So here I've gathered some of the wonderful photographs that were taken throughout the first days of our latest wanderings, and given them some written context so some of my fellow generation of non-reading ADHD excused you-tubers- might actually read a little bit (since theres an image involved and all).
Theres a plethora of NEW material, and even more bountiful a stash of "yet-to-be-posted" CHARACTER PROFILES, Stories, HOW-TO's, PHOTOGRAPHY, and MUCH MUCH MORE- from my/our previous travels. Keep reading, keep supporting, and you can bet your ass that I'll keep working for you fine people.
Another quick self-indulgent note: you will all be pleased to hear that I finally got paid for my first piece of writing. It was an EMBARRASSINGLY low amount, and for a giant website that provides "HOW TO" guides on various things. EITHER WAY, it is a small success in getting to the bottom step of the ladder, and since I have been taken in on their little "tech writing team," I do have the opportunity to work up the ladder slowly, and at least begin making a small side income that can work towards me NOT having to punch into an even more meaningless job to get by.
The page I wrote was on "Finding Nightlife While Traveling," the link is here- http://www.mahalo.com/how-to-find-nightlife-while-traveling
I'll discuss a bit more on the end of traveler ethics in another section here, because obviously we aren't looking to screw anyone over or be shady- but ride-share can serve several purposes ranging from service and convenience, to mutual interests or destinations. The key factor, is that a deal is achieved where everyone gets what they need out of each other in the long run. Traveling is an experience showcasing great diversity, and entails as wide a variety of individuals, needs, and expectations; as there are destinations. Bad experiences only occur from a person allowing them to occur- proper negotiation should always determine the appropriateness of your traveling decisions.
Whats particularly funny here, is that we asked him to wear this thing for us within the first half hour of the trip, so with good reason, Timothy has quite the look of confusion and maybe even a bit of shame (I'm pretty sure that after the duration of the trip, Timothy was a proud fellow gladiator- it just takes some warming up). Needless to say, this quickly became a candid classic for our archives of character portraits.
I took on the graveyard driving shift since I like to drive at night, and after making it through the panhandle of Texas, and Amarillo- I was driving in almost absolute blackness. I don't think I've ever seen a night so dark in all honesty. When the sun finally did rise, as we were making our way into the eastern portion of New Mexico- a pastel sunset that can only be described with one of my favorite words, magnanimous- came up in our rear view mirror to reveal a landscape that was an entirely new world to us. It was absolutely marvelous.
I got the photo out of the inside book of some terribly girlie type CD that was left in the car when B.O. bought it, and if you don't think the picture is glamor packed enough for you- then you must not be seeing the enormous Beer that was added to the composition and vaguely labeled "GOOD BEER."
HA HA, I like my women, like I like my coffee- with alcohol, and from the mid-west!
There were tons of happenin' cats at this place, and we managed to catch a most excellent rockabilly show that featured some real lively and jivin' type folks, and even some people swing dancing! It was a total throwback, and me and B.O. enjoyed jamming out to this amazing upright bass player that was just out of this world, and a real groovy soul that sang his heart out on the mic. If you only had one night to spend in the city, I would strongly recommend the Cosmic Cantina- PBR's were 2.00, which is more than I like to pay- but the hobo's guide to city nightlife entails avid practice of the pre-gaming philosophy; a.k.a. slam a ton of beer before you go to the place!
After spending some good time getting wasted in the city, and then going to the rockabilly show- me and B.O. made our staggering (literally) appearance at Jonathan's friends house, where they were playing a Japanese drinking game that put me on the floor finally. They would pour a beer, or a half beer into a pint glass, float a shot glass in the center, and everyone would take turns passing a bottle of liquor around the circle, and everyone had to pour a little bit of liquor in the floating shot glass. Whoever sunk the shot glass, had to drink the whole cup. You should have seen their faces when they saw me take down a whole pint in about 2 seconds flat! I sunk the shot glass trying to screw whoever was next to me, like 3 times haha! Rest assured, a small handful of Japanese students will go back to their homeland telling great stories of "the great drinking beast from Milwaukee."
They were quite good sports about me passing out face first on their floor too, and I can always appreciate that.
I won't get any thicker in my spiritual questioning here on the blog, but rest assured, the novel will unveil an entirely different evolution of my efforts and thoughts on spiritual understanding.
Santa Fe in general was very catered to the typical tourist, and although it was very rich in history, architecture, and New Mexico's culture in general- I can still say I prefer Albuquerque.