Whatever You Do, Don't Look Back!

This is a quote from the front of the Dante's Peak DVD.

Yes, I own Dante's Peak on DVD.  I found it at a used DVD store after Andrea and I joked about wanting to watch in while in Colorado.

But why is it the title of this blog?  I don't know.  It seemed like an appropriate title for a blog entry about my birthday.

I tend to reflect on the past year in my life when my birthday comes around (as I imagine most people do).  As I think about this past year I recognize how great a year it has been.

I made some great friends.
Lost a bunch of weight.
I finally made a plan (sort of) on how to get a legitimate job (read: career).
I even climbed above 13,000 ft.

I've also become sure of the things that I want most out of life.  So I got that going for me... which is nice.

I guess this blog title is in conflict with this pattern of yearly reflection, but that is because I haven't made my point yet.  The point I'd like to make is that while looking back is alright; it is easy to spend too much time in what has happened.

You might end missing what's 'happening.'

The past is a great reference point.  And memories are wonderful things; especially when they give you that one-of-a-kind warm, fuzzy, tingly feeling.  Like when someone just understands you or you accomplish something even outside the realm of your wildest dreams.  But you can't let past experiences dictate present ones.  Just because you've been burned before whether it be by people, or chances you've taken, you shouldn't let yourself be afraid of being burned again.

People, and life, will never cease to surprise you.

I suppose I've become an optimist.  A frightening thought.

For my birthday I didn't do much of anything.  I went canoeing on Griffy Lake with Andrea.  It was really beautiful Saturday.  The perfect weather for being outside.  Later I made us nachos.  I had really been craving nachos for a while now.  So I grilled up some ground beef with cumin, threw that, some black beans, and cheese on top of tortilla chips and put it all in the oven.

It was quite tasty.

Probably the coolest thing I did though was the day before when I went with Andrea to her uncle's cabin.  She had to pick up some stuff from her dad and they showed me all around the place.  I even got to shoot a gun on the shooting range they have out there.  I had never done that before.  It was fun to finally knock that off my bucket list.

"Wonderful Night" - Fatboy Slim

Note to Self

Running two hours after having donated plasma is not the brightest move.  Especially when you've barely eaten.

"Tubthumping" - Chumbawumba

In Need of a Memory Wipe

Earlier I caught sight of, very briefly, a text from my mom to some guy.  I wasn't snooping through her phone or creeping over her shoulder or anything.  She was showing me how predictive text on her phone annoys her.  Lets just say I'd rather not have seen the contents of this text.

I love my mom.  She's had a tough few years.  She hasn't had anyone to talk to for a long time now, so she deserves someone.  I'd just rather not know about it...

...at all.

Ughhh.  It's so unsettling.

And there's something weird, to me, about people above the age of 30 sending rather intimate texts.

Seems like an activity meant for young people.  Of course, anyone I've mentioned this to has said it's not weird at all.  Maybe I'm the weird one.

Probably, but that's cool.

- In other news -

I got around to playing Mass Effect 2 again (on the PS3 this time).  It is by far my favorite game of this console generation.  I think the greatest thing about the game is it's characters.  The story of Mass Effect 2 is relatively simple; if the characters weren't written in a way that made deep and compelling it wouldn't be the same game.

I'll be 24 in a week.  Doesn't feel like it though.

"Song 2" - Blur

Scratch That

Holy crap was that last blog of mine atrocious.  The epitome of awful.  Just thinking about it makes me want to punch myself in the nards.  You'll notice it is no longer there.  That shit had to go.

- In other news -

Some plans of mine fell through on Sunday so I decided to surprise my mom by driving home.  She isn't doing great.  Completely overwhelmed with all the things she needs to do to take care of my grandma.  It's enormously depressing.

I did finally get around to watching Game of Thrones while I was there though.  That show is pretty damn awesome.  I watched the first 8 episodes from like 10pm Sunday night to 6am the next morning.  I'd finish one and say, "ok, just one more."

I couldn't help it.  I was hooked.  It makes me wish I had HBO still so I could see the final two episodes before I am home next.  And True Blood is coming back in a couple a weeks too.

I also donated plasma on Tuesday.  That was really cool.  I wanted to get a little extra money and I remembered an old roommate of mine going to donate from time to time, so I thought I'd give it a try.  It was interesting there and every employee was nice.  It was strange seeing so many happy people working together (if that's not a comment on society, I don't know what is).

Finally here's a joke they sort of tell on an episode of How I Met Your Mother.  It's really crass, but it made me laugh.

What's the difference between peanut butter and jam?

You can't peanut butter your dick up someone's ass.

"Where's Your Head At" - Basement Jaxx

Things That Scare the Poop Out of Me

They include:

most spiders - spiders suck so much.  Seriously, they are one of evolution's creepiest creations.  Think about it.  Tiny creatures that have poisonous fangs and can crawl out from the smallest of spaces.

Absolutely creepy.

swimming in murky ocean water - ... well, any murky water.  Ughhh. It's mostly a shark thing.  It's just very unnerving to be swimming in water where you can't see what is around you.

I think that's it.  Nothing else comes to mind right now.  I mean, sure, clowns are creepy, but I'm not scared of them.  Sure, heights sucks, but only if all I have is a very small walking space and a steep drop on one or both sides.

- In other news -

I started working on my the story I started writing last summer.  There's something about being alone in Btown during the summer that just puts me in a 'good' writing mood.

It is two weeks 'til my birthday.  I don't really know what I'll do for it.  My mom will want me to come home, but I'd rather just hang out alone in the wilderness for a while.  She was asking me what I wanted for my birthday a few weeks ago and I said, "nothing".  She was irked by this.  The woman just sent me on a trip to Yellowstone and RMNP; that's more than enough.  She tells me I'm spoiled sometimes and then she gets weird when I don't want anything.

I started watching LOST before I went on my trip and finished season 1 the other day.  It is such a great show.

I've been running every day this week and holy crap has it been sweltering out.  The hotter the better, however.  There's nothing like a great sweat during (and after) a run.  It almost always puts me in a good place.

"Danger Zone" - Chiddy Bang

Limbo

I'm in it and it sucks.

It is a weird feeling to see what the next step in your life is, but not know exactly how it is you are going to get there. I do know how to get there, but it'll only 'truly' become apparent as it is happening.  It is remarkably moronic, I know.

And I'll be 24 in a little over two weeks.

That's right. 24.

I'm nearly halfway through my 20s. It is mind boggling to think about. Sort of like when you try to imagine how the universe began. You are only able to get so far before your brain hurts because what you cannot comprehend what comes next. Or, in the case of the universe analogy, before.

If that didn't make any sense, thinking about me being 24, when it feels like I was just freshmen in high school, hurts my brain.

It's just so strange to me.  I don't even remotely look like a 24 year old. I could probably pass for 17. This will be a blessing when I'm 48 and look 40. It would really come in handy when picking up women. Lets be honest though. If I'm single at 48, I fucked up big time.

I suppose that may actually be one my fears (I don't really have many: big spiders, sharks... you know what? I'll just do a separate blog on that subject). That my particular brand of crazy (we're all a little crazy) doesn't have a counterpart. Or that I'll somehow alienate whomever gets close to me because, objectively speaking, I can be annoying as hell to be around.

I think I need to go hiking again.

"Mathematics" - Mos Def

Marvel Dammit!

I went to Shawnee National Forest in southern Illinois with Andrea yesterday. Shawnee is a bad ass place with some great views and fun spots to do a little rock climbing. The forest sort of pops out of nowhere as you drive to it. Once you are exploring you'll find all this hidden depth because of the bizarre geological formations there.

We were walking on massive boulders that looked out over part of the forest and eventually we were walking in down in the forest we were looking down at.

It was great.

Later in the day we came upon this steep, stone staircase that led into this little pathway between these huge slabs of rock.  It was eerie and creepy down there, but incredibly cool.  I was just waiting for a snake or baseball-size spider to appear at any moment.

I had a blast out there.  At some points the trails were reminiscent of Rocky Mountain National Park.  It made me happy to get some hiking in since I rarely get to when I'm not out west.

"Sympathy" - The Goo Goo Dolls

Is That True, Zach? Does Your Shit Run Deep?

I just caught the ending to 500 Days of Summer and it has me wondering, what should you do when you find yourself missing someone, whom may miss you too, but not as much as you do them?

This is a legitimate question.  A good question.

I think there comes a point when you have to find out just how much they actually miss you.  A time to see if what you thought was your 'constant' was really just a flutter.  Call it a test of character or mental fortitude.

"Fresh Feeling" - Eels

Are We Having Fun Yet? (or You Are a Runty, Little Puppy)

Day One: (Coloradoooo, here we come!)

I leave Btown at 8am to pick up Andrea at her home in Brazil, IN. And then we're off. There is lots of music. She pops Death Cab in early on in the drive. I'm lukewarm on it. We drive through Illinois, Iowa, and feel up Nebraska before stopping for the night in Gillette, South Dakota. We stopped there because it has a Cabela's. It is a little to the east of here where we see our first billboard for Wall Drug (more on that on Day Two). We ended up driving for around 15 hours. Her navigating, me driving.

I nearly forgot about the soulless little girl looking out her hotel room as we got out of the car.  Oh. My. God.  One of the creepiest things I've ever seen.  Made even creepier by what happens the next morning.

Day Two: (Avalanche Zone)

We get up the next day and check out.  As we are packing the car I look up and what do I see?  The little girl soullessly staring down at us out the window.  After getting the shit scared out of us we check out Cabela's. Lots of dead animals and fish in there. The fish were alive. Along the way we see numerous signs for Wall Drug; basically the only store in the city of Wall, South Dakota. They are truly random billboards. The one I remember best being:

"Wall Drug. You know you want it."

We made great time. Covering the rest of South Dakota and making it all the way to Cody, Wyoming well before sunset. I'm not usually one to ask strangers questions, but I decided to ask the woman at the gas station we stopped at about how crowded Yellowstone might be.  This woman was like Yoda and so friendly too.  She tells us that we can't even get into the park 'til 8pm because the road past the east entrance is closed due to avalanche warnings.

Yes. Avalanche warnings.

Not the avalanche zone, but still cool.

So we head west toward the east entrance and see a bunch of animals along the way. Being close to dusk, they were all coming out. We saw quite a few elk and bison; even a moose about five seconds after we entered the park. The coolest, though, had to be the mountain goats that we saw standing beside the road on the way into the park. They never moved a muscle. Not even a blink. Soulless goats they were.

Driving through the avalanche zone was awesome. At some points the snow against the road was well over 10 feet high. It was awe-inspiring. After the avalanche zone, Lake Yellowstone comes into view. It is huge... and frozen. I love it. In some spots the lake isn't frozen though with steam rising from these holes in the ice. So we reach Yellowstone in two days and even get a room in the same place we were going to stay already. The cabin we stay in is tiny with no TV, but cute. I knew that so I brought plenty of DVDs to watch on my laptop when we weren't out and about in the park.

Day Three: (Bison in the Road)

We get up the next morning and decide to head to the northern section of the park, Mammoth Hot Springs. We take the road north and find the road closed (I don't think we ever really found out why), but luckily the a park ranger tells us that the road should open soon and we should stop to see Upper and Lower Falls in the mean time. They are really cool. There is a swarm of Asian tourists and we hear a funny conversation about the three classifications of rocks. The road is open when we head back that way and we're off to Mammoth Hot Springs. Mammoth is awesome. There were some really great views of the steaming sulfur pits.

We drove south to the geyser basins where Old Faithful is next. There is a really cool, little general store here. We'd end up back here the next day (more on that later). We stop at Lower Geyser Basin on our way back north and check out the geysers there. The Asian tourists are back. On the way back we come upon some bison (6 or 7) walking in the opposite lane, blocking traffic for over a mile. A cop car ended up having to herd them along.

Before we get back we stop at the little general store by the lake. Just like the one at Old Faithful, but smaller. Andrea finds a raccoon fur Daniel Boone hat (complete with tail). Later that day we decide to grab some food at the hotel restaurant. We find out you need to make reservations to eat there so that's a no-go. That's when Andrea realizes she's not wearing her ring she got in the Dominican Republic. Not good. Not good at all...

...seriously.

Day Four: (We found it!?!)

The next morning we go to grab some food at the lake store. Andrea buys the raccoon hat. And then we go off in search of her ring. The only place where she thinks she could have lost it is the store near Old Faithful. So we head off in that direction. Unfortunately the shortest route to Old Faithful is closed.

Awesome.

So we head off in the other direction to Old Faithful. We get there and she looks by where we were parked yesterday.

There it is. Squished, but intact. It's basically a miracle.

The day gets decidedly better at this point. Eating breakfast pizza certainly helps. We check out Upper Geyser Basin next. There are some really colorful, deep hot springs here. We head back to the hotel after this.

At this point snow is sort of falling. It's really weird seeing snow fall in May. We make a reservation at the hotel for dinner. The food is delicious and the view out of the restaurant is quite pretty since it's still snowing. It's sort of awkward in there though. The waitress is a little stiff and she has a shadow for the evening. It's strange.

Andrea with her raccoon hat (and Bugle finger).

Day Five: (That took longer than I expected.)

We check out early and head south through Grand Teton towards Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park. Grand Teton is stunning in spots and we drive through an elk refuge. Oddly enough this is the only place we don't see any elk. The drive ends up taking quite long and the route I planned takes us down this random, dilapidated gravel road, but we found the main road eventually. Northern Colorado kind of sucks. Very farmy, but it gets very pretty the closer you get to Steamboat Springs. There are a few more avalanche zones as we get higher up in the mountains.

By this time Andrea's played Death Cab for Cutie so many times that it's grown on me and I am actually beginning to like them.

The last leg of the drive to Estes Park is a windy road filled with houses lining mountain-sides. We even spot a monastery-like building right on the edge of a precipice in one of the valleys. I wish we had gotten a picture of it. A bit later we finally reach where we're staying in Estes Park.  The room is awesome and just a few miles from one of the entrances to RMNP.

The view outside our room.

Day Six: (Steak Night)

This is the first day we'll get to go hiking. I'm in a funk though. Facebook is evil and reminds me of shit I'd rather not be reminded of. We hike from the Wild Basin Trailhead; farther south than I've hiked before. It has access to some lower elevation hikes that we could do given how snowy it still is higher up. We end up hiking probably over 3 miles. We'd have gone further into the trail, but the snow on it was pretty deep. It wasn't difficult, but it was a lot of fun and it is really beautiful out there. I walk my ear and shoulder right into a tree limb at one point.  Holy shit did it hurt.

I thought it was a flimsy branch.

Andrea climbs a mountain on the way back. Wish I had a picture of that.

(At this point in the trip I've heard enough Death Cab that it's stuck in my head. Andrea loves this.)

After we get back, we head to downtown Estes Park, walk around, and check out some of the stores. I love it down there. It always seems like there is a cool breeze. It's just a good way to pass the time.

There is a really delicious pie shop in Estes Park and my dad wanted me to order him a pie. Well, the pie shop is no longer there. My dad was less than pleased when I told him this early that day. As we are walking downtown though we pass a little indoor shopping center and holy crap, there's the pie shop.  It just moved. So I was able to order my dad's pie.

The place we're staying has a grill so we decided early in the trip that we're going to make steaks one night. So we go buy some steaks, potatoes, zucchini, and some other stuff. Oh, and scones. Scones are delicious and Andrea had never had one, so I had to buy them.

She ends up doing all the cooking. This does not bother me; especially since she did a great job.

Day Seven: (You don't look helpful.)

I make bacon and eggs for breakfast before we head off up the main road in RMNP. First we drive to a place called Bear Lake. At one point in the drive it went from drizzle to full-on snow. We could actually see it change. So cool. After Bear Lake we drive back and head up higher. The entire road through the park wasn't open yet because of larger than usual snow totals, so we can only get as far as a spot on the road called Rainbow Curve. It is quite windy up here and there is some light snow. No real picture opportunities so we drive back down.

There were dark clouds hanging up in the mountains so we decide not to go on the hike we planned on doing. We hang out watching Party Down for a long time before going to back downtown, doing some shopping for her, and eating at this awesome restaurant called Grubsteak.

I love Grubsteak. They have a bunch of different types of meats you can make a burger out of: elk, cow, buffalo, boar, yak. Yes, I wrote 'yak'.

What do you think I got? Of course I got the yak burger.  It was delicious.

Andrea got the Gobbler; some type of chicken sandwich my brother got last year. And we both got frozen margaritas (or margs). Raspberry for her, Mango for me. Grubsteak even plays a bunch of awesome music so she loves it even more.

After Grubsteak we go pick up my dad's pie from the pie shop before driving to Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory to buy some chocolate for Andrea's dad. We go in search of bighorn sheep one final time, but all we see is more elk. They were moving in a herd, which is cool, but they're no bighorn sheep.

We finish the rest of Party Down and watch some Arrested Development before watching Jurassic Park again; the movie of the trip.

Day Eight: (Well... we're back... in the car again.)

We leave Estes Park around 6am (MDT) to make the trip back to Indiana in one day. We decide to avoid the hell-hole that is Kansas and drive through Nebraska instead. Then Iowa for a bit, Missouri, Illinois, and finally Indiana. At one point Andrea is watching Dane Cook on her iPod and is quoting it word for word.

It is hysterical.

It is around St. Louis that I realize we are making great time and that I am an amazing road trip driver. We get back to her parent's house sometime around 2am... I think.

I can't remember exactly. I had been driving for well over half a day at this point. I get back to Btown at exactly 3am. That's 19 straight hours of driving when you factor in the time change. I know. I'm awesome, aren't I?

It was a great trip; probably the most fun I've had in a long, long time. I wish I were still there.

"Good Life" - OneRepublic