Hello from NOLA

While I was trapped in the car for five days I had plenty of time to think about just how much I love NCCC. Under a month ago I was in San Fran and now know I'm on the other side of the world in New Orleans. We made some stops at several one horse towns to get here and had a few team stand offs but we made it alive and still willing to hang out with each other. Amazing.

We did however have a few interesting moments. In between Lordsburg and Sonoro we had to drive along the Mexican border for about 80 miles...literally right next to it. As Nccc we are only allowed to drive two hours before switching drivers and safeties. So there we were driving through Texas absolute nothingness as we edged up on our two hour limit. The next gas station was thirty to forty minutes away and we HAD to change. Just then we blazed passed a "picnic area ahead" sign. Unfortunately we missed the last chance picnic stop and had to do what everyone...mostly just Eric feared most-driver change on the side of the road. Iman navigated us off the interstate where we saw another picnic area sign only to have no further leads. We made a left under the overpass and agreed to pull onto the shoulder ahead and swap drivers...despite the perilously parked border patrol car in front of us. Stephen my favorite safety and I were up next. We pulled off behind the patrol car and eric instructed us to only get out if we were switching....which would have worked IF we had not been three ppl deep in the seats. As everyone started tumbling clown car style out of the van in a somewhat hurried fashion the Border Patrolman stepped from his car and mosied on to our cluster. He was tall. He was not scrawny. He definitely had a gun. As he spoke...or rather grilled our now dwarfed fearless leader, we scrambled into the car. He asked eric what we were doing, feigned ignorance of Americorps, where we came from and where we were going and if we were all legal. He was rather curt. Back in the van of course in true Gold 1 style we began cracking jokes of drugs, passports and smuggling. Eric returned and our van tricked our with government plates was allowed to pass on. We all settled back into our jovial relaxed nature when I bega. Driving under signs telling trucks to exit right and cars to slow down and stay left for.....border inspection. As we waited in line I realized the car in front of me had Polk County IA plates! Shout out to home! We made it through and clearly the rest of the way to NOLA.

There is a lot more to talk about including housing nights out. Green Light New Orleans and the Po-Boy festival but for now I have to finish up some other things.
XOXO
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry