Happy Independence Day!

Happy 4th, everyone! I just got back from going into town with some of the interns. We got some beers and talked about vegan issues, politics, and people who tour the farm. That was the extent of our Independence Day celebrations, but I loved it.

Oh, but there was food! Becky, the awesome intern coordinator, made us an amazing spread for the Ed. lunch today:

Vegan sausage dog with all the toppings, avocado-massaged kale salad, coleslaw, and fruit with creamy dip.

Yum, yum, yum! I must get the recipes for all of this.

So, the new interns moved in last week, and everything has been really good so far. I love them all — so nice, and so easy to get along with and live with. Also, since this week I was new on shelter work at the same time as them, it’s been nice to talk about our experiences with the work.

I’m so glad I decided to try a week of shelter work. It definitely allows me more time around the animals and helps me see exactly what kind of work goes into caring for them and the farm. I’ve never really done farm work before, so this is a great experience for me! And, so far, I’m actually liking it! Yesterday and today, I was asked to make a trip to the Ithaca animal hospital too, which I really enjoyed doing. Really made me wish I had my car here, though; it’s so tough driving through town and seeing all of the cool places to explore.

Hopefully I’ll be able to go to more places with someone before I leave. If not… I’ll just have to come back and visit ASAP. 😉

Loving the Watkins Glen Area

I’m now into my fourth day living at Farm Sanctuary! And I must say I’m extremely impressed so far. Being here is so peaceful and relaxing, and I have loved being surrounded by animals.

It’s also been very interesting traveling on my own from Texas to New York. I was able to fly by myself, call a taxi, and ride a city bus on my own for the first time ever. And it was stressful, to say the least, but I’m thankful now that I got the experience (can’t say I felt the same way at the time!).

But now I’m here! Everything in Watkins Glen is so beautiful, it rains very frequently, and there are flowing, winding hills that make walking (and jogging) down the dirt paths so fun.

I’m living in a small house with five other interns — 3 girls, 2 guys. Our house is named Vegan House; down the road, six more interns live in the other intern house, Hilda House.

Vegan House, my home for the summer

Even though our living space is small, it’s very comfortable and I love all the other interns. Everyone is very laid-back; it’s not uncommon for all of us to be lounging in the living room reading. It’s also been a LOT easier to get workouts in than I had expected. Saturday evening I took a 40 minute run on the dirt road, which was amazing. I’m still trying to figure out exactly where and when I’ll be doing my yoga workouts.

Another of my “roommates” is the house dog: Mack!!

He’s a sweetie (unless he’s attacking the house cats!), and having him here has really helped ease my worry about leaving my Lilly girl for two months. John sent me the following picture of her yesterday… She had found a pair of my pajama shorts and pulled them onto her bed. 😦

On Friday, the second day after I arrived, we had orientation in the morning where we met the interns in the other house and Becky, the intern coordinator, went over the basics rules and regulations while living here and then took us on a tour of the farm to meet some of the animals. I was able to get a few pictures, although I don’t remember any names yet.

Yesterday, I rode with a fellow intern to Ithaca. As of now, I am so in love with that city. We ate at a pizza place called Pizza Aroma and I ordered a vegan calzone that was AMAZING! No cheese, black olives, spinach, roasted red peppers, eggplant, fresh garlic, roasted garlic sauce, and olive oil, with a robust pizza sauce on the side. 😀 They also serve El Salvadorian food, which I thought was interesting.

I also had the chance to shop at a Wegmans grocery store, which reminded me a lot of Whole Foods. It was so great; I could have stayed in there for hours.

After eating, we scoped out Ithaca Falls water fall, which involved some hiking and searching for a good picture spot.

It was a wonderful day! I’m definitely feeling great about this place so far. But tomorrow is when I officially start my work as a Communications Intern, so I’m a bit anxious about that. I’m curious about what exactly I’ll be doing, what it will be like, and if I’ll be good at it. I’ll update soon!