The View From Here

At least for my adult life ~ I DID grow up working in a bar/bowling alley/restaurant surrounded by family & friends & sports, you know !  I have been in various management positions, designed specialized equipment & production lines, was the “go to guy” for the owner of a $50-million per year company, and some other cool stuff.  While my new position may not be for everyone ~ I LOVE it !

And what am I doing now, you may ask (or not) ?  Managing one of the largest Emergency Food Pantries in Greater Cleveland !  This job has all the elements (except $$$) that I wanted in an ideal job : not sitting behind a computer all day analyzing reports, working for a non-profit and actually helping people, dealing with the public, close to home, not “dressing” for work, etc… ~ there’s a lot more but enough said.  I also get to work with many, many community groups for fund-raising, networking, outreach and the like.

It all started with me answering a want ad 8 months ago for volunteers needed for a local agency that has a very large food pantry, and social workers that can provide assistance with obtaining food stamps, utilities help, foreclosure & rental remediation, legal aid, employment assistance and many other services.  We are basically “one stop shopping” for almost all of our client’s needs.  We have a very diverse, multi-cultural clientele, and with a population base of around 125,000 people for our specific agency, there’s a lot of need !

I started volunteering in the pantry in March, and quickly became a supervisor and ran things when the volunteer pantry manager was out.  When that gentleman left in September, I became “acting” manager, working there every day.  Heck, I was unemployed with no prospects so why not ?  Everybody’s gotta be somewhere !

In late September they decided to make it a part-time paid position, and after a normal interview process I was asked to join the staff !  That was awesome, because I loved what I had been doing, but never thought it would be a career.  I am basically now getting paid for what I was doing for free, so it feels more like I got a raise than the ecstatic feeling one gets with a new job.  I am in charge of other volunteers, procuring, storing  & distributing perishable and non-perishable foods, inventory control & warehousing, and everything else that a large pantry would typically require.  I am also required to maintain operations within OSHA and FDA Guidelines.

On a side note, I also help manage our 4 community Farmer’s Markets, and am heavily involved in our Community Garden project (1,200 square feet !) in conjunction with the City of Lakewood.  It’s all very exciting stuff to me, and there’s a lot more going on than I care to bore you with (if anyone is even still reading).  I feel this has been the culmination of my quitting my job over two years ago, stepping out in faith (http://johntheirishman.wordpress.com/2008/06/18/ive-got-those-unemployment-blues/).  A strange series of events have led me here ~ well, not so strange ~ I see His hand all over it.  I am truly blessed…

And if you’re from NEO you know exactly what I’m talking about – the annual slugfest between the St. Edward Eagles v.  the St. Ignatius Wildcats.  Records don’t matter, because these two teams are playing for honor and bragging rights.  They are the only two major CLE all-boys Catholic High Schools, so a lot is on the line for these kids.

St. Ed’s – my dad’s alma mater - is just a couple blocks from here, and St. Ignatius is a few miles down the road in downtown CLE’s Ohio City neighborhood.  Coincidentally, our house and street (the last street built in this city) was being built in 1955 when my dad was a student at Ed’s.  Neither school has a big enough stadium since both are land-locked, so they alternate the location of their annual gridiron contest based on who’s “home”.  St. Ed’s plays next door to us at Lakewood Stadium, and St. Ignatius plays at Byers Field in Parma – about 10 miles away.

This year’s battle was at Lakewood Stadium, and the main parking lot (as you may have read previously) is right up against our property.  The game is usually played on a Saturday, but this year was on Friday.  The tailgaters usually start early in the afternoon, and the place gets pretty wild.  There were kids and adults filling up the parking lot, people tossing footballs, screaming, blowing impromptu “musical” instruments, street parties, and an endless stream of people.  Both stadiums capacity is well over 10,000 and it’s always a complete sellout – you can’t get tickets even if you wanted to scalp them – this game is that huge (there were some on ebay for $20).

Both teams are usually ranked in or near the top locally, and both teams are no strangers to national ranking.  I think there was a period in the late 90’s that Ignatius was ranked numero uno in the nation for two or three straight years !  This game had playoff implications, and St.Ignatius pulled it out 19-14, probably securing a solid playoff spot and knocking St. Ed’s out.  I love HS football in the Fall - the excited kids, the bands, the screaming fans, the school buses from all over the region, and the pure tradition we all experienced growing up.  Slim and I watched the spectacle from our newly renovated patio, with a fire, some vino, and watched a little more history unfold…

OK – so maybe it ain’t Paradise, but it WILL be a Parking Lot.  With Modular Classroom Trailers.  And more Vandalism.  And Traffic.  And an Eyesore.  What am I talking about ?  Lakewood City Schools has decided that the Multi-use Athletic Field that has been our neighbor to the South FOREVER is now better used as a portable “Campus” as they put it.  One day you go to work and see the Sun glistening off the dew, then you come home to 3 or 4 acres of dirt – nice.

 We LOVE relaxing on our back patio.  It is our favorite place to be in the Summer, where we eat most meals, and where we entertain.  This is not just some concrete slab with a couple plastic chairs either – this is a stone patio with moss, Trumpet vines, a fireplace, a swing and nice furniture.  It is also surrounded by tall trees, Tropical plants, a 30ft long herb garden and various landscaped planters.  It is an escape, a refuge, an outdoor living room.  It is where we are immersed in the changing of the Seasons.  The openness of the field – very tough to find in the city – just added a bit more, as it is only about 20ft away from the patio.

So, without warning, the schools decide to bulldoze the whole place.  We get a note on the door the SAME DAY which starts out with “As you may have noticed…”  As I MAY have noticed ?  Where was my opportunity to oppose this ?  Heck, dude behind me had to have a Public Hearing because his garage was going to be taller than most, but the city schools can just do whatever the you-know-what they want and then send a letter AFTER it’s too late to stop them ?  After posing these concerns on the Principal’s voicemail, I have not received a call back yet.

Along with everything I mentioned previously, we could also have an increase in crime, and a decrease in property value.  The field has long been used by the neighborhood, and also had a Baseball Diamond.  There were Track & Field meets, JV Football practices, weekend Softball games – you name it.  Unfortunately, it is also where medivac helicopters landed as it was the only place close to the hospital that they could.  Lakewood has normally done things “above board”, but this time they dropped the ball…

Update : (as advised by the Principal) This phase of the project was unveiled back in 2004 during a series of school disctrict planning meetings which were open to the public – 35 Trailers for 4 years while they renovate the high school, then take it all away and put the field back as it was.  We’ll see…

Lakewood is a city of close to 60,000 that shares it’s eastern border with Cleveland, and is only about 3 or 4 miles from the heart of downtown.  With a population density of close to 10,000 per square mile, it’s also a very diverse, bustling place – very ethnic as well, with close to 20% of the population being foreign born.  Lakewood has all the great big city amenities, a fantastic restaurant and bar scene, as well as shopping and a performing arts center. I often compare it to some of the great neighborhoods I’ve visited in Chicago, New York, and elsewhere - we feel very fortunate to live here.

After living here and spending a lot of time here over close to the last 20 years, I pretty much know the city as well as anyone.  Due to the population density being one of the highest in the United States, we pretty much see it all on a daily basis – the homeless, punkers, “emo myspace cutters” (thx sk8), the “ghetto fabulous”, various ethnicities, the crazies – you name it.  All of this adds to the fabric that is Lakewood - it’s a fantastic place to call home if you love urban living like we do.

We try to walk ”the girls” – Roxie & Terra – daily when time and weather permit, and those walks are always down Detroit Avenue.  Detroit is one of Lakewood’s “main drags”, so the people watching and getting the “full Lakewood” is always at it’s best.  Detroit is lined with more bars, restaurants, churches, and storefront businesses than you can imagine – you see it all !  There’s also my “regulars” : Gandhi, The Colonel, Omar, Frenchie and The Eaters, to name a few.  This and future posts are just about what I see as I go about my business, and the people I meet.  I hope to do future posts on the subject, as it amuses me greatly !

Yesterday was a typical walk interweaving with the “typical” crowd :  two girls with face paint on dressed like Kiss Army members; a younger, thinnish woman in a storefront restaurant window reading a book about “The Thyroid Diet”; a herd of Ambercrombie & Fitchers that didn’t understand the concept of a crosswalk right-of-way; a “Veronica Mars” look-a-like (seriously – I know – Slim’s been watching the show – coulda been her twin); and an elderly man pushing a Black & Decker electric lawnmower down the street and talking to himself.  All this in under a half hour – such a deal, and well worth the price of admission…

I can’t tell you how much I LOVE this time of year !  Everything comes to life, the top comes off the Jeep, and we have a promise of around 6 solid months of good weather – at least for Northeastern Ohio – and it’s only gonna get better !

The last couple weeks have been nice enough to persuade the ground to allow the plants to shoot forth – the little purple Crocuses by the dryer vent, the Tulips & Daffodils & Clematis are all starting to show themselves – Honeysuckle too.    Soon we’ll also have an over-abundance of Roses, Daisys and assorted wildflowers as well.  But my FAVORITE plants of all are bustin’ out also – Spring Herbs !

Spring Herbs – that harbinger of the season, that foretelling of gloriously fresh Summer dishes, that…that…ahhhh…fresh herbs !  We have quite the assortment growing here too.  Why, in the kitchen alone are Rosemary, Parsley, Basil and Mint.  Outdoors : Chives (regular & garlic), Fennel, Oregano, Thyme, MORE Parsley and two kinds of mint – not to mention Green Onions, Leeks, Strawberries, Raspberries and even Apples & Peaches.  I’ll have to plant more Rosey & Basil since they’re annuals – the others mentioned come up all on their own.

If you love food like we do, I can’t stress enough how much fresh herbs enhance a dish.  Whether it’s a simple Basil Pesto, maybe some Tabouli, or just adding fresh Cilantro or Oregano to a creation you just can’t go wrong.  I get a great deal of satisfaction knowing I can just walk outside and get whatever I require – that’s fresh !  And if you stick with the basics and give them a little “growing room”, they’ll reward you year after year – you just sit back an reap what you’ve (previously) sown…

Slim and I are out for breakfast yesterday at our favorite place – only place we like really – to go when we decide to have breakfast out.  We go to a restaurant called My Friend’s Deli, which is just across the 44107 border on the Cleveland side.  Food is good, and the place is normally chock full of eccentrics – just how we like it !

MFD is undergoing a renovation, and some booths are now surrounded by thin drywall, making the acoustics a lot “better”.  We sat next to a couple that didn’t have their “quiet voices” on and heard something a bit disturbing.  They were talking about a mutual friend – it went something like this :

“Yeah, so-and-so’s brother told him he was going to commit suicide, and he told him ‘Go ahead’ – so he did…”

What a sad commentary for the state of our society today – the brother didn’t care, and the people discussing it were basically unmoved as well.  I was horrified !  Why do we put such a low value on human life ?  This is not TV or Hollywood or a video game – this is reality, and we get one shot at it…

Update : In Britain, a depressed man hanged himself while his webcam fed the live images to a chatroom he frequented.  He was egged on by others in the chatroom and told to “get on with it” & “do it”.  Here’s an excerpt from the article :

They confirmed Mr Whitrick told friends in the internet chat room of his plans to kill himself but, thinking he was joking, they egged him on telling him to make sure the his webcam was on.

Mr Whitrick, using the user-name Shyboy-17-1, switched on his webcam and went ahead with his grisly plan.

One anonymous user said: “He tied a rope around an uncovered ceiling joist and stood on the chair as he tied the rope around his neck.

“Some of us chatroom users, talking to Kevin over text chat, microphones and video tried to convince him to step down, but others egged him on telling him to get on with it.

“We just couldn’t believe he was doing it – it was surreal.

“One chatter said: ‘F***ing do it, get on with it, get it round your neck. For F***’s sake he can’t even do this properly’.”