Thursday, February 28, 2008

Hoh Rain Forest



October 6 - Hoh Rain Forest

I'm sitting here in the Hoh Rainforest thinking about what I am going to do after I leave Oregon and eventually head back to Mpls. I just don't know what I really want. All I know is that I love to be in the outdoors & love working outdoors. I also love people. Some how I need to work all of those things together. I really think I should call Brandon when I get home to see if he could line me up with anything. That would be fun to try.

Otherwise, I need to go to Mpls & do anything until something positive comes around. These are the ideas I have.
- Take 6 credits to defer my loan & work full time (possibly two jobs) to pay for school, rent and bills.
- I need to talk to Bloomenfield & Jose for recommendations.
- Pursue photography a little more & see if maybe I have and eye for that area. I would like to take a directed study from L. Rossi & learn about fiber based paper and work on my Alaska pictures. I hope ANYTHING turns out.
- I could continue to work on my industrial project.
- Write a book. I have a name for my book on bicycle touring in Alaska, "Cat's eat grass in Juneau too - A guide to bicycle touring in Alaska".

As I sit here in the Hoh Rainforest (imagine, it is raining), I constantly think about going back to school & doing directed studies, doing research, and making ties with faculty. I know that if I put my mind to it, I can support myself in Mpls. The question is, "How can I satisfy my curiosity for the outdoors?"

Possibly, I could volunteer for the park service or some how pursue a job with them. I really need to start volunteering & buying less so that I'm happier. I need the volunteer work to aid me in other areas (Peace Corps or Med School). All these may be things I'd like to do.

However, first I need to pay off my CC bills. Right now they have me sunk. Also when I get back to Mpls, I want to be without a car. I want to be able to commute to work on my bike. I don't need insurance & I don't need the expense of owning a car until I can afford it. Someday I want to have a car, but I sure don't need one right now. I can rent a room & have only a few possessions until I can afford something else.

I NEED TO BE SELF SUFFICIENT!!!

I'm pretty blown away by some of the things I wrote in this journal entry. It is hard not to compare what I wrote as a young man and compare it to my current values and to where & who I am today. I'll leave it at that.

5 comments:

Jason said...

Wow, great post. From what I know, it seems to me like you did a pretty good job of bring much of all that together. Must be amazing to look back and see some of those dreams and goals written down.

I have somehow stumbled through much of life without much focus on my dreams. I do too much settling for "good enough". I'm getting better at it though, and reading some of the stuff here has helped. Thanks!

j

MG said...

Amen Brother. So profound. You were tapped into a spirituality that is too commonly muted by the trappings of day to day ego, materialism and the pace of life.

Bravo.

Thank you my friend, for this, and so much more. You play so many roles in my life, it's hard to know whether to laugh or cry sometimes. I think that's beautiful.

MG said...

Happy Leap Year!!!
MG

Guitar Ted said...

Wow! It is very interesting to read this and see where you are at today. Thanks for your transparency.

There are a lot of surprises in this blog. It is much more than a bicycle tour, that's for sure. Somehow I think none of your regular readers will come out of this unchanged.

MG said...

We catch glimpses of ourselves through the observation of our peers, no doubt, and that perspective all feeds into the stew that makes us what we are.