Did you think I didn't have time to do this anymore?

You're right. I don't have time to do many things anymore: read the newspaper, read a book of my choice, tend the garden beyond minimal watering, wash the dishes on the day of use, return phone calls, see friends, see a movie, help Jennie with her homework.

The screws have tightened week by week. Week before last, Jennie started school; last week I began two days of week of placement in addition to two days of class. I have three papers due within the next two weeks, several hundred pages of reading to do by Tuesday and a report to write up on my field placement by Wednesday.

But me, I'm not complaining.

I'm writing about ecosystems theory, about the reciprocal relationship between an invidual and her environment. We humans strive for "goodness of fit" with our environments, but stress can cause us to maladapt. I'm feeling a bit maladaptive right now myself.


My placement is at Beit T'Shuvah, a Jewish residential substance abuse facility. I arrived at 8 am last Tuesday and was told minutes later that I'd be seeing my first client at 10. Say what? I didn't sign up for social work school to become a therapist, but no one seems to hear that part.

So I sat with a woman the alternative sentencing folks at Beit T'Shuvah had gotten out of prison on parole midway through a 3-year sentence and listened to her story and did the best I could. Wednesday, I saw another client, a young kid just detoxed from heroin. And I've been sitting in on lots of groups. The meld of Jewish spirituality with the 12 steps is really interesting. A good fit for me.

I'm feeling more comfortable socially at school, beginning to have more interaction with classmates and even making a few pals. I went to a meeting of the Rainbow Alliance the other day, the LGBTQA caucus in the MSW progam, a small but hardy band. Friday, I'm actually going to a "mixer" at a place called the Suede Bar downtown, where the Rainbows will mix it up with the International Caucus.

Everyone encourages us to get involved. They just don't say how to find the time.

Okay, So I Bought a Shirt

One of the best things about going to school at USC is the abundance of souvenirs. At school functions I've acquired a USC School of Social Work mug (filled with jelly beans in USC colors), a squeezy thing to relieve stress and a book bag. I purchased a USC go-mug at the campus bookstore with an efficient design that has enabled me to drink coffee on the way to school in the early mornings and actually not spill any on my clothes. Thursday, I bought this t-shirt from Student Org, who were raising money for scholarships. I haven't worn it in public yet, but it's very comfy loungewear.

Another great thing about USC is the free food. Breakfasts and lunches, ice cream and nachos--it seems that there is always a buffet line going somewhere. And you can load money onto this handy card and use it like cash around campus. They call it "discresh," which is short for discretionary funds. I've learned to mutter "discresh" like a pro when they swipe the card for parking, my mid-morning granola bars, afternoon caramel macchiatos and post-workout smoothies. It's so easy, you practically forget you're spending real money. But this is USC and believe me, you are.

The first official week of class has come and gone. Of my four professors, two are absolutely terrific, one is wonky but engaging, and the fourth put me off with a harsh response to a classmate, but I'm trying not to judge too hastily. Somewhat to my surprise, my favorite class so far is Policy, where we're reading about the history of community organizing in the U.S. and studying macro practice, social work dealing with organizations and communities. On the mezzo and micro levels, there's Human Behavior and the Social Environment, Social Work Practice with Individuals and the Integrative Seminar, which puts it all together and gives us an opportunity to process the work we'll be doing in our field placements.

I've been studying all weekend, doing some light reading on topics such as "Evidence-based practice in an Age of Relativism" and "Theoretical perspectives on the social environment to guide management and community practice: an organization-in-environment approach" (yes, that really is one title) My Social Work as a Second Language is moving slowly; there's so much new lingo. I find myself thinking that I have no idea what I'm reading and then I realize that I really do, I just don't understand the language. In fact, I've added a number of new terms to my lexicon this past week, including systems theory, biopsychosocial, and strength-based.

I've completed two short papers so far, each of which took an inordinate amount of time, which doesn't bode well for the longer papers yet to come.

My favorite place on campus so far is the Lyon Center pool, where I've been swimming after class in the afternoon and watching muscled young women do triple flips from the high diving boards.

Community Immersion

We spent two days of this first week of the program in Community Immersion, an intensive introduction to social work practice in communities. I was grouped with 19 other student who will be in my Policy class come Tuesday morning. All but two of us are women; we are white, African American, Latina/o and Asian; and I am a generation older than all but one of the other students in the class, who I figure is still a dozen years younger than I am.

For our Community Immersion, we were assigned to Panorama City and Pacoima, two northeast San Fernando Valley communities where around 160 different gangs are active. Our hosts were staff members at Communities in Schools, a gang reduction and intervention organization that runs an after-school and job training program, organizes athletic events that bring gang members together to play basketball and football in local parks and has worked to get 750 union construction jobs in a massive new commercial development in Pacoima earmarked for their program participants.

Two of the CIS staff, Bobby Arias and Robert Hernandez, are MSW graduates from USC and made some of the concepts and language of social work that are still unfamiliar to me come alive. They are good people and doing remarkable work. Over the two days we spent in the Valley, we met with a variety of community groups and even the LAPD.

I enjoyed the opportunity to get to know this group of classmates. I carpooled with a young woman who moved to northern California from Guatemala when she was three. She's been working in a program for survivors of domestic violence in San Mateo. It seems that most of my classmates have been involved in some sort of social service work: one woman works the Peace over Violence hotline here in LA, another has been a job coach for disabled adults in Santa Barbara, another works at the St. Joseph Center in Venice.

It was difficult to return to a classroom Friday after such a rich time out in the community.

Welcome to my new blog!

As you know, I'm in the process of taking a great leap--forward, I trust--and have just this week begun the MSW program at the University of Southern California (USC). My UCLA-alum friends have assured me that they will continue to associate with me despite my new Trojan affiliation. You know who you are, and to you I say thank you.

It occurred to me that what with the overload of reading and writing papers and my field placement, I probably won't have much time for e-mailing--or anything else, for that matter. So I thought I'd give this format a try as way of keeping my loved ones reasonably up to date on my adventures in graduate school. My intention is to update weekly; we'll see how it goes.

For now, welcome, and thanks for taking a look! I look forward to sharing my experience with you.