Taos, NM - Habitat for Humanity (Post 3)

Today we got down to business - and defeated all the Huns. Okay, not really, but we did finally get to focus on why we're here. Mountains are beautiful, but they're way better when you're staring at them from the house you're helping build. That's right - on this #MizzouMonday, we finally got to our work site to start our service.



We got up pretty early, made our breakfasts and packed our lunches, then met up with the Air Force for orientation. Our site coordinator Susan and contractor Mark taught us what Habitat really means in Taos. And it's significant. Taos' stunning beauty and ski slopes attract people from the ranks of Julia Roberts and Donald Rumsfeld to buy summer houses here, which drives up property costs. However, they're not here during the year spending money and they pay their taxes out of state, so the life of a typical Taos resident can be rough. The median income is roughly 33K (we admit, our numbers may be a little skewed because this was hours ago, but they're in the right ballpark) but the average cost of a house is about 370K...in Boone County that number is 170K. 20% of people live at or under the poverty line and 90 percent of people can't afford to own a home. Most people can't find full-time jobs and instead work several part-time or seasonal ones, which the locals called the "Taos Shuffle". Needless to say, it put our trip in perspective. We understood more than ever how important it is for us to serve this community and build a home for this family.

The orientation wasn't all depressing though. Susan quizzed each school about their founding year, mascot, etc. and we learned quite a bit about the U.S. Air Force Academy. They have a 9 percent acceptance rate - how crazy is that?! Also, we learned the state motto of Missouri - which we probably should have known already. It was in Latin - so cut us a little bit of slack. Please?
Mark and Susan are just awesome people. Mark has been working in Taos for 33 years, and he is really patient and kind with us on the worksite. Also, he is full of fun trivia! Susan has been so warm and welcoming since the moment we arrived. She's been learning all of our names and things about us, and makes time on the build site so cheerful. She's one of those people whose positive energy is infectious and makes you want to be the best person you can.

Finally, we set off to the worksite. The house was in an all-adobe community where at least 20 of the houses were Habitat. The structure of the house was more or less built, with about a story of adobe bricks laid. So, our job focused on laying the foundation for a porch and shed, and to secure some utility pipes. We split up into these three groups, grabbed shovels and picks and set to work. We had fun putting the werk back in twerk. We dug holes all around the house, shoveled dirt and constantly sang the theme from Holes – because how could we not?

The day went fast and before we knew it it was lunch. We sat on some logs with the Air Force and learned about the other school while taking in the view. They said it wasn't as beautiful as Colorado but we can't imagine how. From everywhere in the worksite we could see giant snow-capped mountains and clear blue sky. We can easily imagine getting to be this family waking up each day, looking out their window and seeing this view. How cool. The best part of the day was clearly the dogs around the site. We had one who was incredibly cuddly and wanted to be a part of all the action, but Animal Control came and took him pretty early on. There was a tiny dog trying to steal our lunches with a hurt front leg that ran by jumping on the other three and it was among the cutest things you could imagine (we just really hope he wasn't in pain!). The last one was a little tri-color who was determined to hang out with us but wouldn't let anyone near him – until the dog-whisperer Sara tamed him. We definitely made some new best friends.



After lunch, we focused on mixing cement (pronounced "SEE-ment") and gravel to make concrete. We got to be a part of every step, which was pretty cool. One team mixed, another team  poured and in just a few hours we had the foundation for a porch and some secured utility lines. Mark showed us what to do, but gave us an incredible amount of independence.

The workday was pretty awesome. Michaela learned that she should consider being an artist for her love of texture and smoothing mud (thanks Mark!), in tradition with her previous ASB trip, Cara posed for another ax-weilding picture as a member of her 90's band, The Shovelheads. Sara and Laura from the Air Force had a water fight while cleaning tools, Nick tried unsuccessfully to befriend the limping dog by bribing him with peanut butter sandwiches and Alex may or may not have dumped concrete on the ground – it's unconfirmed.



After the build, we were equally full of energy and exhausted. So part of the group hung out, relaxed and spent time with the Air Force back at the convent, and the rest of us set off for a short hike. Mark told us about a great trail, but we accidentally ended up on the wrong one which was a really steep hike up a mountain. It was worth it for spectacular views of mountains and the whole of Taos. It definitely led to moments of self reflection. On the drive back from the hike, Ice Princess (the white van) took a secret route straight out of Mario Kart and cheated their way home five minutes faster than Black Swan (which may have caused some tension.

Last stop of the day was dinner at a Mexican restaurant – Guadalajara Grille. There were many noms, many deflected Snapchat attempts (unplug people!) and many mutilated tortillas. We (Dani and Emmitt) both tried guacamole for the first time and both thought it tasted like hummus. Who would have thought?!

As we sit here listening to the Air Force folks play Cards Against Humanity (which is hilarious, as always,) we can't help but agree that this has been an amazing day. We are so-o-o-o excited for tomorrow, when we think we will be making adobe bricks. Sunburns be damned, we will have a great time, and we are truly grateful to be here.

From the new guac fans – Emmitt and Dani.