoos.  Last weekend I went to Chinatown for the New Years and also went to see the 9/11 Memorial.  In other news, we are officially below our food budget which is pretty impressive for living in New York with very hungry teammates.  A FEMA Corps team from my Unit (Ocean) has been deployed to Mississippi in response to the tornadoes there, but as for Ocean 7 we are pretty sure we are staying put. We had a meeting with our Unit Leader named Justin who came up here to check on us and his other teams.  As for schedule, we are now leaving for work late morning! 9 AM we head to the van and get to Staten Island at around 10, and then leave around 4:30.  I have been cooking some cool new things recently, including fried rice the other day.  It was a success, although I forgot to add the tofu. Next time I suppose.  We are continuing to watch movies as a team and bond with board games.  Our newest game is called "Werewolves", which is a game very similar to Mafia but WAY cooler and a bit more complicated.
I hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

BALTO

the Freedom Tower

9/11 memorial

Chinese New Year Parade

Can't wait to see how this movie turns out!

DRC's and Little Russia.

     Hello all.  I have had an interesting week here in NY.  My team has been traveling to Coney Island to support various DRC's or Disaster Recovery Centers.  Since there is not enough work or space for the entire team to be at one Center at one time, we have split up the team into 4 different DRC's.  We have been rotating which DRC's we go to and the people that we work with.  For the most part I have been working at a community center in Little Russia.  During my lunch break I have taken the opportunity to explore Little Russia and try some new foods and snacks, as well as buying some cool looking socks.  Exciting!  I have also gotten to know a few of the FEMA reservists during our down time.  They are some pretty cool people working for FEMA. Many of them speak a different language. It's fascinating to hear their stories and experiences as well as them speaking their first language. 
     More exciting news is that we are now not just shadowing the specialists, but rather taking on our own cases, with help when needed.  I am more confident navigating myself around the system and am getting a better sense of how to help the applicants.  I am really proud of myself for finally being able to do case work by myself! I was a little nervous at first but I have been getting better and better!  I have been able to assist many applicants with going through the appeal process for FEMA and referring them to the right place to get to the next step in the process.  We are being treated as more of specialists instead of trainees.  I am currently stationed at a Yacht Club where there is an injured swan outside, and we are waiting for the little guy (well actually big guy) to be picked up and hopefully get some medical attention. 

The Swan, or Mr. Swanny as I called him.

Little Russia.

     I am sure you all have heard of the recent tornados in Mississippi.  As for FEMA Corps deploying there, we have gotten no word about that yet.  Whatever happens with Ocean 7, we will be ready to serve.  I am often thinking of how crazy it is that our lives and work are dependent upon disasters.  Although it's never something we want, we are happy to be part of the response and recovery efforts. Part of me wants to go to Mississippi because even though there is still a lot to do here in New York, it no longer feels like a disaster anymore in the sense that DRC's are closing because not enough people are coming in.  Most are conglomerating tomorrow.  However if we do get sent to Mississippi we might not have the chance to do our own case work.   As for the weather here in New York, it snowed last weekend so it's been pretty chilly, however I heard that this is a warm winter compared to previous winters.  I do really miss my California summers!  Can't wait to go back and get a sunburn! (Just kidding mom, I know how important sunscreen is).
     Oh by the way, Happy (belated) Valentines Day! I don't really celebrate this holiday, but perhaps some of you readers do.  I am usually in Mexico at Rancho Santa Marta each Valentines Day.
Oh and I got a free month of Hulu Plus and I am trying to catch up on Bones!
It is also now a weekly tradition for my roomates and I to watch "American Idol".  We are hoping that a girl wins this year, and I've already got my heart set on Angela. 

Okay! TTFN!
    

I was reading one of my favorite books today, here's a passage:

Miss Twiggley found out
Something wonderful, too
When emergencies come
You don't think about you

You help all you can
And you never ask why
Then the first thing you know
You forget to be shy

-Miss Twiggley's Tree

You can listen to the whole story here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_EkqiOh0Yc