Still can't call it quits. As I keep this travel train rolling, I fulfill my unrelenting desire to create interesting situations, see and make new friends, and snag a few more new and unforgettable experiences along the way. After NYC, I have continued making my way back across the states with the hear/now in focus while Oregon waits in the distance.
Having never been to the head of the nation, I decided it was indeed time to pay DC a visit. Couldn't hurt that I've got a pair of amazing friends living there as well. It was quickly clear that four days there was nowhere near enough time. If I were to live there, I would be super smart, because I would just hang out in museums all the time. With all of those, the monuments, and other historical places of interest, DC has the talent to keep anybody busy for as long as you've got. While watching the sunset from the steps of the capital, I was not only in awe, but I couldn't help being a little uneasy thinking about that scene from Independence Day and knowing I was sitting directly in the line of fire.
Next up, Austin! Plans to spend the Halloween weekend in Texas had been in place for quite a while. And for good reason, because Austin tears the face of Halloween, uses it as a mask, and has a blasty blast all weekend. We partook. In hefty amounts. While I originally went to visit my Cara, it turns out that Austin is full of tons of amazing people. Plus some fantastic food. I enjoyed all these things for several days, but nowhere near long enough. I recall riding back in the car with my friends, fresh off a crazy beautiful lake sunset, rocking out all the way, and just thinking to myself how absolutely perfectly happy I was. Nothing can can defeat your moments of ultimate bliss. Surround yourself with those people in your life that help create those times. Live for those moments. Hey Austin, thanks for cementing Halloween as my favorite holiday ever!!!
Up until Austin, I had been relying on buses and planes for the majority of my transportation. Time to switch it up. Perhaps a form of modern hitchhiking? Yes, please. I check out Craigslist rideshares and find a dude headed towards California the next day. I get in contact, he picks me up. The following days we cruise around New Mexico and Arizona, checking out some pretty cool stuff. At night we hit up some people on couchsurfing.com for place to sleep. Then I was on my own again as I needed to get to LA to reunite with my sister. This time I employed the old school hitchhiking methods. Stick out your thumb and rely on the kindness of the world. So, the most awesome Navajo Indian picks me up and we cruise all the way to LA, chat about the film he's working on, all kinds of Navajo stuff, South America, the world, and life in general while taking a break every now and then to headbang to some classic rock.
Lots of people question my sanity when they hear about me jumping in the car with total strangers or going over to random houses to stay with people I have never met. The truth is that I just don't see it like that. It's not scary because "strangers" truly are just friends you haven't yet met. One thing I have learned is that the world is full of good people. Obviously there is a small percentage of bad ones who taint the pot and give us negative connotations about a lot of things. But, truth be told, people are good. And all it takes is opening up, and taking that chance to make a connection. So worth it.
Now that I have effectively made myself sound like a hippie, I got business to attend to. Gotta get myself up to Fresno to watch my sister rip through her xcountry race. After that, Oregon isn't too far off in the distance. Here I come!.....As soon as the universe smiles upon me with a ride.
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