Travels, Nonprofit Rambles, and ... I miss my kitchen.

Charleston was lovely and sunny and the perfect place for me to go. Driving back, I encountered a fair amount of traffic, allowing my weekend total of hours with Mr. Merlot to hover around the 16 range. I know I say I love my car, but goodness. Enough is enough. Wait Wait Don't Tell Me podcasts and gorgeous sunsets as I approached the mountains made up for it, though. Enjoy this photo of radiant South Carolina.... or, the French place Brother and I got brunch at before my departure on Sunday. Don't mind Brother's awkward stance.

Upon my return to the office Monday morning, I learned that our client with whom I had dedicated much time to would not be renewing their contract with us for another year. There are an array of reasons why this makes perfect sense for both us and them, but I couldn't help feeling slightly glum. Their Executive Director is a phenomenal woman with nothing but dedication to her job, and I'll miss working with such a great person. It feels oddly like a break up, though. Coworkers have approached me asking to return things to this client, others come up and ask, "Is it true??" Let's just make it facebook official already.

I now, though, have more time to focus on raising funds for our office, something that is definitely needed. One of the caveats of being a 501(c)3 which offers fundraising services to other nonprofits is that it gets awfully complicated to factor in time and resources to raise your own funds. I've gotten incredibly used to writing grant proposals for underprivileged children with an educational focus, and now I have to shift that focus completely. This is good, though. I've already begun a draft for a contract with a new client, and the change in material is so very welcome.

I've already learned so much at this job, and while I know I have so much more to absorb regarding the nonprofit world and development in general, these are all things that I never could have learned in the classroom. Years of analytical papers regarding the Helsinki Accords and international theorists was all for naught. Don't get me wrong - I'm all for higher education, but it's amazing how many things you can't learn from a textbook or a scantron.

That was very work-related. I could also write about the delicious duck confit corn hash I had this weekend, or my mussels, or the foie gras ... but that would just prove that I had a fat French kid's weekend with Brother. Although, good Lord, I missed fat kid French food something fierce. It's good to have it back in my arteries. Sometimes I wish I could've done AmeriCorps in France. (Yes, I know that wouldn't work for so many reasons...)

I haven't legitimately cooked in a while. Sure, some quiches here, some generic chicken dish there, but once I'm done with these ridiculous travels, I'm getting myself back to trying more exciting things. I have a ton of pork chops in my freezer, and suggestions are welcome!