Getting leied

Yup, it finally happened. I got leied.

On Sunday, the Cultural Community Psychology department at UH threw a little beach party for us newbies. There are three of us, by the way. Melodi is from the Spokane tribe in Washington State and wants to work with women who have been in domestic violence situations. She also wants to work with her tribe as they make plans in the coming years for the future. Gina is from Brooklyn originally, through Berkeley. Her research here is going to be with homeless populations in Kilihi, which is kind of western Honolulu. And me. You know me.

Anyway, beach party. CCC. Melodi drove us out to Kailua Bay, which is gorgeous although I hear that the beach is significantly lacking... beach... since the last storm. There had apparently been broad swaths of sand to lay on before. Not so much now. On the way out, Melodi took us through the mountains, and on the way back we drove along the shore. My god, what a beautiful place this is. If you can ignore all the development. We call this progress. It's environmental catastrophe. I try to imagine the islands before Western civilization took over. This place is truly lovely. It's just all the damned buildings and military posts and "fake nature"--golf courses and manicured landscapes.

Melodi and Gina and I jumped into the water. It was the first time I was submerged. Gina too. We'd both walked in the ocean, but not really got in the ocean. I didn't have my swimsuit, so I just emptied my pockets into Michael's hands and just went on in.

It's salty. I knew that, at least in theory I knew that. But I've been swimming in Lake Michigan for four years (when I've gone swimming) and Lake Michigan is definitely not salty.

So we chatted and chilled and ate and talked with other grad students in my program and with professors in my program. And it was a nice, relaxing, absolutely beautiful day. And, of course, to welcome us three newbies, we got leied.

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In other news, I have turned in my application for the Quentin Burdick practicum. I told a lot of you before I came that there was a chance I'd be able to take part in an internship that was outreach to rural areas on the other islands. And so I will. Well, I have to get accepted, but I hear that they love the CCC students and the interview I'm going to next month is really just a formality. Still, I'm nervous, and for the following reasons:

1) I do really, really, really want to do this. I went to the presentations of the groups that went last year and it's just... right up my alley. And it's so *community* based. We work within their framework, so it's not a bunch of outsiders coming in and deciding what's best for people they don't know. I'm so stoked about this.

2) It's a six-week long program. On another island. While Michael is still on Oahu. The longest we've been apart is 8 days. That was when I went to Ireland. I know this happens from time to time when married people move into professional lives, and especially the professions we're moving into. I mean, saving the world could require quite a bit of travel, actually. But six weeks is hard to swallow. He'll be able to come visit. It won't be so bad. Still, I'm nervous.

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Anyway, things are going well here. Methodology is kicking my ass this week. Cultural Psych is still awesome. Starting to develop ideas for research (more on that to come, I'm sure). All told, life is very, very good.