Photo by Dehao Tu ‘20/Courtesy of Hamilton College
“So you are telling me you missed some bomb-ass Haitian food to make some money?!” Yeah, well there was a pig too. I am trying to go abroad without dying in Southeast Asia so there is that.
Nobody actually said that, but I would if I were one of my homies. Hello, my name is Ricardo Millien, and I’m currently a junior here at Hamilton College. During Thanksgiving break, I decided not to go home to Boston, MA because I wanted to make some extra cash. I had the pleasure of not only driving the Jitney, but also house sitting for one of the professional technicians of my second job on campus: Audiovisual Services (AV). I made several trips from the technician’s home to campus: Sometimes, I slept in my dorm (The Trap), and sometimes I slept at the house I watched.
Now, I was not alone in this home. A nice, quiet, and spacious abode, rectangularly shaped, surrounded by acres of land with a two-mile long road with land and other homes as one goes along it — sounds like a
Get Out
knock-off. I promise you though, I’m a single man so all I was visiting was a deaf dog, a big black pet pig, some birds, and chickens and ducks in a coop. It really was not too bad. Although, I must admit I did worry that a wild beast would appear from the shadows when I would chill on the porch at night.
A typical day at the technician’s house was pretty smooth. I would wake up around 6 or 7 a.m. from a calm sleep on the couch to the deaf dog staring at me. Yes, the owners offered me a bed, but I never slept in it because the couch was just right there. Anyway, the dog’s name is Abby and she has no issues letting anyone know what she wants and when she wants it. She also did not care much for my affection, not that she ignored me or was upset if I pet her, but because nobody knew how to make her feel happy the way her owners do. She would follow me as I went upstairs to George the pig, who I found asleep on beautiful folded blankets, includig a soft white blanket over his rough black skin. Of course, he was only asleep until he heard food drop onto the gray tray on the floor. As soon as a drop was heard, he made multiple, unusual “oink oink” noises and took deep breaths, anxious to get some grub in his belly. As he ate, I took the blanket off the bird cage.
Apparently, they can say words in English, but they never said anything to me. I then made my way outside, poop-boots on, and opened the small brown entrance to the chicken coop. The chickens, rooster, and ducks made their way out, and I made my way in to grab their food and spread it out along the ground in front of the coop. I had to change their water bowl only once. Abby was still with me.
The chickens, rooster, and ducks were able to handle their business on their own for the day. They would go all over the place, mostly together, except many times the ducks departed on their own to the creek to swim. I personally do not know how they could do so in this cold weather.
I then went back into the home, took off the poop boots, and chased George with a vacuum to make him go out back to move his bowels and urinate. Abby went outside too, but she did her own thing. I would then wait for them both to come back in, and that is when I knew I could make power moves out of farmland, New York and back to, well, this place. I’d return back to the home by 5:00 p.m. and repeat the morning routine, except I would close the coop when the chickens, rooster, and ducks were inside.
The campus felt deserted. I knew there were people here, especially athletes up until a certain point, but a lot of them, international students, and students who do not identify as either, were not a part of my friend group — or I just do not know them. Regardless, this did not really bother me because I still had friends here, and I’m naturally a floater (I move from social circle to social circle). However, I could not help but think, “wow, even at a small liberal arts college we are all very clique oriented.”
It was not a bad experience when I was on campus during the break. I spent most of my time either in the KTSA music studio working on my music or hanging with some friends and doing homework in The Trap. And yes, just like you, I got mad sleep on days where I was not still in the studio at four o’clock in the morning. If I was not in The Trap, or in the studio, I was working the Jitney. Thank you to the few international students that accompanied me during my shifts. I know I did you a service, but your presence was well appreciated, especially those I actually spoke to.
On Thanksgiving day, I was able to visit my Posse mentor and Academic Advisor’s home to have some tasty South American food. I mean, it was not Haitian food, but it was simply delicious, especially the mac & cheese. I ate with her, her husband, their son, and an international student who is a senior here on campus. We had tons of laughs, full stomachs, and plenty of stories to tell. I felt at home.
By Saturday afternoon, the housesitting had ended, and I found myself alone in my dorm watching
Power
and
Death Note
for hours. I obviously did more than that but, you know, feds are watching. Then, my friend and fellow Delta Phi brother, Luka Modebadze ’18 said: “work at 10?” Just like that, I realized that my chill-time was done. Jeez, I cannot wait to go abroad.
