CA to CO

The first 1200 miles of my voyage east are complete. After leaving Claremont on Monday the 16th, my friend Charles and I (mother, please note the proper usage of the first-person singular subject here) headed west to visit Charles's friend in Malibu, effectively making my starting point as far west as possible. From Malibu we drove to Las Vegas on the 17th (up $200 in blackjack), Williams, AZ on the 18th (right by the Grand Canyon), Page, AZ on the 19th, Vail, CO on the 20th, and finally Boulder, CO on the 21st.

Joslyn picked me up on Sunday the 22nd and I'll be in Colorado Springs until June 7, when Jeff will be picking me up to begin the second leg of my drive.

Went to game 2 of the Lakers/Mavs series at Staples Center with Kevin's family


Charles and I in Malibu right before we headed east


Charles and other caravan companions in front of the Grand Canyon


Yup


Horseshoe Bend near Page, AZ. Just as cool as the Grand Canyon in my opinion


Mexican Hat in Utah


We did a little pro-bono work on Boulder's Pearl Street Mall

Goodbye Hawaii

I enjoyed my final Waikiki sunset on Wednesday night. Very nice way to bid farewell to my home for the last year.



I'm now in LA and will be here until May 16th when I'll begin the trek east.

Aloha!

A Quick Trip To Kauai

My friend and roommate Jeremy's sister visited this past week, and the three of us all island-hopped over to Kauai (a 30 minute flight) for two nights. I had almost given up on visiting other islands during my time here, but I'm really glad we went. Kauai looks a lot like the non-Honolulu parts of Oahu, except it was even quieter and covered in roosters. Seriously. I have no idea why there are so many roosters, but they own the place. Below are a few pictures from the trip.

Jeremy and I near Hanalei pier (right by where we stayed)


On the north side of the island...if anyone hasn't already noticed, my wardrobe in Hawaii consists almost entirely of three tanktops


Not in Kauai, but a nice picture of the three of us

Spring In Hawaii & A Life Update

Well, my blogging lapsed once again--I hope everyone has been able to cope effectively.

My time the last two months has primarily gone toward two activities: surfing & teaching ESL.

I bought a longboard (a big surfboard, better for beginners) in December and started surfing almost everyday, and then I bought a shortboard (smaller, harder, but better for turning and getting street cred) in early March. I go everyday now that the waves on the South Shore have picked up, and I've been quite happy with how quickly I've improved. A picture of me surfing does exist on my friend's camera, and I'll get it up on here at some point.

As for ESL, the non-profit increased my hours a couple months back, which was great because my restaurant hours went to 0 around the same time. As much as I liked restaurant work, I'm loving having my evenings free. I don't think there's any more beautiful view in Hawaii than watching a sunset from the water on a surfboard. I also reffed little kids flag football for a month or two, which was a fun way to make a few bucks. It also got me traveling to various parts of the greater Honolulu area that I probably wouldn't have made it to otherwise.

In addition to teaching ESL, the non-profit is also trying to start up computer literacy classes, and I've been chosen to teach the first test term. Starting next Tuesday, I'll be teaching a four-class session at one of the housing projects on the west side of Honolulu. In some ways I'm almost more excited to teach computer literacy than ESL, in large part because I won't have to struggle to come up with interesting subject matter.

Though I do really enjoy life in Hawaii, I'm actually going to be leaving at the end of the month. I have a flight back to LA on April 28th and will be spending a couple of weeks there and in Claremont (where Pomona is). After Pomona's graduation, I'll be driving to Colorado with a friend, and then from there make it back to Connecticut somehow, possibly with the help of one or both parental units.

I'll be in Connecticut for at least the summer, but the future after that is largely a question mark. At this point, I think it's most likely that I'll teach ESL abroad for a year in Taiwan, but who knows. I've also applied for the Peace Corps and they seem to like me, but I'm not sure if I like them enough.

pandora.com

I'm sure that for some of you this is old news, but for others it may revolutionize your music life.

Pick a song, artist, or genre and get a radio station composed of others songs pandora thinks you might like. You can 'like' or 'not like' any song you hear, and the station will further attempt to customize itself for you. I think it does a pretty good job and use it all da time.

Photo Dump #3

To my faithful followers, I apologize. Between year-end festivities in Hawaii, traveling home for the first half of January and spending a week in LA on my way back to Honolulu, I haven't posted anything.

For now, you'll just have to settle for a random assortment of photos from my phone that don't really do the last month and a half justice.

New Years on the beach...and no I didn't celebrate it alone


My favorite Hawaiian dog...dog sat for my friend right after New Years


What awaited my return in Hamden


Glasses have shrunk considerably since the early 90s


A view of Honolulu from Diamond Head


Sunset on the North Shore outside of Haleiwa


My favorite cat ever going for a snack

Photo Dump #2

Joslyn visited from the 7th through the 14th and we had a great time hiking, beaching, and exploring the island together.

Me in front of Rabbit Island by Makapu'u


Joslyn at the Pali lookout


Pipe Masters surf competition on the North Shore (Super Bowl of surfing kind of)


And in action...


Looking down from an old water tower on a hike


Possibly my favorite picture of the two of us ever


HUGE Banyan tree


Some dolphins we met


Sunset at my favorite surf spot


So, now the rest of you have to come visit me!

Sometimes It Pays To Know Semi-Obscure German Philosophers

This post's story begins in July, when on one of my frequent trips to Goodwill I happened across a book entitled "Unterwegs Zur Sprache" by Martin Heidegger. It struck me as odd that a book in German was on sale at a Goodwill in Honolulu, so I picked it up and opened it for further examination. Much to my surprise, I found a dedication in German on the inside title page. Scanning down, a signature that looked a lot like 'Martin Heidegger' was at the bottom. It looked authentic, but could I really have just stumbled across a signed copy of Martin Heidegger's final book for 99 cents at Goodwill?



In short, the answer to that question was yes. I gladly invested 99 cents, snapped a few pictures of it, and then sent it off to every appropriate auction site or autograph collector (including many Danish and German ones overseas) I could find online. One site, rrauction.com, offered to consign the book for me, and I sent it off.

Several months later it sold for $220 in their October auction, and I made $198. By far the best 99 cent investment that I've ever made. On the off chance that anyone out there has autographs they'd like to sell, I fully endorse rrauction. Friendly people, fast responses via e-mail, and very professional.

My Hawaiian Thanksgiving

With no class today because of the holiday, I had a free day until work at night. The waves suck right now, so I finally did what I've wanted to do for a while; I rode all the way around the island. Well almost all the way around it. You can't complete the loop on the west side. Below is a map of my route, heading east from the 'A' (home) first.

Yes I drew the shaky red line myself, thank you.


Plus a few choice pictures along the way.

Sandy's Beach


Rabbit Island near Makapu'u


View of the mountains from He'eia State Park


Somewhere along the northeastern coast of Oahu


Interesting...



My Thanksgiving dinner: one of the many shrimp trucks on the North Shore



There was writing covering all of the tables as well as the truck itself. This was my favorite.


Waimea


Hale'iwa


Rainbow on the way back south



I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving!

Photo Dump #1

Sunset


Where I like to go bodyboarding


I'm a father now...just kidding, friend's baby


Just playing some scattergories


Biggest one I've seen so far

It's Not All Frozen Waffles & Ramen

Dinner a few nights ago.