Where in the world was Brady?!?

It's been a while, I'll admit that. I have been meaning to write over the summer but I've been hard at work trying to change the world! So here's what I did all summer!

May:

1) I joined a group called Plastic Free MKE. Their goals are to eliminate as much plastic from Milwaukee as they can. They have developed an incentive plan and have reached out to many restaurants throughout the city to try and get owners to switch from disposable plastic to a compostable or reusable option. They also have a legislation team that speaks with local and state officials to create laws surrounding their goals. If you're interested in reaching out to them or joining, they would love to have you!

Their Facebook account is probably the easiest way to chat with them!

2) I got an internship! I was working for The Village of Mount Pleasant engineering department. With all of the construction in the area, it was a hot time to work for the municipality and I was eager to see how my classwork would pay off in the field.

June:

1) I moved into my first long-term apartment! With two friends, we live near Marquette's campus. At a popular apartment complex on campus, it was really exciting to be able to do a big move like this.

2) Starting work at Mount Pleasant helped me understand a lot of the concepts from my classwork. It also helped me understand how a municipal government functions. While it's said that government is a slow process, it's always for a reason. There's always a lot to do, not enough time to do it, and you need to dot all of the i's and cross all of the t's before you can move forward on something. I worked most often with an engineering technician. She knew a lot about the storm water maintenance field, but sometimes she and I wouldn't know the best call to make about a problem. We would have to work our way up the chain of command to find the solution we needed. No matter what you previously thought, I need to let you know that most people try to be very efficient at their jobs. They aren't slacking off just because your problem can't be solved immediately. Also, PSA: It is never and will never be appropriate for you to tell any government official that you, "pay their salary"... don't be that guy, no one likes that guy.

3) I learned a lot about the Foxconn project in general while I worked in Mount Pleasant, as well. For those who don't know, Foxconn is the manufacturer for touch screens. Their largest customer is Apple. Foxconn decided a few years ago to start a manufacturing plant in the middle of Mount Pleasant. People were kicked out of their homes and felt cheated by the very municipality I decided to work for. While I don't necessarily support the village's decision to bring Foxconn into Mount Pleasant, not everyone that I worked with was evil. The people that made the decision to bring them in, and those who work with Foxconn developers, are much higher up, elected officials. I never met the majority of those people. I listened to a podcast on the Foxconn project that actually was quite intriguing. It gives a good overview on the project and consequences of it. If you're interested in listening, the link is available here.

July:

1) Delaney and I took a trip to Devil's Lake for the 4th. She had never been and it's been a year long process to take her. We had a blast!

2) I went to Door County for a few days with Delaney and her family. Lots of hiking, swimming, slacklining, and spikeball. Super awesome time!

3) I made 20 copies of a several hundred page bid terms booklet for work. It took me all day...

4) More slacklining! I spoke a few times with someone named Alex. He started a slackline company out of Milwaukee. Together, we are planning out a campus event for Marquette students to learn how to slackline!! Alex's website is available here if you're interested in seeing what they're all about.

August:

1) One of my most frustrating times at work was when I tried to trap a beaver. Now, I know what you're thinking... "Brady, you are the biggest tree guy I know, why are you trapping a beaver???" Well, it's somewhat difficult to explain. Beavers dam rivers and lakes so they can raise the water level of the body of water. Well, when Mount Pleasant and every other municipality plans storm sewer layouts, they plan for the water level that it should always be. The beaver was damming the only outflow for a large lake that serves a handful of storm sewer outfalls. They were beginning to backup onto adjacent streets. Contractor trappers trap to kill. It's significantly easier and cheaper to do this. I didn't want the beaver to die so I borrowed a live trap from a friend and tried to trap the beaver myself to relocate it. I would go to this beaver dam every morning and afternoon with a rake and remove as much of the dam as possible. The trap was always set and... we never caught him. Two full weeks and we got nothing. Because my time at the village was done and I had to take the trap with me, operation save the beavers had come to an end. It was incredibly frustrating but I learned that as long as I tried to do this, that's all that matters. I can't force a beaver into a cage but I can give my best effort to save him.

2) I went camping!! After getting myself set up for classes to start the following week, Delaney and I (as well as our 8 closest friends) all went camping for an extended weekend! It was really, really, really cold at night... but that's just the way it goes sometimes. It's type II fun. We hiked, swam, and just had a great time!

3) Everyone in my family, Delaney, Kate, and I all went on a sailing trip. As a last little hoorah before the summer ended, we had the pleasure of going for a leisurely sail around lake Michigan. Cool way to end the summer!

September:

1) Started my classes for the semester... all environmental engineering classes! I have fully committed myself to working as hard as I can. I'm trying to become more involved this semester as well. Working to better myself overall feels like an accomplishment already.

2) My mom and I moved my sister into UW-Madison for her first semester and I look forward to hearing all of her fun stories. She's really excited to start this chapter in her life.

3) Lastly, the rest of the O'Connors moved across the world to Ireland!! My mother started a new job, my dad is exploring alternate career paths, and my brother started his senior year at an Irish high school! I'm super proud of everyone! This is a big time for our household and it's great to see everyone thriving at their new lives.

I have been asked numerous times what I plan to do after college. To be honest, I have no clue. I like the idea of being an environmental educator for awhile, I also like the idea of jumping into a more engineering type job. However, whatever I choose to do, I look forward to saving the world, one plastic bottle at a time. For now, I live in the moment: try to retain as much information as possible, be as involved as possible, and push myself to strive for greatness. This summer was crazy busy. I loved the friends and the memories made.

Thanks for reading! I'll try and write something new before Christmas this time...