Pre-Adventure Butterflies

My fast-approaching trip is a far, far cry from the road trip I had originally planned.

Basically the only two similarities are Oakland and Portland, and who I am staying with in each place.

I'm no longer driving.

I'm not going with anyone.

I'm not staying for two and three days in each place.

I'll be in Oakland/Berkeley/San Francisco for a week, and Portland for slightly less than a week (pesky train ride takes a full day, darn [just kidding, I really love trains.])

What hasn't changed about my plan (at least since late-April, early-May) is the individual aspect.

Allow me to explain.

Whenever I go on trips with my parents (bless their souls for paying) I do whatever they  want. I sit around and read. I participate in board games. I drive and drive and drive and eat and sit and drive and sit some more.

I essentially provide them with my utterly enthralling presence.

But this trip, this trip is mine. I planned it, I have prepared to do what I want to do. Spend time how I want to spend time (at least in Oakland, where I was/am prepared to do everything, alone) taking a lot of photographs, eating food, looking at public art, reading outdoors, exploring abandoned buildings (Treasure Island, anyone?), playing in parks and just enjoying life in a city other than Phoenix.

I'm hoping to spend some time with Marcos, my friend (who I'm staying with), but if that doesn't work out (his car is in the shop and he recently shattered his wrist), cést la vie. L-I-F-E-G-O-E-S-O-N. And I'll be fine by myself.

House sitting: The ultimate staycation.

I just started an internship, and it takes up 25 hours a week, which is literally more hours than I have ever worked in a week in my life.

Don't judge me.

That being said, my hectic (though enjoyable) internship schedule has been leaving me savoring my free time more than I ever have before.

And this weekend, I hit the gold mine of free time. I house sat.

Nothing but me, a pile of books (that grew after a trip to the new location of Changing Hands, the Arizona equivalent of Powell's), my laptop, stuff to bake a pie, and a HUGE dog.
I'm labeling this as a staycation, and used it as a time to catch up on what I'm reading right now, and a general excuse to take a nap every afternoon.
And it's good.
Not to mention how amazing it is I was paid to eat someone else's food (just not the last of anything) sleep in someone else's guest room (I made the bed before I left) and to play catch with someone else's dog (only before he ate--not after). And eat freshly laid eggs, because chickens.
This is a glimpse into what adulthood will probably be like. Not just being in a house filled with two bookcases of poetry, but also only having free time on weekends.
mm.
I bite my tongue.
More and more I realized I'm probably not going to have the 5-day-a-week, 8 to 5 job. I'm probably going to end up doing something far more interactive, far more intense. Who knows what that will be, but hey. I'm all open.
Until then, I'm enjoying every little staycation bit I can get.

Things I learned in Georgia

This was my first experience in the south. Having now spent four full days here, I have learned a bit.

1) For starters, every stereotype I had seemed to be true before I even left Phoenix. The flight attendants, with their sugar sweet accents and lighthearted jokes, apologized for our flight's delays and made everyone feel very much at home.

2) Atlanta is cool! With local restaurants, ice cream shops, and street art, my time spent in the fourth ward area made me feel like I was at home on Roosevelt Row. However, Atlanta is flanked by suburbs and they are historic, but not necessarily "cool."

3) F I N A L L Y, I met my pen pal in real life. Her name is Hannah, and I met her on tumblr a few years back when I searched the "CIY Move" hash tag (MOVE is a youth conference) and began following one of her friends and then her. We started writing letters this past summer. She is a lovely lady, and we were both too shocked to really speak when we met each other. Like, really, we were too amazed that we were standing in one another's presence to say much of anything. B U T now we know one another is not some sort of internet psychopath, and I'm hoping to see her come to AZ sometime.

4) Food. Food is good. Really, all my dad and I did was eat good food this trip. Eat good food and drink coffee and read books. Which is exactly what I really don't like doing on vacation, but Roswell, Alpharetta and Cummings don't offer much in the way of interesting attractions, and the "ghetto" of Atlanta (what I would call the artists' district) wasn't necessarily appealing to my dad. I digress. The food was great. Coffee, pie, shrimp 'n grits, waffles (yes, Waffle House is better in the south), pulled pork, collared greens, Cuban sandwiches, the list goes on. Food is good, and I am going on a run ASAP.

5) My hair likes humidity.

6) A true rest-vacation means you don't adjust your sleep schedule to the local time. Hello, waking up at 11am and going to bed at 2am.

All in all, Georgia was nice. The wedding we came for was nice. Daddy-daughter time was nice. But it's good to be back in Phoenix, and I'm über ready to do my PNW trip my way.

Long time, no post!

Hey kiddos!
I bet you've been wondering where I've been.
Well, I've been to Austin.
I started planning my summer road trip.
I made a vlog about backpacking.
I went on a kickass backpacking trip with some of my favorite guys.

And to top that all off, I made a swanky blog for my online media class.

So, that's where I've been. Around, and very very busy.

Now that class (along with all my others) is over, and I'm gearing up for summer with the hopes of doing some really sweet trips.

• I'm going to Georgia sometime soon for a wedding, and I'll be meeting up with my pen pal while I'm there!
• I'm not going to make an all-American road trip, but I'm at least going to find a way to get to the Pacific Northwest.
• I'm hoping to spend a week at Ben's cabin in Pinetop.
• My mom wants to go on adventures. But who knows where that'll go.

So, hang tight, and get ready for my summer adventures!

A Web Adventure

Hey there! Long time no post.
This semester I'm taking an online media class at ASU, and I'm required to create a blog for it. And, because I love adventures, I'm making an adventure blog.
So, I'll be linking to those posts for the next few months.
Let me tell you--you'll want to read them.
There's gonna be a trip to Austin, a few adventure playlists, and a whole lot of other stuff. Maybe some interviews. Some video edits. Etcetera.
For now, here's the "About Me" post I had to make.

Tucson doesn't suck as much as I thought//At least Mount Lemmon is cool.

I think the best way to get to know people is by sitting in the car with them for a long time.

You'll eventually either share your life story with each other, or completely shut down and not talk at all.

Right after finals ended (Thursday, December 12 will live in eternity as the final day of the semester of my JMC 301 class, which I got an A+ in), I got in a car with my new friend Morgan (I'd only known her three weeks at this point) and headed to Mount Lemmon, which borders the north side of Tucson.

I think it is fair to mention that there are three ill-boding parts to this: 

One, the date was Friday the Thirteenth. 

Two, we were headed to Tucson. The Dirty T. My least favorite city in Arizona. 

Three, I was running late. An hour late. And you know how I get when I run late for trips: crabby.

Basically, this could have turned into a horrible horrible trip, if you're the type of person to base present experiences on past experiences. Thankfully, it didn't.

The entire drive to Tucson flew by, as we (mostly Morgan, as she was driving) sped down the I-10 and ended up sharing our life stories. Maybe I should stop sharing long car rides with strangers, because this happened when I went to Pinetop with Alex in July, too. The drive probably also went by quickly because I made a mix cd including music by J Vern, Foreman, I&W, Sufie.

In fact, this might be the first entirely positive trip to Tucson I've taken. Ever. Usually trips to Tucson entail a certain amount of money spent, a few too many Mike's Hard Lemonades by the pool, or a little too much television, but this trip was different.

The entire purpose of it was to escape Phoenix, celebrate winter, forge a new friendship and spend time outdoors.

Which is exactly what happened.

Finals are over. The semester has ended. I can finally relax!

Winter is here! Sweaters are out of boxes and on my shoulders!

I now have a new friend (which to be fair, is nothing new). But this one reads the Bible with me!

Mount Lemmon was beautiful! I was able to take a lot of beautiful photos of the sunset, and even though my film camera broke (yeah, sad day) I think I was able to save my roll of film so the photos of St. Ranger and Ben and Raquel and the sunset and stuff were all okay.
After spending time talking, smiling, laughing, photographing, driving and talking some more, we headed down to Fourth and Congress (the downtown area), contemplated getting Friday the 13th tattoos, and ate burritos at Shot in the Dark (we tried to go to Mount Lemmon Cafe, but it was apparently closed, and upon further searching, it appears to be permanently closed.) All in all, it was the perfectly peaceful end to a semester, the beginning of a wonderful friendship, and maybe a small reminder that Tucson isn't as gross as I think it is.

Travel Bucket List

Not so much places I want to go, but things I want to do (related to travel) before I die.

1. Photograph Aurora Borealis
2. Go on a fancy coffee road trip up the west coast
3. Drive Ben's car (Did that! Nov 2013)
4. Hike rim to rim on the Grand Canyon
5. Backpack (some of) Europe
6. Visit 4th Ave in Tucson
7. Photograph more of The Painted Desert Project
8. Take a Greyhound Bus somewhere