So...It's been a while since I last wrote and because I so foolishly procrastinated on updating the blog I have so much to tell you! I'm going to break this blog up into events so that you don't get lost in the madness (because there was lots of it). I'll start at the very beginning (a very good place to start)- ZOO CAMP!
"Someone Told Me It's All Happening At The Zoo..."
At 8:30 a.m. Monday, June 15th I arrived at the Monomonee Kids Center for my first day as a Lookingglass Zoo Camp intern. Unsure of what I had in store for me, I eagerly awaited the arrival of the first session kids I would be spending my next two weeks with. Unfortunately for the kids (and me), I had spent the previous day from 11am-5pm running food out to drunk Cubs fans and was not at my most usual chipper for the next morning. Needless to say, little children who will ask, say, or do almost anything and I did not mix very well. I finished my first day of work miserable and exhausted. On my 2 mile walk home from the zoo, in the rain, on the wrong street, I remembered my mom and dad telling me before I left, "you will hate the first days of this job." They were right. So I decided to hail a cab, pay the $6.50+ tip for a ride home, and hoped that things would be better tomorrow.
They weren't. Day two was JUST as bad a day one, worse maybe. Now I was panicking. I had this idea in my mind that I was going to come to Chicago, fall in love with everything I was doing, and still feel like I had a relaxing and care free summer. Instead, I was exhausted, lost (and scared), and getting paler by the minute in all this rain (I'm used to summers as a swim coach. Where is my tan!). Day Three of Zoo Camp was going to be my first day of having both jobs. I knew that this would be the true test of whether or not I was going to be able to keep this up all summer. On my way out of the Zoo at the end of Day Three- Pt. 1, I was already on the phone lying to The Vine "that I was sick and couldn't come in today". Uh-Oh.
Later that night my Dad called to check in with me and ask me how I felt work was going. I wasn't going to lie because I knew he really wanted to know, so I told him. It sucked and I was worried it wasn't going to get any better. Then my Dad gave me some of the best advice he's given (and there has been lots of it) - Working hard and over working are not the same thing. I realized that my fear of being seen as incapable or unable to do both jobs had clouded my realization that I was already working hard enough with my first job, I didn't need two. The next day I called The Vine and told them that unfortunatley my Internship was my primary commitment while I was in Chicago and that in order to be the best Zoo Camp Intern, I had to have time to be happy in Chicago.
Since then Zoo Camp has gotten exponentially better. The little things about each kid that originally drove me nuts on my first days of camp has slowly turned into the things that I love about each kid. Every day at camp is a completely different day, and you have to be ready to go with it. Making it fun for these campers, and me. That's my real job this summer.
Ill finish posting periodically throughout the week! Told you I had a lot to say...
"At the Zoo" Simon and Garfunkel
