May 22nd. Exactly three weeks from graduation:
After minor delays due to last week's consistent rain, Sunday brought a welcome reprieve. Darin and the excavation team from Turner Construction were able bring heavy machinery onto the field to level the ground where the greenhouse has begun to rise. Because the process is incremental (like putting together a dresser from Ikea), every step builds on the preceding day's work. Excavation, being a huge first step, required a very generous donation from Turner Construction, expertise and cooperation from mother nature. Despite a week of bad weather, we beat out the odds and completed excavation in a single day (last Sunday). With site work out of the way, our project management team (headed by a different "leader" each week), began corralling the class and finalizing our construction schedule.
In many ways, this process suits us; each day a new group of classmates arrives at the farm picking up where the last group led off. Like a relay race, we work in legs, our capable project and shift leaders orchestrating each effort to ensure we're all working in concert towards the finish line. When one shift is over, a project report is written and sent off to the entire class along with the itinerary for the next.
After minor delays due to last week's consistent rain, Sunday brought a welcome reprieve. Darin and the excavation team from Turner Construction were able bring heavy machinery onto the field to level the ground where the greenhouse has begun to rise. Because the process is incremental (like putting together a dresser from Ikea), every step builds on the preceding day's work. Excavation, being a huge first step, required a very generous donation from Turner Construction, expertise and cooperation from mother nature. Despite a week of bad weather, we beat out the odds and completed excavation in a single day (last Sunday). With site work out of the way, our project management team (headed by a different "leader" each week), began corralling the class and finalizing our construction schedule.
In many ways, this process suits us; each day a new group of classmates arrives at the farm picking up where the last group led off. Like a relay race, we work in legs, our capable project and shift leaders orchestrating each effort to ensure we're all working in concert towards the finish line. When one shift is over, a project report is written and sent off to the entire class along with the itinerary for the next.
Today is Friday, it's been five days since the excavation crew officially marked groundbreaking and moral is very high. Posts have been set (tremendously hard work), bows have been erected and we're making up for any unintended delays due to weather. Thursday's group, led by MJ and Darin had in incredibly productive day - as told by MJ to the class: "We made some incredible progress today. Mark was, again, very excited and appreciative. Greg, Kim K and several from the ANG made an awesome start and got about 30 posts in and 12 bows up. In the early afternoon Mark commented to me he'd love to see the ANG back tomorrow because he was that happy with the post installation. Ha Ha, not to be outdone on the 3 - 7 crew Darin hit it out of the park with the posts and we FINISHED all posts so now all posts are installed and in the ground. Jen fabricated parts of the superstructure and got about 1/2 of that done, which was quite interesting to watch as she wore the welders facemask!"
A little background: Before we began the program, we all took DiSC personality tests to identify our strengths and weakness - both as individuals and as a group. We received our scores back in September at a weekend retreat in Rennselaerville, where we all met each other for the first time. I remember we had barely committed each others names to memory when we were quickly handed a stern warning: due to our personality scores, it was highly unlikely we would get along or support one another throughout the year... Well, the year is almost over and I think we would all agree; you can't find a more supportive team than our class.
After a number of congratulatory emails back and forth from classmates, MJ sent solitary, poignant message: "Just a quick note of reflection. Being at the Farm is incredible. It is loud, sore, dry, hot, aggravates your carpal tunnel, sometimes there is nothing to do and sometimes too much. And yet there you are, working alongside some of the greatest people you’ve ever met, being part of a community project (the Food Bank) that grew from a seed just like us, and it just knocks your socks off to be part of it."
What else is there to say? On to the next shift.
After a number of congratulatory emails back and forth from classmates, MJ sent solitary, poignant message: "Just a quick note of reflection. Being at the Farm is incredible. It is loud, sore, dry, hot, aggravates your carpal tunnel, sometimes there is nothing to do and sometimes too much. And yet there you are, working alongside some of the greatest people you’ve ever met, being part of a community project (the Food Bank) that grew from a seed just like us, and it just knocks your socks off to be part of it."
What else is there to say? On to the next shift.