the road becomes your chalkboard

it was 1:13 pm in portland.

i sat in a crowded and cramped corner with a neon light shining down on my face.

some guy with long hair came over and asked me if i wanted a beer.

i said absolutely not.

i turned on my ipod-- wilco was playing.

"sunken treasure" to be exact.

i was thinking about the rainbow of colors that was contained within a particular woman's head of hair nearby.

my thoughts then drifted to food. an enormous hamburger to be exact.

my face darted up as red meat littered my thoughts. i stared over at the nearby price board.

"cut - $19
wash - $3"

oh god.

i panicked. here i was, about to have my fucking hair cut for $22 and all i could think about was how awesome it would be to have cooked cow flesh pressed against my taste buds. for about the past 6 days i had eaten two enormous peanut butter and jelly sandwiches daily-- and throw in a few cups of coffee. for these 6 days i had refused to buy a hot meal that i could have likely procured for under $10.

and so it all hit me like a ton of bricks.

spending $22 (plus more for a tip likely-- this assuming the girl that cut my hair was beautiful, conducted impeccable conversation and finished the whole hair cut up with a shoulder massage) for a hair cuit seemed absurd when i could spend $10 to have a heavenly piece of meat slapped between two sesame seed buns.

hell, maybe throw a beer in there for good measure.

i ran up to counter immediately. i wanted to make sure they didnt call my name off before i was able to ax my existence on their waiting list. i approached the attendant sweating a little bit from having really thought this one over.

"ummm, i would like to take my name off of tht list. i wont be getting a hair cut today."

"ok? can we perhaps make you an appointment for some other day?"

"no, that wont be necessary."

i ran out. really fast. i opened up my laptop once i got the car.

portland has city-wide free wireless internet which i find to be extremely convenient. i tend to screw up driving directions from time to time. now if this happens in portland i just open up my laptop and pull up the google map. and i realize there are phones that take care of this sort of thing these days, but i am still rocking a late 90's nokia 3120 cell phone-- its like one phone above the gray and green screen phones.

awesome.

i pulled up google.com and ran a search for "best hamburger in portland." i got all kinds of dog shit responses that did me no good, but one particular search result proved useful and pointed me in the direction of a place called sandich's in northeast portland. it was a bit of a drive so i was hesitant, but then i remembered that i really dont have anything to do once it gets dark.

off i went.

i spotted the place. the sign was HUGE. thank god. if not, i typically risk steering the car in to the opposite lane of traffic looking for it. dont forget that it rains ALL THE TIME in portland which adds another layer of difficulty. i dont think i have talked about the rain in portland enough yet.

i parked the car nearly crushing my bike in to the front wall of the bar. as it turns out, i am still getting used to having the thing strapped to the front of the car.

the interior of the bar was covered in wood paneling and sports teams pennants. behind the bar was a giant framed picture of this mr. sandich character. he looked like he would be the kind of guy to tell racist jokes to random people and in the process offend many.

i sat at the bar where a friendly voice greeted me. i asked the bartender that i heard this place had good hamburgers. she handed me the menu and in big bold letters at the top read "THE BEST HAMBURGER IN THE WORLD."

this was working out alright. red meat paradise awaited me.

the thing came out and it was roughly the size of a soccer ball.

one meat patty, lettuce, tomato, onion, mayo, relish, a fried egg, ham and bacon all combined to make this thing one of the better meals i have had in the last 60 days. i think i ate the thing in about 6 minutes which really, really surprised the bartender-- but this was to be expected. i washed it all down with a cold PBR to follow. now THIS was a proper end to my time in portland.

i picked blake up the next day at the airport and we bee-lined it down the coast fairly quickly. i stopped at the corner to pick up my friend from the laundromat but here was nowhere to be found.

in our 5 days or so together, it has become obvious blake has two very precise skills that seriously add to the overall experience of the trip.

1) the kid can create the most delectable trail mix out of nearly anything. we will be at a gas station and he comes out donning a mit full of the most odd ball collection of foodstuffs. he then produces a mixing bag from god knows where and within 5 minutes has produced an incredible food selection. i inquired further about his skill and he made vague mention this has been a hobby for something like 12 years.

2) he reads weather maps (or any map for that matter) with the kind of voracity that would be expected from flies on a pile of shit. as we round the bend formulating our approach back to michigan, this becomes particularly handy. all these "storms" in oklahoma-- no problem. blake has an alternate route carved out with approximate mileage calculations-- all done within roughly 42 seconds.

driving down the coast together has been fun. its nice to have a compadre along for the trip to share the time with.

the drive down highway 1 re-defined the term winding road. travelling southbound towards northern california is a vicious stretch of deviating road that leaves you with sore elbows at the end of the day. we clambered down the coast form oregon with our specs on san francisco. this journey ended up taking 3 days.

midway through the trip somewhere in northern california we took a urination break which involved pissing off a rock cliff. absolutely immature but fun its own right. well, this little jaunt of child-like antics would bite me right in the ass.

as we drove off, i had remembered setting my camera on top of car... and.... well.... my camera.... wasnt sitting in my lap.

AWESOME.

recall my history with electronics. we discussed this.

camera number four had been destroyed. well, partially destroyed.

we turned the car around immediately and found my nikon on the side of the road about 300 yards back. i had left it on top of the truck bed and as we drove off it catapulted in to the shoulder of the road. i ran over to see if it was ok and it looked alright. the body had a couple of hair-line fractures in it, the flash was not firing and something was loose inside the lens. i tried to take a photo and remarkably it still worked. the thing looked pretty bad though, it had some obvious burns from skidding along the pavement.

i began sweating. these are considered crisis situations in my book. i go through situations like this annually. i was clutching the denim on my jeans in a fit of panic as i sat passenger side. another one bites the dust... or so i thought.

i recalled a conversation i had had with the clerk at best buy nearly one year ago when i had purchased the camera.

"so you are telling me that if i drop this thing in a bathtub filled with water and the camera no longer works, you will replace it?"

i was in the middle of the ever-present "would you like to purchase our protection plan" discussion with the best buy clerk.

she replied "thats correct, sir."

accidental coverage. hmmmm, to be or not to be? at a price tag of $103.99, this wasnt exactly a small addition to my purchase.

about 7 years ago i had extremely good luck with the best buy coverage program when a laptop went out and was replaced with a (much nicer) brand new one. ever since this day, i have always thought twice about buying the insurance protection when i buy a piece of electronics equipment.

i stood there and looked at the attendant straight in the eyes....

"I'LL TAKE IT."

this little 5 minutes of genius saved me with my now damaged nikon camera. i double checked at the best buy in san francisco on the validity of my coverage. after about 6 minutes of seriously sweating waiting for a reply, the clerk told me i would be covered if i took it in for a claim.

phew.

in the meantime, i can take pictures.... barely.

the coastal views are stunning amidst the level of skill required to circumnavigate which makes the drive worthwhile. it was reminiscient of australian coastal driving and even the stuff in south africa along the wild coast. being a sucker for anything overseas, this trip has made a strong case for the beauty contained within our borders here in old america.

san francisco really took me by surprise. i didnt expect to enjoy that city as much as i did. to me, its a nearly perfect combination of sophistication with an off-center mentality. alternative lifestyles run rampant, but so does the business professional crowd as well. architecture is something to be noted as well with a skyline that wreaks of cool. there is a sense of history, too. the beatniks and the hippie's that once littered the streets left their mark and the city does a great job of preserving their presence. its like san francisco is the sophisticated, slightly more mature and european brother of another town i just whipped across-- portland.

we made it to santa barbara last night.

currently, i am sitting in a place called java jones on state street. its a college town, so state street is the epicenter of all the activity.

i just ordered a medium sized black coffee and it is delightful. i am typing here while this couple-- i am guessing they are a pair of juniors-- are waiting for their mocha's and the intensity of their lip smacking makes me want to vomit. the girl practically has her right leg raised to straddle this guy at the waiting counter. everyone is sort of awkwardly trying to concentrate on whatever they are doing while these two eat each other. this girl has been licking this guy for about 5 minutes straight. it sounds like cows eating grass or something. for some reason, producing the mocha that they are waiting for is taking about 4 months and sitting here listening to them swallow each other is mildly nauseating.

maybe its time to go home.

its weird thinking about returning home again. it feels good though. traveling the open road gives you the answers to everyday life's questions. returning home is when you put this new knowledge to work. you cant change anything on the road-- the magic happens when you come home.

looking holistically at the trip i have to say i made a lot of mental headway once again from the time on the road. it gave me some time to decompress from the uncomfortable pressures that i was feeling with my chicago stint. i was able to distance myself (uncomfortably at times) from that security blanket and tune in to what is really important going forward. it was certainly worthwhile for me to leap without the comfort of knowing a net would catch me. but you always get caught. as such, i have made some decisions.

there's a world of options out there, thats for sure. this isnt exactly new news, but at times when you are living life in the confines of whatever "situation" you are in, its easy to ignore the things around you that are nipping at your heels. sometimes a vision for forward progress can cloud your ability to sense the things right in front of you. its very easy to get accustomed to the situation you are in (whether you are working a 9 to 5 or travelling the globe)-- or its easy to FORCE your comfort-- and then miss a lot of the opportunities passing you by. you have to have a forward vision, so therein lies the challenge.

the balance.

in some weird way, the comfort of the open road gives me some time to mull these things over in my head. i think the process is actually fairly intuitive-- the prevalance of the unknown makes you think about everything in a different way. you challenge the conventional with the ideals of the unfamiliar. i guess it just comes down to your personal tolerance of that unknown. for me, the unfamiliarity makes me maintain mental fitness. it puts me in a setting to challenge my thoughts with the unconventional. this, in my opinion, gives me the ability to process all the opportunities. i can formulate appropriate visions for a way forward that meets my goals of being progressive and forward thinking but more importantly maintaining a sense of happiness in my stride.

it gets me breathing again. big, deep breaths.

so its a delicate balance i think-- a dual act of keeping your eyes open WITH one foot forward. be the ball. maintain the tipping of the scale between progression and a smile on your face. i think this is a similar conclusion to my last extended trip, just with different hints on the best way to actually move forward.

i took notes.

onwards and upwards. another lesson to keep in the back pocket. it's the traveler's education, if you will. and in this case its worth every trying moment at costco, craving for hot food, moment of embarrassement, sweating fit, cold night in the truck, wet day or broken camera.

fotoz

another round of photos courtesy of inordinate amounts of cafe time in portland. i am reasonably sure that a new lake will form in the portland area within the next few years. with this kind of rainfall, it sure would make sense.



portland, oregon: i was asked to provide a more accurate portrayal of my living quarters and thus i have opted for the above photos to do the storytelling. in the top photo you can see the truck with bike strapped to front. in the lower selection you get an intimate look at my crib. yo MTV, get a load of this shit. not much to explain there. these photos were taken on the one day that has presented no rain here in portland.

port angeles, washington: a corson thanksgiving is portrayed herein. ladies and gentleman i am pleased to announce that over the thanksgiving holiday i was not just fed the essentials that the day may suggest-- turkey, stuffing and mashed potatoes. i was provided all of the aforementioned items, plus approximately 18 other categories of food-- of which the pictures above attempt to depict. the top photo shows the preparation of 1 of the 3 turkeys. yep. 3 turkeys people. this one happened to be deep fried. as the photo suggests, events such as deep frying demand solemn oversight and precise control of the cooking method. chef for the day, doctor corson and his grandpa look on at this turkey with the sort of facial features that suggest the proper effort is being put in to preparation. the photo below shows one of the oddball contenders for the "side vegetable of the day" award-- fried green tomatoes. i was made aware of the fact that such a vegetable does in fact exist other than in a hollywood motion picture.


olympic national park, washington: it should be crystal clear at this point that i get a bit excited with the whole sunset/evening motif and every combination of such a spectacle.

rainshine

portland oregon is the place and raining would be the best word to describe it.

i have been here for exactly 42 hours and 38 minutes and it has been raining for every single solitary second. i cant say this is exactly heart-warming given the whole living-in-a-van-down-by-the-river thing, but i am happy to announce i am pulling it off.

barely.

i am guessing that approximately 1 foot of rain has fallen during my time here. this causes problems all around the table really. my shoes have been wet for three straight days, the truck topper is starting to leak, one jacket is soaked through and will not dry, etc etc. once things are wet they do not dry in the truck because portland happens to be the moisture capital of the universe.

awesome.

precipitation.

awesome.

my first night in portland i had the enormous pleasure of attending the boots 'n all annual holiday party. oh boy was it delightful.

boots 'n all is an online organization that feels more like a community. its basically a giant family of like-minded travelers that help each other out with planning trips, reporting on conditions in countries, rants and warnings about certain locales-- you get the point. they are based here in portland and have been having holiday parties every year for the past five years.

well, it just so happened that this year's party corresponded with my arrival time in portland.

go figure.

i walked in to a mixed bag of jolly people aged anywhere from their 20's to their 70's. there were plenty of portlanders but also a good chunk of foreigners and road trippers like myself. it was pretty amusing and encouraging talking with about a dozen different people that were supportive of anything that involved an expensive plane ticket and some light packing.

questions/comments you do not hear at a boots 'n all holiday party:

1) how are you paying for all that travel?
2) what about your career?
3) ellllll, maybe not a great idea to travel there-- i hear that place is dangerous.
4) how do you pack for a trip that long?
5) WHAT?!?! you are sleeping in your TRUCK?

talk about some encouragement. jesus! i was in heaven.

i had the pleasure of talking with a couple that plans to hit the road in june when their daughter graduates from high school. they have been saving for a few years to head over to europe, buy a VW westfalia campervan and hit the road...

TO ASIA.

crikey! i got pretty excited.

we chatted for about the last half of the night about all their thoughts and ambitions for the trip.

the bar was open for the whole night. and FREE. we are not talking about some little harry half-ass occasion. there would be no dixie cups filled with some old stale PBR-- oh no! they were serving pints (in nice glasses, mind you) of lucky labrador's (this being the brewpub where the event was held) finest ales.

delicious, i tell you. delicious. a splendid evening.

given the rain and inability to do much outside here in portlandia i am trying to get creative with my time here in the city-- or perhaps out of it.

my buddy blake from back in michigan is flying out to portland arriving sunday, 9 december and he is traveling with me down the pacific coast and back home to michigan for christmas. it will be nice having company again and a cohort to do the long road stretches.

so 9 december presents something of a dilemma. do i suck it up and try to get through the rain, or do i proceed forward to another locale and a life of dryness? the issue is that if i leave i would need to come back to portland and pick up blake at the airport.

time to brainstorm.

conversing with mark this morning via instant messanger, he gave me some interesting ideas on how to take care of the situation:

mark: go to eugene and check out the oregon university campus.
me: not a bad idea....
mark: take out a duck caller, sit in the middle of the quad blowing it and screaming "come here oregon hotties!"
me: HHAHAHAHA
mark: "quack quack quack"
mark: girl will ask "ummm what are you doing?"
me: priceless mark
mark: "trying to get you to talk to me...waaasup girl"
mark: honestly not a bad idea
me: hahaha

so looks like heading to eugene could be an option. may need to look in to purchasing a duck caller.

or not. haha.

weather.com shows no mercy in mother nature until thursday when it will be partly cloudy. but honestly, i am wondering if partly cloudy just means occasional sun with rain all day. maybe it is just given that it always rains here. other than that little spurt of sunshine, it is all showers until sunday.

awesome.

for a good laugh, pull up the precipitation map for portland and the surrounding areas. there is rain EVERYWHERE. from here all the way down to northern california and even as far west as bend.

people warn you about the northwest winters, i guess i am now getting ridiculously rich, first-hand experience.

given the rain, i have spent at least 80% of my time in a cafe. to be more precise, thus far this time has been spent in either tully's coffee, the fresh cup or starbucks. each one has a very unique feature that serves me well at different times during the day.

the fresh cup has a horse's share of power outlets which makes using my laptop for hours and hours very easy because i can plug it in anywhere. plus, the coffee happens to be quite tasty as well. i actually discovered while ordering one morning that there is such a thing as flavored san pellegrino sparkling water. sounds delightful.

(uhhh mom, christmas time? mmmm flavored san pellegrino water. mmmmm tasty)

tully's coffee is soulless, but they have really good (CHEAP) peppermint tea which is nice after i have eaten anything. fact: peppermint tea calmes the stomach after eating. see, i even attempt to remain healthy on the road although as mark pointed out that is complete bullshit given my through-the-roof sodium intake.

my diet consists of PB&J (middle of the line sodium), ramen (through the roof sodium), canned chicken (through the roof sodium) and canned green beans (middle of the line sodium).

balanced diet no more.

starbucks is option three because it has those enormous multi-colored couches strewn all over the place and they are open really late. so i can sit in comfort for the last hours of the evening before heading to the truck for some sleep. and its always good to be there around 8pm when they empty the pastry case because they give out whatever is left to customers sitting inside. so i get some free food.

pastries. mmmm.

i hit the laundromat recently. it was undoubtedly the most rewarding a trip to the laundromat could ever be.

i was in there washing things up, writing in my journal. not a big deal. i must have been near a homeless shelter because there were probably about a half dozen homeless guys around the place washing their clothes. i took quite a bit of time talking with all of them, all of which were really nice fellows. i chatted for a while with one in particuar, he was originally from flint, michigan.

we chatted about the rain (of course), and this guys desire to get down to california (because of the "soul draining rain, man"). i am headed down for san francisco soon with blake, so i thought the idea of having some more company would be nice. i asked him if he would want a ride down south and a big smile shot across his face.

"yeah man! michigan brothers! we help each other out."

we arranged for a meeting spot on sunday.

so i am sitting there after talking with this guy for about an hour and still writing. my laundry was drying nearby. another guy approached me with a black sweatshirt in his hand.

"here you go man, i know how it is out there. been sleeping out in this shit for a while now. this thing will keep you warm and i got about a dozen of 'em. cant keep 'em all with me! take it."

i was kind of stunned. here was this guy-- clearly homeless-- reaching out to me assuming that i too was in a bit of a pinch to stay warm at night. i mean, in some sense i am, but certainly not to the degree that he is.

his outstretched arm was a jumbotron of kindness.

i kind of shuffled for the words to say back. i wanted to tell him i wasnt homeless and that i appreciated his gesture, but at the same time i really wanted to show this guy my appreciation for what appeared to be extreme altruism. i debated in my mind for about 3 seconds.

i would take the middle road.

"oh man, its ok. i think i have enough stuff. i appreciate so much your kindness."

he shot right back at me, "no seriously brother. i know how it is. take it."

"ok, ok. this is a nice sweatshirt. thanks so much."

i threw the sweatshirt on immediately. it was black. fit like a glove. the zipper was broken.

amazing really.

here was this guy-- in a pretty tough spot himself, reaching out to me. it all kind of hit me hard. it was one of those moments where you sit back and dont really know what to say so you just sort of marvel at the moment inside.

"christmas time is here" off the charlie brown soundtrack was playing over the crackly speakers in the laundromat. that is actually one christmas song that i am absolutely in love with.

i sat there and played with the broken zipper. it had clearly gotten some good use over the years but would certainly be fit for use on the road. i put my hands in the pockets to get comfortable and they were still damp from the washing that it had just gotten.

if thoughts could be measured in fluid ounces, i had about three gallons in my head.

the man, who's name i never got, left the laundromat with his big backpack on his back and an umbrella over his head.

"i'll see you around, man. stay warm."

he casually shouted that out as he exited the door. and that was it. all this took place in about 15 minutes.

later i figured i should maybe try and make an attempt at cleaning up because it was very obvious that i appeared homeless to other people. interesting how that works. with no couch in sight, hair that has a nice grease layer and horribly consistent rain-- i think i will just stick with the homeless look for now. there are unexpectedly positive things to be had in this state.

i exited the laundromat with a bit of pep in my step.

kindness fuels the soul, and i just got a whole years worth of inspiration.