From Vermont to India

We were at my in-laws this weekend in Dorset, Vermont. Mom Hedman wanted to show us the house that she and Dad Hedman have been working on up in Rupert, Vermont, for Habitat for Humanity. They host a Habitat "Global Village" for a week every year, where 10-12 people from around the world pay a couple thousand dollars to come to Vermont (or anywhere) for a week and provide manual labor in the name of good will. They feel good, the homeowners feel good... everybody wins.

It's a great story, the Rupert one. Couple lives in broken down trailer for 25 years, manage to pay bills and be responsible, and finally get the break they deserve. Anything sweeter would have had Ty Pennington in it.

But today - actually ten seconds after we arrive - a visitor named Salagala Rajasekhar Babu starts to talk. He's stopping in to introduce himself and share his own experience of managing about 800 Habitat projects in his local area of Bapatla, India over the past eight years. Yeah, that's 100 a year in a country with a four-month rainy season. The story is much longer actually, as he's been a part of an orphanage program since 1982 as well.

Right now Babu's group is working hard to deliver on a promise of 300 homes to recent tsunami victims. I can't give him $2,000 for a house, and you probably can't either (if you can, I'll give you his number!). I could pay for my own flight out to Bapatla and give some good hard work and sweat to his organization, and it just so happens that he more than welcomes such a visitor.

India's not next on my list of vacation spots, but I feel my definition of vacation changing. I consider just simply going, but this would have people there feeling like they need to feed me vs. if I go with a group and pay to be fed. I should pay, so I ignite Google and am sure enough inundated with various global work possibilities.

It's a mass market... it's a business. Global volunteer work - take your pick: environment, wildlife, education, trade, poverty, technology, disease, agriculture... And you know what? I don't care that it's a mass product. Good for them, and good for us.

If you know me well, you know I care more about the environment and animals than I do about humans. Unfortunately most of these trips seem - I dare say - a little adventure-vacationy. Again, who cares? - it's getting a certain population of people out there to visit new cultures and extremes. But for the first time in my life I keep my focus on the development and growth of the people. I want to meet and share and understand.

Stay tuned! I'm going to do more research, talk to a few folks, and I'll invite you along when I find a fit.

SDH

Labor Day '07

Happy September and Labor Day weekend!

Yep, that means a few of our friends are back to work now (you poor people). And without a doubt, it means the "Pashedmans" are back together for a weekend to celebrate Sarah's birthday!

The weather is gorgeous, as are these girls in a shot from last weekend :-)

Wanted to toss in a photo of our little nephew, who we can't wait to have with us this Saturday night. Four of us babysitting three kids... should go well right? RIGHT?

...... annnnnd we're back. Babysitting was definitely a tiny bit of 'labor' on this fine Labor Day weekend - but a blast to spend time with everyone in our home!

---Picture me holding Emily's legs on the toilet while she contemplates whether she really wants to poop in the potty or in her diaper, while my friend Sarah is running back and forth down the hallway looking for a baby diaper for the screaming Jake who had no problem deciding where he wanted his poop to go. This all after Emily had already peed on the couch :-) And McKenna calmly sitting at the coffee table coloring and asking me - unprovoked - if Uncle Gary and I get lonely with it being just the two of us. Funny.---

It's a good thing we love them lots! (we still do, E&J, I promise) Oh, the boys you ask? They were out with the dogs.

Our Sunday - Sarah's birthday - was also a great time as we woke up for a run and then biked around the Beachcomber area in Welfleet. The weekend ended with a tootle around Osterville on the boat, finally relaxed in the crisp air and catching up with a few more friends.

So now it's September for real, and a friend of mine puts it a good way:

"Early Sunday afternoon, as we packed up our things, it was already sinking in. Back to life. Back to reality. No more beach at the end of the street. No more eating and drinking like there was no tomorrow. Work awaits. Deadlines loom before me. The chimney man is coming at the crack of dawn Tuesday morning. But then I remember the Cape and the breeze blowing through the trees.

"And as we cross the Bourne, then head up 495, we notice that trees are already starting to change. Auburn reds pop through rows of green. Then there is talk of apple picking and halloween. A twinge of excitement runs through me as I entertain thoughts of Christmas. And I know that while the end of summer means the end of a lot of things, it also signifies the beginning of lots of others. And I am glad for it." - MLXC

Thanks for the reminder, girl. I really am eager for hiking and camping and cozy layers of clothing... It was a very good summer.

August is THE Month

Hard to beat August, especially if you're on the Cape! Traffic has died down, there are more seats on my bus every morning, the weather is impeccable... and the dogs are tired.

We hosted EEE's 30th Birthday this Saturday! Started with the beach with the girls, bbqing with friends Friday, and taking the boat out to Sampson's Island all day Saturday. Saturday night was a blast, with all of us in our pink and green polo shirts! I'm a little afraid I might start getting birthday cake orders though... It was so great to plan things and hang out more with Em's fam and friends.

This morning, with nine of us waking up to three dogs' excitement, we made a leisurely decision to head out on the boat off the north side. It was too early for any good tide out there, but what a fantastic day it turned out to be! Time seemed to move really slowly all day, while the tide of course moved quickly. There's an average of about a 10-foot change in tide off Sandy Neck. The water is tourquoise over the sand, and throughout the day there's more and more sand showing. Made for some great splashing around and a good game of extreme-bocce on the beach.

We even had our first canine captain! Porter turns out to be QUITE the beach dog!!! (see you again soon, Jess & Gordon :-)

I'm back to work this evening... as sad and as caffeinated as that may be. Mom and Dad Hedman are coming down tomorrow for the rest of the week, with a friend from Wales, so that's fun!

Hope the rest of you are able to enjoy this season! Stay tuned for more after the week and the Labor Day holiday!

Whirlwind of Life

Sometimes you just don't know where to start.... It seems like things with both work and personal life are a whirlwind. I gotta apologize for being so very out of touch with friends and family lately - as in the entire summer. Our greatest absence has been up to Dorset and I hope we're up there a lot in the coming months. The air is crisp and kind of exciting!

This past weekend went from Pats game (THANKS EMILY!!!) to Pashby visit (four dogs) to beach to boat to boat to wedding (CONGRATS Paul & Kristin!) to work to Cape girls to coffee date (BG and Sam are ENGAGED!) to work to more Emily bonding (she had QUITE the exciting weekend).... back to work now, and two nights of visitors this coming weekend. One big BIRTHDAY bash for Emily! And then Mom Hedman and a friend are coming all week next week, to be followed by more Pashbys and dogs and more Hedmans over Labor Day weekend. We're meanwhile missing the BON VOYAGE of cousin Kate to vet school on St. Kitts!




Yeahhhh. If you think you're having a hard time following that...

Even with all the excitement, though, there have been equal parts sad things going on in the lives of our friends and family. I'm a heart-stretcher by nature, I guess, and my heart is stretching wider than ever this month.

Meanwhile, Gary's tearing down what was the "boat shanty" and gearing up to construct the world's best adult-sized slip n' slide in our back yard. His work has also had him all over the place, but rest assured he's getting plenty of time for a sunglass tan line on his temples :-) We've even been cooking up our own fish more lately!

I've also been looking into a lot of international development work lately. There are a couple of local groups between Boston and the Cape that I would love to volunteer my skills to, and I would love to build up my aresnal of contacts in that area - both for current life and future. I'm currently reading You Can Hear Me Now: How Microloans and Cell Phones are Connecting the World's Poor to the Global Economy thanks to a girl who doesn't even know she recommended it to me (now she does!), and it really sparks a lot of thought about the difference between corporate investment and government aid to a country. I'm not a policy girl, but I love corporate strategy.

And I'm over 30 now - which puts me in a growing HEAP of friends who are thinking "wait, life's really short! where was I going?"

So anyway... My folks are in Alaska right now, so we have the precious and rambunctious Rigley at our house. They have been wanting to go to Alaska for as long as I've known them, and I'm very happy to be receiving a call like this morning when it's 5am there and my mom's watching the cruise ship pull into Juneau... Where will we all be vacationing when we retire?

I hope you're all doing well and full of energy as the summer winds down. We're thinking of literally every single one of you, and we'll -uh- be in touch soon!
SDH

Farewell to a Friend

It's been a very busy month since the last post. Nantucket, Vermont, the Falmouth Road Race... and just a L O T of work for both of us. This coming weekend we have the Pashby's coming (and dogs!), and Paul & Kristin's wedding!

We did, however, have to say good bye to our friend Nathan yesterday, in the most beautiful services I could ever imagine. Nathan and Kim have been an amazing couple and role models for strength as he was diagnosed and treated for brain cancer over the past two years. We know he's in the right place now to be happy, and we will think of him often in our lives.

Why we watch the Tour de France...

We hope you all had a great weekend! Moving right along, and July's almost over...

Gary left for Vermont on Thursday night for one last touch on the Pashby deck - and more importantly the deck railing - before they have tons of people up in a couple of weeks. I stayed behind to run the Osterville Free Library road race (4.12 miles) Saturday morning and to celebrate my friend Nancy's baby shower. Then we both drove from different directions to Quechee, Vermont, to meet up with best friend Pete and fam who's in town from Colorado! Such a great time of cooking big meals and lounging on the deck, overlooking the mountains!

Things are good on the homefront. We both are silly with work right now, but we're also thoroughly enjoying the Tour de France every night! The riders are amazing, but we probably watch it equally for the incredible scenery and outlandish fans!



Seems like every weekend is booked up now through early September, but all good stuff and a lot of it is right here at home. We really need to gear up for a big hiking/camping weekend in the early (and all through) fall!

Enjoy the end of the month!

Ahoy Maties!

We're coming off a great 4th of July week on Cape Cod, and hoping you enjoyed yours!

Ours started with Gary up in Vermont and Stacey helping to throw Kelly & Joe a Cape engagement party with the Foxes. Oh, and Stacey working Saturday, Sunday, and Monday night until 1:30 in the morning, ugh. The Hedmans came down and Stacey and Sandra had a great time shopping for fabrics and making new cushions for the outdoor furniture! Great to hang with my parents on the back deck too.

We got to spend some time at beach and meandering the Main Street shops of the Cape during the week. Wonderful to have quality time with our neices and little nephew. The 4th was actually a windy and odd day, but we still sat on the beach for a bit and toasted the holiday. We also got to have our friend Emily with us a bunch!

Saturday was really nice, gathering up a bunch of friends on the boat and spending the day on Sampson's Island in Cotuit! Sounds like each and every one of us got too much color that day though... amatuers, ha ha!

I also need to give ourselves props for having completed the Fairfield Half Marathon!! Thanks to Eric for getting us out there, and to the kids for cheering us on!

The Northside / Sea Goat / whatever...

Lots has been going on! We’re very excited to welcome a new baby into our family – potentially named the Northside or EEK, the Sea Goat?! Our new boat - a 21’ Cobia! We came to the realization that the fixer-upper approach wasn’t going to get us on the water any time soon. And if any of you have made the trip to Sandy Neck with us in the smaller boat, you know that you’re not always guaranteed to fit for a ride back before the tide reaches your shorts.

Problem solved! Exit car payment, enter much smaller boat payment. We’re now better equipped to gather up a plentitude of friends, and much safer to take our nieces and nephew for a ride. The first voyage will take place on my BIRTHDAY weekend next weekend!

More photos can be found at www.saltyhedman.com/cobia.htm.

Aside from all that hoopalah, we spent four days this past weekend helping the Pashbys build a large deck around their new hot tub – can’t wait to reap the rewards when it’s all completed! Our training for our suddenly planned Fairfield Half-Marathon is going great as well – we’re up past six miles right now and hoping to reach eight this weekend. Makes four seem like chump change, which is an odd mental state to be in. Four was my “long run” like two weeks ago.

Gary and our friend Paul are heading over to Martha’s Vineyard this Saturday evening for the overnight fly-fishing tournament, while myself and Kristin cuddle up at home with various wedding prep (their wedding in August), a good girly movie or two, and the requisite bottles of wine. The two of them are moving to DC at the end of this month, which we don’t like to talk about, so it’ll be fun to have this weekend farewell.

Lastly…

Our friend Nathan, in whose honor we ride the Ride for Brain Tumor Research each year, is going through a tough time right now. Our thoughts and embraces are with him, Kim, and their families as they call upon their strength and faith right now to meet the challenges.

I hope you all find sunshine in your day!