Tombo's Blog

It’s not often that I get political.

2012-01-19T07:05:00.001-07:00

So I won’t go into depth about this whole SOPA PIPA. If you want info on what is going on, check out this wiki article: SOPA, PIPA (also a great video on PIPA).

To help stop these acts from passing, go here, and here too for AZ residents.

So yeah – let’s raise a ruckus.

Just a little update

2012-01-10T09:15:00.001-07:00

It’s getting awful quiet around here. I have been remiss in my writing duties. Alas, the spark of creativity refuses to hit, and so the blog goes dormant. This is not to say that I haven’t been doing anything. Rather, it seems that I have been enjoying my day-to-day life so much that writing about it is loses appeal.

So here is a quick update before I get back to my daily biz:

- I’m still working at The Office restaurant, waiting tables. I’m getting good at it, and having a pretty good time doing it as well. It’s fun to deal with the general population, but I sure do miss the outdoorsy-ness of the vineyard.

- Christmas was quiet. I worked on my sister’s truck and cooked dinner at my mom’s house. We did a small gift exchange, and just generally had a good time. Courtney was in Missouri visiting family.

- By new years she was home, so we went to downtown Prescott and drank with friends to celebrate the next 365 days. We watched the first annual boot drop, and then went home and passed out.

- I’m still being all fit and stuff. For a few weeks we had snow out in the woods, so I was out hiking with the dog a few times. We did silly things like make a snowman:

But then all the snow melted, so I’ve reverted to more running, although I’m mixing it up by running in ‘barefoot’ sandals. Still lifting weights, with Courtney, at the Y twice a week as well.

I’ve also been trying to get out for bouldering whenever I have a day off. I did manage to go climbing with some friends who were in from Oregon last week, which was a blast. I even climbed my first 5.9 route, which was neat.

- Other than that, I’ve just been trying to enjoy the quiet moments of life:

Hope everybody out there is loving life.

It’s that holiday season.

2011-12-01T12:22:00.001-07:00

Courtney and I hosted thanksgiving dinner at our place. After last year’s boring turkey day in Savannah, I was thrilled to be able to have people over to celebrate. Mom and Nikki came over, as did some friends from the vineyard and some friends from the new place of employment. I cooked all day, and we ended up with a rocking feast!

Out of our kitchen the menu was:

-Roasted garlic/rubbed sage turkey breast

-Sweet bbq ham

-Mashed cauliflower

-Bacon wrapped dates

-Roasted root veggies

-Apple/sausage quinoa

-Birdie seed bars

And to accompany all this our friends and family brought:

-Mac & Cheese

-Chicken enchilada casserole

-Classic sweet potatoes

- Salad

- Flourless chocolate cake

- Espresso/chocolate balls

- A whole gaggle of wine.

As expected – everybody over-ate, had a good time, drank, and was merry.

I had a blast, and can’t wait to do it again next year!

Oh hey, by the way. I made a book.

2011-11-18T14:47:00.001-07:00

Yes, after much nudging from friends and family, I pieced together 120 pictures from the trip, and made a coffee table book out of it. I’m pretty proud of the result. Feel free to look at the preview (first 15 pages). It’s up for sale for $36.95+s/h. There’s no profit in it for me, just the fun of having something to hold in my little hands. :)

25,000 Miles o...

By Thomas Check

Book Preview

But everything works out.

2011-11-17T15:44:00.001-07:00

My bank account gets ready to run out, but dad sends me a check to keep me afloat. The day it arrives I get a call back from a restaurant. They want to hire me! And so now I’m employed, and trying to figure out how to be a server. And I’m having a blast doing it!

Other than that, I’ve been living on the cheap, so it’s lots of walking and exercise, enjoying the changing of the seasons as we go from summer into this:

Haven’t been doing much photography, nor have I been bouldering of late, due to dropping temps out in the woods. For now I watch the colors change, I enjoy cooking every night with my lady and our room mate, and simply live life. It’s a good thing.

While I wait, there is lots of this:

2011-10-24T09:39:00.001-07:00

Great, so I’m settled. Now what?

2011-10-21T09:34:00.001-07:00

That’s the questions running through my head this week. I’ve settled my few belongings in our cozy home. But I don’t know what to do now. I need to find work, that’s for sure. I tell myself that I want to get into the food service industry. I want to wait tables. Why? Who knows? So I put in applications around town, I put on my nicest clothes and submit resumes along with smiles. At the end of week one though, I’ve not heard back from anybody. I’m not sure why this surprises me, why some part of me just expected opportunities to come crashing over me. I should have known that it wouldn’t be that easy.

Unfortunately, the wheels in my head begin to churn out the what-ifs. What if I don’t get a job? What if I end up having to do some miserable retail job to make ends meet? What if this whole thing comes crashing down because I’m flat broke in a few weeks? I become mildly panic-stricken at all the possible things that could go wrong. So I take a step back, I focus on the good things that come with unemployment. I exercise like a maniac, hitting the gym just as hard as I hit the rock. I cook frugal meals every day, and take my expenditures down as much as I can to maintain my meager bank account for as long as possible. I read books, and hike with the dog. I run and walk around this town which is so familiar to me. I soak in the fact that I am here again, after over a year of being a nomad.

And I wait.

And then… everything changes. (And oh, I found some photo-mojo!)

2011-10-19T15:15:00.001-07:00

My co-workers throw me a going away party. I don’t remember much of it, so I’m sure we had a great time. Everybody having a headache the next day confirms this fact. Our boss lets us go home early, and so I give quick good-byes to all the folks I’ve come to know and admire over the last five months.

I go home and I pack all my stuff into the 4Runner, there isn’t much more than when I was on the road. I’m done half an hour later. Sister and I go out for our last dinner together, and after a nice breakfast and coffee the next morning I’m driving a familiar track to Prescott. As soon as I arrive I dump all my stuff in the living room, and immediately begin re-packing for a four day vacation in the north of the state. When I’m done, before I can even realize that I no longer live in Jerome, we throw everything into Courtney’s car and hit the road.

We quickly head to Lake Powell, to a camping area called Lone Rock, and setup camp with friends from Prescott and from Massachusetts. We are all headed different directions tomorrow, but tonight we congregate on the sandy shore of the lake:

The near-full moon provides a nice light by which to admire lone rock:

After cooking breakfast and packing it all in, we all get a late start out of the area. Our friends from Prescott are off for a few days of kayaking around the lake, while the friends from Mass decide to join Courtney and I on our next stop – slot canyons. Along the way we stop to check out the ‘Toadstool’ hoodoo formations along the southern section of Escalante:

And from there it was just a hop, skip and a jump over to the Wire Pass/Buckskin Gulch slot canyons. It was my first time into a slot canyon and I was super excited to try photographing it. We had a blast:

Once we got to Buckskin we trekked upstream along a muddy track that was thankfully created by people earlier that day. It was slick and a fall into the mud was always close at hand, thankfully nobody fell in.

Once the trail came to a watery end we turned around and headed back to the car, me snapping pictures all the way:

Once we were out, we parted ways with our Mass friends, as they headed up to Salt Lake City and we headed to a nearby campground for the night where, unfortunately, the restroom vents were blowing our way and made for a bit of a stinky night.

The next day, we didn’t know where to go. I wanted to go up into the Escalante monument, but road reports were grim. A big storm had closed one major road, and they didn’t know about the other. In Courtney’s little Toyota corolla we didn’t want to risk it. So we drove out to nearby Kanab, Utah, and grabbed some coffee at the local coffee shop / outdoor outfitter. We asked the great folks there for recommendations, and were pointed in the direction of Kanab Creek Wilderness. We looked up the area in a resource book and decided on the Snake Gulch trail, reported to have lots of petro glyphs and pictograms. Off we went, through the beautiful Kaibab Plateau, and down the cockscomb to the trailhead. The trail was level, and made for a gorgeous afternoon hike:

And soon we found little spur trails leading to rock walls. On these walls were some pretty awesome things:

We hiked about five miles in before the threat of darkness turned us around and we headed back to the car. By the time we got to the trailhead it was sunset, and since we were all alone, we opted to camp right there. Not a bad spot at all, and best of all – no stinky bathroom!

The moon was bright, and I tried shooting a few photos, but it quickly got cold and so we retreated to the sleeping bags.

The next morning we decide to call it the end of our trip, and turn southward once more. We stop in the Navajo reservation to snap a few pictures of a graffiti artist’s work:

And Courtney plays model for me:

From there we stopped into Flagstaff to have dinner with another friend, before finally heading home. My new home, with the gal I love. Time to move into the next chapter of my life.

For all the photos from the trip, check out this link.

A step forward? It feels scary, so it must be.

2011-09-27T18:30:00.001-07:00

It’s time for more change. I wake up in the morning and the sun is no longer burning at the horizon to greet me. The hot air balloons start their ascent from Sedona later and later in the day, and the temps are no longer what I would call searing. In short, the summer is drawing to an end. And with that end comes another – my adventure here in the Verde Valley.

I have a week and a half of working in the vineyard remaining. The harvest should be done, or close to it, by then which is the time I told myself that I should be moving on. And so I enjoy the remaining days, the picking of fruit which seems so easy compared to so many of the other tasks we’ve been given over the past five months. I joke with my co-workers about all the nonsense that we have done since I showed up, all the other people who have come and gone, and we joke about where we are all going next.

I joke that I will probably be back a week after I leave, out of money and begging to get a few hours a week to cover bills. And in all jokes there exists a nugget of truth. I don’t have anything lined up for the next chapter. I know I am moving to Prescott, moving in with my gal Courtney and her current roommate. I am excited about this, but at the same time terrified at the situation I am forcing on myself. No work, and no idea what is available out there. The day I move over we leave for a few days to go do some sight-seeing in southern Utah/northern Arizona. I hope that my photography mojo comes back to me up there, and that I can come back recharged and ready to rock the world. I hope that the ‘universe’ sends work my way in a timely matter. I hope that I don’t have to resort to doing computer work to make my living, although I’m not entirely against doing it if that’s what it takes to stay alive.

I’m scared, and I’m loving it.

A year. It feels a lifetime.

2011-08-16T18:26:00.001-07:00

A year ago today. That’s when I left. Left for what would end up being seven amazing months, tooting across the country on backroads, visiting everybody that I know. So today, I post a follow up, a recap, a something; because it seems like the thing to do on a one year anniversary.

I left without a real plan. When people would ask, all I could say was “I’ll go west till I hit water, then north till they won’t let me any further, then east till I hit more water, then south till I run out of road.” I left the details intentionally vague, especially to myself. I wanted an adventure, and you simply cannot plan an adventure. So I sold most everything I owned, piled what was left into the back of my 4Runner and left everything I knew behind.

Sounds romantic, doesn’t it? I sure thought so. But there were some logistics to square away before all of that. The biggest of which was money. I saved for just over a year, living a meager life and putting every dollar away until I had just under $12,000 saved up for the trip. In the seven months of being a wanderer I would go through every one of those hard-earned pennies, plus some.

And there is the mode of transportation to consider as well. I attempted to purchase a truck specifically for the truck, but after finding some major(ish) problems with it, I ended up deciding on taking my faithful, and aging, Toyota 4Runner. I can happily say that in the 25,000 miles I covered I never broke anything more major than an anti-squeak spring on a brake pad. I got lucky, for which I am eternally grateful.

There are also travelling companions to decide on when going out on the road for an extended period of time. It sure does get lonely out there, so having company along is certainly an attractive option. But what if personalities don’t mesh? What if, after a few thousand miles, an argument sends everything scattering to the wind? As most of you know, I dodged this bullet with one simple answer: take the dog. He never talks back, he listens most of the time, and is fairly non-judgmental.

And then there is the ‘stuff’ that you pack into your truck. Inevitably, you will pack about two or three times as much stuff as you actually need. Part of it is ‘being prepared’ for the unforseen, part of it is not really knowing what you need to be prepared for, and part of it is just an emotional attachment to having stuff. I can say that in retrospect – only six things are truly required for a young man going on a driveabout on a tight budget in this era:

- Fancy pants. Or rather – fancy underpants. The underwear out there that advertise anti-microbial, anti-odor technologies to be specific. Anything but cotton. I went with Ex-Officio boxer briefs. Two pair. TWO PAIRS OF UNDERWEAR FOR SEVEN MONTHS! You can wash them in a sink (like at the coffee shop, or public park, or in the freakin ocean), they dry in half an hour at sixty miles-per-hour, and if you stay on top it, you can have a clean and dry pair of underwear every day of the week. AMAZING.

- Laptop. We live in a hi-tech world. Whether you are a photographer who needs to edit shots and post them to the world, or if you just need to find a coffee shop somewhere in the town you find yourself in, or even figure out where you want to go next, a laptop is your gateway to information. It is also a great way to stay connected with friends since you will no longer have a physical mailbox. Plus, you know you want to keep up on the facebook gossip.

- Thermarest. Yep, an air mattress, the expensive and high-quality type. I did the first few months without it, and will forever regret the many uncomfortable nights I had due to the lack. Whether it’s just making the truck a more comfortable place, or keeping you off of the skeevy-looking couch of that person who seemed a little too eager to invite you over to their house, a thermarest is a must.

- Mess kit. If you are travelling on a budget, that means you are cooking in campgrounds, or public parks, or on your tailgate in the Laundromat parking lot (oh yeah, I DID!). So do yourself a favor, and get a small stove that burns hot and uses a standard, easy-to-obtain fuel. On top of that stove put a pot with a lid (yes a POT, not a pan. Pots are infinitely more versatile). When you are done cooking have a tupperware handy to eat out of (preferably snap-lids to keep spills to a minimum) and some type of spoon or fork to gobble food into your mouth with.

- Power inverter. Because you have a cell phone and a laptop that need to be charged. And it’s easier to do it while you sleep than depending on coffee shop outlets which may already all be taken.

-Flexibility. Not the limber-in-the-joints type, but the mental type. Realize that you don’t know how the world works, that some people are crazy, and that every time you come up with a plan it is bound to change. Learn to adapt. It makes everything easier.

So now that I have the essentials packed up, what do I do? Good question. I think one of the most important things to do is to connect with people. So I called every friend I have, and found out where they are living and if I could visit them. I mooched a couch from many family members. And then I found out that I really don’t know all that many people, and have a fairly small family. So when I couldn’t connect with people I already knew, I had to go out and connect with people I didn’t know. Some of these were friends of friends, or friends of my sister’s. Some were just random folks who’s lives happened to briefly intersect with mine in a meaningful way. But throughout the whole trip, it was the people who made the most impact on me.

But I couldn’t always connect with people. Let’s face it – I’m kind of a weird dude, and with the ever-growing facial hair, I looked like a man just come down from the mountains. I often smelled like it as well. And so I had to adjust to suddenly having a huge amount of free time. I read books. I read all four of the books that I brought with me, and then I re-read them again and again. Eventually I swapped a few of them out with other book-ish folks, thank god. I snapped photos, which was by far my largest diversion, and allowed me to open my eyes to what was going on around me. I walked a lot. The dog loved it. And I worked out. Because I’m addicted to exercise, and I can do it anywhere.

All of this suddenly seems a bit out of place. What the hell happened to the romanticism of going on a trip? It sounds like I just wandered around being bored and lonely. And I did, but I’d like to think that I did so with a purpose. See, I set out with a set of goals in addition to my six necessary items. Obscure goals that cannot be adequately defined. Goals like “self definition”, and “seeing some of this country”, or the ever-popular “figure out where to go next in life.” As idiotic as some of these may sound, if you keep thinking about them (and keeping those memories around via a journal or blog or something) you can start to guide yourself pretty reliably simply by asking if a decision will help you define yourself (or test yourself). If it will give you the opportunity to see something amazing. Or if it will help you figure out where you would rather be. All of these goals are fluid. Any concrete answer you make up for them lasts approximately three hours before you decide you have to amend that definition, and thusly by keeping them obscure you allow yourself to always move toward whatever it is you want without having to constantly come up with new goals.

This is what I did for seven months. And it allowed me to have some great experiences. It allowed me to see places that I’ve always wanted to see. It allowed me to see places that I never knew I wanted to see. It allowed me to gain a much greater sense of self, and self worth. It allowed me to realize that I will never know what I really want. And most importantly, it allowed me to know what whatever comes my way – I’ll be just fine.

So here I am, a year later:

I’m still testing myself and defining who I want to be. I’m still seeing new and amazing things, even if they are all in my backyard. I’m still figuring out where I want to go next. I accomplish all of these goals in my work, in my relationships, and in my play. Every day. That isn’t too bad.

And I still only have two pairs of underwear. Some habits die hard.

Where’s that motivation?

2011-08-09T17:45:00.001-07:00

It’s still not here. No motivation to shoot fun pictures. Sometimes I take the camera out anyway, thinking that inspiration will just hit.

I live with this view as my backyard:

I watch monsoons trail by at dusk, but for some reason it’s not hitting me. I get flat where I should get sparks:

I look through old photos and re-edit them, thinking that I might find the magic in the past:

But I find only an awe that I once shot those photos. And so I resign myself to waiting some more. Grabbing life-shots to try and remember this time. Bouldering out in the woods with my girl:

Random shots so that when I’m old, I remember what it was like to be young:

I wait and hope that the magic comes back. I hope that a bit of magic hits me next week, when I try to write a one-year follow up to my departure for travel. I hope a bit of magic comes my way when the time is right, so that I can make even more magic happen.

Something a little lighter than that last one.

2011-07-10T19:52:00.001-07:00

Well the last post was depressing. Stumble, get back up, move on.

So what do I have on my plate these days? My sister has been on vacation in Italy, so I’ve been laying low in Jerome all week.

Health wise – I’m leaning more and more towards the primal lifestyle. It’s kind of rocking my world. There is a lot that goes against the conventional ‘fitness’ wisdom that I spent so much time trying to adhere to, so there are a few places that I still struggle. But I’m looking better than ever, and more importantly – I’m feeling better than ever. Even after an exhaustive day of digging holes, lifting weights, and walking the dog, I still have energy to do fun things.

Fun things – Like cook. Along with the change in exercise comes a change in diet. Now that I’m not confined to living and cooking in the truck on a five dollar a day budget, I’ve started to re-learn how to enjoy cooking. I’ve cut almost all the grains out of my diet. So no bread, no pasta, no corn-based products. I still grab the rare bagel, or slice of pizza, but it’s not often. With summer upon us here in the desert I’ve been shooting for lighter fare. Alongside the big hunks of meat there is generally fruit, lots of salads, plus I’ve been on a spinach and cauliflower kick of late, so those are making it in regularly.

Other fun stuff – Bouldering. My weekend exercise. Every weekend for at least an hour or two Courtney and I are on the rock. We’ve gone outside with some friends in Prescott and torn our hands up on the granite. We’ve gone out just us on some nice black basalt boulders by Thumb Butte, until they got too hot to hang out on. And we’ve also gone up to the climbing gym in Flagstaff with my friend Ben who lives up there, to crawl all over colored holds until our fingers were too sore to grip a pencil. I’m still really bad at the sport, but I’m starting to get better. Every time out gets me a little closer to the goal of feeling proficient.

Work stuff – I’m still in the vineyard, and I’m still thoroughly enjoying it. The temperatures are ridiculously high, and with monsoons here we see a bit of humidity as well. Lots of days digging holes, or spending all eight hours on my knees planting new vines. Sunshine that makes the new-hires drop like flies, and a grueling schedule with low pay that would understandably make most people run for the conventional jobs in an office. As bad as all of this sounds – I really do look forward to going to work every day. It’s such a nice change of pace from staring at computers all day, I can’t help but be thankful to be out there. As of next week our new install should be finished – 18,000 new vines in the ground, and I was a small part of it. Kind of cool.

But the vineyard work won’t last forever. My girl is over the hill, and seeing her only on the weekends isn’t something I want long-term. So after the harvest season this fall I’ll be heading over to Prescott to live with her, and hopefully find a job waiting tables, which is a job I’ve always wanted to try.

Things with the girl are obviously going well, since I’m planning on moving in with her. We have a trip planned for St. Louis in a few days to hang out with her family and friends. We’ll be out there for a week full of fun.

Ummm… yeah, that’s about it. Hope everybody out there in the blogosphere is doing well and enjoying summer time!

Disconnected

2011-06-20T20:08:00.001-07:00

I realize that I don’t have many friends. The occasional friend 100 miles away sure, but nobody that I see on a regular basis. I’ve disconnected myself from just about everything since the road trip ended, and I’m not quite sure why.

I get up at 4:30 every morning to go to work, I spend eight hours sweating in 100 degree desert heat, then come home to hurt myself with the weights or with the jogging shoes. My knees haven’t stopped aching since I started working, and yet I don’t give myself a rest.

I tell myself that I need to do these things, even though I know better. I tell myself that I don’t have time to do social things in this new place in which I live, no time to go meet people, no time to go grab a drink with co-workers, no time to think. No time, because I keep giving it all away to nothing.

I live with my sister, but we are totally independent of one another, randomly existing in the same domicile for a few moments before one or the other of us drifts away again. Sometimes going out to grab a bite to eat when we are both too exhausted to cook.

Fridays find me rushing to Prescott to spend my weekends with Courtney. Saturdays we play around on the boulders near Prescott – wincing, grabbing, falling, and screaming as we learn a new sport. Sundays are the only day on which I try to rest. Generally an hour or two of walking the dog, possibly a lunch with mom where we both try to talk through our problems and end up hitting the same blocks every time.

My camera hasn’t seen the sunlight in weeks, I try to connect to facebook, but I realize all the posts I make just reflect the terribly repetitive nature of my current life.

I’m not unhappy though, which is the odd part. Perhaps a bit discontent, but mostly I’m just… nothing. I’ve disconnected from being anything for a while.

Not dead, just dead tired.

2011-06-05T14:58:00.002-07:00

The summer time is here, and the work in the vineyards is getting hot. I haven't been up to much lately. Work all day, get home and jog/walk with the dog, lift weights twice a week, cook dinner with sis, pass out. Repeat five times a week. Weekends find me in Prescott with Courtney. I just bought my own pair of climbing shoes, so it looks like bouldering and climbing will be my new hobby on saturdays. Sundays I'm trying to lay low, relax, give the body a bit of a break.

That's about it. Haven't taken the camera out lately, haven't been exploring my new home, and really; haven't done much. I'm just trying to enjoy the heat as much as I can, find a groove within which to ride for a while, and see how the rest of summer treats me.

Currently I'm sick as a dog, so lots of sleep the last few days, and it feels like the sickness is finally ebbing away.

After week one of hard work, what’s a boy to do?

2011-05-15T20:31:00.001-07:00

The idea is that, on weekends, I’ll drive back to Prescott and spend time with my girl Courtney. And so Saturday morning as her and I prepare to get coffee we get an invite to a friends house. From there, we get an invite to go rock climbing. How can we say no?

She has a few friends driving up from Phoenix, and so after we meet up with them we all head out to a place called the “Promised Lands”. Thankfully, they have enough spare gear for me to be able to climb, and since this is my second time ever trying this sport, they take it pretty easy on me. I have a great time clinging to the side of a rock, wondering where the heck to put my hands a feet:

And then I scamper around with the camera, trying to taking pictures of the other climbers. Of course there was my favorite gal:

And her friend Kimberly:

And the crew from Phoenix:

All told, we spent about three hours out there before Court and I packed it in for the day. A great time, and a darn good group of folks to hang out with.

What’s next is work. True, actual, paying, work.

2011-05-15T20:04:00.001-07:00

But before work, I head up to Flagstaff to see my buddy Ben once again. We drink coffee and tea, we walk around downtown and then we walk around campus. Good times with this guy:

We eat some good food, and we see some great graffiti:

And then it’s back to Prescott for a few days with mom and with Courtney. Then the first of May rolls around and I pack everything I own into my 4Runner once again.

Thankfully, it’s not a long drive. Just over ‘the hill’ to Jerome. I know somebody here go will not only give me a place to stay for a while, but is also willing to help me get some work. That person is Nikki, my sister. And so for a few days I putz around this little mining town until she hooks me up with some work in a field.

A field full of these:

Which, when you step back a bit, look more like this:

Yes, my sister got me work in the vineyards of Arizona. So, for a week now, I’ve been learning the ropes of skilled labor among the vines. Digging holes, planting vines, pruning, trellising, picking up rocks, and all sorts of fun stuff like that.

I'm working under the awesome sunshine, using my muscles, and sweating my butt off. And I’m loving it. I’m not really sure how long all of this will last. Definitely a few weeks, possibly a few months. When it’s done, I’m not sure what the next step is, but for now I know that I am enjoying the hard work, and hopefully making ‘enough’ money to float me through whatever comes my way.

A trip across the country

2011-04-29T14:18:00.001-07:00

My friends asked me to help them move across the country. I had the time, so I of course said yes:

A house’s worth of stuff, trundling across the country:

When I’m not driving, Huey and I are enjoying the wind through our respective furs:

We stop ad dad’s house for a few days. Besides all the normal shenanigans, they have frogs causing all sorts of ruckus:

We left first thing sunday morning, and we were done unpacking the truck into their new apartment on thursday afternoon. By the weekend the boxes are all unpacked, and the only thing left to do is hang pictures. We have dinner with Chris’ brother, wife, and son who are down from New Jersey. We stop in DC for a few hours, but it’s raining and so we aren’t really into it.

For the next five days I teach Chris how to be a man of leisure (since I’ve now had nine months of practicing this fine art). We drink coffee, we work out, we play tennis, we eat at local restaurants, and explore his new home. We turn off the GPS and get lost, and find back ways back to his place through the lusciously green landscape.

Thursday rolls around and it’s time for me to hit the road again. Chris drops me off at the greyhound bus station, and from there it is a long trip back to AZ. My cell phone battery runs out on the first day, which means no familiar voices to talk to. Since the phone is also my MP3 player, it means no tunes. I read books, but those run out by noon on the second day. So I talk to all the strangers around me. I get glimpses into their lives, as they get a glimpse into mine. Some are friendly, some are not. Some snore while they sleep, and others sleep not at all. Some are coffee addicts, and others are heroine addicts. Some are just hooked on universal love, and some are hooked on the road.

I arrive to phoenix on the third day, 54 hours after leaving my friend. I’m a total space cadet, I haven’t slept much, and the road has turned my brain to mush. Courtney picks me up with a friend, and we all go to get coffee. We run a few other errands before heading back home, where I promptly pass out. Another cross-country trip is done.

Now it’s time to figure out what’s next.

And then some random

2011-04-26T09:56:00.001-07:00

Martin Prihoda shoots photos in India. Lots of good stuff on his blog. Today this came through, just look at those awesome pics.

Prescott slackliner

2011-04-26T09:11:00.001-07:00

There is a growing theory in my life. This theory states that if you spend enough time at a park, you will invariably run into awesomeness. Sure enough, as I was sitting around eating lunch at Granite Creek Park in Prescott a few weeks ago, I see a guy setting up a slackline. And so I did the only sensible thing I could think of… I asked if I could take pictures of him.

His name is Brenden. He is a gymnast who happened to run into some slackliners a few years ago, and he took to it like a fish to water.

But he doesn’t just walk on the line like a lot of folks. He does crazy acrobatic jumps, flips, and dives:

He also knows the slackliners I met in Austin, which I thought was pretty neat. And so he did tricks as I shutterbugged away:

Until we both had to leave.

The joys of parks.

Not dead, just crazy.

2011-04-25T11:28:00.001-07:00

Sorry ‘bout the long absence. I helped my best friend and his wife drive a moving truck across the country, hung out with them in the DC area for little over a week, and just got back this weekend from a 54 hour greyhound bus ride home. I’ve got a week or so in Prescott before I head over to Jerome to live with my sis for a while and do some work in the vineyards of arizona. I’m excited, tired, and still lost. But I’m having a good time, so all is well.

Hope all is well for you out in the blogosphere, hopefully I’ll have something more interesting to post in the next few days.

Now what?

2011-04-05T09:09:00.001-07:00

I’ve decided that the road trip is over. I’ve asked Courtney to be my gal, which is something she deserved a long time ago. There is still a lot to figure out.

For one thing, I leave Monday for Virginia. My best friend and his wife are moving out there, and since I’m not working yet I told them I would help them drive out there and get settled. I’ll catch a greyhound bus back to AZ in a few weeks. And then I need to start working. My sister tells me that she will be able to get me work in a vineyard, I’ll plan on living with her. None of this is definite, and if it doesn’t work out I’m not sure where it leaves me. The money is nearly gone, and when it runs out there is no emergency backup fund.

It’s all in flux, but I’m feeling pretty good about the direction everything is heading. It ‘feels’ right.

So… Utah

2011-03-30T09:09:00.001-07:00

My plan was to go to the Redwoods. To take a friend up there, hang out in the big trees, come back through Yosemite, Zion, Bryce Canyon, Escalante. It sounded great. But then there was an earthquake, and suddenly the redwoods were closing some of the scenic drives and trails. Yosemite is mostly closed due to snow. That news, mixed with my waning bank account and rising price of gas means meant a change of plans. I would just go see southern Utah. I decided on a timeframe of anywhere from three to eight days, depending on how the spirit hit me.

And so last Tuesday I left the dog at Mom’s house, packed up the truck once again, and pointed northward. I travelled through somewhat familiar territory. I’d taken this road on my last jaunt North, but turned at Tuba City to chase after Canyon de Chelly. This time I head towards the Jacob’s lake, and take a stop at the Navajo Bridge, one of only a few over the Colorado River:

Then towards Kanab, and my first stop: Zion National Park. I take my time driving down the road, soaking in the sights of all these rocks:

I head to the visitor’s center, but there’s something not right. I’ve lost an hour, I forgot that daylight savings apply here in Utah. The center is closed, there’s no chance of me getting a back country permit to backpack onto some of the trails of this gorgeous place. I’ll be sleeping outside the park today. I’m a little disappointed, but not overly so. Zion is the smallest of my stops, and so I go for a hike along the river, enjoy the sight of water all around:

And then I drive back out of the park, soaking up as many of the sights as I can:

I make one last stop at the trail for Observation Point. I hike to the point as the sun sets. No magical colors in the sky tonight though, the sun just dips below the horizon, giving a nice view of the road below. The rocks catch one last bit of magical light for the day:

And then I’m out of the park, figuring I’ll cover most of the distance to Bryce Canyon, and get there nice and early. I park twenty feet off the highway for the night, and prepare for the cold. Temps are supposed to be single digits again. I snuggle in deep, missing the dog’s company and his heat.

I wake up, clear the ice off the windows, and drive the few remaining miles to Bryce. I walk up just as the visitor’s center opens, and head to talk to a ranger. I ask about open trails, snow fall, backcountry camping. He tells me that Bryce backcountry camping isn’t nearly as scenic as the vehicle drive, that the one trail he would recommend for hiking is a four mile loop down the Navajo trail and out Queen’s Garden trail. If I’m not setup for a decent amount of snow he doesn’t recommend anything beyond the established campground on the road.

Disappointed once again I head off to the trail head, and make my way down the icy switchbacks. The hoodoos quickly assuage my dour disposition:

Thankfully, the ice isn’t melting yet, and so it’s just slick-not mushy. Also, my early arrival means I see few people, and have a bit of solitude as I hike:

It’s an interesting thing. My head is pounding, my lungs are pounding, my sinuses are burning. Some of this is from hiking at 9000 feet, but I keep feeling like I’m sick. Hot and cold. I admit that I am not in the best health right now. A sinus infection that is creeping into my ear. Oh well, nothing to do but keep hiking.

So I go and visit the queen in her garden:

And then it is uphill back to the rim, with more lovely rock views along the way:

At the rim I eat a quick lunch at the truck, then go for the long scenic drive down to the south end of the canyon. The turnouts are all gorgeous, but filled with people. Still, hard to complain too loudly about this:

The scenic drive done, I head out of the park towards my final destination of the trip: Escalante. My head is pounding and my sinus is on fire. I tell myself to take it easy and not do any more hiking for the day. I stop off at an arch, a gorgeous double arch in Escalante:

I end up at a trailhead for one of the trails I wanted to hike here, and my earlier thinking of resting goes straight out the window. In no time flat I am in the Cottonwood Narrows:

A nice hike down a narrow canyon. It’s only two and half miles back to the truck, so I take it slow and enjoy the scenery:

And once I get out, I find a spot to camp right on a little creek. I make myself some tea, and enjoy the reflections of the trees in my cup:

I eat a sandwich for dinner, and pass out as soon as the sun is behind the mountains. Twelve hours later I wake up to snow on the truck, and mud on the road. There are a few trails I wanted to hike today, and so I head to the first: Hackberry Canyon. More great scenery, but this trail is nothing but walking in a creek, mud, sand, and water creeping ever deeper into my boots:

It’s a beautiful morning, but my body is giving up. It’s cold, I’m wet, and decide to call it a day. I turn around and hike back to the truck.

I drive out of Escalante and earmark it for a future visit. This is a very beautiful place, full of solitude. Just my cup of tea. I’m feeling pretty happy as I drive south into Paige. I have one more planned stop. It’s a quick one. Just south of Paige is a place called Horseshoe bend, where the Colorado River makes a big U turn around a section of rock. It’s a place that I have wanted to photograph for a few years, but never made the trek this far north for it. So I pull into the parking lot, packed with tour buses and other cars. I hike a short bit to the lookout point, and jostle my way in for a look at the bend.

All of this is a bit less romantic that I had envisioned. There is no time for a nice spiritual sit down as people shout and chatter. It’s a beautiful place, but I’m not feeling it. The pictures I am taking look just like every other picture I’ve ever seen of the place. There is only one real vantage point. So I dutifully click away, but am just as happy to leave. At least the picture has the feeling of solitude:

So now it’s onto home. But wait, my buddy Ben calls in Flagstaff, wants to know if I want to have dinner in six hours. Not one to say no to a real dinner after three days of nothing but turkey sandwiches, I agree. That means I have to kill some time, I’m only two hours away from Flag. So I turn off towards Lee’s Ferry and pull off at some random BLM gate and hike along a wash. All of the washes here head towards the Colorado, so I figure a couple of hours might get me there and back. The hiking is pretty and sun-filled:

But soon I am confronted with the nature of the landscape here. The wash quickly turns into a deep slot canyon, not something I’m setup to traverse alone. I walk along the upper levels for a bit, but soon all the rocks are getting shifty, so I turn around. The slot wins this one:

That’s alright. I poke towards Flagstaff, going slow and stopping often. By the time I get there he is off of work and we eat with his folks, then head out on the town for the evening. Good times had, and I drive home early the next morning. I’m back home by eight, and ready to rest for a few days.

For the photoset with all the photos click here.

So I went to Utah for a few days

2011-03-27T08:52:00.001-07:00

I’m still editing pictures and whatnot. Here’s a teaser:

Out of the truck and into the canyon.

2011-03-25T14:57:00.001-07:00

The six hours to Prescott fly by. I stop by my Mom’s work to say hello, to let her know I’m safe. Then I head over to Chris’ house to hang out for a few hours, unwind a bit, before heading off once more to Courtney’s place to go grocery shopping for our Grand Canyon trip tomorrow. It’s a whirlwind, and by the end of the day I am exhausted.

Up early, and ready to roll north. I’m going light this time, about 12 pounds of stuff. I’m opting not to take a camera on this trip for one simple reason: I don’t want to worry about trying to get a magical picture this time down. I want to just enjoy the scenery without framing and f-stops running through my brain.

We hike down the South Kaibab trail, which is in amazingly good shape. It takes us only three and a half hours to get down, which is pretty quick for us. We are staying at Phantom Ranch, with some of the employees whom Courtney knows. We are scheduled to stay one night, and so we settle in, kick off the dusty boots, and take a dip in the Bright Angel creek. Cold and invigorating.

We eat dinner with her friends, meet a few of the other guests, and spend the night partying down in the bunk house. Upon waking we are invited to stay another night, something which neither of us want to turn down. Sowe decide on a long day hike after helping with some chores. We hike six easy miles up the North Kaibab trail to Ribbon Falls. It is gorgeous, and we sit and enjoy the view of cascading water for a long while before lacing back up and heading back to the ranch for another amazing dinner. It’s a quiet night in the bunkhouse this time around, and we pass out early.

Up before breakfast, and we do the short river walk before heading to the cantina to eat up. Once again, we are invited to stay another night. Thrilled, we agree. Courtney decides to chill out for the afternoon while I go up the Clear Creek trail a couple of miles to a scenic overlook, getting a nice view of the river.

Another stellar dinner, and another quiet night. At breakfast they invite us to stay longer yet. Tempted, we both decide that it is probably time to get back up to the rim and back home, so we back it all in, and hike the Bright Angel trail out. It takes a while, Courtney is having some allergy problems with all the juniper in the area and can’t breathe. That’s okay though, we aren’t in any rush. So six hours later we get back to the car, and go eat at a local joint in nearby Tusyan. We end up getting a hotel for the night, since we are both exhausted.

Come morning time, we drive back to Prescott. Yet another successful Grand Canyon Trip.

(if you want to see photos from the last trip down to Phantom check here.)

11 hours of I40

2011-03-21T09:40:00.001-07:00

I’m on the interstate out of Arkansas by eight thirty. I hate the interstate. But today I’m in a hurry, and when one is in a hurry to get somewhere the interstate is the most time-efficient way to get there. So I chug along at ridiculous speed, concerned only with controlling this missile I’m in, and avoiding all the other missiles out there. It is a bit maddening for me:

But finally I hit Albuquerque, a city I am becoming more and more familiar with as I keep visiting my fine friend there. So I pull into town, go to a grocer store to pickup some things for dinner, and head to their house. Sadly, I’m a bit grumpy from driving all day, and so I just walk in and take over their kitchen. Cooking to get a bit of zen in my day, to unwind a bit.

A mellow evening with friends, catching up, looking at photos, eating. Just what the doctor ordered. I pass out five minutes into a movie, and sleep like a log.

I wake up early, grab a quick pic with them, and hit the road once again. I’m due back in Prescott today, and I’ve got six hours to get there.

A stop in with the folks again

2011-03-19T09:36:00.001-07:00

I get a late start leaving Austin. I was invited to a house party on my last night in town, and partied it down until almost four in the morning. I wake up knowing that it is going to be a brutal day of driving.

Eleven hung over hours on the back highways of Texas and Oklahoma gets me to my parent’s house with dinner just about to hit the table. We catch up, watch a cold front come in, and eat. I stay for three nights, trying to get in as much time with the folks as I can before rushing back to AZ to make a canyon hiking trip.

At night we cook. Corned beef and cabbage, steak, salads, and something we like to refer to as polish tacos (kielbasa, red hots, red cabbage, sauerkraut, mustard, and mayo all on a tortilla):

The dog is just as happy as I am to sleep in a bed after the last six weeks in the truck:

My last day there, Dad and I go out shooting guns in the woods behind his house. We blow through about ten mags of .45, a few .40, and then the fun gun. Dad just bought a 30-30 rifle that he wants to run a few rounds through:

(I’m none too sure about that hat of his, but nonetheless- we have fun)

Up early the next day and on the road again. I’ve got 800 miles to go today in order to hit Albuquerque for dinner.

Small update

2011-03-18T16:08:00.001-07:00

I’m back in Prescott, looks like I might be hanging out here for a while. I did stop and see the folks, I did stop and see my friends in Albuquerque again. I did go hike the Grand Canyon, and ended up spending three lovely nights down at the bottom, no camera and lots of hiking. I had a job lined up for april but that looks like it’s fallen through, oh well; I’ll just roll with the punches.

I’m not going to the redwoods, many campgrounds are closed, and a few of the scenic parkways are closed due to water damage. Oh well, perhaps another day. I’m thinking about going up to Bryce Canyon for a few days, possibly Escalante too. I’ve got a few pictures to post, but the current internet connection is not cooperating.

I’m in an odd mental space, not really feeling like I’m home yet, not really sure what I’m doing. I guess that isn’t really all that different than the last six months.

So yeah, more to come. :)

And now – I’ve decided to move on.

2011-03-05T13:24:00.001-07:00

I’ve seen enough of Austin for now. It’s time to get back on the road, go see some friends and family. I’m going to go see my dad and stepmom again for a few days, maybe go hike the grand canyon, definitely go up to the redwoods again. From there, I have a few nebulous ideas depending on how the world turns. Time will tell.

I look back fondly on my time in Austin as I prepare to depart. I got to soak up lots of sunshine and warm up my bones after that bad cold snap. I got to go out dancing numerous times in different venues. I met lots of awesome people, made a friend or two, and had tons of interesting conversations. I got to lift heavy weights for a few weeks, I’m feeling and looking good. I got to see my buddies Mike and Steve. I got to shoot lots of photos. And most importantly – I had time to just chill out.

Thank you Austin!

Another slice of Texas

2011-03-03T09:31:00.001-07:00

I drive West to the ‘hill country’ of Texas. Mostly, I am just trying to get away from the City, to find a slightly more quiet spot out in the world where I can not listen to traffic, not hear people, etc. I drive out to a town called Fredericksburg, not a place to find quiet, but just a place to find some pictures. Lots of people throughout Texas have told me to visit this town, apparently ‘it’s quaint’.

It is a town founded by a German immigrant, and thusly there are German restaurants as far as the eye can see. Bier gartens, sausage, German bakeries, etc. Sadly, I can afford none of them so I content myself with walking around snapping away. As you’d expect, there is a proud representation of the lone star state around every corner:

There are vineyards in the area as well, which means lots of wine tasting rooms:

Apparently, the town also has one of the very few unbroken peace treaties with the local Native American population, from the times of the original settlers:

And they also have some odd ides about what philosophies should be bedmates:

From there it was onto a little place called Luckenbach, which Catalyst told me about. There are only a handful of buildings that constitute the ‘town’, the busiest of which is the general store/post office/saloon/gift shop:

Everybody there was friendly, so I sat and had a few beers while the locals pickers did their thing:

There is a dance hall here too, which is fairly famous (with the likes of Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, and Lyle Lovitt playing there), but since it was a weekday there was no dance going on while I was there.

After Luckenbach I hit the road for Enchanted Rock, hoping for peace and quiet there. The locale was great, a nice hike up the rock just as the sun set, with lovely views along the way:

But sadly, even here, the sound of loud and exuberant hikers were to be heard throughout the hike. I contented myself with the beauty of the colorful horizon, then climbed back down the rock and headed back for Austin.

A lot of junk hits my inbox

2011-03-01T07:20:00.001-07:00

Sometimes something like this comes in though. Love it. Props to my dad for sending this my way.

North Loop, and a park

2011-02-27T13:44:00.001-07:00

I go and explore the ‘North Loop’ in Austin. A tiny stretch of 53rd ave with a few vintage shops, restaurants, and random stores. It was described to me as the ‘lifeblood of Austin’s underground’. Whatever.

There was a cool mural:

And a few interesting storefronts:

And an awesomely named food trailer:

Beyond that, I’ve been spending lots of hours at Zilker park:

A wide open space, where dogs can run free, people can fly kites:

And where lots of random things happen. Last night I saw some people setting up a slackline (my familiarity with the sport extending only to trying it once in SanFran and failing miserably). But this line was different. It was LOOOOOONG. Longer than a football field.

I went over to shoot some photos, and met the crew of Somewhereelseland. They were in from Germany, traveling around the country walking lines all over the place. Super cool folks, who were very talented walking on the webbing:

And that’s about it in my neck of the woods right now. I’m soaking up lots of sunshine and living a pretty easy-going life for now.

Doo

2011-02-26T11:09:00.001-07:00

Just a random shot of Doo at the park:

A night of shooting with Mike

2011-02-23T14:01:00.001-07:00

A friend from Phoenix flew into Austin. He’s going to be moving here in a few weeks to train as a chef, but tonight there was no cooking. Tonight was for shooting photos around Austin, colorful colorful Austin.

We started with dinner at an Irish pub, where we grilled the waitress for location tips. She said to check out the long convention center. So after a few biers and some food we mosied over, cleared ourselves with the security guard at the parking garage, and drove to the top level. Out come the tripods, letting the lights of the city soak in to get this:

After putzing around at the garage for twenty minutes we scope out a park, but the angle is wrong, so we drive up the river to try to capture the reflections of the skyline, sans construction crane:

A few steps downstream was a statue. Mike said it was Stevie Ray Vauhn, who apparently is from Austin. I didn’t have a clue, to me it was just some dude with a guitar:

And another random shot taken while Mike was lighting up Stevie for his shots:

From there we drove up to the capitol building, which was lit up like it was the Macy’s parade. So bright, in fact, that I didn’t like most of the pictures I ended up getting from there. This is the only one of the building that I kept:

However, there were some bronze statues around the building which I could let the light soak in on. Much more my cup f tea:

By the time we finished up it was 12:30am, and it was time to get Mike back to the airport so he could catch some Zzzs before his six AM flight out. Overall it was a blast to go shooting with Mike, a totally different feel than other photowalks, and I certainly look forward to seeing what he came up with.

Mike as he departed my company:

Good times and I look forward to seeing Mike again once he moves here.

Photowalkin’

2011-02-22T08:59:00.001-07:00

I get a tax refund check. I immediately go out and spend a large chunk of it on a new camera lens. It is a silly purchase, I could live for a month on what it costs. But my other lens has a busted mount, and I’m tired of having to work around it. And honestly, it is kind of nice to splurge for myself. I’m sure I’ll regret it when funds get low again.

But for now, I enjoy my new toy:

I meet up with a large group of other photographers north of Austin to shoot photos at the Bagdad Cemetery:

I meet up with a couple of gals who have been in Austin for a few months to walk around the South 1st street area. We have fun seeing all the little quirky things:

My accomplices on this walk:

Tonight will be more photography around town with a friend from AZ who’s flying in for a few hours. Thursday I’ll be posing for a local photographer.

Other than photography – the days have been warm and mostly sunny, good for getting a little color to my skin. I’ve managed to get a sinus infection (my guess? dog hair up the old shnoz), which is making me more irritable than usual.

And for right now – it’s off to the dog park yet again (we go three or four times a day) to let the boy run around and sniff butts while I read. Hope all is well in everybody else’s neck of the woods.

Still in Austin

2011-02-20T09:06:00.001-07:00

Just getting to know the city. Finding some of the backways and alleyways. I’m pretty sure I found Jesus, but he was keeping some interesting company, so I let him be:

I saw a few cardinals in real life, but didn’t get any pictures of them. I did get a picture of another graffiti redbird though:

My old room mate Steve flew down to see me too. He’s in Houston doing some training for an upcoming job move, and was able to fly for free into Austin for a few hours of putzing around the city. We had a good ol’ time, even if he did look far too well dressed to be hanging out with a homeless guy like me:

Other than that, lots of time is being spent at the dog park, and searching for dancing. I went out to one of the honky tonks and made a silly attempt at country dancing. It was fun, though I’m not sure it was successful dancing. I also found the local swing dancing scene which was a blast. I’ll probably go back and check that out next week.

I’ll be meeting up with a few photogs this week. Today I’m going north of town to shoot a cemetery with about 40 other photowalkers, tomorrow I’ll meet up with a couple local gals to shoot in Austin, Tuesday night a photog friend from Phoenix is going to be in town for a night shoot of the city. I’m looking forward to all of these things.

Overall, this city is very welcoming:

My only struggle is constantly being surrounded by people. There is simply no getting away from it. I begin to get the itch to get out by myself for a while, maybe back to Big Bend for a bit. I’m trying to put it off, to work through this irrational discomfort. I suppose we’ll see how it goes. :)

I arrive in Austin

2011-02-14T10:39:00.001-07:00

with an idea in my brain.

It’s time to stop driving from town to town. Time to stop and get to know one place. Austin is that place for me. Why?

It’s warm, the economy is good so if I need to work there is a good chance of me finding it here, it has a large young population, and it is a fairly liberal town which means lots of weird fun things happening.

I’ve been here for almost a week now. I have wandered, walked, hiked, talked, and lost myself here.

There is an odd mix of overstated wealth:

And goofy counter culture:

Of course, the artsy bits of town get some very interesting graffiti, which I love:

But everywhere I look there is something to see. I walk around the capitol area:

I see churches and construction:

I walk by food trucks, which are super trendy here and far outside of my budget:

I meander through the university campus, and enjoy the sculptury bits that I find:

I meander along the river, and see the skyline of a city:

It is a dog friendly town, so we spend hours each day in the different dog parks. The dog runs loose, meets everybody, calms down a bit. I think he is realizing that there is a routine building here. I think I am too.

It’s a bit lonesome yet, walking alone with camera to eye. People are friendly, conversations come easy, but part of me holds back. I’m looking for a place to be alone, and I”m not finding it. Everywhere I go there are other people, the sounds of the city, evidence of man. A far departure from the serenity and solitude of Big Bend last week. It is hard, but that is why I do it.

I went to the local ballroom dance this past weekend. It was fun, but there was nobody my age there. Still, it was nice to dance. I’ve joined a gym, more for the shower that it affords me than the weights. I’ve found a few refuge coffee shops where I can find a little slice of quiet.

For now I just walk around and try to figure out what I am looking for here:

Just a cross reference post.

2011-02-12T12:02:00.001-07:00

For anybody who wants to follow me on facebook, which gets more up-to-date info than the blog, and also a lot more useless stuff, I’m located at:

http://www.facebook.com/tombocheck

For anybody who just wants to see the pictures I take (more than what shows up on the blog, and without all the annoying words which I sometimes like to think are witty or meaningful), checkout my flickr at:

http://www.flickr.com/tombothetominator

Other than that, I am currently in Austin, have been for four days now. Trying to get a feel for this city, and highly considering hanging out here for a few weeks/months. More to come as I get some usable pictures of the area.

San Antonio, TX!

2011-02-11T11:10:00.001-07:00

I pull into San Antonio refreshed from my days in Big Bend. I have no expectations for the city, the only thing I know is that my dad told me to check out the river walk. I drive around for hours first, trying to get a feel for more than just the downtown of the city. I see graffiti, or course, as soon as I am out of downtown:

I’ve arrived in the late afternoon, and snag a parking spot for an hour, I walk along the river walk for a bit, but there is so much more than I can explore in one hour. I commit to come back in the morning when the parking is free and see a bit more. For the evening I opt to go out to the missions to snap a few quick pics.

The first one is at the Mission of San Pedro, with a piece called the ‘rose window’:

Unfortunately the mission is under construction, and so I lose my inspiration to photograph it quickly, stopping only to check out some of the sculptures that surround the walls:

As I speed towards the next one, the sun sets. I arrive at the mission de San Juan just as the light fades:

And with the darkness I locate a walmart and park for the night. I wake up before dawn and head downtown, hoping to get a few hours of walking in. And so I head down and do just about all of the river walk, where the hotels and shops line the walking path along the water:

I pop up in time to watch sunrise reflect off of a tall hotel:

I pop through Hemisfair park:

I walk to the ‘Towers of America and grab a shot of it as the ambient light begins to fill its folds:

From there it is putzing around the downtown district, shooting random things like the Buckhorn museum of texas rangers:

And an old brick building with a statue of blind justice out front:

I stop and see the Alamo, but the dog isn’t allowed inside so I just get a quick shot of the front:

And then a snap of the cathedral downtown:

I find a nice coffee shop (Local Coffee) on the north end of town, and sit for a few hours editing photos, reading, writing, and listening to the good house music. Then I hit the road again. It’s time for Austin… which might just be a long stop.

And now for something entirely different

2011-02-08T10:44:00.001-07:00

Big Bend, backroads, and sunshine at last.

2011-02-07T19:39:00.001-07:00

I enter Big Bend park, the ranger at the entrance station says that I might be out of luck for a backcountry camping pass, it’s supposed to be below zero again tonight and they might not issue me one. I smile and thank her, drive through the gate, and down to the Castolon visitors center to see what the deal was. There, I was informed that I wouldn’t be able to go to the Chisos Basin portion of he park, due to ice on the road, but otherwise the park was all open. We looked at the map, I decided on staying three nights, and they helped me select three campsites all across the park. It was awesome

Of course, day one was still overcast, the storm was still hanging around and there were lots of grey skies, I stayed in the truck except for the random hop-out to grab a pic:

I went on a few short hikes, but for the most part I stayed in the truck. As the sun headed towards the horizon I went to my first campsite, Terilingua Abajo. Just as the sun was setting the clouds began to dissipate:

I made a quick ramen dinner, setup the truck for sleeping, and crawled inside. It was a quiet night with the exception of a ranger coming by to check in and make sure I was okay. I awoke to sunshine over Santa Elena Canyon:

I drove along a nice dirt road for an hour or two, then headed towards the Panther Junction visitors center for water and gas. Gas at a ridiculous $3.67/gallon! Sadly, their potable water spigot was still frozen over, so no topping off my water supplies today. No worries, I was off shortly thereafter to check out ‘balanced rock’, which is exactly what you would imagine:

And then it was onto the ‘Black Gap’ road, a rough and tumble high clearance 4x4-required trail down through the Chihuahuan desert. The truck bounced along, and two hours later we were at the end of the nine mile road, with a big smile on my face.

My next campsite was close by, and so we set up shop at ‘Fresno’, and went to look around the nearby Mariscal Mine, a quicksilver mine that was active primarily before WWII:

Since the day was a bit warmer, I got a workout in, hiked up to the top of the nearest hill for a panoramic shot:

Then made some spam and beans for dinner, and enjoyed a very long stretch of not seeing a single other person. The dog woke me up just before dawn, so we putzed around a bit, and shot sunrise photos in one of the structures near the mine:

Then it was packing up the truck, watching the last of the ice melt off of it, and heading down to the ‘Rio Grande Village’ visitor’s center to pick up a junior ranger packet, finally top off my water, post a facebook update that I was alive (since cell service is fairly nonexistent in the park), and check out the Boquillas canyon:

My final night was spent at a site called Telephone Canyon, a few more hours down another dirt road. I arrived, and went for a nice six mile hike down the telephone canyon trail, with a dead battery on my camera. This was the last thing I snapped before it keeled on me:

A gorgeous hike to a lovely basin, and turned around just in time to get back to camp as the sun set. Overall, it was one of my best experiences in a national park. The scenery – well it’s the desert, and I’ve seen lots of desert before. But this was the first national park that I got to explore the backroads, I didn’t have to deal with tons of RVers inching along in front of me, got to hike bunches every day, and enjoy a few days of near total disconnection from the outside world.

It seemed like the weight of all that cold weather had been lifted from my spirit as I stopped at the last visitor’s center, Persimmon’s Gap, turned in my junior ranger paperwork, received my badge, and headed East towards San Antonio: a huge grin on my face.

Carlsbad Caverns or bust… I guess it’s bust then

2011-02-06T19:56:00.001-07:00

I pull into Carlsbad late afternoon, and drive to the Caverns park. There’s a large sign as you enter telling the last entrance times for cave tours. Sadly… I’m a bit late in the day for the tours I want to take, and I have to board the dog due to cold weather. I decide to wait until the next day to get it all done. I drive around the city of Carlsbad for a few hours, burning time and fuel, waiting for dark to hit so I can go park for the night. For some reason, there isn’t a single coffee shop still in business in Carlsbad. I feel lost.

I spend a cold night in the truck. It gets down between two and five degrees that night. It snows. I wake up to a white walmart parking lot. I let the truck run to melt some of the ice, I pack up the truck, and drive out to the park, hoping to be the first one in at eight o’clock. I pull up to a ‘Road Closed’ sign, and a truck with two park rangers sitting in it. They get out and tell me that the park isn’t open yet because of the snow storm, nobody has been able to make it into work yet. It will probably be two hours before they open. I opt to wait… I don’t have anything else to do.

A few hours go by, they say it looks like an eleven o’clock opening now. Finally, about ten forty five, another ranger shows up. The park is closed for the day, they aren’t going to open.

BUMMER. Oh well, life goes on. I help a guy in a nearby RV park jump start his truck, and then I’m on my way south, blowing through small town after small town. It’s too cold to be out of the truck for long. A few minutes to let the dog pee, a few minutes to gas up, then sit next to the heater vent waiting to thaw out. The truck picks up a few pounds of ice, I hear it chunking off every time I go over a bump, then building back up again:

The week hubs get interesting sculptures on them:

As do the window sills:

I hit texas, hoping for something a bit warmer, I am disappointed:

I stop in the cute town of Marfa, TX, it’s little, and artsy, but it’s just about shut down due to cold. I go to the one coffee shop in town. They are about to close, but they do have WIFI, so I sit looking at weather forecasts and chatting with the barista for the few minutes before they lock the doors. I head just south of town and pull off the road for the night. Accuweather.com says –1 for the night, before wind chill – and it’s windy. I’m rocked to sleep hugging the dog tight, with four layers of clothes on, a sleeping bag, and a comforter. It is the coldest I have ever been.

I wake up, eventually get the truck started, and roll out. My destination today is Big Bend national park.

From Albuquerque to….

2011-02-06T19:37:00.001-07:00

Las Cruces, just for a place to sleep for the night. I watched as a storm rolled in:

I woke up super early, hoping to get to White Sands National Monument before sunset to take pictures. I departed Las Cruces, and arrived at the park only to find… a locked gate? Turns out they don’t open until 7:00AM, so I passed out for another hour and half in the driver’s seat and awoke to the clanging of the gate chain. Sadly, I also woke up to the already-fading colors of sunrise.

Sad about missing the color, I drove into the park and wandered around the crisp, cold, white dunes on the Alkalai flats trail:

But there was a cold wind blowing off of that storm, so I didn’t stay for too long. I headed to Alamogordo for a cup of joe, to check my email, and then to head out towards Carlsbad Caverns.

A bit dark

2011-02-02T16:59:00.001-07:00

It’s cold. Really cold. Five degrees last night, going to be colder tonight and for the rest of the week. Writing is hard with it being this cold, so is taking pictures.

I made it to White sands national monument, it was neat. I tried to get into carlsbad caverns, but a snowstorm and poor road conditions closed the park. Currently I keep heading south, trying to find some place that isn’t cold and snowy. Looks like I’ll be on the mexican border tonight. More to come in a few days.

Albuquerque really wasn’t about the art though

2011-02-01T09:58:00.001-07:00

It was about the people. My two amazing friends, Sam and Jess, put me up once again and showed me a great time.

There was cooking (how could I not love that?), there was a bit of drinking, and a bit of dancing. There was walking around for hours showing the tourist cool things to photograph. There were quiet moments:

And lots of coffee (a.k.a. fuel for Tom):

There were flea markets, and fresh roasted New Mexican green chilis, arroyos with no graffiti, and silly moments with the dog:

It was four days of absolute fun and awesomeness. I can’t thank them enough for treating me so well.

Art of a different kind in Albuquerque

2011-01-31T20:02:00.001-07:00

Hanging out with some of my favorite folks in Albuquerque. We went around town to see murals and graffiti. This town is festooned with colorful walls.

So that’s what this post is about… these things:

Santa Fe

2011-01-30T10:35:00.001-07:00

I pull into Santa Fe and the dog is antsy. He’s been in the truck while I was hiking Bandelier, he needs out. So I park in the first free parking area I find and start following the signs of downtown Santa Fe to the ‘historic plaza.’

There is a pretty church:

There is a capitol building:

And another church:

This church has some great sculptures near it:

I meander around the historic section for a while, and am impressed by the high volume of art in the area.

Heck, even the building entrances are more artistic here:

And there were artists, selling their goods on the plaza:

So we meandered around for around two hours before going to find a coffee shop where I could sit for a while, edit photos, and just be off my feet.

Then it was a night spent in the ‘big box’ section of town where are all huge stores are. Woke up, went for another small walk downtown, then headed out. It was time to meet up with my friends in Albuquerque again.

Bandelier

2011-01-27T08:18:00.001-07:00

I drive down to Bendelier National Monument, not really sure what I am looking for. It’s just a big green spot on the map. I stop for a workout on my way down there, I pull a weird muscle in my leg in the process. I show up to the park tired, sore, and walking funky. A sure recipe for success.

I talk to the rangers, they tell me about the ancient indians who lived here, and recommend that I go do the ‘main loop’ trail. So I do.

What I see is some old indian housing:

And while this is all cool, old human things really don’t do much for me. To boot, after the 1.2 mile loop, I was still in a mood for hiking. So I took the ‘falls trail’ down the creek. A 5 mile round trip form the visitor center down to the Rio Grande. It was awesome.

Hiking through layers of dirt:

And vegetation that makes you forget you are at 7000 ft elevation:

The falls were pretty too:

The rio was the rio. No pictures taken. Instead I soaked up the sun on the hike back out, ate some leftover quinoa, and headed out towards Santa Fe.

Taos… I’ve been here before.

2011-01-27T07:55:00.001-07:00

The last time I was here it was a barely even a stop. Just long enough to edit photos, take the dog for a ten minute walk, and pass out. This time was only slightly longer.

I had wanted to spend some more time here, as it seemed like a pretty interesting town on that brief encounter a couple months before. So this time I showed up around mid-day after driving down from Durango. Along the way I saw some interesting graffiti:

And I also saw the 1966 ‘most beautiful steel bridge’ over a ‘long span’:

Which is the bridge that goes over the Rio Grande gorge, which is very pretty:

And then I was in Taos. I parked the truck and took the dog for a walk. I quickly realized the whole town seems based on art galleries and artists studios. Everywhere, that is what you see. Not really my cup of tea. I did catch some of my style of art though, on the back side of a park:

And everywhere we went there were these yellow flags, almost as often as you see the Texas flag while driving through the lone star state:

There were some pretty trees:

And some pretty buildings:

But overall, it wasn’t what had thought I was getting. I’m not really sure what my expectations were, but something… more. Maybe I should have gone to the Pueblo, and paid up to see the indian community center. Maybe I should have walked down more alleys. Maybe. Either way, I decided not to stay a second day. Upon waking, we headed south along the high road, heading to Bandelier National Monument.

Durango, Co

2011-01-25T18:00:00.001-07:00

After the lovely drive through the Red Mountain pass, I arrived in Durango. I went to the coffee shop where my cousin James works, and hung out for a while until he got done with his shift. We went to his house, hung out for a while, then went out to an awesome fish and chips dinner at the local irish restaurant.

Here is James:

We checked out a local brewery (Durango Brewing Company) whose dark lager was quite inspiring, especially for a guy who doesn’t like malty beers like me. After some interesting conversation with a local drunk at the brewery we headed back to his house and just hung out, getting to know each other, watching movies, etc.

The next day I had a few hours to putz around by myself, so I walked around Durango downtown and snapped some pictures. Like a local artist hangout:

There is all sorts of art in this town. Like this mural on another building:

And of course, I meandered through the local alleys. Catching a few random shots there as well:

I took a drive up to the ‘rim’ near the local college campus, to get a look at the city from above. So, if you’ve ever wondered what Durango looks like, here it is:

When James got off of work this time we took the dog to the dog park, met up at another local brewery (Carver’s) with his friend Greg for dinner and a pint. A delicious burger and more tasty brew before heading home again. A few movies, some entertaining conversation, and then passing out. Repeat for my third day in town, except for a nice walk along the Animas river next to the narrow gauge railroad:

And me making chicken parm for dinner instead of eating out. A bit o’ whisky substituted for beer and a late night of laughing at silly movies.

Morning time rolled around, James made a great breakfast, then it was on the road for me again. I was off to Taos.

Then to Telluride

2011-01-24T09:10:00.001-07:00

From Arches I took scenic Highway 128 along the Colorado river canyon. It’s cold enough up here that the river is frozen a few inches thick throughout huge sections of the drive:

I drive through snow storms until I get to Grand Junction, Colorado. My stop for the night. Up early and down some more scenic highways to meet up with my buddy Fletcher. I met up with his brother a few months ago, and it’s finally time to see Fletch. I arrive and we grab lunch at some great sandwich shop, chowing down on a bench on main street. I meet his awesome girlfriend Kathy and we head back to his house. We drink, we make food, we chat with friends and family who come over.

Here’s Fletcher:

We head out at 9:30pm, hiking up a ski run by full moonlight. I’m going skiing for the first time in my life. It’s a gorgeous hike, as the trees are silhouetted against the bright sky, clouds rushing by on their way to some far more important destination. We reach our own destination after about two hours of hiking, and I strap my skis on for the first time. I fall down before even getting the second foot situated. Get up, try again, get the second ski on, fall over again.

I move at a snail’s pace, trying to figure out what these people are trying to get me to understand. It’s English, but for some reason it just doesn’t translate to anything I can use. “Lean on that inside edge to stop, feel the balance as the skis go flat,” these things simply do not click in my brain. The most useful bit of advice I get is ‘if you are going to crash, crash into the snow bank, not the trees.’ And so that is exactly what I do down almost the entire hill. I keep trying to figure out how to lean on an edge, how to balance. Things seem to be easy when you go fast. Easy, at least, to stay upright. I get the movement while I’m moving, it’s just the slowing down and stopping that are beyond me. Crash into a snow bank. Do a weird crawl back to backed snow, push myself up, speed down the hill a few yards, crash into another snow bank.

Fletcher and Kathy hang out right by my side the whole way down, trying to coach me through it, and I love them for it. Frustration kicks in as my body starts to hurt from all the crashing and falling. I’m laughing though, this is good, this is fun. A good frustration.

We finally get back to the car and I am completely exhausted, it’s 12:30am. Sleep. The next day I work out while Fletcher handles some work stuff, I take a hike around the cute town, with scenery like this:

Fletcher tells me there is a waterfall at the end of the main road, so I walk for a mile or two up the way, and see this in the distance:

I get back and we go out for sushi, then back home for some games and relaxation. We wake up and it’s time to head out. I say my goodbyes to these two great folks.

They recommend I take 550 south to Durango, it goes through the San Juan mountain range, and so I do. The snowy mountain pass is gorgeous, it looks like what I imagine the swiss alps are like, huge mountains looming white-covered and quiet:

By the time I reach Durango I am ready to edit photos, and hang out in a coffee shop until my cousin James gets off of work.

Arches National Park

2011-01-22T14:32:00.001-07:00

Just across the highway from Canyonlands is another park. Arches National Park. To me, it wasn’t quite as awesome as the Canyonlands, but it was still breath taking.

Although there were more people than the other parks, it was still pretty deserted thanks to the winter cold and snow.

And now, just some pictures:

A magical place full of great scenery every direction I looked.

The Canyonlands

2011-01-21T12:41:00.001-07:00

I drive north along Highway 191. There is a big green splotch on my map that says ‘Canyonlands National Park’

I pull into the first convenient area that doesn’t look like it requires too far of a drive. It’s the Needles overlook. I pull into an empty parking lot in the late morning, and am greeted by this lovely view:

Standing alone in the cold wind, I am in awe by the intricate landscape stretching out before me:

I leave the Needles overlook and head farther north towards the ‘Island in the Sky’ section of the park, but the sun is setting fast. I stop into Moab to grab a coffee and spend some time on the internet, but the cafe closes 15 minutes later, and so I head out to the hills to look for a campground. I pull into one off of highway 313, but it’s closed. I pull into another… same story. Finally a third campground is not barricaded shut, but I am the only person parked there. A theme to be repeated throughout day.

I wake up before the sun, and head into the ‘Island in the Sky’ section of the park. I am greeted, as I enter, with this:

I proceed down the road to the ‘grand viewpoint’, stopping at any overlook that I find. I walk around the Shafer Trail overlook, and am reminded of the Grand Canyon, further downstream:

I stop at Buck Canyon overlook, and grab what turns out to be my favorite shot of the morning:

From there the next stop was the ‘Grand Point overlook’, which was gorgeous. There was a 2 mile round trip rim walk which I decided to do, offering amazing vistas looking down into the canyon (the panoramic shot I posted earlier this week):

One final overlook, of the Green River as it snakes through the canyon, scenic mountain sin the background:

I drove out of the park at mid-day, stopping at the Visitor’s Center to pick up a few post cards, and then it was off again… to very nearby Arches National Park.

Tsé Biiʼ Ndzisgaii

2011-01-20T19:07:00.001-07:00

also known as: Monument Valley. I drive through the rest of the reservation and start seeing big rocks:

I enter the monument valley tribal park, but there is an entrance fee, more than I want to pay to see some rock, so I continue driving, stopping along the highway as I go to take random pictures:

The sights are beautiful, if a bit far away:

Again, hard to complain about this scenery and light:

From Monument Valley, I proceeded through Mexican Hat in Utah, where there was this goofy balanced rock sitting out in the desert (apparently it looks like an inverted sombrero)":

Where I turned off randomly at a sign proclaiming “Valley of the Gods”, with an introductory view of ‘the seven sailors’:

I drove until the ground got soupy and the truck started fishtailing. Turned around once I got to a random tree stump standing up:

From Valley of the Gods it was north again towards Canyonlands National Park and Moab.

The first stop

2011-01-20T17:34:00.001-07:00

I leave home heading North. I make a quick lunch stop in Flagstaff to see my buddy Ben. We shoot the breeze for an hour or two, have a sandwich and a coffee. Good times, and a nice farewell before I drive through the indian reservation. The goal is to get to Canyon de Chelly by nightfall. It’s a few hours of easy driving through fairly empty highways and into the more ‘southwestern’ desert area of the state.

I arrive to the Canyon and start down the ‘South Rim’ drive just as the sun makes it’s way to the horizon.

Fairly soon the colors start to hit the sky, they light up the canyon below me as I pop to different overlooks:

Ah yes, this traveling life does have it’s perks:

Pretty soon rocks disappear with the light, and I make a treacherous hike back to the truck to catch one last shot of the swirling clouds of dusk:

I make my way to the free campground in the park, and setup the truck for the first time in a month for sleeping. A little cold, but only compared to the warm beds I’ve gotten used to. I toss and turn, reacquainting myself with the ‘cozy’ quarters. Sunrise comes eventually, and we head to the ‘North Rim of the canyon for some early morning shots.

There seem to be fewer pullouts along the north road, so not as many pictures. Or maybe my numb fingers just made it seem like there were fewer opportunities to shoot?

I did get a glimpse of some ancient home ruins down in the valley, which was neat:

And then, one last shot before heading north and a bit west.

Destination: Monument Valley.

I’ll just leave this here

2011-01-20T08:59:00.001-07:00

until I can form a real post with pictures from the last few days.

And before I left, I had a few more folks to say goodbye to.

2011-01-19T19:35:00.001-07:00

Namely – My best friend Chris (and his darling wife Shayla):

My favorite gal Courtney:

And mom.

Then I hit the road, headed North.

Catchup part three

2011-01-19T18:48:00.001-07:00

So after my sweet helicopter ride, I had a weekend planned in Jerome with my sister. This is her:

We went on a hike around the hills of Jerome, on ‘ancient pathways’. They looked like pig trails to me, but whatever. We saw some cool nightshades:

We saw a brokedown vehicle:

It had sand in the back, with a little clover sticking out:

We saw some remnants of an old mining town:

After a few hours we ended up on a mining road, and headed back to sister’s house:

There we made a logo for her new company, made some awesome food, woke up made some more food, worked on a logo some more, read cards, and just generally had good times. Love my sis!

Catchup part two.

2011-01-19T18:40:00.001-07:00

Mom asked me if I wanted to go up for a helicopter ride. Since I’d never been I, of course, said HECK YEAH! So we popped over to the Guidance Helicopter training school (who partners with Yavapai College, where mom works) and got a freebie ride. It was awesome.

We rode in one of these:

Here’s mom, posing next to another machine:

Here’s what it looked like once we were up:

And here is what Mom looked like:

It was a ton of fun, and I’m super glad mom got me in on it.

Catching up – Part one

2011-01-19T18:31:00.001-07:00

I took a drive down Highway 87 to Phoenix to see a friend from high school. We had a grand time catching up once I got down there, had a great meal and a few drinks. And I also got a few photos along a highway I’ve always wanted to take:

Here we go… on the road again.

2011-01-17T08:41:00.001-07:00

I’ve got lots of pictures to post from the last week or two. Lots of things to think about, and a few things to say. But not now. Now it’s time to pack the truck up again, time to do one last load of laundry, throw some food in the cooler, and start rolling down the highway again.

The idea right now is to head north. Visit a friend in flagstaff, see canyon de chelley, monument valley. Visit utah and the canyon lands. See a friend in Telluride, and a cousin in Durango. Maybe head to Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico, go to Texas, see when the money runs out.

The adventure begins again.

A few images of winter

2011-01-09T11:04:00.001-07:00

as the snow melts, I like to keep the wintery feeling here on the blog.

The Hassayampa river:

Snowy fence rail out on a hiking trail:

Icicles on my favorite coffee shop:

And then the Nikon took a tumble

2011-01-09T10:55:00.001-07:00

Sorry to say it, but the camera took a bit of a tumble the other day. Thankfully the body came away undamaged (I believe), but the 18-55mm lens is now hit-or-miss. A bit of plastic near the aperture adjustment arm of the lens broke off and is causing some intermittent jamming, keeping the lens from opening up. Looks like I will have to adjust to the 50mm prime or my 55-200mm until I can afford to get a replacement. Le Sigh.

I don’t suppose anybody out in the blogosphere has a wide-angle lens to fit a Nikon DX sensor they would be willing to sell for cheap?

Beyond all that, life is good in Prescott. I’ll be hanging out here for about another week. There will be some time in Phoenix, Wickenberg, and Jerome mixed in this week as well. Should be lots of good times.

Prescott Ponderosa Pine Picture

2011-01-03T14:27:00.001-07:00

lots of P’s:

A few things I must try to remember as I go through life.

2011-01-03T14:24:00.001-07:00

- Slow down, look around, and enjoy.

- Have real conversations with anybody you can. They will make you feel human.

- Leave your comfort zone behind, but always have a place to retreat to when it becomes too much.

- Accept that bad days happen. Also accept that they stay around only as long as you make them stay around.

- The camera is a tool, that is all. It helps you remember, but it does not make memories.

- If you are bitter, that bitterness will infect every relationship you have. Make yourself the top priority, everything else will get better.

- Convenience is easy, but it is also blinding. Do hard things for the simple reason that they are hard. You will enjoy these things in retrospect, but more importantly: you will remember them far more vividly.

- Don’t hurt anybody you don’t have to.

- Be okay with being alone – truly alone. Turn off the cell phone, get your nose out of a book, and pull the ear buds out of your head. Sit and just be with yourself sometimes. You will probably go a little crazy.

- Be still sometimes. Go outside and wait for all the wildlife to come around. This is a good time to be with yourself.

- Work towards being happy. Happy is not a destination – it is a journey. This is not only cliché, but very true.

- Friends are family. Family are friends. They are the ones who keep you sane.

A video of scrappy

2011-01-02T09:37:00.001-07:00

This is my goofy dog
Originally uploaded by tombothetominator

this is what hiking with the dog is like.

One of those catchup posts

2011-01-02T09:21:00.001-07:00

So, since I’ve gotten home it has been a whirlwind.

Christmas eve was spent in Jerome with my sister, her boyfriend Michael, and my mom. It was good food, good folks and lots of laughs:

Christmas day was spent with Courtney and friends – sans camera. Lots of drinking and conversation, some food. Not a bad way to spend a holiday.

The following day we went rock climbing in the granite dells. It was my first time, and it was a total blast.

Mid-week I met up with Catalyst, of Oddball Observations, for lunch. We had some great conversation and some decent food in downtown Prescott. It was a real joy to get to see him and catch up in person. He’s one of those folks who I always enjoy talking to.

About this time there was also snow, lots of snow, falling in Prescott. Courtney and I threw her cats out into the white fluffy stuff. Cruel and unusual? Yep!:

All told, we got about six inches that night/morning. More than I’ve seen in a while:

I also got to have a few cups of coffee with my good friend Daryn throughout the week. He’s in town from Pennsylvania, and we had a ton of fun chatting, joking, and philosophizing:

New years eve found me hiking out in the snow with the dog in the morning:

And spending the evening with friends at Chris’ house. We counted down to midnight, and then I promptly went to bed.

Welcome to 2011!!

Balloons in Phoenix

2010-12-28T13:10:00.001-07:00

just a picture from a drive down to the valley of the sun yesterday:

Prescott wandering

2010-12-28T13:08:00.001-07:00

I ask my friend Marilyn if she is interested in walking around Prescott and shooting photos with me. I know her from dance class, she is amazing, and she just got a new camera. I figure it will be fun. She agrees to come out, and we meander through downtown Prescott for a few hours.

We see flours of the real kind:

And flowers of a different kind:

We see splatters of color in the gloomy day:

And brokedown vehicles:

And some fallen brickwork in the creek:

We wrapped up our walk with a quick portrait on the roof of the parking garage, thumb butte in the background:

I had a blast hanging out and catching up with this fun gal, not to mention getting back out into my hometown. ,

Merry Christmas

2010-12-25T07:36:00.001-07:00

From the Doo and I.

Albuquerque to… HOME.

2010-12-21T07:24:00.001-07:00

I hit the road at two in the afternoon. There is a giddiness in me to be back at home, but even with that feeling I choose to avoid the interstate. I’d rather see something pretty along the way, and I-40 isn’t my idea of pretty. I turn south on Highway 117 to El Malpais National Monument. Beautiful desert landscapes, including sandstone bluffs;

And ‘la ventana’ natural arch:

Soon though, the sun sets and I am left with the decision to keep driving through to home (with my less-than-stellar eyesight), or stop and sleep in AZ but not in Prescott. I keep driving. Through Springerville and Heber, Payson, and Dewey. I lose the scenery in the darkness, sometimes in snow and fog too. I drive faster than I should, I just want to be home. And then… I AM.

And when I get there I am faced with a conundrum. It is nearly midnight, I don’t have a key to my mom’s house, and I don’t want to wake her up just to let me sleep. The solution presents itself in the form of an invitation to meet friends out downtown. A night of smiles and conversation with friendly faces in a familiar environment – just the ticket.

It’s odd though, driving into my hometown. For the first time in four months I am not lost. I do not need a map or a notepad with scribbled direction to get where I want to go. I turn my navigational mind off and just let my body take itself where we need to be. Without a single squint at a road sign I arrive, and am entirely unconcerned about whether there is a walmart nearby to sleep in, or scoping out coffee shops for tomorrow’s fix. It is odd, but it is good. I am home for now.

I’ll be leaving again in a few weeks, the road still calls to me and my journey is not yet complete. But, for now, I am happy:

Taos to Albuquerque

2010-12-19T18:51:00.001-07:00

I look up scenic drives from Taos, and then I promptly miss the turn for my chosen route. Instead of the ‘High Road’ I am travelling along the Rio Grande, which is scenic in its own right:

I try to find my way back to the High Road, but it takes me fifty miles out of the way. I stop and get a work out in the snow, I end up in Las Vegas, New Mexico. This isn’t part of the plan, I managed to miss the high road entirely, and I’m behind schedule to meet friends in Albuquerque.

So I skip Santa Fe, choosing instead to go to Sandia Crest, an 11,000 ft high mountain overlooking the city of Albuquerque. As I approach the mountain a snow storm begins to move in:

By the time I get to the top, I am surrounded by a cloud that is beginning to drop bits of fluff on me. I try to take pictures, but the visibility drops quickly. I can barely make out the city, I can barely see the far off mountain ranges. I get one snap as the cloud blows upward a few feet:

Slightly disappointed, I drive down to the city to meet my friends. And then it is a few days of relaxing in wet weather, and enjoying the time with these two great people. Meet Jessica and Sam:

We cook up a lovely venison dinner:

I tried going for a hike the next day in the rain. I wore a poncho in the rain and looked ridiculous:

But, as always, it is time to get on the road all too quickly. It is bittersweet. I’m leaving my friends, but I’m heading home. It’s time to spend with family in my hometown. So I have one final lunch with Sam and hit the road.

From Arkansas to New Mexico

2010-12-16T16:49:00.001-07:00

I drive from Dad’s house towards Albuquerque to see my friends Sam and Jessica. It is scenic in a way that is entirely different than the coast.

I find a buffalo in Oklahoma:

The cold of Oklahoma bites into me, and so I am glad to get into the warmer temperatures of Texas. I find cotton once I get there:

Not to mention the very familiar sight of oil wells:

I enjoyed lunch out in the grasslands, a view that reminded me of Arizona:

And then it was on to New Mexico. I drove through the Cimarron Canyon, which was full of gorgeous views:

It was cold enough that all the ponds and streams were iced over:

The sun headed towards the horizon at Eagle’s Nest, just outside of Taos:

I spend the night in the artsy town of Toas, editing photos in a coffee shop/movie rental store. Tomorrow I head south for Albuquerque.

A few days of catchup

2010-12-14T17:59:00.001-07:00

A disjointed post – my mind is elsewhere.

From Lafayette I travel North to Arkansas. I’m off to visit Dad and Suzy again. It’s a shorter stay this time, only a weekend, but enjoyable nonetheless. I fill my tummy and get out of the cold snap that has hit the area. One day of waking up to frozen windows is enough for me:

While at Dad’s house we cook, we play with the dogs, we have a few drinks, we go up to Mount Magazine to have lunch and I take the camera.

The lodge is gorgeous with nice rocking chairs for anybody willing to brave bitter wind and temps in the 20s:

And the view is just as nice:

At least, if you are willing to get out of the car to take a peek. I was the only one to brave the cold and wind for the shot. This should have been a cute family photo:

Also caught a cool rundown car on the way back down the mountain:

Once home I get sucked into the new Sherlock Holmes show on BBC. It was saved on their Tivo. Good times, warm bed, great food, and my loving family. That’s a pretty great weekend to me. Monday I left after a quick workout and having lunch with Suzy.

I drive west, headed for the high-country of New Mexico.

It’s not often

2010-12-10T14:53:00.001-07:00

that I get to listen to the radio. The antenna stopped working, so a stations has to be pretty strong to make it into the car. It’s even less often that I tune into country music. But the other day I did, and I just really liked this song:

Lafayette, Louisiana

2010-12-09T15:54:00.001-07:00

A gentleman I much respect told me that I needed to try an old fashioned if I made it in Lafayette. And I had to try it at a place called Don’s. This gentleman also gave me a bottle of whiskey before I left, so I felt that I had to follow his advice.

So here I found myself:

I went to the bar, ordered an old fashioned, and decided to splurge for the night. Instead of ramen, I was going to eat well. So along with the drink I ordered some alligator, and a seafood salad. Talk about a starving kid in a candy shop when that food showed up! I ate with vim and vigor and quieted the few around me who snickered that that much food was insurmountable for a guy my size.

The drink… yes the drink. It was worth the trip. Half price during happy hour, so $4 got me three shots of maker’s mark bourbon, a sugar stir-stick, a dash of bitters, and a few pieces of fruit - delicious. And then somebody sent the exact drink back because it was too strong… so I got that one too… for free. The people here were friendly. I met some locals, and an outsider or two. One and all were happy to tell me about Lafayette, about their homes, their families, their lives. It was great. I left there feeling pretty good (and at least mildly intoxicated:

And so my plan of spending one night in the town and leaving in the morning quickly turned into a second day and night. Exploring this town, taking the dog to the dog park, drinking coffee, getting photo location tips from locals, taking pics, hiking, and just generally having a great time. It wasn’t just the people at Don’s who were friendly, it was everybody in this town. Young or old, every person I talked to was just as happy to converse.

I walked around downtown, and saw St. John’s cathedral:

And an automotive inspired mural:

And the 9/11 memorial with beams from the towers:

And then I went to Lake Martin, and it was gorgeous:

With those cypress trees that are synonymous with the bayou:

Beneath my feet, a lovely carpet of leaves:

And then it was time to leave. I put a big circle around this place on the map, I’ll be coming back to Lafayette at some point. But for now it is time to get up to Arkansas. The night time temps are dropping, there’s ice on the windshield when we wake up, and I want to sleep in a warm bed at dad’s house.

Random picture

2010-12-09T05:55:00.001-07:00

New Orleans

2010-12-08T08:08:00.001-07:00

Once again I find myself in a City. City with a capital C, it is an entity all to itself. It smells the fear on me before I ever make it to the border. I get lost immediately, which is fine. I quite enjoy being lost – I get to see some interesting things that way. I eventually follow the signs to the french quarter, wanting to see what everybody else raves about here.

The narrow one-way streets and billions of parking information signs confuse the senses. I park at least four times before finding a spot that I am legally allowed to be in. I pop around for a while, with no sense of where I am.

I see quaint business fronts:

I see secret courtyards, with not-so-secret trees sprouting from them:

I see a very cool band playing on Jackson square:

I take a picture to prove that I was here:

But there are too many people here and my parking money is about to run out. So I leave. I drive to the ninth ward to see how the rebuilding from Katrina is going. I’m surprised to find a pretty nice neighborhood. Lots of new buildings, lots of renovated buildings, only a small percentage with the X:

Night falls, and I head for a wal-mart. My intention is to get up early and get some less people-filled shots of the french quarter. And so I do, with only a few people still hanging on in the bars at 5 AM. I see bourbon street in its neon wonder:

I see the cathedral by lamplight:

And all the lovely tiny tidbits are are too easy to walk by in a hurry:

Photographic deeds one, I wait for light to hit the sky and then take the dog to the park. He’s not allowed in the ‘dog park’ section, they require a permit which I don’t have. So we find a hurricane-damaged golf course that has been abandoned. He runs and chases sticks as I work out. We eat lunch, and then head for the hills.

I told a friend that I would try a drink in Lafayette if I was ever in the area, and I head west through the boot of Louisiana, towards smaller towns.

And now – It’s cold and I’m in New Orleans

2010-12-06T09:20:00.001-07:00

A quick change in temperature as I drive north and west. 55 one night, the next – 35. This is what I have to look forward to until I get back to AZ. I suppose it’s time to adjust.

It’s hard to complain too much though, I get a show every day of beautiful scenery, and last night was no exception. The sun made a grand exit last night as I got ready to bed down in Mississippi:

And then exploded into color:

This morning I find myself in New Orleans. Trying to get my bearings to figure out what I want to photograph and where I want to go. It should be a fun few days.

St. Petersburg

2010-12-05T09:22:00.001-07:00

A quick stop in this city, I’m just checking it out for my friend Chris. Another place he is considering living. I cross a lovely bridge into the town. The lady at the fishing pier office doesn’t even charge me to drive out on the pier to take a picture:

Walking around we spot a hermit crab:

It’s a pretty nice little city. All the basic amenities, a nice downtown district, etc. We stay in town for one night, and watch as the sunset colors the marina:

We check out the ‘snow fest’ the next day where they manufacture snow which lasts for a few scant hours. It’s hard for me to imagine that this is the closest that some kids will ever get to real snow:

We leave shortly thereafter, on the road again. I’m hoping to be in Louisiana by the end of the weekend. I want to see New Orleans during the week before heading up to see dad again.

Seeing more family

2010-12-03T11:43:00.001-07:00

I’ve left a message on facebook to my Uncle Mike letting him know I’m in the area. I probably should have gotten his phone number and given him a call, but alas – I’m a slave to convenience. Two days later he gives me a call, I happen to be nearly in his town already. Fifteen minutes later and I’m hanging out with Uncle Mike and Aunt Tawmmie. The fun began.

They give me a tour of the area, we go to the beach, I watch them play music at a birthday party, and at a rec center. We eat wonderful food, and swim in an 85 degree pool. We live the Florida lifestyle for a few days, and it was wonderful.

The first day we went down to a park in Punta Gorda. We see some wildlife. A blue crab, some pelicans, and a beautiful heron:

We visit a pottery and bamboo farm, where they have of all things pots:

And bamboo!

We visit Thomas Edison and Henry Ford’s winter estate. I forget my memory card, so they let me use their camera. We see the oldest banyan tree in the country (a crazy cool tree, hailing from india):

We take a picture of them in another ficus tree nearby:

The next day we are off to the beach. Florida has a cold snap, it’s in the 60’s or 70’s at the beach. People everywhere are in sweaters as Uncle Mike and I play in the surf. We laugh as the waves crash into us and knock us down. He feeds the birds a pretzel by hand while I shoot pictures like crazy:

Another dip in the pool, a dinner of alaskan king crab which was amazing, more music with friends. An amazing three days full of love, laughter, and life – food, fun, and family. A great three days.

And now I head north, to St. Petersburg to check out the city for a friend.

The Florida Keys

2010-11-29T12:27:00.001-07:00

I’m speeding south, driving until my back and butt hurt. I’m sweating like a pig in the mid-80 degree temperatures with all that lovely humidity that comes with being on the ocean. I make it Miami on Saturday, taking highway 1 and A1A all the way down the coast (even when I’m in a hurry the interstate is to be avoided). I get towards the city and things begin to change. From run down towns to yacht clubs. From open beaches to ‘private property’ signs everywhere. Suddenly it’s not beat up civics driving around me, but Ferrari, Lamborghini, Bentley, and Maserati. I’ve entered the rich-lands. I drive through without taking too much of it in. I’m really not interested in all these glittery things. I drive through Miami, planning to get an early start on the next day. Then I get a phone call from an old buddy.

His name is Joe, and I haven’t seen him since high school. We became ‘friends’ on facebook a few months ago and he noticed I was in his area. We decide to meet up, and I drive an hour back north to Ft. Lauderdale. I get to his house, we go out and get a bite to eat and a beer. We go back to his place and drink whiskey as we watch basketball. We get to know each other all over again. It’s good times. And it’s also a soft couch for me to sleep in, and a shower. Oh, the luxurious lifestyle. I say goodnight and goodbye, as I still plan on getting on the road long before he wakes up.

This is Joe, who could easily be a model if dentistry doesn’t work out for him:

Before dawn I’m on the road again, driving out to that stretch of islands south of the continental us. The clouds as I head down are amazing:

We drive all the way south to Key West, where it promptly begins to downpour for 15 minutes. Afterwards the sun is out, and it is a whole new kind of hot and humid. The dog and I make our way to the touristy part of town, we walk down the streets taking photos like everybody else. Things like mile marker zero of Highway 1:

And the big couple kissing:

Soon though I am tired of the area, so decide to head north again – back towards the mainland. I stop along the way to take natural photos. Things like a tree, at the very edge of the visible world:

An old stretch of highway that is no longer used:

And clouds over the beach:

I drive all through the evening to get back to the mainland, it’s dark and I’m exhausted by the time I pull into Florida City’s walmart. I pass out and sleep all through the night. Now it’s time to head west.

Miles and miles.

2010-11-27T08:45:00.001-07:00

Not much to report. I’m in Florida. It’s almost exactly like southern California, except the sun rises on the wrong side of the ocean. And the water is warmer. And there are sand gnats biting you at dawn and dusk.

The miles just keep on rolling by as I make tracks for the Keys. Not too much stopping, not too much going on except driving through. My back hurts, my neck hurts, I think I’m not sleeping right. It’s humid and warm here, it makes me stink.

I take the dog running on the beach at sunrise. It’s enjoyable, but my calves dislike it. I get the camera out instead and take a few photos:

The dog helps out:

I have to admit, I am enjoying myself:

Savannah, GA is not pretty.

2010-11-25T18:52:00.001-07:00

I was told this town was pretty, and I hoped to get a few pictures of it. But I can’t, it just doesn’t ever pan out.

You see the problem is that this town was not designed with a camera’s sensor in mind. With blocks after blocks of historic houses, a wonderfully dilapidated river road where the slaves were brought in, gardened ‘squares’ at every intersection in some districts, beaches that always seem to curve just out of sight, and the emotional equivalent of slow living seemingly built right into the brickwork, photographing this town is far outside of the talents of somebody like myself.

I’ve been here for a few days. Exploring parks, alleys, beaches, and backroads. All the while I’ve been clicking the shutter, hoping for something magical to stick in digital format like a wet leaf sticks to the sidewalk after a rain. Maybe, just maybe, with enough pictures of that beautiful hanging spanish moss, I might get just one that adequately translates the feeling it gives as I walk beneath it. Or perhaps that one dilapidated house would become on my memory card half of what it was as I walked across the street from it. Alas, no magic. I end up reviewing hundreds of photos and discarding almost all of them as ‘meh.’ Maybe my camera is broken, maybe it’s my eye, maybe Savannah simply wishes to remain as a mysterious feeling in my memory.

These are the closest things I’ve gotten to usable frames, in no particular order:

I leave Savannah tomorrow, with Florida in my sights. Some time on the beach and maybe a small break from the camera. Going to check out the keys, and then visit an uncle on the gulf side of the peninsula before continuing west. No idea how long Florida will take to get through… it looks like quite a few miles to drive around the panhandle.

Happy Turkey day!

2010-11-25T11:36:00.001-07:00

Just a quick happy thanksgiving to everybody out there in the blogosphere. I’m currently in Savannah, Georgia. Have been for a few days. No big plans for me – a turkey sandwich, a whole blueberry pie (which I will share with the dog of course), maybe a trip to a bar for their turkey dinner and a few beers.

And some details that don’t fit anywhere else.

2010-11-23T16:42:00.001-07:00

Some of the randomness of my photographic eye in Charleston:

The war memorial and the bridge into Charleston:

A costumed lady had her eyes set on Scrappy-Doo. “We have the same color scheme!” she said:

Callhoun kept watch over Marion Square:

Windows to heaven:

Beemers on trains! Awaiting a custom's agent to give them the once-over:

A fishing boat is but a speck on the morning horizon:

Voodoo door knocker:

Window shutter holder:

A pineapple fountain:

And there you have it. Almost everything I saw in Charleston. And just in time, because I’ve mosied on down to Savannah Georgia today. Let the fun begin again!

Graffiti in and around Charleston

2010-11-23T16:23:00.001-07:00

Of course, we also explored the back alleys that we found, and asked a few locals for tips on where to go. The results were AWESOME.

From the mild:

To the WILD:

The flowers of Charleston

2010-11-22T16:35:00.001-07:00

Of course, it’s not all buildings in this place. There are flowers everywhere. With a lovely temperature (high 70s) during the day, many people have window-sill garden boxes. Every place I look I see vegetation:

And of course, we don’t just stay in historic downtown either. We venture to the outlying areas. We walk on beaches and play in the surf. We drive all over the place. We return on monday, for some walking in non tourist-filled streets, until our feet once again hurt. And then we are off and away to still more pieces/parts of this place. I try to get to everything before we leave for Savannah, but I know I cannot.

The buildings of Charleston

2010-11-22T16:20:00.001-07:00

As I pull into the Charleston area I can’t help but stop at a place called ‘Isle of Palms.’ There isn’t much there. I’m have once again arrived long before anything opens, when the parking is free, and there are fewer people around. It’s just a beach, a fairly quiet one.

I stop for a coffee before crossing into the city, I ask the employees what they would recommend seeing while in town. Sometimes it’s nice to have a local’s perspective on what is pretty. I memorize all that they tell me, I try to find some of these things on my little paper map of the city. Then the dog and I head into the gauntlet. It is Sunday, the place has woken up, and there are people everywhere. Cameras are a clicking as dollars exchange hands in the multitudes of shops in the historic district. It is your standard tourist trap.

We find a parking spot at Battery Park, where the old cannon batteries were setup during the old days:

And we walk, for most of the day. I take pictures of pretty buildings:

Of course, that’s not all we take pictures of. There is graffiti, and flowers, and little details to boot. We walk around for hours until the sun sets. My feet hurt, we are both dehydrated, and Scrappy has sniffed at least half the bushes in the historic district. I find another coffee shop, this time opting for some sleepy time tea. I edit the photos, and do the facebooking thing. I drive to a walmart and we crash for the night.

Birds in flight

2010-11-21T16:21:00.001-07:00

Just a picture I liked:

Myrtle Beach

2010-11-21T09:06:00.001-07:00

On our way out of Willmington I stop to take a photo of the USS North Carolina. It is hours before the sun will kiss its skin, but the lights from the parking lot next door do the job of lighting the hull:

I drive and drive. Eventually my eyelids become heavy, and around five in the morning I stop to sleep. I wake up to daylight just a few miles north of Myrtle Beach. The dog and I enter a ghost town. It’s the off-season and it is early in the day. We walk down an empty boardwalk next to shops whose shuttered windows and doors state clearly that they are not interested in selling us anything just yet.

I laugh at some of the places, such as the Gay Dolphin:

A name so bold it must draw crowds.

The boardwalk ends at a pier, where we turn around:

We find a dog park, and I let the Doo run wild with the other hounds. He barks and humps and romps in the water and the mud. I find a starbucks to allow myself the pleasure of the internet. I make chit chat with a few people, they are interested in my travels. I make vacation recommendations like I am a travel agent. It is funny.

With caffeine running through my veins I lace up the running shoes and we are off to the beach again. Running down the sand in lovely 75 degree weather. It’s shorts weather for the first time in a long time, and I take every advantage of it. We run down past the pier, then back. Miles, who knows how many, until a final sprint leaves my calves quivering and my quads burning. I strip down to my undies and get in the ocean. A shocking cold that is feels amazingly good. I draw a few stares; I’m the only one getting wet, and I’m definitely the only one without real clothes on, but I’m happy as I throw a towel around my waist and head back to the truck.

Mom calls, and I help her troubleshoot some computer problems. Sometimes I wonder how I remember all the computer nonsense. It’s been months since I’ve done any work, and yet there it all is, an image at the forefront of my memory as I walk her through her troubles.

Night falls and we go to the ‘happenin’ spot in town for entertainment. There is a christmas tree lighting, and a billion people. There are fireworks, and huge burgers. My camera sits in the truck with the dog, as I take it all in quickly. It’s not my thing. I finish my burger and get going. I prepare tomorrow to enter Charleston.

The Outer Banks

2010-11-20T09:49:00.001-07:00

There is a place in North Carolina. A set of islands a that act as a big breaker for the coast. As you drive along them you sometimes catch a glimpse of waves to the east, other times you see calm waters to the west. No matter where you look (so long as you are not in any of the little towns along the way) all you see is gorgeous. Oh, and there are lighthouses too, it’s kind of a thing along the banks.

I take a short ferry ride to Okracoke Island at the south end of the banks, but darkness falls quickly and the ferry to the mainland doesn’t run again until morning. I find an overnight fisherman’s parking lot nearby, and even though it explicitly states that there is no overnight sleeping allowed in the lot, I climb into the back of the truck and am rocked to sleep by the wind. I wake up early, I read the ferry schedule wrong and end up with over two hours to wait before it leaves. The island still sleeps, no coffee shops, no restaurants are open yet. I go to the dock and sit with my camera in the cold as sunrise comes to the east coast:

Eventually the ferry is made ready and I am allowed to board. It is a lonely 2 1/2 hour ride to Cedar Island, my truck sits alone on the ferry:

I continue along the coast, choosing highway 17 to take me down the water’s edge. As night time approaches I find myself in another Wilmington but in a different state. Wilmington, North Carolina. I find a coffee shop and edit photos. I read my book, and make scribbles in my journal. I find a parking space and crawl into the truck for the night.

I make some turkey sandwiches in the moonlight and eat them while reading a new book. I sip on whiskey to wash the food down. I go to sleep, but there is no rest. I toss and I turn.

Maybe it’s the buzz from the coffee, maybe it’s the buzz from the liquor. Either way, it’s one thirty in the morning and I’m just laying in the back of a truck. I load everything back up, and head downtown. The bars are closing soon and I figure I will watch the drunk kids stumble around before hitting the road.

The dog hates it, too many people who act far too familiar with him. The cops are out in force to break up the fights. We wander around for almost an hour, just people watching, before we hit to road for Myrtle Beach.

And then it was southward

2010-11-19T16:40:00.001-07:00

From New Jersey I was headed back to my sister’s house. A warm bed, some more time with sis, and a bit of giggling and cuddling with the nieces and nephews? That was a win.

I ended up stopping in Atlantic city, after taking the wrong highway on my way out of Jersey. It was a dirty town, but it looks pretty from far away:

There was some great fog rolling in off of the Atlantic Ocean, which made for a few interesting photo ops:

I ended up having to stop short of my destination to bed down for the night. It was dark and I was tired. I ended up in a town called Willmington, Delaware. I walked around for a bit, took one picture, and then went to sleep:

Waking up the next day I finished my trek to Virginia, stopped off at my sis’s house, and had a lot of fun. No pictures this time around, just some quality time with the fam. A quick workout the next morning, and then I was off and away heading south to *theoretically* warmer temperatures.

Wasn’t in much of a photography mood, but the colors of the trees as I drove through southern Virginia were very pretty:

And then I was in North Carolina, along the coast, and I saw something on the map that interested me: the Outer Banks. I headed in that direction.

A baby.

2010-11-17T16:51:00.001-07:00

After NYC, we went back to Chris’ brother’s house in New Jersey. There was a baby in the house, JT, who was having a big weekend.

He got to play with his Uncle Chris:

He got to hang out with his two favorite dogs:

He went for a long hike, which left him tuckered out:

He got all dressed up for a party:

He became a baptized catholic:

And got to hang out with his awesome folks a bit:

While he was doing all that, I was eating copious amounts of food, playing with dogs, closing a shutter many times, attending my second ever catholic mass, and drinking half a bottle of whiskey. Not necessarily in that order, but close.

A great weekend was had, and far too soon the majority of the Marciano clan hopped into a taxi back to the airport, and I was headed south to see my sister again.

Sooo…. Boston

2010-11-15T07:56:00.001-07:00

I arrived in Boston mid-afternoon and had a few hours to kill before meeting up with my cousin Lori. I walked around the Cambridge area, I saw some pretty buildings and even a bridge or two:

Then I met up with Lori, who I haven’t seen in many years. We went out to a great restaurant for dinner (chicken cordon bleu) and a few brews, then went home and bought a six pack. We talked of family, we got to know each other over again. The conversations were great, and we had a total blast!

The next day my old room mate Steve flew in from New Hampshire to hang out. We walked around downtown Boston for an entire day. We had fun people watching, checking out a little graffiti, drinking coffee, and just wandering aimlessly. We went to a brewery for a tasting, but they were closed. We went to a local irish pub for burgers and beer, then wandered the streets some more. It was a fun day that left my feet sore, and me happy to head back to Lori’s house once he headed back to the airport.

From there Lori and I went to the store, got some supplies, and then I cooked some fajitas up for her and a friend. More great conversation and a little pumpkin pie was had before we all collapsed in exhaustion.

It was a lot of fun getting to know my cousin, as well as see Steve. Come morning time though, it was time to head to New York!

OOps, backwards

2010-11-15T07:47:00.001-07:00

I totally skipped Boston! Well, so now this is not only a terribly poorly written blog, it is now out of order as well. Things are headed downhill fast. :)

A trip into New York City

2010-11-15T07:46:00.001-07:00

I drive on an interstate, five soul-crushing hours of seeing absolutely nothing but getting to my destination quickly. I’m meeting up with Chris and his family in New Jersey, and I want to get there quick.

Some dinner, some hellos and hugs, and then Chris, Brady, and myself are off to a scenic lookout of the city:

The next day we three are taking a bus into the city to walk around for a few hours. We check out times square:

Central Park:

Ground Zero:

Chinatown:

We think about going to the statue of liberty, but the line to get there is way too long, so we find a starbucks, which was right next to a pretty museum:

Eventually we all three tire out, hop on the subway back to the bus station, and head back home.

And for the first time

2010-11-09T06:06:00.001-07:00

This post will put me current. I drove north from Philadelphia on Monday on my way to Boston. I have a cousin who lives there, and an old room mate who can meet me there for some hanging out. I drove through PA, NJ, NY, CT, and am currently just outside of Worcester, MA. It is cold and rainy, and begins getting dark at 4:00PM. This does not make me happy.

The plan as of right now is to hang out up here until thursday morning, then head to New York City to meet my friend Chris at his brother’s house. From there I will be bombing south to warmer weather. :)

A quick visit with Daryn

2010-11-09T06:00:00.001-07:00

I dragged my feet getting out of Virginia. Such a good time I was having I didn’t manage to leave until mid-day, which put me a bit late into the Philadelphia area to see one of my good friends, Daryn.

I arrived in the evening and we had some ‘deep’ and ‘philosophical’ conversations as we always do. The type of things that just don’t translate to a blog. It was time that I enjoyed, even if his little dog Khalil didn’t like me. His fiancee Becky is amazing and patient.

On Sunday we took the dogs for a hike, then came home for some vegging out time, something I haven’t had in a little while. We watched a few movies, which I haven’t been able to do in a while either.