A Start

There is an 11-year-old boy at my church who is "behaviorally-challenged," which means that he acts like I did twelve years ago. He was highly disruptive in Sunday school, so the teachers asked me to be his "mentor" during the class. The last two weeks, he hasn't been too bad (or too good). Bob strongly suggested that I spend some one-on-one time with him, since he is still rather impressionable and will soon be making life-altering decisions. Aside from the time I spend during and after church, however, it's been hard to meet with him because it seems creepy to suddenly pick him up and drive away with him alone. We'll call this kid Bryan.

I mentioned my predicament to Bob yesterday, and he said he'd fix it. "Bryan, Luke is going to go take you out tomorrow evening." Then, in response to all the other kids asking if they could come along, "No, just Bryan this time." "Because I said so." And that was that. It is so much easier now that I have Bob's explicit blessing.

This evening after work, I went up to Brookside to meet Bryan as the after-school program was dismissing, but when I arrived, he had already been taken home. So I drove over to his house and knocked on the door. The mom hasn't met Bob even though her kids have been going to Bob's church and after-school program for years. I asked matter-of-factly if I could take Bryan out, but she hesitated (which is actually a very good sign; some parents in this neighborhood would let their kids go with any adult, even an absolute stranger). I told her I was working with Bob and that I would not want to do anything that made her uncomfortable. "I'm not saying I'm uncomfortable," she backtracked, "but we haven't formally met you yet." I suggested that we meet again, and she seemed amenable to the idea, although Bryan was clearly disappointed.

The evening didn't go quite as I had expected, since I didn't spend any time with Bryan, but I think we're off to a good start. Bryan's aunt, who was at church yesterday, was in the house, as were several of Bryan's siblings. I am no stranger to them, and I'm sure they will reassure the mom. Bob hopes that if I work with Bryan, his mom might let Bob and me into her home.

If Bryan is anything like the other kids in his neighborhood, he will soon be offered to sell drugs and become swallowed up in a life of despair. Unlike some of the other kids, though, he's had the positive influence of Bob's program. When I move near Brookside, it will be much easier to get to know him and his younger siblings and to perhaps provide an alternative to the streets. We'll see...

Night on the town

Bob and Carolyn went on a well-deserved vacation last week. Although they "retired" almost 20 years ago, they continue to work very hard with the Brookside Youth Program—even on vacation, Bob has been contacting friends and donors to keep the operation going. But he's relieved that his wife has been able to rest and recharge, since she is responsible for all the bookkeeping and has been working herself ragged as of late.

With Bob and Carolyn gone, Argelio has been in their house all alone. Argelio, as you recall, is the Mexican engineer who has been living with them and working for Bob's friend; he lived in Canada last year and met his girlfriend there, and he wants to stay either here or there because of the relationship. Last Saturday, he and I went downtown and had dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe. We had a great time talking about Argelio's old band, his life in Mexico and Canada, and our plans in Indianapolis. Argelio is an unflinchingly kind and gentle person, and everybody who knows him likes him.

Of spores and mold

The house that I've been trying to buy had a couple of issues that appeared during the inspection: the roof had some hail damage, and there was a small amount of mold. Concerned that the mold could cause significant damage in the future or pose a health hazard, I had a thorough (and somewhat expensive) inspection performed. The mold inspector took air samples at various points in the house and sent them to a lab, which used optical microscopy to determine the types and concentrations of mold throughout the house. The inspector said that he is continually impressed with the efficacy of this test, since it identifies all spores in the air and can locate mold that cannot be observed visually. He said that, generally speaking, the concentration of mold in the house must be ten times that of the outside air to warrant remediation.

The results came back this morning, and it turns out that the concentration of mold inside the house is less than 16% of the outside concentration, so there is clearly no health hazard. Mold spores are present in every house, but they need moisture to grow. It seems that the extra moisture was supplied by the gutters, which are filled with leaves, and the chimney, which needs a rain shield and some minor mortar work. Both of these are easy to fix, and I plan to address them as soon as I move in. I'll also get a dehumidifier, just in case. The inspector said that none of the issues are out of line for a house built in 1940 (stated another way, any other house in this neighborhood would have at least as many spores because it would be approximately the same age).

The results are a huge relief and blessing. I was dreading the prospect of shopping for another place. It would be very difficult to find another house in this location at this price, unless it lacked the quality or features of the current one. Trying to purchase a different house would set the process back a couple more months, which would also delay my involvement in Brookside.

My realtor hasn't set a closing date yet. The sellers' insurance is going to replace the roof, and they're going to have a contractor clean out the mold that is there now. Hopefully I'll move in a few weeks. The mold inspection was money well spent; I now have confidence that the house is reasonably solid.

Waiting, waiting...

Not much new around here. I haven't been working in Brookside proper, although I'm still heavily involved in my church. I'm still waiting to get into a house near Brookside, although the process continues to drag on (I'll spare you the details). Nevertheless, I continue to have the persistent premonition that enormous opportunities lie just around the corner.

I was getting antsy while sitting around this boring apartment, and I wanted to get a head start on working in Brookside. So I was planning to drive an old car up to Brookside and meet a couple of the guys I'd gotten to know a couple months ago. When I told Bob about my plans, he said he didn't want me going there by myself, but he said he'd be willing to go along with me. At church on Saturday, we talked to a woman who lives in Brookside and is faithfully involved in the church, and it turns out that she knows these guys very well and communicates quite regularly with them. (She also filled me in on some troubling developments regarding several of the kids, but I can't share them on a public blog.) Although we weren't able to meet with the guys on Saturday, it might be better to contact them through this woman, since all parties trust her. She's really cool in so many ways. Maybe I could invite them all over for dinner? Wait, I need a house to do that...