Day 2: May 31st Being responsible

I went to bed last night at 10 pm. Haha my first night in El Paso and I’m gone. But can I just say, that was the best sleep I’ve had in a really long time. Right now, it’s around 10:30 am and me and the gals are about to leave to go visit our worksites so we don’t get lost tomorrow on our first days, but even this is no guarantee for me.

It’s 9:24 PM. And the girls and I have returned to our home. This heat thing, 99 º F weather is still an adjustment especially since the past two days I feel like I have walked more than I have ever walked in my whole life. I’ve concluded that the heat makes a 5 minute walk seem like a 15 minute walk and not in a good way either.
Anyhow, since I plan on becoming best friends with these weather conditions by the end of my summer here in El Paso, I am not concerned about the heat. So today’s accomplishments: we figured out who’s going where to work tomorrow. Ahhh! Tomorrow! Ahh! Crazy stuff. We first visited my work site on the fabulous SunMetro transportation here and I must say, I am very pleased with where I will be for the next eight weeks. MHMR is a state organization that caters to individuals in need of mental treatment. Since we just walked into the place unannounced and since it was Memorial Day, the office was quiet and a bit isolated, but not closed since it is open 24/7. As I raced into the bathroom, Laura and Sarah found a man to question about the place. It turned out that the guy was super nice and gave us a whole tour of the first floor, which was more than enough. We visited the colorful room full of various toys that the children were placed in when they had to wait for assistance. We also visited the more dull, less colorful room where the adults who waited for assessment. Our tour guide, an actual employee at MHMR, pointed out the difference between the presence of a television in the adults’ waiting room and the absence of one in the children’s room since it can cause a strong reaction, based on what is being shown.

What I loved the most about these two rooms was the wall that looked like a mirror but is actually a glass that employees at MHMR can see though and use to monitor the actions of patients and make sure that things are under control. It was just like in the movies when the cop is asking a potential criminal about his whereabouts. It was so cool. We all took turns to stand in the in patient room so that the other one could see them through the employee room. It was very exciting. David, the really nice man/ tour guide/ employee then showed us the office where all the paperwork gets done and the padded room. Yup, it’s the room in which patients are kept to prevent them from hurting themselves. And as someone who has knocked on the walls, the padded room is most definitely padded, once again, just like in the movies. We ended our tour by visiting the office with many phones that are used to receive calls from individuals in need of assistance. As I left the building, I couldn’t help but wonder how my first day of work will be. No, not exactly. I thought to myself how great and wonderful tomorrow will be.

Now it is 9:53 PM and I have ironed my red pencil skirt and have picked out the black H&M cardigan I will be wearing with my cute black flats (that are a bit too big on me). I know how my hair will look and smell and I know what’s for breakfast. I am set. I am ready. Good night.