2 56 pm pst [ holiday food packing ]
The tree above was glowing when I made my way to
San Vicente to start off my morning commute on Wednesday. I made the
image into my new
desktop. I probably won't see that tree in the same morning light
again. My job is over and I got a lovely holiday bonus that made my
farewells most pleasant.
The trees and building to the left are a composition I
noticed days ago. On Wednesday I tried to shoot it as I was driving,
realizing that after Friday I will no longer be on that corner, possibly
ever again.
I've been having a blast taking pictures lately and I'm
glad I got quite a few good shots holiday food packing over the past three
days. We pack in the airport hangar at Santa Monica airport and we always
have a wonerful flood of volunteers. One Voice is a national organization
which supports the Head Start child development program. As I described in 1997, we box up food
and toys to distribute to over 15,000 people. It's hard work, but a lot
of fun! This year we had to sort, bag, box, and deliver the following One
Voice purchases (and donations):
- 57,000 oranges
- 40,000 apples
- 16,000 cans of food
- 14,000 lbs. of potatoes
- 18,000 lbs. of yams
- 30,000 lbs. of turkey
- 10,800 lbs. of rice and beans
- 10,000 lbs. of onions
- 10,000 lbs. of carrots
- 2,500 lbs. of candy
- 5,862 toys
- a lot of dinner rolls and pies
Wednesday is the calm before the storm. It is
supposed to be a meeting day where two dozen core volunteers get together
and plan for the rush of voluteers we get on Thursday to sort food. I got
there a little before 6:30 and immediately was greeted by "friends" I see
once a year at this event. It occurred to me that the first time I did
food pack was in 1990, which makes me a real veteran despite the years I
missed because of college. Of course, Wednesday is no longer a planning
day, now it's a set-up day. I didn't leave until after 11!
First I helped put together boxes
for several hours. Then I helped fill little boxes of oranges from the
big boxes you see above. We had oranges on one side of the room and empty
tables on the other. In the back corner we had hundred pound bags of
beans set up, with bags to fill and scoops to fill them with. In the
middle of the oranges someone announced that we had more boxes to do. I
requested a non-box-making job and was given the delightful task of making
all of the big piles of bags you see on the tables below.
When I finally took off for the evening, volunteers
were just putting the finishing touches on the set-up. I'd been there
nearly five hours and I knew I'd be sore the next day. I was excited
thought. I think everyone was. Anticipation was filling the vast space of the airport hangar.
I smelled like oranges on my drive home...
Thursday is always the busy day...
I went straight from work and arrived an hour before
the crowds. We still had a lot more setting up to do.
It was fun when the poeple finally began pouring in. I
was stationed in the rice and beans section, where I tried to help people
put two scoops in every bag while spilling as little as possible. All the
other sections had the jobs of putting five yams / potatoes / onions /
apples / oranges / tangerines in each bag. The cub scouts were so ardent,
the teens so rowdy, everyone so motivated. We had to keep reminding
people to be gentle because they often were to excited to remember that
they were dealing with someone's food.
After all the food was bagged and stacked in boxes
around the hangar, we broke down the tables and swept the great space. I
grabbed something to eat because I realized I was shaking. I had opted
out of carrying the 100 lb. bags of rice and beans, but I made up for it
with the 50 lb. sacks of onions and oranges. My arms and legs ached
gleefully.
One the hangar was clear, we laid out rows of paper
bags and filled them with various amounts of produce. Then we cleared
those via our human chain. I danced to the disco music and sang loudly.
When they started on the first groups of boxes, I got tagged to cut
ribbons and then to wrap picture frames. It was fun but when I realized
it was past my bedtime, I headed home.
Friday I had my last day of work. I enjoyed our
holiday party and my bonus check. My dad said I needed to pick up a new
car to test drive as a replacement for the mighty Saab. So I got the car
and went straight to the hangar again.
Friday is always quieter, but it was a bit too quiet
when we opened the doors. I kept myself busy making boxes. I got two
adorable girls to help me move boxes. They ran with more energy than I
could believe, so excited to be helping, a smile never left their faces.
Finally we laid out and and filled the second and then
third batches of boxes. Eventually I was told to go home. I guess they
could see how tired I was.
The most amusing part of the whole experience was when
Sue, director of One Voice, came up to me and asked me if I could estimate
how many cans were in the boxes. She waved a hand at the dozens and
dozens of boxes of varying sizes. I grinned and said, "I think there are
about five -" She cut me off. She was serious. I said I'd do my best.
I wandered around a bit amoungst the cardboard containers. I finally
decided there were about 200 boxes with an average of 50 cans per box.
When I told her around 10,000 she seemed satisfied with the number,
nodding and thanking me.
