photography
Its Friday the 13th! The drive began with a lot of rain and wind, but the day quickly cleared up into a beautiful morning. My destination for the day is Chapel Hill, NC deep in the heart of tobacco country!
I dawdled around DC attempting to re-kindle my feelings for the place I had spent three months exploring a couple years ago, but I ended up getting turned around and lost. Nothing seemed familiar, for some reason, and when I found myself back out of the highway headed south I decided it wasn’t time for the visit.
I’m staying with my buddy Tim tonight and will see how I feel about sleeping in my car the rest of the trip. Nothing past this point is planned. I just have to be in Fort Worth by Monday night to be working bright and early Tuesday.
After the long long road trip adventure last year, I’ve been sticking with planes or the city. Its getting to the point where I’m missing the mountains and find myself dreaming of the roads between Santa Fe and Denver.
After last year, I promised myself that I wouldn’t go for any crazy long distance drives through the midwest. Getting caught in blizzards in the middle of Kansas is more adventure than I am interested in experiencing any time soon, so, I’ll have to push my fantasies back into the summer. Where to go?
Wyoming! Its about damn time I hit up the Tetons again, so, I’m going to plan my life around a backpacking trip in July where the largest mosquitoes ever will be out for my blood. Usually, I plan trips around my big birthdays, and, well, I’m only going to turn 30 once.
The sleepy tree above is in Central Park, but the photo makes me roadsick for the mountains. Time to get planning!
There is something very distinct about the great Midwest, and I can’t say that I’m too fond of it. My visit is due to family. My grandmother is ill and newly in a nursing home and is in need of visitors.
I am finding the Midwest beautiful, which must mean I’m either getting old or have lived among hills or building for so long that being able to see unknown miles out across the flat land to the flat horizon is breathtaking.
Since I’ve been rock climbing indoors consistently for the past 6 months (after years of attempting to make it a habit) I have visited the Upper Limits rock gym twice since my arrival. I can only compare this gym to the 6 different gyms I have been to since I started tinkering with climbing 5 or so years ago, and I have to say its a bit lacking in the bouldering department. Bring a harness and find a partner. There are auto belay devices, but not so many its worth the day pass fee if you’re used to going to a more densely routed gym without a partner. Really, I was there to boulder so bouldering is what I’m reviewing. The problem rating is up there with the harder gyms I’ve been to, which would be awesome if there were more problems for beginners. I was able to locate 2 V0′s, 1 V1, and several V2′s which would be much too difficult for anyone trying to get into the sport. I went ahead and started some of the top-rope routes just to get more warm up and down climbing strength whatnot in, but it was crowded outside of the bouldering area and I felt I was in the way of the top-rope crowd. I did get some good time in and the boulder problems were really great, I just wish there were more to choose from.
Brooklyn Boulders and North Austin Rock Gym have completely spoiled me due to their size and Summit Rock Gym in Grapevine has spoiled me due to the friendliness of their regulars and quality of their bouldering problems.
At the nursing home, a nice older lady has taken to me. She calls me “boy” and tells the nurses how cute she thinks I am. Every time she sees me she says something, never remembering that we had ever spoken before. Sometimes she compliments my smile, other times she asks what school I went to or tells me to comb my hair. Its hard when she asks my name, though, because she’ll call me a liar when I say I’m a girl.
I love how uncomfortable the nurses get throughout the whole interaction. Considering we are in a small Midwestern town, everyone is so polite it makes things like this all the more awkward, deliciously so.
This woman must have hit on everyone she ever thought was attractive.
Tomorrow, I leave for Denver! Another 25 hours day.
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I’m currently wandering about the Southwestern United States basking in my new found (and temporary) freedom from the office.
Cumulonimbus clouds building up behind me.
I woke up to cows my first night in the Santa Fe National Forest. I ate breakfast amongst them. They are my new best friends.
I was wondering why the grass was so nice and short in camp…
Next week, I’ll be visiting New York for a few days to relax, work, and think about my life all at the same time. Then, in September after my job ends, I plan to spend some time in my beloved Frey Canyon in Bandelier National Monument in New Mexico to further consider my life.
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In October, I will be leaving Austin to move back to NYC where I will be looking for work and considering my future even further.
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Throughout all of this, I hope to begin to take more black and white photos like the one above because i miss it. Here are a couple other oldies but goodies from my time in New Mexico.
