My Americorps team has been in Baton Rouge, LA these last few weeks working with Habitat for Humanity. On Fridays, we have ‘fat Friday’, so-called because we go to work at the Habitat ReStore where they stuff us full of chips and sodas. We also get to mix paint! Gallons and gallons of paint! And then we NAME our unique concoctions!
So far my team has produced paint named:
Sunset Express
Pacific Surfliner
Southwest Chief (these three were named after Californian trains)
Pwn
Mustardseed
Peaseblossom
Cougar Magic
High Country Mountain Stellar (allegedly a brand of high quality marijuana)
Americorps Khaki
Camel
Camel Lights
Mississippi Moon
Today, I went to the Animal Control and Rescue of Baton Rouge and played with PUPPIES and KITTENS. Lots and lots of both! First I helped Spike, a laconic teenager, feed and water all the kitties. Afterward, I played with them and explored their little cat-run, a backyards pen with ramps and ropes and things for them to play with and climb on.
Then I went to walk the dogs. I took probably 12 dogs out for a walk, and we romped and played tug-of-war and explored the property. Constant Louisianan rains had created these giant pools of water filled with little black tadpoles. I noticed that the tadpoles in one pool were in danger of drying up, as their pool was separated from the other larger pools. So I grabbed a shovel that happened to be laying nearby, and dug a small trench to the smaller pool, filling it with fresh water and allowing those tadpoles to escape. Huzzah!
By the end of the day, 3 of my dogs had been adopted. I was so happy I wanted to cry! A Catahoula, a terrier mix, and Carolyn (I named her and a German Shepherd after my friends Carolyn and Leslie), a ‘miscellaneous’ pooch who appears to be part setter and part spaniel of some kind. All in all, it was a very successful day for the Animal Control & Rescue; of course, I take all the credit. 
