I leave for Nicaragua in two weeks, and I am quickly realizing just how short a span of time that is.
I have so much to do in preparation, mostly including outlining the story I'm writing, receiving my extra camera battery and LED camera-top light in the mail, and packing 3/4 of my things in my carry on. Mostly because I'm bringing a lot of equipment, but also because I need to bring underwear and toiletries in case they lose my suitcase.
But, on the bright side, I get to flex my journalist muscles and enjoy one of the most beautiful an (someone told me) one of the oldest countries in the western hemisphere.
I need to fact check that before I write it somewhere.
Wednesday, February 18, 2015
Wednesday, January 28, 2015
2015 Plans
2015.
The year is here.
I am graduating, which means I need to find a job and start saving for things like an apartment and cell phone bill and food.
That doesn't mean I'm not traveling, though.
I'm hoping to head out to a few different places this year, including
Nicaragua
I think I've already mentioned this, but I'm going to Nicaragua to get journalism stuff done.
And a grant is paying for it.
HALLELUJAH AMEN
Canada..fo real this time.
Remember last summer when I said I'd be road tripping to Portland/Seattle/Canada with my friend Natalie? Well, that's actually happening this summer. Me + Natalie + Adam (my boyfriend) and a few of his friends.
We'll take his 1991 Izusu Trooper and a bunch of camera equipment, and film a documentary. Which I should start working on now.
Sacramento? Los Angeles? Prescott?
I applied for an internship in Sacramento/LA, and a job in Prescott. I could end up working for the Associated Press this summer, or with UCYC--a summer camp for church kiddos.
The year is here.
I am graduating, which means I need to find a job and start saving for things like an apartment and cell phone bill and food.
That doesn't mean I'm not traveling, though.
I'm hoping to head out to a few different places this year, including
Nicaragua
I think I've already mentioned this, but I'm going to Nicaragua to get journalism stuff done.
And a grant is paying for it.
HALLELUJAH AMEN
Canada..fo real this time.
Remember last summer when I said I'd be road tripping to Portland/Seattle/Canada with my friend Natalie? Well, that's actually happening this summer. Me + Natalie + Adam (my boyfriend) and a few of his friends.
We'll take his 1991 Izusu Trooper and a bunch of camera equipment, and film a documentary. Which I should start working on now.
Sacramento? Los Angeles? Prescott?
I applied for an internship in Sacramento/LA, and a job in Prescott. I could end up working for the Associated Press this summer, or with UCYC--a summer camp for church kiddos.
Sunday, December 28, 2014
Denver!
Dear me, oh my!
I haven't mentioned that I went to Denver for Thanksgiving!
I blame it on the crazy amount of final projects I had.
So, yes. My final trip of 2014 was to Denver, Colorado. It was a short trip--I left Phoenix Wednesday night at 10:40 pm, and arrived back in Phoenix Saturday morning at 9 am. However, the brevity of the trip did not detract from the adventure.
This was my third (fourth?) and final year spending Thanksgiving in a different state than my parents. I initially was going to go to Tucson with them (to stay at the Hotel Congress and watch the ASU vs U of A game) but they stalled in making hotel reservations.
I found out in September that two of my friends, Sarah and Sawyer, would be unable to return to Phoenix for neither Thanksgiving nor Christmas, so I booked a plane ticket to Denver.
Life lesson: Consider checking your savings account before you book a plane ticket on a whim when you're in college. It may take months to recover. Not to say that happened to me.
As the weeks passed and as Thanskgiving drew nearer, I became increasingly excited to leave my homework behind for a while and head out to a new territory.
I've visited Denver once before, but this was my first time flying into Denver and spending time in the southern side, and my first time going in the winter.
It was basically freezing when I arrived. I'm so glad I bought a coat for this trip. When my flight landed, I took a moment to enjoy the art in the Denver airport (there are a lot of conspiracy theories about it) before getting in Sarah and Sawyer's car and going home and to bed.
I slept soundly on the most. comfortable. air mattress ever. created. As soon as I awoke, we began drinking coffee and cooking food. I made my favorite dish, green bean casserole with fresh green beans. It was heavenly.
We ate Thanksgiving dinner picnic-style and discussed what we are most thankful for this year.
My list included my parents' house, Sarah + Sawyer, my boyfriend Adam, the ability to travel, and my education.
Because we ate so early, we had a full afternoon of time to kill. We sat around. We watched tv. We ate pie. We drank wine. We went shopping at 6 pm on Thanksgiving day.
Yeah, I just said that.
It was my first Black Friday experience, and it wasn't even on Black Friday. It was also incredibly tame--the line to enter Target had dismantled by the time we got there, and there were still piles of large televisions for people to purchase.
I bought two pairs of gloves and that was it.
We went to World of Beer afterwards and enjoyed the potluck there (our second Thanksgiving dinner) and local pumpkin ale. It was a very peaceful, low-key holiday, and I loved it.
Friday was spent crafting and watching the ASU vs U of A game on the air mattress.
Sarah has picked up watercolors as a hobby, and she's really good at it. Like, Etsy-good.
I, on the other hand, created glamorous stockings for Adam and I. They are argyle and metallic and shiny and spectacular.
Unfortunately, I awoke incredibly early Saturday morning to head home to Phoenix. It was a rough early morning, but the sunrise was beautiful from the Southwest gate and the view of snowcapped mountains under my airplane's wing really made for a gorgeous end to my trip.
I arrived back in Phoenix well rested and ready to finish the semester off.
I haven't mentioned that I went to Denver for Thanksgiving!
I blame it on the crazy amount of final projects I had.
 |
| Sawyer + Sarah |
This was my third (fourth?) and final year spending Thanksgiving in a different state than my parents. I initially was going to go to Tucson with them (to stay at the Hotel Congress and watch the ASU vs U of A game) but they stalled in making hotel reservations.
I found out in September that two of my friends, Sarah and Sawyer, would be unable to return to Phoenix for neither Thanksgiving nor Christmas, so I booked a plane ticket to Denver.
Life lesson: Consider checking your savings account before you book a plane ticket on a whim when you're in college. It may take months to recover. Not to say that happened to me.
As the weeks passed and as Thanskgiving drew nearer, I became increasingly excited to leave my homework behind for a while and head out to a new territory.
I've visited Denver once before, but this was my first time flying into Denver and spending time in the southern side, and my first time going in the winter.
It was basically freezing when I arrived. I'm so glad I bought a coat for this trip. When my flight landed, I took a moment to enjoy the art in the Denver airport (there are a lot of conspiracy theories about it) before getting in Sarah and Sawyer's car and going home and to bed.
I slept soundly on the most. comfortable. air mattress ever. created. As soon as I awoke, we began drinking coffee and cooking food. I made my favorite dish, green bean casserole with fresh green beans. It was heavenly.
My list included my parents' house, Sarah + Sawyer, my boyfriend Adam, the ability to travel, and my education.
Because we ate so early, we had a full afternoon of time to kill. We sat around. We watched tv. We ate pie. We drank wine. We went shopping at 6 pm on Thanksgiving day.
Yeah, I just said that.
It was my first Black Friday experience, and it wasn't even on Black Friday. It was also incredibly tame--the line to enter Target had dismantled by the time we got there, and there were still piles of large televisions for people to purchase.
I bought two pairs of gloves and that was it.
Friday was spent crafting and watching the ASU vs U of A game on the air mattress.
Sarah has picked up watercolors as a hobby, and she's really good at it. Like, Etsy-good.
I, on the other hand, created glamorous stockings for Adam and I. They are argyle and metallic and shiny and spectacular.
Unfortunately, I awoke incredibly early Saturday morning to head home to Phoenix. It was a rough early morning, but the sunrise was beautiful from the Southwest gate and the view of snowcapped mountains under my airplane's wing really made for a gorgeous end to my trip.
I arrived back in Phoenix well rested and ready to finish the semester off.
Thursday, November 6, 2014
Adventures: Past and Future
I've done a lot of learning as I've traveled in 2014.
My trip to Austin in February taught me to be spontaneous, which is really the biggest lesson I've learned. That, and to always remove my laptop from my luggage before going through TSA.
In March, I learned that I am just as badass as one of the boys when it comes to backpacking, camping, hiking, etc. That was the trip where we drove to the Superstitions, arrived late, hiked in and set up camp in the pitch black night, were rained on, and nearly rained into the canyon. This is also when I had a bee fly into my backpack (while I was wearing it) and woke up to a beetle in my sleeping bag. And I didn't freak out either time.
May is when I committed to my trip to Oakland and Portland, spending more money on transportation than I ever have.
When that trip came around in June, I had learned a lot about being flexible. My plans never really materialized until a week before I left, and I didn't have my travel date for moving from OAK to PDX set until I had already arrived in Oakland.
I spent a lot of time by myself (especially in Oakland/San Francisco) and that was a beautiful thing. There's an art to getting lost--lost in a city, lost in thought. I mastered that art and made some wonderful life revelations in my time spent alone with a cup of coffee, camera and notebook.
Portland brought its own joys, one of which being Rhea, my mentor. Seeing her may have been one of the single best events of this year, partially because I realized what I want to report on, as a journalist.
Which brings me to where I am today.
I've got a lot of adventures under my belt for 2014, but I have an even bigger adventure ahead.
For one, I'm graduating from Arizona State in May (gasp, how did that happen), so I'm going to have to find a job, and it will hopefully look like an immigration reporting/photojournalism job and not a coffee job (although I'd really love to do that for a while.)
For twosies, I got into a fairly competitive border reporting class and will be traveling to Nicaragua in March 2015 to report on immigration between Nicaragua and Costa Rica. The two countries have a similar immigration disposition to Mexico and the United States.
I first learned about this class nearly two years ago (and even blogged about it) as a means for Cronkite students to get experience reporting about border-related issues in other countries, and I nearly can't believe I'm getting to join it this year.
Huzzah!
My trip to Austin in February taught me to be spontaneous, which is really the biggest lesson I've learned. That, and to always remove my laptop from my luggage before going through TSA.
In March, I learned that I am just as badass as one of the boys when it comes to backpacking, camping, hiking, etc. That was the trip where we drove to the Superstitions, arrived late, hiked in and set up camp in the pitch black night, were rained on, and nearly rained into the canyon. This is also when I had a bee fly into my backpack (while I was wearing it) and woke up to a beetle in my sleeping bag. And I didn't freak out either time.
May is when I committed to my trip to Oakland and Portland, spending more money on transportation than I ever have.
When that trip came around in June, I had learned a lot about being flexible. My plans never really materialized until a week before I left, and I didn't have my travel date for moving from OAK to PDX set until I had already arrived in Oakland.
I spent a lot of time by myself (especially in Oakland/San Francisco) and that was a beautiful thing. There's an art to getting lost--lost in a city, lost in thought. I mastered that art and made some wonderful life revelations in my time spent alone with a cup of coffee, camera and notebook.
Portland brought its own joys, one of which being Rhea, my mentor. Seeing her may have been one of the single best events of this year, partially because I realized what I want to report on, as a journalist.
Which brings me to where I am today.
I've got a lot of adventures under my belt for 2014, but I have an even bigger adventure ahead.
For one, I'm graduating from Arizona State in May (gasp, how did that happen), so I'm going to have to find a job, and it will hopefully look like an immigration reporting/photojournalism job and not a coffee job (although I'd really love to do that for a while.)
For twosies, I got into a fairly competitive border reporting class and will be traveling to Nicaragua in March 2015 to report on immigration between Nicaragua and Costa Rica. The two countries have a similar immigration disposition to Mexico and the United States.
I first learned about this class nearly two years ago (and even blogged about it) as a means for Cronkite students to get experience reporting about border-related issues in other countries, and I nearly can't believe I'm getting to join it this year.
Huzzah!
Wednesday, November 5, 2014
Fall Break in Portland
That title is misleading. It was mostly Fall Break in the car, and a day and a half in Oregon.
It's been hard to write about this. I did, after all, move my best friend to a city that is roughly 1,300 miles away. Round trip, this adventure was 2651.1 miles of driving.
I went up to Portland with three of my best friends and returned with two. Nobody died, it was just a moving trip. We took two cars and a bike and a lot of stuff and drove up in two days, stayed in Portland for a day and a half, and then took a day and a half to drive back with infinitely less stuff, and one less car and one less person.
The drive itself was far more enjoyable than I would have imagined. We were impatient to get to Portland, but we were able to stay with my friend Shane (who I met at Eva's wedding in August) in Redding, and meet his sister and friends. It was awesome because I don't really know him all that well, but he and his friends got along really well with me and my friends. We drank beer and talked about backpacking and got coffee and oatmeal for breakfast the next morning.
The short time I spent in Portland was categorized by coffee (duh) beer (also duh) and old, lovely friends. It felt like a giant reunion. It was the first stretch of time I had spent with Ben and Raquel and Brenna together, plus Liz and Cassie and Sydney who all moved to Portland earlier this year.
We just spent life together, and it was so so sweet to see everyone like the good ol' days.
Then we just left Brenna there (she's doing well--we talk frequently) and headed back to Phoenix. The route we took was very desolate--through the top corner of California and south through Nevada. The sound of my car's tires on the barren road was the perfect soundtrack for our somber drive back.
And I also got to witness a bear run across the road in front of me.
And Ben got a speeding ticket.
And we explored some beautiful, lonely places like Bordertown, CA and Lunning, NV.
It's been hard to write about this. I did, after all, move my best friend to a city that is roughly 1,300 miles away. Round trip, this adventure was 2651.1 miles of driving.
 |
| brother sister |
The drive itself was far more enjoyable than I would have imagined. We were impatient to get to Portland, but we were able to stay with my friend Shane (who I met at Eva's wedding in August) in Redding, and meet his sister and friends. It was awesome because I don't really know him all that well, but he and his friends got along really well with me and my friends. We drank beer and talked about backpacking and got coffee and oatmeal for breakfast the next morning.
The short time I spent in Portland was categorized by coffee (duh) beer (also duh) and old, lovely friends. It felt like a giant reunion. It was the first stretch of time I had spent with Ben and Raquel and Brenna together, plus Liz and Cassie and Sydney who all moved to Portland earlier this year.
We just spent life together, and it was so so sweet to see everyone like the good ol' days.
 |
| family dinner |
And I also got to witness a bear run across the road in front of me.
And Ben got a speeding ticket.
And we explored some beautiful, lonely places like Bordertown, CA and Lunning, NV.
Monday, October 6, 2014
Cali: Take 2
I can hardly believe it was only two nights ago when I was loading Jess and Dave's bags into the back of my car for my second weekend in California. I can confidently say, though, that it will be the first and last time I ever do an overnight road trip. Leaving Phoenix at midnight was brutal, but it was what we needed to do to make it in time. Not only did we make it in time, but we also made great time, and got to see a nice sunrise when we arrived at Jess' dad's house in California.
After our sunrise hike, we headed out to Venice Beach where I completely zonked out on a beach towel for an hour or so (I only slept an hour and a half on the car ride) and only got lightly sunburned. I think Dave used the term "splotchy." By the time I woke up, everyone else was disenchanted with the beach (which is a sentiment I completely do not understand) and wanted to sleep. All I wanted was coffee.
Everyone was a good sport when we piled back into the car and I drove to Intelligentsia on Abbott Kinney. Intelligentisa is the first third wave coffee shop I ever learned about, so it was really nice to pay a visit and drink a cold brew.
Once we got home, we all rested, ate lunch, watched a movie and then headed out for second lunch. Because apparently we're a bunch of Hobbits who like to eat multiple meals.
Jess stayed home but we (it was her sister Sarah's birthday weekend, too, and her friends spent the whole time hanging out with us as well) drove into downtown Los Angeles to eat at Syrup, a coffee/breakfast cafe.
I was really hoping it was an old school soda fountain, but I was completely and pleasantly surprised when I saw it was a coffee shop similar to Samba Latte and Caffe Medici, narrow with multiple stories. I had a crepe that rivaled Jobot's, and we all played Jenga and enjoyed the air conditioning.
With time to kill and food to walk off, we jaunted down to the fashion district on a hunt for gym shorts and a suit for Dave. All we really found were overpriced USB drives and gangsta' basketball shorts. And a lot of fabric. And a lot of crowds. It wasn't exactly what I expected, but the old buildings, populated alleyways and general skyscrapers pleased my eye.
Once we returned home, I did homework and napped a sweet, sweet nap, bringing the total amount of time I slept up to approximately four hours.
Our evening was spent preparing to see Rocky Horror Picture Show for Sarah's sweet 16th. The show started at midnight (a short 24 hours after we first left Phoenix) and the movie didn't actually start until 1 am, leaving us leaving the theater at 2:45 am.
I fell asleep as soon as I got home (and washed the red lipstick off my face--apparently it's normal to draw on people who are seeing the show for the first time) and then woke up at 10 am this morning, a short hour before we planned on leaving to return to Phoenix.
Oh, right. The other point of this trip was to move Jess home to Phoenix. It took a grand total of twenty minutes to load all her stuff in my car, and she did most if it while I was still asleep this morning.
And so, we left after a fun/amazing/crammed/spectacular weekend in Los Angeles, and returned to Phoenix with a rat, a bike and a few boxes of other things Jess owns. And a lot of stinking great photos on my phone.
I honestly feel like I've done more living in the past 48 hours than I did from Monday through Friday, which makes me wonder how much living I'll be doing in Portland over fall break. Now, excuse me as I go take my laundry out of the dryer and finish packing. I leave again in three days.
 |
| The mountain behind the house gave us a great viewing spot. |
 |
| The crew. |
Once we got home, we all rested, ate lunch, watched a movie and then headed out for second lunch. Because apparently we're a bunch of Hobbits who like to eat multiple meals.
Jess stayed home but we (it was her sister Sarah's birthday weekend, too, and her friends spent the whole time hanging out with us as well) drove into downtown Los Angeles to eat at Syrup, a coffee/breakfast cafe.
I was really hoping it was an old school soda fountain, but I was completely and pleasantly surprised when I saw it was a coffee shop similar to Samba Latte and Caffe Medici, narrow with multiple stories. I had a crepe that rivaled Jobot's, and we all played Jenga and enjoyed the air conditioning.
 |
| Bendix building. I have no clue what it is. |
Once we returned home, I did homework and napped a sweet, sweet nap, bringing the total amount of time I slept up to approximately four hours.
Our evening was spent preparing to see Rocky Horror Picture Show for Sarah's sweet 16th. The show started at midnight (a short 24 hours after we first left Phoenix) and the movie didn't actually start until 1 am, leaving us leaving the theater at 2:45 am.
I fell asleep as soon as I got home (and washed the red lipstick off my face--apparently it's normal to draw on people who are seeing the show for the first time) and then woke up at 10 am this morning, a short hour before we planned on leaving to return to Phoenix.
Oh, right. The other point of this trip was to move Jess home to Phoenix. It took a grand total of twenty minutes to load all her stuff in my car, and she did most if it while I was still asleep this morning.
 |
| Los Angeles, I love you so. |
I honestly feel like I've done more living in the past 48 hours than I did from Monday through Friday, which makes me wonder how much living I'll be doing in Portland over fall break. Now, excuse me as I go take my laundry out of the dryer and finish packing. I leave again in three days.
Thursday, October 2, 2014
Cali: Take 1
I'm back from the first of two back-to-back weekends in California. I've been back since Sunday, and I'm heading out late tomorrow night for my next adventure.
Last weekend I went to Santa Clarita or Valencia or somewhere in that region for free with my friend Mitch, because he's a great person and knows I love travel.
He also knows I'm a dependable person who enjoys offering a helping hand, which is what I did. This was a volunteering trip, although it didn't feel like much work to me!
My weekend was spent brushing elbows with influential TV set designers and movie producers and head animators and all sorts of people I'd probably never meet otherwise.
 |
| Me+my camera+ocean |
I'm really comfortable bumming around in my Birkenstocks, and while I enjoyed getting super dressy and seeing a Salvador Dali print, I was much more comfortable when I got to go to the beach the next day with Mitch and his family.
Who, by the way, are incredibly nice people. I love his parents. They're so witty. And generous.
So, yeah. That was weekend one. Art+famous people+beach. Now, weekend two!
So, yeah. That was weekend one. Art+famous people+beach. Now, weekend two!
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