Method to Madness

My internship is officially over. I did it!! The event I helped plan for was a success and we had a surplus of food!!!

Getting ready for the event:


So much dusting!

Laura!


We found a scandalous drawing on the back of one of the pieces of art:


Here's the set up of food:


More food:


And MORE FOOD:


We even had wine:


However, I definitely didn't agree with serving wine at a place that helps people who are recovering from addictions. While these people weren't at our weekend of events, I still don't believe we should have served alcohol.

Tim Wildsmith was one of the musicians that sang at our re-branding event:


This is Christian, my boss, dropping Mosaic's new name ==> inCommon Community Development


Sitting down after a crazy night:


Taking a break from all the hard work:


Just Rest partnered with Mosaic for an event on Saturday.



There are two massive slides in downtown Omaha. The lines for these slides are usually filled with kids and you have to slide down using wax paper, cardboard, etc. This is my friend, Mitch, getting some major air on the slide:


I tried baking a dark chocolate creme pie. I spilled part of it in the oven and ended up with an intense burn on my arm. At least I tried. One of my friends told me it tasted like bacon...


I went to the Grotto of Redemption in West Bend, Iowa with Liz and her family!




Jesus and myself.



Garden of Gethsemane


So many rocks


My friend, Lydia, took me to the Farmer's Market in Omaha! It was filled with food...


...and music!


Night photography on the way to Lincoln, NE


A craft I made with some little people!


Flowers and veggies from the garden I've helped out with the summer:




I could definitely relate my summer experience in Omaha to this garden.

More to come on this :)

Hasta Luego,

Meredith

Starting Now

Stephen Christian, the lead singer of Anberlin, came through Omaha and played some sweet acoustic music at Word Made Flesh!


He played with Micah Tawlks:


Stephen and I---We both have our noses pierced!!


This is my friend, Lydia!! I work with her at Mosaic!! We actually went out to eat tonight and had some amazing GREEK food!!

A few of the interns and Sami have been painting some of Mosaic--I used a friend's lens to capture the mess we've created---you can see it from afar:


Sami painting:


I put up painter's tape in the men's bathroom and the women's bathroom. I had to take breaks putting up the tape in the men's bathroom though because it smelled terrible!!

This is LAURA! We work at Mosaic together and she's my photography friend!! I used her lens to take this picture:

Laura showed me this flower growing through the sidewalk:


Tupac was not only an incredible rapper, but he was also a poet! This flower reminded me of a poem he wrote called "The Rose That Grew From Concrete":

Did you hear about the rose that grew from a crack in the concrete? Proving nature's law is wrong it learned to walk with out having feet. Funny it seems, but by keeping it's dreams, it learned to breathe fresh air. Long live the rose that grew from concrete when no one else ever cared.

I went to the Omaha Food Bank with Katie, an amazing staff member at Mosaic:


I always have the best conversations with Katie. She has amazing stories to tell and gives even more amazing advice.

I put together a box full of food for the event we're having at Mosaic next week!

It weighed 30.4 lbs.!!

I went with my friend to get his tattoo!!


No worries---I didn't get one while I was there (and don't plan on getting one :), but my friend's tattoo was of a koi fish. His tattoo artist was AMAZING. Seriously, he's tattooed some pretty sweet people, including a member of 311!!


This is my friend LIZ!! She asked me to dye her hair for her. So, this is what she got--it's actually what her hair looked like mid-dye. Her hair actually looks really good now and I even used 2 different colors!!


My mom is flying to Omaha on August 5! I guess we'll start driving back on the 6th or 7th and get back a few days later! This entire summer has flown by so fast!! I don't even know where it's all gone!! I have basically 2 more weeks here!! Honestly, I'm ready to go and not ready to go. I miss my friends and family, but I really love it here and I love the people I've met here. I especially love my roommate and her family--I would definitely say they've become my adopted Nebraskan family. I'm looking forward to future possibilities though and hoping to even come back next summer to intern with JFON!

I just finished reading the book Succulent Wild Woman, an inspiring book for all women that I would definitely recommend and I just started reading Belton Joyner's Life in the Fish Bowl again as I prepare for my immersion back into the bowl.

I've learned a lot so far this summer:

• if something in the refrigerator is chunky and not supposed to be, then it's probably not good
• it's okay to feel lonely sometimes--I've talked with a lot of people about it this summer and I definitely have a completely different attitude about this
  
• I am not going to settle for things in life
• I will treasure the conversations I've had with my grandmother over the phone. While I don't get to see her that often, her words of wisdom (and wild gardening stories) are always so comforting
  
• every person I've met this summer will forever sequin my heart
• also, broken hearts hurt, but they make you stronger
  
• I'm really good at climbing fences
• I don't want to do what I've done at Mosaic this summer for a living, but I adore the people I work with
• I love volunteering at JFON!!

There will definitely be more added to this list later on, but this is a start for you to see!!

So, Until Later,

Meredith

All My Days

Sorry I haven't updated in 2 and 1/2 weeks, but I'm updating it now, finally!!

So, I flew home (with my superhero powers) for the 4th of July!

This is my new house:


I think my Aunt brought these flowers, but it may have been my grandmother. So, I'll give them both credit for being awesome:'


This is my grandfather and my dog!


The only thing I wanted to do when I got back home was eat a bojangles biscuit (which I did twice!) and grill out:


Going home was definitely refreshing for me. I helped my dad, uncle and aunt move a TON of boxes. While that was very tiring, I am so glad I was able to spend some time with my family.

So, I've done some clothes shopping lately and gotten some really cute things (and I'm sure you want to know all about this)..but anyway...when I was out shopping I stumbled upon this car:


Intense!

I met my friend, Dan, in a random incident, but we like to go swimming at night! While this involves climbing my pool's fence since they lock it at night, I don't get sunburned!


The flowers I planted in the garden have blossomed!


Some of the people I garden with find interesting bugs:


Liz's show, Lil' Abner, is in full swing! Her brother and sister are also in it!! Here are a few pictures of them getting ready:


I cooked bacon a couple weeks ago! It pops at you though--so it can be kind of crazy at times:


I work beside a restaurant called the Bohemian Cafe and they had a cute sign up the other day:


A cool car parked in front of Mosaic:


It was only parked there because the it got rear-ended.

I went to a place called the "Pack House" yesterday and hung out with little kids with some people I work with at Mosaic:


They made ice-cream cones:


I work with this guy, Jason:


This is my friend, Liz! We go to church together!


Liz works at the Hispanic Center with the UMC in Omaha and she invited me to their VBS party!

There was some bobbing for apples action:


AND A PINATA!!


Also, a handful of these pictures were taken with my cell phone.

So, that's what I've been up to over the past couple of weeks. You can be sure to expect updates more often though---so no worries about that :)

Also, for all of the music enthusiasts out there: check out this song---

Alexi Murdoch -- "All My Days"

I bought the soundtrack to the movie Away We Go---which the song is on---and even got a copy for my dad because it's that amazing. So, enjoy!

Until Later,

Meredith