The Adventures of Deano!

New York

2011-03-11T15:05:00.001-08:00

I've once again neglected to document a trip. I'm going to rectify this now. I have to promise myself in the future to post immediately to avoid forgetting details.

In January of 2011 I flew to Long Island (Nassau County) to spend a week with my girlfriend Betsy. Having not flown since about 2001 I was a little confused as to how airports work these days. Security isn't as bad as they make it out to be and it's actually less of a pain to check in now than it used to be since the internet has steamlined the process. The flight up from ATL took about 2 hours. As were were flying in over the water to LaGuardia airport I was met with an awesome view of the Statue of Liberty and Manhattan. It was very strange, I haven't been to New York in well over a decade yet the landmarks are so familiar to me. They were easy to pick due to NYC being one of America's most prominent cities; it is the backdrop for the majority of our movies and television shows and is so full of history that every American should be at least a little familiar with it.

The thing I first noticed was the diversity. So many languages could be heard at once it was astounding. Many people complain about that sort of thing but to me it is interesting. Betsy's friend Maria picked us up from the airport and I got a taste of New York traffic; it's insane. We settled in for the night at her house and rested up.

Long Island is a friendly place for the most part. Most of it is suburban and very densely populated. It's impossible to tell where one city or town ends and the next begins. In fact they have a strange government structure there that has divisions such as city, town, village and hamlet. I don't even want to attempt to figure out how that works with NYC, being divided into five burroughs, each of which is it's own county but are all one city. I don't think I could ever remember all the details.

The first day we went to the city we hopped the train and switched to the subway at Penn Station. We took the Staten Island Ferry, which is free to ride, across the water. From the ferry you can get a great view of the Statue of Liberty as well as the Financial District of Manhattan and the Brooklyn Bridge.

After we returned to the port we walked north to see Federal Hall and the NYSE. By this point the sun had set and people were heading home. NYC's streets are full of lights and activity. There are delicious smells much of the time; every so often there is a foul one.

We walked to the WTC site but really couldn't see much due to the construction. There is a temporary museum set up until the permanent 9/11 memorial is finished. I'll get some pictures in the daytime on the next visit. We also went to China Town to eat at Wo Hop and had desert in Little Italy.

We took the subway to Rockafeller Center and got to see the Christmas tree before it came down. The skating rink is really pretty and the seasonal decorations add a neat touch of beauty to the area. There is a Lego store there with lots of large sculptures. Around the corner is St Patrick's Cathedral; across from that you can see the statue of Atlas, holding up the world.

We walked through Times Square on the way back to Penn Station. Times Square is full of lights and stores, a monument to consumerism, but it's all very pretty. Mounted police were present. There is no shortage of stuff to see and do in this part if you like to shop. After arriving at Penn Station we headed back to Long Island.

On our second day in the city we checked out the Museum of Natural History. The museum has exhibits showing fossils and recreations of extinct animals as well as animals alive today. The exhibits often displayed an explanation of evolutionary lineage. Other floors have exhibits on astronomy, ancient cultures with artifacts and geological studies. It takes a whole day to fully explore this place and I'm not sure I really saw everything.

We walked through Central Park from the museum and headed to the southeast corner. Central Park is a welcome contrast to the city. It's well maintained and full of very old trees. There's several ponds and pagodas to sit in. We saw the park amphitheater. The lakes were frozen over so thick you could walk out onto them.

Overall NYC is a really neat place that could take a lifetime to explore. I'm definitely psyched to go back and see more of the city and take in it's culture.

Long Way Round

2010-12-11T15:57:00.000-08:00

It's been quite a while since I posted. I'll kick off the comeback with a partial review. Long Way Round is a documentary of a motorcycle adventure undertaken by actors Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman. McGregor you know well from high profile Hollywood movies. Boorman is less known outside of the UK. Both actors decided they wanted to take their passion for motorcycles and adventure to the next level and travel from the UK to NYC via bike. They will of course be taking the long way around the globe.

The route they plotted takes them from London through Europe and into Ukraine. The route from there will go from Russia to Kazakhstan, China, then Siberian Russia. When they hit the sea they will take a ship to Alaska, push through Canada into the continental US then head through the northern states to NYC.

The first two episodes detail the preparation for the journey. Ewan and Charley set up a headquarters, contact film crew and gather equipment for both filming and riding. They test drive dual sport motorcycles from BMW and KTM. Ewan favored the BMW but decided to ride the KTM due to Charley's excitement over them. While waiting for the bikes KTM sent a representative out to talk about the trip. Upon his return KTM informed Ewan and Charley that they would not be providing bikes as they didn't believe they could finish their trip. Angry and disappointed Charley resolves to use the BMW and prove KTM wrong.

They start out their journey after hitting several snags and make various stops through Europe. They talk to people, get harassed by police and check out local sites. Most of what they see and do is pretty entertaining. It's not just hours and hours of two guys riding motorcycles. They take in culture along the way and meet some interesting people. One man in particular that stands out is a Ukrainian man who invites them to his home to stay the night. The guy is a nut; he comes downstairs carrying a guitar in one hand and a Kalashnikov in the other. He then starts to sing like an old school mariachi. It's completely insane; you can really sense how awkward Ewan and Charley feel.

The best part is episode 4 where they press on into Kazakhstan. You may recall the portrayal of this country from another Britain, Sacha Baron Cohen, also known as Borat. It wasn't exactly favorable. In his defense he was making fun of first worlder's ignorance of trans Asian countries but it still left many people with a backwards view of Kazakh. In reality it is a developing nation with a rich landscape. Ewan and Charley make an excellent assessment of it's culture and land to really open the eye's of the viewers as to what this country really is.

I have three episodes left. So far I've enjoyed the series and look forward to it's sequel Long Way Down which features a trip from Scotland to South Africa. I'll have the second part of the review up as soon as Netflix sends the disc.

Enlighten Up

2010-11-02T17:30:00.000-07:00

Enlighten Up, a documentary from Kate Churchill, came up on my list of recommendations on Netflix. The synopsis-

"Filmmaker Kate Churchill is determined to prove that yoga can transform anyone. Nick Rosen is skeptical but agrees to be her guinea pig. Kate immerses Nick in yoga, and follows him around the world as he examines the good, the bad and the ugly of yoga. The two encounter celebrity yogis, true believers, kooks and world-renowned gurus. Tensions run high as Nick’s transformational progress lags and Kate’s plan crumbles. What unfolds and what they discover is not what they expected."

What the discover really wasn't much. We didn't get any answers one way or the other; however there were some interesting insights revealed by some of the people involved. Nick is our protagonist, the man we can relate to. He's a skeptic who is willing to give Yoga a try. After stumbling from one western yoga school to the next we end up with the same impression, Yoga is a franchise that makes money and no one can tell you what the hell it is for.

Nick and Kate do some traveling and it's not until we get to India that we start getting some answers. Nick gets a chance to speak to a Yogi who sets it out for him: Yoga isn't about any one thing. It's a way to attain some sort of spiritual enlightenment, but enlightenment of what? Hinduism? A Maya type entity? Nothing? The Yogi says yes to all these things. He says it's not so much the vehicle (yoga) to the goal but rather the why. He uses the example of cooking. If you cook for yourself, cook for a friend, cook for a lover or cook for someone you hate you are still cooking. It's the reason why you are cooking that matters; to eat, to be nice to a friend, to make your lover happy or to earn a living. This is true with Yoga as well. Use it for what you want; to gain health, enlightenment, control of your body, happiness in life. If Yoga doesn't work for you then don't do it. This holy man blew my mind, he didn't give a shit if you believed in his method or in Krishna. He simply wanted to teach what he could if you wanted to know. I wish more religious people were like this.

Anyways, back to what Yoga is for. What you commonly see in the west is Asana Yoga which is the pretzel like crazy poses. These poses are good for building strength and health. It seems to work for many people and I'm even thinking about using it myself to help strengthen my back and limber up some. Actually what I'm looking at is Pilates. This regimen uses poses and stretches taken from physical rehab and yoga that are proven effective scientifically. It was developed originally for soldiers in WWI healing from injury.

One neat quote from the movie though. "The sum of a man's habits is the total of his nature." How true is that? I had to look up the rest of the passage from the source online.
"It has come about as a result of his GIVING himself over to the bent
of his MIND.
Unwillingly he has BECOME the creature of his own MIND, wonted to
RESTLESSNESS."

Wow. Gonna have to reflect on that a bit.

Return to Blogging.

2010-11-02T16:50:00.000-07:00

It's been quite a while since I last blogged. A few things that have happened in the past few months:

Got in better shape.
Hurt my back.
Fell back out of shape FAST.
Also met a girl named Betsy. She's a softball coach and lives in New York. We hit it off really well and have been talking long distance for a few months. We have lots of common personality traits. I really like her and that's not something that happens much.
Lastly I've been hammering out Paramedic school. It's going fine so far. The material isn't hard to digest and it makes sense to me.

Recently I pulled some clinical rotations in the operating room. The purpose of these is to practice and perfect the skill of intubation. After performing the technique a few times the anesthesiologist started to quiz me on some of the procedures involved. After answering his questions he asked me why I wasn't planning to go to school for something more than paramedic. After much lecturing he convinced me. I'm looking into a BS in nursing and possible CRNA school beyond that. It certainly offers more of a challenge and better pay in the future.

Well that's that for now.

Ant Hill

2010-05-02T15:47:00.000-07:00

The first book I read on my Kindle was Ant Hill by E O Wilson. Wilson is a rather well known biologist and naturalist who was born in Birmingham and grew up in Washington DC, spending some time in Mobile, AL. He was a controversial scientist in the 70's but has since been shown to be quite on the mark in his findings in sociobiology. He has a vast amount of work published along with his own books written to help illustrate his ideas and research. Ant Hill was the first work of fiction he penned as well as the first book of his that I have read.

Ant Hill is about a young boy named Raphael (known as Raph) who spends his childhood exploring a natural wood and wetland area know as the Nokobee forest. This fictional forest is placed in the area somewhat near the Conecuh forest and the Mobile Delta. Raph grows up with a father whom can be described as a working class man who has his faults but does what he needs to raise his son. His mother was born into a family of privilege but married a man who was not- it is noted that she regrets the decision and only stays with him for Raph's sake. Raph develops the curiosity of a scientist and naturalist with the help of a FSU professor and mentor all by exploring the Nokobee forest and learning about everything within it. When Raph is older he is given the opportunity to go to FSU by his uncle on his mother's side; an attempt to bring him into the privileged life and restore his mother's status in southern society of Mobile. Raph really has no interest in his uncle's plans but accepts. Raph wants to study science and biology. The compromise is that he will later attend law school. Raph agrees and the story tells of his motivations to succeed later. Nokobee is threatened by development and Raph wants to use the law to stop it. Much is written about his culture shock at Cambridge and the experiences of a young man coming into his own.

Where the book diverges is in the narrative of the Nokobee ants. Raph's senior thesis is written about the ants that inhabit the forest and takes up about the middle third of the book. It is actually an anthropomorphic account of the social structure of ant colonies and their struggle against each colony to survive. It's a great method of illustrating the ideas behind sociobiology and the motivations behind the organisms described.

Much of the book is an examination into the different types of people you encounter that are either proponents or opposed to naturalism. Raph is mixed up into a world of people who are naturalists because it's a rebellious trend, naturalists who share his passion, developers who think commerce is more important than conservation and even religious fanatics who believe that land is meant to be used up by man in a manifest destiny sort of fashion. They in fact believe that to protect it is to prolong the time before the second coming. If it sounds absurd that's because it is but unfortunately I've met fanatics in real life that believe that very same thing. It's more than apparent that E O Wilson is writing about his own struggle to find acceptance for his ideas in Alabama and I sympathize. He's a man who seems to appreciate the Alabama that was and resent it at the same time. He sees the old southern culture as both interesting and absurd. I think his view is more of an appreciation of cultural heritage but a recognition that no one outside of your social circle really cares. He sums up very accurately the difference between the good people he affectionately calls rednecks and the minority of alienated whites better know as "white trash." If you live in Alabama you immediately think of people you have encountered that certainly fit the description.

Ant Hill is a good read for those that are interested in conservation and naturalism in the South. A good story with some science thrown in and even a little action towards the end leads to a very enjoyable novel. Give Ant Hill a try and let me know what you think.

My Mind Rebels at Stagnation

2010-05-02T15:19:00.000-07:00

It's been a slow year for me so far. I haven't done much of anything exciting. No adventures. No diving. Only one camping trip. Haven't even been riding the bicycle.

A big letdown is getting out of shape and the monumental task ahead of me to get out the door is intimidating. It's not that I don't want to; it's that it hurts. For some strange reason my back spasms have hit me full force. For over a month now I have struggled just to do mundane tasks. I eat Bayer like candy to get through work. I finally broke down and scheduled an appointment with a chiropractor tomorrow. I'm hoping that with his help I can start strengthening my core muscles and start stretching out into new activities from there.

One nice thing I've been doing in my idle time is reading. I purchased an Amazon Kindle and absolutely love it. It's going to make an excellent companion on any future trips as it is light weight and stores so many books. It also runs for almost a week on one charge. I'll be touching on a couple of books that I've read in later posts.

At the end of the month I'll be starting Paramedic school at Wallace in Dothan. Fortunately I will be going on A shift, my normal work schedule. I won't miss any time on my off days and I'll be getting paid to go. I can't get a better deal. Studying will be consuming alot of my time so the next year will be a little slim on trips. Paramedic isn't something I intend to half ass like many others have done; lives are in your hands and it's irresponsible to not know your job inside and out.

February Sipsey Trip

2010-03-09T19:18:00.000-08:00

My friend Jennifer and I made a trip up to Sipsey Feb 3 for a couple of frigid nights. Icicles hung from the canyon walls and made for quite a sight. We camped atop Fall Creek Falls and hiked to the Big Tree. The Big Tree is the oldest tree in Alabama and is quite impressive. It's in the bottom of the E Bee Branch Falls canyon. We only ran into one couple the whole trip, otherwise we never saw a soul. It was a great trip! I'm happy that the weather is warming up, everything is starting to bloom and the green is returning to the trees. I'm looking forward to a Spring full of Geocaching, hiking and cycling! I'm hoping to get a dive trip in and plenty of fishing as well.

Sipsey Wilderness Trip- Bee Branch Falls

2009-11-16T10:36:00.000-08:00

Your favorite adventurer in front of Fall Creek Falls

Decided to take another trip up to Sipsey Wilderness last weekend. Most of the leaves were down off the trees this late in fall. It made it a little easier to see some of the rock formations and waterfalls. Jason accompanied me on this trip.

Bee Branch Falls

We hiked from the Borden Creek Trailhead down 200, through fat man squeeze cave down to the stream crossing (very chilly) across to 209 along the Sipsey River Fork. We saw Fall Creek Falls and some other canyon falls before we reached our camp for the night. We set up a fire and ate our supper before turning in. We brought a tent just in case, but the weather was nice enough that we didn't have to bother with it. After a chilly first night we woke up with the sun and fixed breakfast. After squaring away our gear we hiked up to 204. 204 is a really exciting climb up some sandstone cliff rocks to a path that follows the ridge line of the canyon. It leads to Bee Branch Falls. These waterfalls flow into a deep canyon and are a real sight to see. We set up here for lunch and took off back down the second 204 trail to 209. We hoofed it on down to the Thompson Creek trail where we saw Ship Rock, a massive rock that looks like the bow of a ship. We made our camp for the second night again under the stars and woke up bright and early for our little exodus trip.
Jason crosses a creek

We were both extremely bushed and sore from all the climbing and rough trail and decided to take Thompson Creek up to the horse and wagon trails. 208 and 224 are not really that much easier and are up hill for a good portion of the hike. Tired and sore we trekked ever onward coming across the occasional scout troop. As we ran out of water (no more water sources on this trail) we griped and moaned about how far we have been going until we saw the most wonderful sight in the world- the Borden Creek Bridge. We were there! All our suffering was over.
Canyon and waterfall along Thompson Creek

It's strange though. The last trek of any hike is always the hardest. The last stretch makes you very weary and all you can think of is air conditioning and Dr. Pepper and comfy seats and oh my God I want this heavy pack off my shoulders. Thing is, once you get in the truck and start taking off all you can think about is when your next trip is going to be. A little pain can make us tougher, makes us appreciate the rewards for hard work. Until next time, enjoy a few of these pics from our trip.

Sipsey Wilderness Nov 13-15

Life Explained

2009-11-04T07:36:00.000-08:00

Thought I'd reprint this story that's been floating around the internet for everybody.

A boat docked in a tiny Mexican village. An American tourist complimented the Mexican fisherman on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took him to catch them.

"Not very long," answered the Mexican.

"But then, why didn't you stay out longer and catch more?" asked the American.

The Mexican explained that his small catch was sufficient to meet his needs and those of his family.

The American asked, "But what do you do with the rest of your time?"

"I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, and take a siesta with my wife. In the evenings, I go into the village to see my friends, have a few drinks, play the guitar, and sing a few songs. I have a full life."

The American interrupted, "I have an MBA from Harvard and I can help you! You should start by fishing longer every day. You can then sell the extra fish you catch. With the extra revenue, you can buy a bigger boat."

"And after that?" asked the Mexican.

"With the extra money the larger boat will bring, you can buy a second one and a third one and so on until you have an entire fleet of trawlers. Instead of selling your fish to a middle man, you can then negotiate directly with the processing plants and maybe even open your own plant. You can then leave this little village and move to Mexico City, Los Angeles, or even New York City! From there you can direct your huge new enterprise."

"How long would that take?" asked the Mexican.

"Twenty, perhaps twenty-five years," replied the American.

"And after that?"

"Afterwards? Well my friend, that's when it gets really interesting," answered the American, laughing. "When your business gets really big, you can start buying and selling stocks and make millions!"

"Millions? Really? And after that?" asked the Mexican.

"After that you'll be able to retire, live in a tiny village near the coast, sleep late, play with your children, catch a few fish, take a siesta with your wife and spend your evenings drinking and enjoying your friends."

And the moral of this story is: ......... Know where you're going in life... you may already be there.

Easy Gardening.

2009-11-02T08:07:00.000-08:00

Found a neat article today. Pretty ingenious idea, a lady recycled some old rain gutters to help keep her garden out of reach of pests and keep the soil nice. I would venture to say it's easier on the knees as well! I've been wanting to start a vegetable garden but space has been a factor- I think I've found my solution! Check out the jump for more info!

New Packs!

2009-10-30T16:10:00.000-07:00

I've purchased some new gear, hopefully I'll have a field test done soon. I picked up a Kelty Tioga 5000 external frame pack and a North Face Crestone 75 internal frame. The NF pack is incredibly comfortable. I've never worn anything like it. The Kelty is a real work horse pack; I've got this one for myself to carry. It will allow me to pack a little more gear to compensate for another hiker who is not as adept at packing yet.

I have a couple of Black Diamond Trekking Poles and a new North Face Goliath 0 degree sleeping bag as well. Couple all this with my existing kit and I can now outfit two to three more hikers. The gear is usually what deters people from enjoying the hobby so I decided to just start building additional kits. I'm hoping to have a fully outfitted kit for three additional people by next Spring. Basically all you need to bring on my trips now is a solid pair of boots and a few clothes. Let me know if you're up for a trek!

Nostalgia- Why can't I remember all the places I've been?

2009-10-14T13:32:00.001-07:00

Having grown up in Boy Scouts starting as a wee little Tiger Cub I had lots of great opportunities to check out the greater outdoors of NC, SC and VA. I have many fond memories of canoeing with my dad and other scouts, hiking a section of the AT, visiting the Smokies, bike riding along the New River, visiting Civil War battlefields and so on. I remember Camp Grimes and other summer camps, the feeling of getting away from home and parents for a week and having fun outside. The strange thing is, I have a ton of memories of outdoor trips that I can't for the life of me geocode. I remember beaches, mountain peaks, rivers and all kinds of stuff that I really can't recall where the heck we were. It's a bit aggravating. I really wish we had digital cameras back then, and blogs; maybe I would have kept a better track!

That's the whole point of keeping a journal. I chose the blog format so I could always have access to these great memories and also so I could share them with my friends and family easily. I encourage everyone to do this, I've kept a blog for years now and it has definitely paid off.

I'm going to keep scratching my head and checking Google to see if I can remember any of those destinations. In the mean time, stay frosty!

Bruton Talon Stove Review

2009-10-13T16:01:00.000-07:00

I recently upgraded to a much more portable stove system, and wanted to keep the cost down. I came down to two choices, the Pocket Rocket and the Bruton Talon. I found both at Academy Sports and was able to compare them side by side. With the Talon having almost the exact same design and features as the Pocket Rocket, I settled on it as it was only 29.95 (even cheaper online). It's an Isobutane stove system that weighs less than 4 ounces.
It packs up very nicely and is very simple to set up. I kept it in an MSR 1.1 liter stainless steel cooking pot. I was able to store a can of fuel, the burner, some silverware, a lighter, salt and pepper shakers and some condiments within this pot. I still had room for more.

I put it to the test, kept it lit at 3/4 power with the can of fuel included with the stove and it kept a flame for 82 minutes. Not bad! At full strength it took 4 minutes 20 seconds to bring 1 liter of water to a rolling boil using the MSR pot. The stove cooled down pretty fast as well.
After a weekend of use I can say I like the Talon. I used it mainly for boiling water for use in Backpacker Pantry instant meals and it performed exactly as it should. I'm hoping to get a lot of use out of this little gem. You can't beat it for under $30.

Chinnabee Silent Trail and Cheaha State Park

2009-10-12T16:17:00.000-07:00

This weekend I took a quick trip up to Talladega National Forest to check out the Chinnabee Silent Trail and make a quick Trip to Cheaha Mountain State Park. Cheaha Mountain is the southernmost tip of the Blue Ridge, and at 2,413 ft it is Alabama's highest point. Remember the CCC I blogged about earlier? They did some work here too, building an observation structure known as the Bunker Tower. I checked out the trail down to Pulpit Rock, a short little jaunt with some nice scenery. While there's plenty to see in the park, the focus of my trip was the Chinnabee Silent Trail just south of Cheaha.

The Silent Trail was built in 1977 by Boy Scout Troop 29. The troop nicknamed itself The Silent Troop, due to it being comprised of deaf scouts. In a co-op effort with the Forestry Service they built the trail and maintained it though the years. It's a nice little five mile trail leading to some great waterfalls.

The weather wasn't fantastic. I'm hoping this super wet season is almost over, and cooler dry air is on the way. The leaves are just beginning to change, and in a few weeks Talladega National Forest should be looking really colorful.

One thing about this trail, there's a lot of garbage strewn about. I packed six beer cans back out that I found. I didn't have any more room for the others. I think that's what I liked about Sipsey, it's more or less inaccessible to inexperienced hikers. The ones that do hike it have a little more respect for the trail.

Cheaha Mountain and Chinnabee Silent Trail

Sipsey Wilderness, Bankhead National Forest

2009-10-04T13:43:00.000-07:00

Well kiddos, I finally took the trip up to Sipsey Wilderness like I've been dreaming about for a while. I was not disappointed. I'll let Wikipedia give you the skinny on these forests-

"The William B. Bankhead National Forest is Alabama's largest National Forest, with 181,230 acres (733 km²),^[1] and is home of Alabama's only National Wild and Scenic River, the Sipsey Fork. It is located in northwestern Alabama, around the town of Double Springs; it is named in honor of William B. Bankhead, a longtime U.S. Representative from Alabama.^[2]

Known as the "land of a thousand waterfalls," this vast monument to nature and man is popular for hiking, horseback riding, hunting, boating, fishing, swimming, canoeing and more. Within the forest lies the Sipsey Wilderness with a host of wildlife and an abundance of swift streams, limestone bluffs, and waterfalls. Native American relics abound in Bankhead, one of the Southern United States's premier sites for petroglyphs, prehistoric drawings, and rock carvings, at sites such as the Kinlock Shelter."

A wilderness preserve is a federally designated area that is in pristine condition, untouched by human engineering. There are no bridges, no roads, nothing but paths beaten by hiking boots. No electricity, no cell phone service, no plumbing, it is primitive. While much of the land in Sipsey was logged at one time, the Old Growth Forests still exist, and new growth has overtaken the logged areas completely. It's a dream land for those wanting to get away for a little while.

The route I planned to hike is the 209 Sipsey River trail. It starts at the Sipsey recreational area and skips across Borden Creek and up the river towards some old growth forests, including Alabama's oldest tree (which I did not find-yet). I hit the trail around 2 p.m. There was a woman hitting the trail at the same time, an officer from the Army who is going to bomb disposal school. We hiked for a little ways together exploring some of the waterfalls. The neat thing about meeting strangers on trails is you can almost always strike up a conversation with them. They are generally good, interesting people. I parted ways with Jordan after we forded Borden Creek and I made my camp. At only about 4 miles of hiking I had seen several waterfalls.

The water of the Sipsey River and surrounding creeks is almost crystal clear. It has a slight green tinge to it, giving it a jade appearance. It's gorgeous.

I managed to set up camp that night and get a fire going. By this point I was all alone, no one around for miles. The moon was full that night, and cast enough light to walk by if you wanted. The forest comes alive at night, and can be a little terrifying when you're alone.

The next morning as I was clearing my camp and cleaning up my mess a hiker walked up behind me and yelled good morning. I was a bit startled as I had thought I was alone still. His name is David, an avid hiker of the Sipsey area. He was going bushwhacking to look for some offtrail waterfalls. We talked and hiked together for a bit and I found him to be a real pleasant person to be around. We parted ways as he went looking for his waterfalls and I continued up 209 to find Bee Branch.

I ended up not getting to Bee Branch Falls after twisting my ankle. I wrapped it up tight and started the hike back out deciding I better not stay in the bush with a busted ankle overnight. I ran into David again and stopped to talk for a bit. Unfortunately he didn't locate his falls. He said he would try again in the winter when the leaves are down. I may try to help him.

I made my way out pretty exhausted. I hated to leave but was in no shape to stay. I figured out I have to change my backpacking strategy from the old days. It's a whole new game in Sipsey. It's more efficient to bring a water filter rather than packing water in, and I need to go with some backpacker meals rather than canned food. I'm putting together a new ultralight pack, and getting some trekking poles to help with load distribution and balance. I can't wait to get back out there.

Saint Andrews State Park- Panama City, Florida

2009-07-30T07:17:00.001-07:00

There's not much to write about in this park, it's better seen with pictures. I took these along one of the trails that circles an alligator pond. St Andrews has plenty of wet land areas for sighting birds and other life.Of course a sign like this is like telling me to go ahead and try.

When I finally spotted one he was too far in the water for me to go and play with.

Slick little joker.

If you look carefully you can see the smallest duck I've ever seen.

Only when you forget your camera- that's when something awesome happens.

2009-07-28T13:09:00.001-07:00

I took a hike today in the woods down in Zion Chapel. The weather was overcast with spotty showers. I like walking through the forest in these conditions because the ground is soft and wet making your footsteps almost silent.

Along the trail I stopped to make sure my GPS was still locked on it's satellites when I heard a rustling about 10 yards behind me. I caught a glimpse of a small deer bounding away into the woods. Still watching the deer something else popped out on the path. It was a small gray coyote. He stopped with one paw raised and looked at me for a split second. He then turned back to his target and shot into the woods like a rocket.

It's these times that I want to kick myself when I forget my camera. I may not have been able to catch the shot but I would have tried. It would have been a great one for the album. I'll have to settle for a camera phone pic of the little worm above. I don't know how he got on that leaf but it's his little life raft on the creek. I hope he doesn't eat his own boat.

2009-07-27T16:07:00.000-07:00

There's a freediver that frequents Vortex Springs and Saint Andrews State Park who happened to catch some footage of our class at the springs. You can see me sportin' the uber secksay short sleeve wet suit. We were on one of the teaching platforms about 20 feet deep. We sat on that platform and practiced skills such as buddy breathing and mask clearing. You can also see us feeding canned sausages to the Bluegill.

Vortex Springs is a lot of fun and I would like to go back and explore sometime soon when there aren't so many schools out there. The water is gorgeous before it gets all kicked up.

Certified PADI Basic Open Water!

2009-07-20T20:21:00.000-07:00

I'm now an official diver! I had a great weekend diving with some folks at the Dive Locker in Panama City. It was all very exhausting, but really fun. We dove at Vortex Springs and at St Andrews state park at the jetties. There was an amazing amount of wildlife to see at the jetties, and Vortex had some really nice clear blue water-that is until all the dive classes started showing up and kicking up silt.

I'm going to get some photos up for you all very soon. I'm definitely going to further my education in diving, it's just to exhilarating to let this adventure slip away after only one weekend. This could definitely turn into a monthly trip!

TaTonKa! Bicycling is the best way to find new things in your own backyard.

2009-07-10T16:49:00.001-07:00

I've been slacking for about two weeks on the velo training so I decided to punish myself today with a 11.5 miles of hills back on Kelley Rd. I saw some neat stuff on that road while on my bike that I never saw before when running up and down that road on the ambulance.

A bicycle moves you along at around 10-15 miles per hour. You can cover more ground by bike than you would walking or running, but you're moving just fast enough to still be able to take in your surroundings. Fortunately I had my camera with me.

I felt like Kevin Costner when I spotted these. Remember that scene in Dances With Wolves? They were grazing out in this field with some horses. Who would have know their were buffalo within a few miles of my home?

I'll bet they're tasty.

I reckon this little pooch must have known what I was thinking because
he came tearing out of the herd out of nowhere. Dogs really hate
bicyclists and accost them at every opportunity. This little mongrel
hurried me along.

A little further down the road I came across an old abandoned house. I love these places. They almost seem like they were always there, as if they grew out of the ground along with the forest around them. I managed to get a couple of pictures right before another couple of pooches decided to come running to greet me. Or rush me out of their pee grounds.

Anyways, I kicked my butt on those hills today. I can't be slacking off if I'm going to make the 100k in Orange Beach in October. SCUBA class is in less than a week. I'll keep you updated on how it goes!

History Lesson- The CCC

2009-06-24T08:29:00.000-07:00

You probably haven't heard of the Civilian Conservation Corps before, but they've done a lot of work for the interior of America. Commissioned by President Roosevelt during the depression round about '33 to '42, it was intended to put some relief on unemployed men during hard times. Limited to young men around 18 years of age to their mid 20's, the CCC was organized military style. Enrolled boys were usually uneducated and even malnourished going in. It was a tremendous offer for these men, even African Americans were welcome; while segregated from the whites and native Americans they were given equal pay and benefits. The CCC was a step in the right direction, a program dedicated to conserving the greater outdoors through construction and teaching job skills at the same time. It was an economic relief program that we could probably learn from during our current situation.

The CCC planted nearly 3 billion trees, pioneered new methods of forest fire prevention and supression, constructed forest roads and cabins for tourists to enjoy the outdoors, and reintroduced wildlife to areas where they had been depleted. These are just a few of their efforts.

Sadly the Corps did not last. It was never a permanent part of the New Deal and came to an abrupt halt in 1942 due to the bombing of Pearl Harbor causing most of the Corpsmen to be drafted. War efforts turned the focus from improving America's economy, interior and standard of living to supporting soldiers, Marines and sailors. While the war did improve America's situation in the end, we did lose something unique in the CCC. There are organizations today attempting to ressurect the success of the Corps; these groups are much smaller and receive less federal support.

Gear Time.

2009-06-23T17:57:00.000-07:00

If there's one thing I hate, it's this topic of conversation that goes, "So what kind of pack are you using? What brand tent you sleeping in?" Ugh. I love to discuss the merits of bringing certain types of equipment, or even good solid name products, but sometimes people get into the topic of fashion or gimmick equipment.

Here's a case for you to examine. Two survivor specialists: Les Stroud- a Canadian who knows his stuff but comes off as boring, and Bear Grylls- a former British SAS commando who has explored Mt Everest and so forth and has a really exciting way of presenting information. Each has a TV show demonstrating techniques for survival in a variety of situations. Bear tends to be very adventurous, he can afford to be, his camera crew is right there with support. Les tends to show us how the everyman would deal with situations. He is by himself, and his show is less exciting but no less adventurous, just slower paced. Les gives us lots of educational advice that you can actually use. Bear does too, but usually his advice is meant to give a shock factor to his show. Where Les would dig a hole into the water table for a drink, Bear would squeeze bear crap for a sip. I bring up these two for a reason- their gear.

Knives are the first outdoor pack item every person should have. Let's see what these guys carry. Les Stroud uses a Buck 119 Special.

It costs $49 retail. It's widely available. Sturdy and practical.

Bear Grylls uses a special made Bayley Knife blade with his signature attached to it.

After converting pounds to dollars you come up with a cool $580. Can you tell the difference?

A knife is important. It can be a useful tool as well as a weapon for defense. It's essential to any outdoorsman. It's important to find a knife that works for you and your situation, not a knife that is pretty and has someone's name stamped on it. This is why I hate it when people start talking about why they think their gear is so great based on who made it-

"I have a North Face tent. What do you have?"

"I have an Marmot. I like it because it gets the job done for short range hikes and is light weight. It's fairly inexpensive so I don't mind putting it to some rugged use. What do you like about yours?"

"It's a North Face."

I'm all for talking about gear with someone who can actually give you the pro's and con's. If you want to talk about fashion find someone else.

It's gear talk right now though, and here's a cool little item I was just looking at. Survival rifles are meant to be compact, lightweight and dependable. It's meant to be there for you when you need it. Usually they come in .22 caliber and are meant for defending yourself and taking small game for food. Henry Repeating Arms makes a convenient little package that covers all these options for a good price.

I'm planning on picking one up, I'll have a review for you soon.

A nifty little survival item you may have seen on TV used by our two favorite survivalists is the Swedish FireSteel. I picked one up at Dicks and I have to say I'm impressed. With a little practice you can learn to start a fire very easily with this spark striker. It has a metal key and a large red thumb handle on a rope, is very lightweight and lights in the wind, rain, snow or whatever. It doubles as a signal device. The bright white shower of sparks can be seen for a good distance. It's definitly worth the price and can make a great back up to a book of matchs or BIC lighter.

Survival kits

2009-06-22T19:31:00.000-07:00

Ever since I earned my wilderness survival merit badge way back in my Boy Scout days I've been obsessed with survival techniques. If you spend time away from civilization it's a good idea to familiarize yourself with some of these concepts. Even if you aren't a hiker you can find yourself in a bad situation if involved in a car accident in the back country, caught in a blizzard, or even stuck at home without provisions during a hurricane or other disaster (case in point- New Orleans during Katrina). Remember two things-

1. The Scout motto- Be Prepared.

2. It's printed on the cover to the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy- DON'T PANIC!

The first thing you have to do is realize that you are lost and accept it. In most situations you will be better served to set up a camp where you are as rescuers will find you faster this way. Don't panic, irrational decisions lead to deadly situations. Perhaps the best thing you can do is be prepared; make sure you have a survival kit.

Survival kits are available for every situation from a variety of dealers but are rarely useful. They are usually assembled from cheap products are often have a novelty feel to them. An example of this is the sardine survival can. Take a look through it's contents and you'll see a kit made from cheap equipment. You'll likely lose that one fishing hook it comes with, and if it does hook one the line it is attached to will probably break. A better option is to build your own kit. For ideas you can check this Field and Stream article. The benefit of putting together your own kit is you can specialize it to your needs for the environment you will be in. You can also put duplicate items in just in case of breaks or loss.

Your small survival kit isn't the only useful item you can have. While it's perfect for your pack you may want to put a kit in your car. This kit will be less limited in weight and volume. You should include a spade, hatchet, absorbent grains (for spills and for traction in case you hit mud or snow), bottled drinking water, extra engine fluids, a portable battery, first aid kit, flashlight, some non perishable foods and water ever else you think may come in useful. People used to stock flares, but many advise using reflective signals instead since they can be used indefinitely.

I feel the same way about first aid kits as I do the survival kit; it's better to make your own. Kits usually have cheap band aids and crappy gauze instead of decent medical supplies. Stock your own from good sterile products and plan ahead for what type of emergencies you may encounter.

An ounce of prevention equals a pound of cure as they say.

How to?

2009-06-13T19:40:00.000-07:00

Here's an interesting site chock full of tips, tricks and lists. It can teach you where to go, how to go and what to take. Use it as a reference guide, don't go running out in the woods without educating yourself from multiple sources and taking some trips with someone who's used to doing a little camping. Start out with places don't require any camp skills, and build your way up. You'll be surprised on the kind of stuff you'll forget to pack your first few times out. It's better to learn in a place that is forgiving.

Enjoy Reading!

Everybody loves a list

2009-06-11T19:29:00.001-07:00

And this is a cool one. Hit the jump to read it, or just check it out here.

The 50 Most Inspiring Travel Quotes Of All Time

1. “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.” - Mark Twain

2. “The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.” - St. Augustine

3. “There are no foreign lands. It is the traveler only who is foreign.” - Robert Louis Stevenson

4. “The use of traveling is to regulate imagination by reality, and instead of thinking how things may be, to see them as they are.” - Samuel Johnson

5. “All the pathos and irony of leaving one’s youth behind is thus implicit in every joyous moment of travel: one knows that the first joy can never be recovered, and the wise traveler learns not to repeat successes but tries new places all the time.” - Paul Fussell

6. “Our battered suitcases were piled on the sidewalk again; we had longer ways to go. But no matter, the road is life.” - Jack Kerouac

7. “He who does not travel does not know the value of men.” - Moorish proverb

8. “People travel to faraway places to watch, in fascination, the kind of people they ignore at home.” - Dagobert D. Runes

9. “A journey is like marriage. The certain way to be wrong is to think you control it.” - John Steinbeck

10. “No one realizes how beautiful it is to travel until he comes home and rests his head on his old, familiar pillow.” - Lin Yutang

11. “Your true traveler finds boredom rather agreeable than painful. It is the symbol of his liberty-his excessive freedom. He accepts his boredom, when it comes, not merely philosophically, but almost with pleasure.” - Aldous Huxley

12. “All travel has its advantages. If the passenger visits better countries, he may learn to improve his own. And if fortune carries him to worse, he may learn to enjoy it.” - Samuel Johnson

13. “For my part, I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. I travel for travel’s sake. The great affair is to move.” - Robert Louis Stevenson

“One’s destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things.” - Henry Miller

14. “Traveling is a brutality. It forces you to trust strangers and to lose sight of all that familiar comfort of home and friends. You are constantly off balance. Nothing is yours except the essential things - air, sleep, dreams, the sea, the sky - all things tending towards the eternal or what we imagine of it.” - Cesare Pavese

15. “One’s destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things.” - Henry Miller

16″A traveler without observation is a bird without wings.” - Moslih Eddin Saadi

17. “When we get out of the glass bottle of our ego and when we escape like the squirrels in the cage of our personality and get into the forest again, we shall shiver with cold and fright. But things will happen to us so that we don’t know ourselves. Cool, unlying life will rush in.” - D. H. Lawrence

18. “To awaken quite alone in a strange town is one of the pleasantest sensations in the world.” - Freya Stark

19. “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” - Mark Twain

20. “Travel is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of living.” - Miriam Beard

21. “All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware.” - Martin Buber

22. “We live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm and adventure. There is no end to the adventures we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open.” - Jawaharial Nehru

23. “Tourists don’t know where they’ve been, travelers don’t know where they’re going.” - Paul Theroux

24. “To my mind, the greatest reward and luxury of travel is to be able to experience everyday things as if for the first time, to be in a position in which almost nothing is so familiar it is taken for granted.” - Bill Bryson

25. “Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail” - Ralph Waldo Emerson

26. “Two roads diverged in a wood and I - I took the one less traveled by.” - Robert Frost

27. “A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.” - Lao Tzu

28. “There is no moment of delight in any pilgrimage like the beginning of it.” - Charles Dudley Warner

29. “A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving.” - Lao Tzu

30. “If you reject the food, ignore the customs, fear the religion and avoid the people, you might better stay at home.” - James Michener

31. “The journey not the arrival matters.” - T. S. Eliot

32. “A journey is best measured in friends, rather than miles.” - Tim Cahill

33. “I have found out that there ain’t no surer way to find out whether you like people or hate them than to travel with them.” - Mark Twain

34. “Once you have traveled, the voyage never ends, but is played out over and over again in the quiestest chambers. The mind can never break off from the journey.” - Pat Conroy

“A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.” - Lao Tzu

35. “Not all those who wander are lost.” - J. R. R. Tolkien

36. “Like all great travelers, I have seen more than I remember, and remember more than I have seen.” - Benjamin Disraeli

37. “Perhaps travel cannot prevent bigotry, but by demonstrating that all peoples cry, laugh, eat, worry, and die, it can introduce the idea that if we try and understand each other, we may even become friends.” - Maya Angelou

38. “Too often travel, instead of broadening the mind, merely lengthens the conversation.” - Elizabeth Drew

39. “Wandering re-establishes the original harmony which once existed between man and the universe”……Anatole France

40. “Travel and change of place impart new vigor to the mind.” - Seneca

41. “What you’ve done becomes the judge of what you’re going to do - especially in other people’s minds. When you’re traveling, you are what you are right there and then. People don’t have your past to hold against you. No yesterdays on the road.” - William Least Heat Moon

42. “I soon realized that no journey carries one far unless, as it extends into the world around us, it goes an equal distance into the world within.” - Lillian Smith

43. “To travel is to discover that everyone is wrong about other countries.” - Aldous Huxley

44. “Travel does what good novelists also do to the life of everyday, placing it like a picture in a frame or a gem in its setting, so that the intrinsic qualities are made more clear. Travel does this with the very stuff that everyday life is made of, giving to it the sharp contour and meaning of art.” - Freya Stark

45. “The first condition of understanding a foreign country is to smell it.” - Rudyard Kipling

46. “Travel is glamorous only in retrospect.” - Paul Theroux

47. “The whole object of travel is not to set foot on foreign land; it is at last to set foot on one’s own country as a foreign land.” - G. K. Chesterton

48. “When you travel, remember that a foreign country is not designed to make you comfortable. It is designed to make its own people comfortable.” - Clifton Fadiman

49. “A wise traveler never despises his own country.” - Carlo Goldoni

50. “Adventure is a path. Real adventure - self-determined, self-motivated, often risky - forces you to have firsthand encounters with the world. The world the way it is, not the way you imagine it. Your body will collide with the earth and you will bear witness. In this way you will be compelled to grapple with the limitless kindness and bottomless cruelty of humankind - and perhaps realize that you yourself are capable of both. This will change you. Nothing will ever again be black-and-white.” - Mark Jenkins

SCUBA Adventure Partner!

2009-06-11T14:00:00.001-07:00

I've recruited a fellow adventurer to learn how to dive! Ashely Hollis will be joining me in PC for the SCUBA class. If anyone else wants to wrangle up some free time to come explore the floor of the Gulf let me know! You can hang out at my campsite and I'll rustle up a tent for ya or you can get a hotel room like a pansy. Your choice.

Bill Bryson

2009-06-09T18:34:00.000-07:00

A favored book of mine recounts the journey of Bill Bryson and his unusual friend Katz as they undertake a portion of the Appalachian Trail with little experience and middle age angst. A Walk in the Woods is only one of several travel books Bryson has written, but it's the only one I've read so far. From the very beginning Bryson keeps us entertained with a whimsical style of storytelling that makes you really want to discover his little adventure with him. He draws you in with his descriptions of the trail. Bryson is terribly afraid of bears, a little bit of humor is spread throughout the book about his imaginary bear encounters. What Bryson does not do is romanticize the trail, he calls everything the way it is. He adds a lot of history of the regions and trail being built in the book, and somewhere along the way it really made me start to question the way we treat the Appalachians, along with all our nations monumental forests and mountains. He tells us about government institutions real purpose, such as the US Forestry service's main function- to build roads. Even when he tells us a harrowing story he does so in a way that makes us laugh a little and yet makes you think.

One of the most interesting things he does is paint a picture of the different personality types you encounter on the trail. There's people of all types, some arrogant, some friendly, sometimes annoying. Reading this book makes one crave the same type of experience, a journey that changes your perspective on life and people, on everything.

That really is what it's all about. Adventure is for discovery. The things that you discover aren't always the lands, creeks, and waterfalls you encounter. Sometimes you learn about you, your self image changes and your friendship with others can be strengthened. Katz and Bryson are a rather odd coupling for a buddy adventure, but Bryson comes to understand quite a bit about his friend by the end of the adventure. This is why you sometimes see business' sponsoring "team building" trips outdoors. Send a group of people river rafting and they will not only learn to work on a team to keep their butts dry but they will form bonds that will last far longer than anything you get standing around a water cooler.

Something to keep in mind when you wonder, "why go into the wilderness?" I say why not?

Alabama Hiking Trail Resource

2009-06-09T15:44:00.000-07:00

Descriptions, pictures, even GPS waypoints one Alabama's hiking trails and more can be found on Alatrails.com. I've been reading this site all day and can't get enough of the knowledge and dedication that's been poured into it. A great tool for anyone interested in finding the out of the way features Alabama has to offer.

Scuba Class

2009-06-09T07:36:00.000-07:00

The weekend of July 18th I'll be taking some time off for a scuba diving class. I'm pretty psyched about it, it's something I've always wanted to do and just never got around to. The basic dive course gets you everything you need to get started in one weekend, gear rental is included in the price ($285). The course is in Panama City.

I'll be using the tent instead of a hotel room for this go round. Saving cash. I'm planning on carrying the bike on down to get some riding in after class hours.

If anyone would like to come along let me know, you're welcome to share a tent or you could wuss out and grab a cozy hotel room, your choice.

Gone on a Walkabout.

2009-06-06T10:06:00.000-07:00

The film "Australia" featuring Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman gives us a look at Aboriginal culture and the clashing of Aboriginal people with European settlers in Australia. The film focuses on the internal conflict of a man who is half Aboriginal and half "whitefella." After Nicole Kidman's husband is murdered and his estate left in her hands she puts together a team of misfit individuals under the lead of the cattle drover, played by Jackman, to drive her cows to auction across the desert. Throughout the trip they are fighting disaster as a competitor cattle baron attempts to stampede the herd. This group includes a young boy who's mother died keeping him hidden from the authorities to avoid his being taken to a Christian mission. Half white children are taken so the "savage" could be eventually bred out of them and their culture replaced. Sadly this practice did not end until the 1970's, though the Australian government has issued a formal apology for irreparable damage that was done.

It was a good movie, but it got me interested in Australian tribal culture. There's a warning at the begining of the film saying that the movie may contain images and voices of dead Aborigine. I searched the internet a little and discovered that while Aborigine don't say the name of the dead, they also must not show pictures of them. Proper respect for the dead says that you must wait a certain period of time before displaying a photo as the soul may be kept bound to it otherwise. The warning is an attempt for the whitefella to comply with this culture's tradition as there have been problems in past films not warning Aborigine that a deceased member was in it.

The term walkabout is used alot in the film and is described as a certain rite of passage into manhood. I wanted to know more about it but there's conflicting literature as to it's true purpose. All are agreed that a walkabout is a period of time in which you leave normal life and explore the wild, living only with the bare necessities for survival. Some say it's a time for you to get back to the root of life by getting away from everyday activity and work. Later on in the past century there started to rise an idea that there was a spiritual quest to it, a search almost where a man who is in conflict with himself will wander until he "meets" his other self. He will converse with his other self and eventually reach a resolution where the two are joined and become whole. He is then able to return from walkabout.

It's a neat culture and worth looking into, and they definitely had the right idea about getting away from everybody every now and then for a little walkabout in the wild.

Waking Every Day

2009-06-05T18:29:00.001-07:00

It's hard, I know, but sleeping in rarely pays off. I've made it a habit to never sleep in past 9. Usually I'm up by 7:30 on my days off and ready to go.

You may remember a post I did in Blog 1.0 about sleeping in and how to get back on track. Follow it and you will discover that you can be twice as productive that day. I promise you this, you will be more successful in whatever you're doing. Ben Franklin wasn't kidding when he quipped, "Early to bed early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise."

Still need help? I found a useful page. Jump to it now.

I Love Lists

2009-06-05T18:07:00.000-07:00

And this is a good one from the Chicago Tribune. Original can be found here.

50 things I've learned in 50 years, a partial list in no particular order

1. It’s better to sing off key than not to sing at all.

2. Promptness shows respect.

3. You can’t avoid offending people from time to time. When you don’t mean it, apologize. When you do mean it, accept the consequences.

4. The first person to use the expression “Get a life!” in any dispute is the loser.

5. The medium is not the message. Those who issue blanket condemnations of any form of communication—be it TV, tabloids, text messages or blogs—simply aren’t paying attention.

6. The most valuable thing to have is a good reputation, and it’s neither hard nor expensive to acquire one: Be fair. Be honest. Be trustworthy. Be generous. Respect others.

7. Prejudice and bigotry is hard-wired into us. You can’t overcome it until you acknowledge it.

8. Don’t be bothered when people don’t share your tastes in music, sports, literature, food and fashion. Be glad. You’d never get tickets to anything otherwise.

9. Cough syrup doesn’t work.

10. Empathy is the greatest virtue. From it, all virtues flow. Without it, all virtues are an act.

11. The Golden Rule is the greatest moral truth. If you don’t believe in it, at least try to fake it.

12. Keeping perspective is the greatest key to happiness. From a distance, even a bumpy road looks smooth.

13. You can’t win arguing with police officers or referees, but every so often you can fight City Hall.

14. It’s not “political correctness” that dictates that we try not to insult others’ beliefs and identities. It’s common decency.

15. It may not feel like it, but it’s good luck when you have people at home and at work who aren’t afraid to tell you when you’re wrong.

16. It’s 10 times easier to fall in love than to stay in love. And no matter what the sad songs say about romance, broken hearts do mend.

17. Don’t waste your breath proclaiming what’s really important to you. How you spend your time says it all.

18. Keeping an open mind is as big a challenge as you get older as keeping a consistent waistline.

19. It’s never a shame when you admit you don’t know something, and often a shame when you assume that you do.

20. Wounds heal faster under bandages than they do in the open air.

21. Fear of failure is a ticket to mediocrity. If you’re not failing from time to time, you’re not pushing yourself. And if you’re not pushing yourself, you’re coasting.

22. Anyone who judges you by the kind of car you drive or shoes you wear isn’t someone worth impressing.

23. Grudges are poison. The only antidote is to let them go.

24. If you’re in a conversation and you’re not asking questions, then it’s not a conversation, it’s a monologue.

25. In everyday life, most “talent” is simply hard work in disguise.

26. Great parents can have rotten kids and rotten parents can have great kids. But even though biology plays a huge role in destiny, that’s no excuse to give up or stop trying.

27. Four things that most people think are lame but really are a lot of fun: barn dancing, charades, volleyball and sing-alongs.

28. Two cheap, easy self-improvement projects: Develop a strong handshake and start smiling when you answer the phone.

29. When something that costs less than $200 breaks and it’s not under warranty and you can’t fix it yourself in half an hour, it’s almost certainly more cost-effective to throw it out.

30. Most folk remedies are nonsense, but zinc really does zap colds.

31. Physical attraction is nice, but shared values and a shared sense of humor are the real keys to lasting love.

32. To keep dental visits regular, schedule your next appointment on your way out from your last appointment.

33. The 10-minute jump start is the best way to get going on a big task you’ve been avoiding. Set a timer and begin, promising yourself that you’ll quit after 10 minutes and do something else. The momentum will carry you forward.

34. Laundry day is much easier when all your socks are the same and you don’t have to sort them.

35. Candor is overrated. It’s hard to unsay what you’ve said in anger and almost impossible to take back what you’ve written.

36. Goals that you keep to yourself are just castles on the beach. If you’re determined to achieve something, tell people about it and ask them to help you stick with it.

37. Mental illness is as real as diabetes, arthritis or any other disease, and no more disgraceful. It’s the stigma that’s disgraceful.

38. In crisis or conflict, always think and act strategically. Take time to figure out what the “winning” outcome is for you, then work toward it.

39. All the stuff you have lying around that you’ll never want, need, wear or look at again? It just makes it harder to find what you do want, need or intend to wear. File it, donate it or throw it out.

40. Exercise does not take time. Exercise creates time.

41. Almost no one stretches, flosses or gives compliments often enough.

42. It pays to keep handy a list that includes a trusted plumber, electrician, locksmith, appliance repair specialist and heating contractor. When you really need one is no time to start looking.

43. The store-brand jelly, cereal, paper goods, baking supplies and pharmacy products are good enough.

44. When you mess up, ’fess up. It’s the fastest way, if there is one, to forgiveness.

45. When you’re not the worst-dressed person at a social event, you have nothing to worry about.

46. Be truthful or be quiet. Lies are hard to keep track of.

47. Your education isn’t complete until you’ve learned to take a hint.

48. There’s a good reason to be secretive about your age. People tend to assume things when they know how old you are. “Oh, he’s turning 50,” they might say, for example, “probably full of cranky self-lacerating aphorisms that he thinks qualify as wisdom.” (See "Bored, Tubby, Mild," an animated editorial cartoon along these lines)

49. Whatever your passion, pursue it as though your days were numbered. Because they are.

50. Readers love lists. You got to the bottom of this one, didn’t you?

Another Day Another Dollar

2009-06-05T10:11:00.000-07:00

Don Don and I rode back out to the Jungle thingy. The water bowls were filled today and the cage floors were clean of droppings. I reckon they are taking decent care of the animals save for the small quarters. These guys are based out of Florida where they have a petting zoo, I hope they give these big cats alot of room to roam in when they aren't on the road.

Stuck here at Station 1 today. Not a whole lot of action going on. I'm thinking we may have a quiet weekend with Bama Jam going on one county south. I figure that's where all the action will be. Maybe a crack house will burn up later and we can pack out for a change. Here's hoping.

It's time to start planning the next big wilderness excursion. Talladega national forest is next on my list. Cheaha state park specifically. There's plenty of hiking and scenic views out there. I'm looking for volunteers to join my party! If you want to get out there with me let me know. I can hook you up with most of the necessary gear. I'm planning this visit for around September. This ain't the backyard camping your mom and dad used to set you up with, we go out into the deep woods. Don't worry though; Bear Deano is on your side, leading you the whole way. Drop me a line in the comment box and let me know!

Cheaha State Park, the view from Pulpit Rock. You can be there too!

Caged Animal

2009-06-03T18:36:00.000-07:00

There's a little traveling petting zoo that stopped off in Troy at the Village. Upon entering you will notice two things-

1. These folks are carnies. Carnies are scary.

2. These cages are extremely small. And bare. And without water. Animals like water right? Even Tigers?

They have goats, a llama, monkeys, lemurs, a kangaroo, a tiger cub, a white tiger, a regular tiger, a lion cub, a camel, a burmese python, a leopard and some sort of little cow thing that was kinda funny. What they didn't have were decent accommodations for these animals. The tigers were in metal cages with less than 6x4 feet of room to move. The big cats just lay sleeping (I hope, they seemed to be breathing.) It's always exhilirating to see big cats, but it's kind of a drag to seem them imprisoned like that. I can't imagine these animals being anything more than miserable.

Usually animals love attention. Not these though, unless you had some food they shied away from being petted. It's kind of sad. In fact it kind of depressed me. When you go a zoos these days they usually have huge environments for the animals to roam around in. I'd say don't go give these carnies your money, but I'm afraid what would happen to these animals if the cash flow dried up. The tigers could be sold, but I think they'd be hard pressed to find a home for the goats, and being a herp enthusiast I know snakes are extremely hard to get rid of. Zoos won't accept them, they already have so many.

Poor little fella. I wish I could steal him and raise him on the farm in Zion Chapel. It's hard to hide a tiger I bet.

Joe camel here had about six feet of room to walk around in.

Pensacola Air Museum

2009-06-03T17:53:00.000-07:00

I was dieing to go back to the Pensacola Air Museum on the naval base ever since I went a few years ago. This time I took pictures. My father and brother drove down and met me there after the Border Bash. I highly recommend it!

MS Border Bash

2009-06-03T17:33:00.000-07:00

Well, it was one month ago. I blogged it already, but here's a recap complete with a new slide show! Some of you pitched in and managed to get 535 dollars raised for the MS Society. The Border Bash is a ride in Orange Beach Alabama, an event that lasts two days. Pro riders can make it through over 150 miles of agonizing bicycling through Orange Beach into Foley and even into Florida. Doing about 80 miles a day, they crank out the distance in 6 hours. That of course is the pros.

As for your boy Deano, well, he's just a beginner. Fortunately they have a beginner route for those of who are not quite at the level of Armstrong. It was just over 50 miles. I kept pace most of the way with a young lady soldier whom I kept just ahead of me. You say I'm a pervert, I say I was drafting off her wind. Her butt was kind of motivating though. Actually, she's in the army and took up cycling after tearing a tendon in her leg while running. She decided it would be cool to ride the event and see Orange Beach from the saddle. Poor girl was on a mountain bike. A Walmart brand MTB too. I have to give her major props, riding on that bike must have been hell. I was glad to have some company out there that wasn't interested in beating everyone else to the finish line and she proved a very interesting companion. Like an idiot, I forgot to grab her email so I will probably never have the oppurtunity to talk to her again.

Also met a racer from Germany. Seems he had been reading my blog over at the MS web site and was quite amused. He told me he was proud of the progress I was making and offered up some tips. He was a pretty cool guy! I think he made the 80 mile trip in just over 5 hours.

All in all, it was a fantastic ride; it really showed me where I was and how far I've yet to go in my riding. I'm planning on cranking out a metric century (62 mi) next October for the Make a Wish Foundation. I'll be purchasing a much better bike for that ride. If you see me out training give me a honk! By all means, if you want to join me, let me know!

Blog 1.0

2009-06-03T17:16:00.000-07:00

Well, there it is. If you've read this far and just can't get enough then you're in luck. I've got my old blog linked right here.

The Ancient Myspace Blog!

Remember, those 120 posts of slightly demented musings date back all the way to 2006. That blog is no longer updated and links will eventually disappear. So sorry! This is Blog 2.0 baby! I can't be looking back in the past all nostalgic! I have to press forward boldly.

Unleashing Upon the World....My New Blog!

2009-06-03T16:43:00.000-07:00

To all my faithful readers I present my new blog! I wanted it to be independent of myspace and facebook so it would be easier to keep. The format is the same, with a few little changes. I'm putting more of my little adventures into the journal along with pictures and reflections. I assure you it will prove to be an interesting read if you're stuck in your station with nothing to do, or having a slow night in dispatch, or if you're just plain bored. I'm going to go backwards a few months at first, and write about some of the things I've been doing.

I learn something new every time I venture out and I hope I can bring this experience to you! I want to include my friends in this, so if you can come up with a new adventure for us to embark on and you want to chronicle it in photo and print give me a call!

That's it for now, I'll be working diligently to start porting over some old blogs and writing new stories about my trips in the past few months.