Awesome Dream
I had the most awesome dream last night. For some reason I was in New York and wandering around bad neighborhoods. I stop to take a nap and some guys come up threateningly, to rob me or just beat me up I don’t know. I choose to run away.
Have you ever had one of those dreams where you have to dodge or get away from something but can’t?
This was like that in that I could run but they were right behind me the whole time and I couldn’t get further away. Except in this dream I would pull off a Parkour move on every occasion I could and the distance between us would increase dramatically. Using Parkour I evaded the assailants with ease. Crazy stuff.
This still competes with my other most awesome dream where my friends and I stole a velociraptor(Jurassic park sized, not Turkey sized like the real ones) than had to capture after it escaped from us.
Filed under: Life | Leave a Comment
Tags: parkour
This is definitely the least random or significant adventures on the road trip but it was significant enough to stick out in my head, so here goes.
Over two weeks into the road trip (over a week since my last story) we’re in Dinosaur National Park, which resides mostly in Western Colorado, some in Utah. We had just come from Rocky Mountain National Park after staying in the Denver / Boulder, CO area for three days. I’m a little antsy because despite all of this I haven’t gotten my fix on hiking and or randomly jumping around. Lots of walking through places, sitting in cars, eating at restaurants. We arrive at our camping site in the middle of Dinosaur (car camping… blah) and I notice a sign for a trail while we’re parking. We’ve got about an hour or so before twilight so I figure screw it, I’m doing this. I let Justin and Jane know and I set out solo on a short hiking adventure.
View from the Campsite
I find logistical descriptions of activities boring so here’s some pictures:
The View After the Start
The Hike Continues, and the Sun Continues to Leave
The Moon Over the Ridge
The Campsite Upon My Return
The hike itself was no problem, slightly hilly, the entire trail ran between a ridge and a river. Luckily I grabbed my headlamp “in case” I got back after sunset. Down inside I knew I’d keep hiking until well after dark. The sun was well set before I turned around. I followed the trail up until the point where I had to scramble over some rocks and it was unclear where the trail went afterwards. No dangerous animals to worry about on the hike, not in this land of desert and tumbleweed. Most of the post-sunset journey I went without my headlamp. The moon was good and bright and headlamps screw my peripheral vision, which I heavily rely on. The only animal I saw was a skunk(? My best guess, it was dark). I startled several birds perched in bushes. They wouldn’t detect me until I was about 2 feet away and then dart away, startled. Coincidental startling me in the process.
Despite the darkness the scenery was awesome. The desert walls have quite the display of colors in the sunset, as can be seen by my photo of the campsite. Somehow the view of the river from the trail made me think of the Yangtze river in China, probably because of a National Geographic article I read recently. After sunset the view was still spectacular. The bright moonlight and the desert are a completely different atmosphere. Felt like a different world, and here I was enjoying it in complete solitude(usually my style). No humans around and very few animals (or plants).
After turning back and scaring about 15-20 birds peacefully resting in bushes on the way, I returned to the campsite. I greeted Justin and Jane and we feasted on Bison hot dogs. The End.
Next installment in the road trip adventures series: Moose Encounter in the Death Canyon of the Tetons.
Filed under: Road Trip Adventures | Leave a Comment
Interview Location
Preface: Back in May I had applied to an electrical engineering position with a company in Brevard, NC. I had received an e-mail in June asking me if I was still interested. I replied back twice, saying I was interested and including an updated resume. Silence…
Not three days into the trip, on a Saturday, I check my e-mail in Chicago. They finally decide to e-mail me three weeks after my last response letting me know I made the list and my time to interview is on Tuesday at 1pm. Quite considerate. I guess if I had another job they would understand if I suddenly took the day off to go talk to someone else about leaving them. Well, on Tuesday our itinerary was to be hiking around the Badlands of South Dakota. A fair distance from Brevard, NC. For this to work out We needed to do the interview via phone. I guess I had a nice resume because upon my request, they agreed(yay).
Skip to Tuesday. I have no cell phone signal in the Badlands… Justin and Jane barely have a signal. So I have to skip the Badlands hike(booo) and try to drive to the nearest municipality in hope of service. Destination: Rapid City, SD. I hi-tale it to Rapid City, counting on Virgin Mobile to have decent reception there. Upon arrival, no reception at all… Luckily I find a pay-phone in one of the many retarded Rapid City strip malls(that’s all it is, total s-hole). Only problem is, I can’t hear anything on the pay-phone. They can hear me fine but their speech comes through as whispers. I adjust the volume, but that only makes me hear myself louder. Luckily the interviewing engineer is a cool guy and agrees to schedule for the next day…
The Badlands
Wednesday. Today’s plan, hike Harney Peak. I’m not missing out on this. We strike a deal, Jane will let me use her phone. I will speed hike my way to the top with time to spare to hike back down and drive to a town in case there’s no signal on the peak. We part ways at the beginning of the trail and I zoom to the top, passing people all along the way. I arrive with plenty of time to spare, and Jane’s phone has perfect signal, and several missed calls. I relax and scramble / jump / climb my way around the peak for a while. After a couple of hours Jane and Justin arrive and I tell them the good news.
Time comes for the interview so I scramble off to a remote location away from tourists. The interview went really well. The engineer I talked to was a cool guy, it sounded like a nice company and the kind of work they did was right up my alley. While interviewing I was enjoying watching and listening to the grass in front of me blow in a soft breeze. While answering one question my response slowed because I was admiring a spider dangling from a web attached to my finger. The view of the surrounding mountains, forest, and the Black Hills wasn’t bad either. He said he liked what he heard, and I agreed. They were to schedule second interviews for September, and I would know if I made it first week of August. Not what I wanted to hear, but what I expected to hear. Mission Accomplished.
Ya know, views like this
All-in-all an exciting experience, but ultra-stressful, I was glad it was over. It was annoying me, and I’m sure Justin and Jane as well. However, now I get to say I did a job interview on top of a mountain, so 
.
Prologue: After I got back in mid-August I had not heard back from them yet so I e-mailed them curiously. I got a response that said the process was pushed back due to budget concerns they would let me know in mid-September if I had made second interviews. Still no response after that one so I don’t know what has become of them. Luckily though I stopped worrying about this job around mid-trip.
Next Episode in Random Road Trip Adventures: Sunset Hike in Dinosaur Land
Filed under: Road Trip Adventures | Leave a Comment
Random Road Trip Adventures
Photo Credit to Justin Ritchie
My traveling compatriot Justin Ritchie has started his series of posts and pictures over at http://jritchie.com/ detailing our journey across America that happened three months ago. I have decided that I will write my own posts concerning my journey. However, these won’t be an exhaustive journal describing the day to day details of the trip, I’ll leave that to Justin and his pictures. Rather, this will be a series of posts highlighting the random and awesome adventures and situations I found myself in along the way; Which is more along my style. From being stranded alone in Yellowstone for two and a half days, to discovering Kegball, to a four day national Parkour jam in the Denver / Boulder, CO area. An adventure(s) of a lifetime.
Coming soon, Part 1: Job Interview at 7,000′.
Filed under: Road Trip Adventures | Leave a Comment
A while ago on the Daily Show, Stephen Colbert spoke of how everything would be better in trailer form. My road trip compatriot Justin Ritchie has compiled a ‘trailer’ for his series of posts on our road trip together. Better in trailer form than real life? Nah…
Follow his upcoming posts on the road trip @ http://jritchie.com/ . Highly recommended, good photos.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Leave a Comment
Road Trip Conclusion
Well the road trip is over ( as of about 3 weeks ago). I’ve driven a long way, my car has survived it all, and I’ve learned a few things about myself. And now… I’m back in Charlotte. Around 3/4 of the way through I decided with the way the current economy is running and with what I want to do with my career, graduate school is the best option(wish I had figured that out in spring). I’ll save more details for good conversation but long story short I’m back living in Charlotte and already taking grad school courses applying to be full time in spring.
Day 1: Drive; Charlotte to Nashville
Day 2: Hang out in Nashville
Day 3: Drive; Nashville to Chicago
Day 4: Hang out in Chicago
Day 5: Hang out in Chicago
Day 6: Drive; Chicago to Sioux Falls
Day 7: Drive; Sioux Falls to Badlands
Day 8: Drive; Badlands to Black Hills
Day 9: Hike Harney Peak
Day 10: Drive; Black Hills to Boulder
Day 11: Hang out in Boulder
Day 12: Tour Amory Lovin’s house
Day 13: Hang out in Denver
Day 14: Drive; Boulder to Rocky Mtn Natl Park
Day 15: Drive; Rocky Mtn Natl Park to Dinosaur National Monument
Day 16: Drive; Yellowstone to Grand Tetons
Day 17: Hang out in Tetons, hiked death canyon / Alaska Basin Trail
Day 18: Hang out in Tetons, paddled Jenny Lake
Day 19: Drive; Tetons to Yellowstone
Day 20: Hang out in Yellowstone Front country
Day 21: Hang out in Yellowstone Front country, split ways with Justin / Jane
Day 22: Hike to Mt Washburn & back (EPIC)
Day 23: Hike to Hayden Valley…. hiking on roads is lame
Day 24: Drive; Yellowstone to Denver
Day 25: COLORADO
Day 26: PARKOUR
Day 27: NATIONAL
Day 28: JAM
Day 29: Look at apartment, decide to head back for grad school to ease logistical difficulty
Day 30: Finish paper for online course, play kegball with people I met at Hostel
Day 31: Drive Denver to Kansas City, MO, stay with old roomie Nick Cook in Belton
Day 32: Drive to Nashiville again, this time on a Friday, much better
Day 33: Nashville, TN to Wadesboro, NC
List is approximate and subject to inconsistency. If that list is too boring, here’s some pretty pictures: http://www.flickr.com/photos/erby/collections/72157621425841455/ They’re pretty fantasticulous.
I will never do a road trip again, wayyy too much driving. Next time it’s plane or Greyhound, or bike touring, or something else that isn’t driving for 8+ HOURS A DAY ARRGHHHH.
Filed under: Life | Leave a Comment
Tags: road trip
Lost in Translation
I left my computer charger at a hostel in Denver. Luckily I was able to call them and they were happy to mail it to me after I mailed them a check to pay for shipping. They made a couple of typos on the package though…
Filed under: Uncategorized | Leave a Comment
Microsoft Word Brain-Freeze
I typed my last undergraduate paper a couple of weeks ago. In the middle I caught Word in a grammatical catch 22 as illustrated below in the screen-shots.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Leave a Comment
Road Trip!
Yesterday my friends left Charlotte and I set out on a cross country road trip full of awesome. We’ll be visiting a few awesome cities and national parks. If any of you ever get extra bored or anything feel free to keep up with us via any of the following methods:
Our Itenerary – Here
Twitter – Justin, Jane, and Myself
Flickr – Justin and Myself
Filed under: Uncategorized | Leave a Comment
Something to Keep in Mind
“Life can be found only in the present moment. The past is gone, the future is not yet here, and if we do not go back to ourselves in the present moment, we cannot be in touch with life.” – Thicht Naht Hanh
“Drink your tea slowly and reverently, as if it is the axis
on which the world earth revolves – slowly, evenly, without
rushing toward the future. Live the actual moment.
Only this moment is life.” - Thicht Naht Hanh
I’m currently in a bit of limbo, I’ve graduated, but I’ve no professional job. I plan to move to Oregon soon, but as of the current moment don’t have the funds or a job out there to supply them. Right now I’m working my old student jobs to save money and pay off rent in the mean time.
Usually in life we’re always waiting for the next step. In middle school we can’t wait for high school, in high school we can’t wait for college, in college we can’t wait to get a job, then we can’t wait to retire. We’re always taught at a young age to plan for the future, not live life day by day. We’re stuck in a constant cycle of anticipation but are forsaking the opportunity to enjoy ourselves right now. That’s the opposite of what we should be doing. You should prepare for the future of course, it is foolish not to have some ’skeleton’ of a plan, but we can’t plan it precisely. We in no way have full control over what happens with our lives, only roll with the punches and hope for the best. The only thing that exists is what is happening right now, some physicist even theorize that ‘time’ is an illusion and doesn’t really exist. If we forsake the opportunity to enjoy this moment we will never be happy. ”Living in the moment, right now” happens to be one of the pillars of Buddhism.
So, just figured I would share that, one of the little bits if wisdom I’m keeping in mind in this in betwen stage of life. Though I’m moving soon to (hopefully) a more exciting future. I shan’t forsake this opportunity to enjoy time with the good friends I have now, because I may not get a second chance, and that ‘better future’ might not happen. And of course, if I do miss an opportunity, not to dwell on it any longer than it takes to learn the lesson, because that may cause me to miss more opportunities in the future.
Filed under: Uncategorized | 1 Comment
Tags: Life, planning, time, zen
Twitter- serdmanczyk: SpielenNacht #hahaWOO
- serdmanczyk: I google to research caffeine's effect on post-workout recovery. The first relevant source?.. "Gay fitness" (and it answered my question)
- serdmanczyk: Epic times.
- serdmanczyk: T-NOW. This is happening. Things will never be the same.
- serdmanczyk: T-45 minutes
-
Flickr Photostream
More Photos
