Dear Potential MVSer,

When deciding on a location for your yearlong Mennonite Voluntary Service term, there are many things to consider. Among them are:

1. The fit of your placement
2. How close you are to the ocean
3. The reputation of the unit
4. The possibility of staying where you did your service
5. Future employment potential
6. Where your friends are/significant other is
7. The awesomeness of the VS house.

Well, dear future VSer, #2 may be a disqualifier (although we are within a quarter mile of one lake and 3/4 of a mile from the other), and #3 may be practically nonexistent, but I can say with some certainty that we are in the lead on #7. Also you don’t know it yet but #6 is gonna be huge.

With regard to #7, the awesomeness of the Madison MVS house, we are now at 315 North Ingersoll, Madison, Wisconsin, 53703. We are half a mile from a beautiful park, a swimming beach, and an ice skating rink. We’re on several major bus routes. We’re around the corner from some of the hippest members of our church. We’re within walking distance of coffee shops, bike shops, and basically all of the establishments we frequented in our old house, which is only 3/4 mile away from our new house.

But you won’t need any of that when you see the house itself. Three floors, five bedrooms (three on the second floor, two on the third), a front and a back porch, a screened-in all-season porch on the second floor (with a view to the maple-tree-shaded backyard), gorgeous artwork, colorful walls and trim, an enormous dining room table, and a compost pile and a weber grill in the backyard. Not to mention the functioning wood stove with a steam-breathing dragon-shaped cast-iron humidifier on top of it. Plenty of space for hosting guests, hardwood floors, everything in good condition. Wow, look who’s turning into a realtor. The only, and I mean only, drawback is that there’s only one bathroom.

I hope to post some photos of the new place soon (when we’ve unpacked all our boxes, set up our wireless, and arranged the furniture in accordance with Carola Breckbill’s feng shui.) Stay tuned.

MVSer Ben Martin’s farewell party took place today at the Breckbills’ home in Stoughton. Roasts and Toasts ensued. Together with some other attendees, the MVSers wrote a little ode to Ben, who leaves us on Wednesday.

There once was a guy named Ben Jammin’
Who went fishing all day to catch salmon.
He shot, like, six deer
And didn’t drink beer
And he ended the MVS famine.

Ben Jammin’, he loves his TV
He watched the World Cup merrily
It caused him distress,
U.S. messed up a pass,
It destroyed their chance for victory.

Though Ben Jammin’ is gonna skip town,
It’s not going to get us all down.
We’ll cry for a day,
Realize we’re ok,
And be glad to be rid of this clown!

Just kidding, our Ben will be missed
That great smirk and that flick of the wrist
We won’t see him again
And he can’t self-defend
So don’t let him escape you un-kissed!

Please comment with your own Ben Martin roasts and toasts!