6 weeks ago Kevin moved into the Sundowner and we started operating with a new work contract. 5 days per week, 4 hours per day, no pay advances and pay day is on Fri. So how has it gone?
- Expenses have defintely gone up in July and August. They're settling around 1600 per month.
- For the first few weeks in July, Kevin was asking for small advances ($15-40) and I did them. Later he asked for a larger advance, we talked about what I could and couldn't offer and he eventually declined needing the advance. Since then, we haven't done more advances.
- Moral, keeping work committments and remaining in productive, frequent communication have all improved IMNSHO
- Trust and respect have improved follow-thorugh and increasing responsibilities in delegated work
- On July 24th, a lightning storm took out 20 hot water heaters at the Sundowner so Kevin and I had numerous conversations about how to make sure the repair work gets done. We've learned who we can talk to within the property management team, how to submit work requests and the challenges and benefits of polite pressure. As of 8/16/26, a refrigerator issue and the broken hot water have been fixed!
- Per Kevin, the Sundowner is quiet and calm at night. You might not suspect that based on being at the corner of San Pedro and central. In contract to previous shelters, security, the ability to relax and comfort have greatly improved.
- I'm struggling to generate income and find enough work with neighbors to cover expenses. Not a failure, but worth noting. More focus is being put on obtaining more consistent contract work even if it's outside of the neighborhood (e.g. South San Pedro alleys)
- Bernco is offering a contract to pickup trash that will cover most of FWW's monthly costs and still leave ample time in the week to pursue other efforts and money generating ventures. If I can stack additional piecemeal jobs and contracts, I may actually be able to get paid for my work!
- In reading thru the employee social contract, I remembered numerous times this past week that I was unable to meet the standard I had outlined as the expectation. A reframed (softer) way to put it would be that I wasn't achieving the goal and could benefit from setting the expectation of what conversations and actions to pursue within the company when the social contract isn't being upheld. In this case, I was struggling to follow through on work committments like showing up at designated times/places, arranging for supplies to be available etc. Following this interruption to work, Kevin and I will debrief in the next few days.
- I did commmunicate, although mostly via text, so that missed meetings and a lack of work being available along with confirmation that the weekly paycheck would be unaffected by lack of coming up with work.
- Work is often still being done, even if I don't have an assignment for the day. I'd like to leave some free days (1 or 2) during the week in which we both pursue work in the neighborhood and then report back to each other about what we did. E.g. Kevin will be working with another neighbor, Kyle, one day this week. FWW
- I'd like documentation/reporting for alley cleanups to be completed by whoever cleans the alley: how many bags, special trash seen (needles, poop, burned furniture, etc), neighbor interactions, new graffiti. what other observations? Would like to talk more and do an alley walk with Teddy of Wootrex who will create the reporting app. Kevin and I will both clean the alley this week and discuss the documentation as we work and then continue the conversation over food afterwards.
- I'd like to continue to maintain a list of work to be done, that can be delegated/referred out, note if it requires me to be onsite (often only a requirement at first) and to keep a record of work pending, completed & still-in-progress. Kevin's solo alley trash pickup & pictures from last week demonstrates one delegated job.
- Want to have both Kevin and I to continue to meet with more neighbors. I'll try to make it to the next SSPNA meeting (https://southsanpedroabqna.wixsite.com/south-san-pedro-neig) on Aug 19th 6pm at Natalie's house
- Fox tails have largely been erased from fox park. Largely due to efforts by Kevin, Bobby, Kathy, Abraham, me and others in June and July.
- YTD Income of 3815, Expenses of 5546. Oops! Jaemes of Mark Twain NA has introduced me to someone who may be able to help us navigate the land of housing vouchers. Support from local religious groups has been mentioned but requires more persistence on our part
- As of today: 257 hours of work logged. That's not only work in fair west, but most of it is. This is also with my inconsistent accounting so I'm undercounting by a lot for how much Kevin, myself and the long list of others who have done work in the neighborhood under FWW's influence.
- As of about 3 weeks ago, we now do regular alley cleanups (tues) across 3 alleys in South San Pedro. Bernco contract still pending.
The Sundowner offers a more sustainable housing solution than previously encountered and Kevin seems to be happier and, at the risk of being a jerk, more stable. My ability to show up for work ontime, has been shit this past week. A terrible sign if you believe that leadership needs to set the standard. Do I believe that? To be honest, I just can't seem to find that level of stability right now but that's not to say I'm not trying.
I'll be trying a weekly work schedule published in advance this week. Some work will be done separately, but we'll still overlap and when we do we can both review the work as outlined in the schedule or note what else came up. This'll also help me with my accounting logs
Working to understand my role at FWW
- I meet and know a lot of people including potential clients: bernco, property owners, neighbors wanting yard work, non-profits, , etc
- I try to reasonably push & expand the limits of trust, expectations while respecting individualized risk tolerance across the demographics of workers, volunteers and clients
- Available to field concerns & complaints as they come up
- Outline the scope of work to be done on projects and ensure that expectations are met or acknowledgement and alternative solutions are developed and communicated