Sunday, August 11, 2013

PULSE Placement!

Only a couple more weeks here in Indy before I pack up and head to Pittsburgh to start my year with PULSE (Pittsburgh Urban Leadership Service Experience)!  I recently found out that I'll be living with three other women in the newest PULSE house on Collins St.  Once we all get there, we'll have a week of orientation to get settled in, get acquainted with each other, and start finding our way around the city.  We'll also begin to work out what it means for us to be an intentional community, both within each house and as a whole group.  This means setting the basis for finances, household expectations, group activities, and how individual needs or desires fit into community life.

We start our placements on September 3.  I'm spending the year volunteering with Green Building Alliance, a nonprofit that provides knowledge to businesses (mainly) who are interested in environmentally friendly building projects and connects them with the necessary resources.  I'll be doing research on green building practices, compiling and organizing information into resource pages for the website, and tracking green building projects already underway in Pittsburgh.  Green building is not something I currently know very much about, but I'm excited to learn more about what's possible and how it fits with what I do know about sustainability and chemistry.

I'll do my best to keep you posted on how things go, but I'm anticipating a year of meaningful relationships, professional growth, honed community living skills, adventures in the city, and maybe even the opening up of possibilities for where I'll find myself at this time next year.  Wooot!

(P.S. Almost forgot this, but I knew you'd all be jumping to ask...  You're still quite welcome to donate to PULSE on my behalf at http://pulsepittsburgh.org/ruth-maust/.)

Monday, August 5, 2013

Exercises in Being Alone

On coming back from Europe at the end of last summer, I had two realizations.  One, when I'm a tourist in a new city I search out all the most interesting events and locations so I can get to know the city and make the most of my time there.  I've certainly experienced Indianapolis in various ways over the years, but I've never put forth much intentional effort to explore it in quite that way.  Two, I've gone to a lot more places alone in Europe than I ever have at home.  I don't mean errands, but things like restaurants, bars, parks, events, etc.  In the U.S. I've been more likely to stay home than to go out if I can't find someone to go with.  I admit it's a somewhat awkward experience to sit down to dinner by oneself, but it seems like it shouldn't have to be.

Since I don't have a job this summer, I decided a good way to keep busy and get out of the house would be to combine these two thoughts and look for things I can do in Indianapolis even if friends are busy or if I just don't feel like coordinating.  I want to own my connection to Indianapolis, to branch out into new settings, and to practice being comfortable by myself.  Here's how it's gone so far.

1. Wine/beer tastings and local brewery tour.  I found two different wine shops that do free weekly tastings, plus a brewery where I sampled beers and got to learn about their whole production process.
Kahn's Fine Wines, which is in an
old insurance building with a
sweet vault in the basement
Mass Ave Wine Shoppe
Goose the Market
wine, beer, and meat (!)
tasting at Goose

















Sun King Brewery
Sun King fermentation tanks and assembly line
2. There are several fairly new cafes each just a few blocks from home where I can go to read, write postcards, drink tea, or eat gelato.  Mmm.

3. A drag show, which was a fundraiser for the fight against HIV/AIDS and my first time in a gay bar.


4. Indy pride parade and festival.  Mostly just observed (it's quite a production), but I did get a "spiritual reading" and blessing at the festival.


5. Independent music and art festival, where local artists sold their handicrafts.  If you had happened to pass by, you might have seen me drinking rhubarb wine or in front of the stage learning an African dance.

6. Art galleries are always a win.
Steven Sickles
Christine Drummond


Unfortunately I don't know the artist for this one,
but I really liked it!




























Paul Villinski
7. A huge yoga event at Monument Circle.

8. I am a huge fan of street food, and Indianapolis has been stepping up its game with food trucks all over the place.












On top of getting exposure to some new things, I was able to bike or walk to each of these, which is super convenient and leaves me no excuses.  Yay for exercise, sunshine, and being able to find my way around downtown better!  There are a few more solo adventures I'd like to squeeze in still if I have the time, but overall I'm pretty happy with what I've managed to do.