Monday morning we talked about building community connections.  We discussed Nextsteppers’ interests/hobbies/activities and those they would like to try.  We also discussed any interest in social, spiritual or exercise groups, as well as volunteer opportunities.  We visited a number of internet resources with more information on local community opportunities.  Continuing our discussion of voting, we watched the Senate Candidates’ Debate.  We held our own mock Nextstep Election and also continued to work on our social video.  Our tentative debut date is December 12 at 11:00am.  Please let us know if this will not work for anybody.

                Tuesday we volunteered at the root cellar and spent a little time afterwards exploring Longfellow Books downtown.  After lunch Rory and the TU/THU crowd went over community connections while Britany took the everyday guys for a walk to Dunkin Donuts.  Patrick had expressed interest in science, so they also tried some science experiments while Rory, Jackie, Evan and Jim popped over to the library.  Congrats to Jim who finally got his library card after receiving his Maine ID! 

                Wednesday morning we continued to talk about community connections but focused more on relationships and our social circles, ranging from intimate to acquaintances.  We each created our own social circle diagram.  In the afternoon we finished up our pastel resist projects which came out beautifully!  Check back for photos! 

                This morning (Thursday), Bill worked with Nextsteppers in the morning to balance a pretend but realistic budget.  In the afternoon, the crew braved the rain for some hot drinks at the coffee stand up the street and recovered from the cold with some Just Dance 4.  The everyday guys hung with Bill while the TU/THU crew went over relationship circles and topic appropriateness for different levels (ie what’s appropriate to share with those close to you but not with others).  We also practiced filling out checks and deposit slips.  Oh, we also learned how to play the game of Clue!  We are still undecided about tomorrow’s lunch menu but we will be deciding on, shopping for, and making said lunch tomorrow morning.  Nextsteppers voted on Hercules for the Friday afternoon movie.