King of the Mountains

Here in the valley you can take a turn going whichever direction and you inevitably end up heading toward some set of mountains. Though they are all different ranges and individual mountains, they basically box in the metropolitan area and make for some great sunrises and sunsets in the vast desert sky pierced with a few sky scraping peaks. These ranges include the Superstition and Usery mountains to the east, South mountain to the south, the Sierra Estrellas to the southwest, the White Tanks due west, the McDowells and Mazatzal mountains to the northeast and the Hieroglyphics to the northwest. And they all have some great summits, like the Mazatzals' zenith Four Peaks (namesake of a brewery here), among others.
But in the center of the valley is a lone tall mountain,...Camelback, seen here with the Buttes glowing red as always in the foreground. On Saturday after a Friday night out on the Mustache Bike Ride and Bar Hop, I got out and literally jogged my way up Camelback. It is named this because of its obvious resemblance to a sitting camel and its hump. It was a great climb with some steep, slippery portions that one has to sprint up if they don't want to use the hand rails.When I reached the top, I found a Christmas tree,...a great view of mountains to the north,...and a police helicopter chasing after me.
Another mountain that stands tall in the valley, though small in comparison, is A mountain which I hiked last weekend.As you can see, the planes fly close by. Since moving here I have seen more airplanes than ever before. At night you can see them from far away in the sky blinking like the star that the three wisemen are heading to on the top of A mountain.

While climbing this mountain and riding my bike around town, I captured some scenes of the valley.

Sun Devil stadium and the other athletic facilities from atop A mountain. The stadium is awesome tucked in between two hills.

A view of the Mill Avenue district in downtown Tempe, with part of ASU campus on the left and Phoenix's city park (largest in the country), South Mountain, in the background.

The old Hayden Flour Mill for which the infamous street is named. It is just an empty building with a now non-connected railroad track cutting through.

A view from A mountain of the Mill and Phoenix in the distance.

Gammage - the performing arts center at ASU.

More of the geometric buildings on the southwest arts corner of ASU.

A tucked away statue showing the Native American and artistic histories of the southwest.

I hope that these views offer you some picture of where I am, at least until Thursday morning when I head to Las Vegas and will exit the mountains of the valley and catch a flight to the almighty Rockies and the wonderful world of snow.

a day trip through the Delta and a trip home for Thanksgiving

While I was home for Thanksgiving I took a day trip through the Arkansas and Mississippi Delta. After dropping off my busted computer at the Clinton School I took off toward Pine Bluff, trying to pick up a passenger along the way but Geoffrey was in Cambridge for the Harvard-Yale game. So my first stop didn't come until Dumas where I stopped in at Miller's Mud Mill and picked up a cheese tray for my mom.
While driving I passed through so many small southeast Arkansas towns like Lake Village...and kept remembering the road which I had taken countless times to Hamburg, Arkansas, to see Uncle Dane and eventually down to Monroe, Louisiana, to visit Mama, Pop, Aunt Lynn, Amanda and Hailey Haynes. But before I could make it there I turned left to cross the bridge to Greenville, Mississippi, the first planned stop on this trip. I was supposed to meet Frances, a friend I met in Spain and who attended the Mississippi State University. Frances had just taken the CPA exam the day before and thus slept through our engagement. But that didn't leave me with nothing to do. I headed to downtown Greenville and got an amazing meal at Jim's Place where I had some of the best greens and strawberry shortcake I have ever tasted from this man:Afterward I headed next door and shopped for some boots at Looking Good.No luck with the boots but I hopped in my car and headed to Helena-West Helena, Arkansas. Once I crossed the Mississippi River for the second time that day and entered town, I ran across a sign that James Mitchell mentioned in his writings.I stopped in Helena-West Helena to visit my Aunt Lynn and Uncle Dana who bought two houses there within the past year and are currently living and working on the nicer and bigger of the two. I sat with them for two hours in one of the living spaces with this amazing stove place:This was a long, but relaxing day on the road and was just the start to my trip back home.

Ten days for Thanksgiving might still not have been enough but I enjoyed every minute of it - getting to play soccer with Zach's teams, run and hang out with Imhoff, spend a couple evenings with the Shadids and a couple more with the Harrisons,...pick Haynes up from the airport, join in on a great meal at Yo' Momma's with a great crew, eat the best food on Thanksgiving and welcome Tina and Ricky into the house, spend some quality dessert-eating time out at the Oates', cover up on a rainy and cold but still amazing Razorback football day, shoot my first shotgun and get challenged by Sam on our Saturday Thanksgiving at the Boultinghouse's, play some football with North Little Rock kids from all ages, hang out with my crazy sisters and little brother, and spend almost every non-working time minute with Zach or the dogs.

Now I'm back in Tempe and already almost on my way out again. I spent the last week doing a lot more work on my project and working out a Foundation trip to D.C. around the inauguration to meet with Veterans' Affairs stakeholders, working with Tillman Scholars on their CGIU commitments, spending a Friday night seeing art with Katie, Eric, Joel, and Erin, and going to an bonfire/beer pong party at Ari's, a Saturday being active riding around town taking photos, climbing A Mountain and walking through the Tempe Arts Festival before seeing Katie's cousins' metal show and then just relaxing, running, and reading the rest of the time. Next stop, Las Vegas to the Rockies and back to Las Vegas for the new year.

Peace.

more to read and see, and then to settle down

everywhere i look i have a book waiting to read. i say this because on my desk right now at work i have a pile of 6 that i need to delve into for my own personal education and at home i have a box of 15 that i am steadily chipping away at. as haynes pointed out while we were home for thanksgiving, it is nice to have the internet and the website goodreads that james mitchell sent to us to keep books "on the shelf" virtually.

i just created the first rough itinerary of haynes' and i's trip around north america. it is more or less a way to figure out what directions and zig-zags we will take and not a schedule of our time. haynes has some "must-sees" and i have some as well. then there are friends - todd, kirsten, ryan, to name a few - around that we want to visit. we will have 2 months but from the initial plan, we might have to extend it. and we will most likely make the trip down for ginny branch's wedding into a trip as well. so look forward to us adding and taking from your refrigerator soon.

i have applied for some jobs, or am at least planning on applying. the only prerequisites i have are that the job be working with people and not all day in an office and that i am in a place where people will visit me. i can't wait to move to a big or small, definitely walkable and rideable city or town where i can find people and places that wave at each other and welcome you in. i also can't wait to find a place where i can have my own space and decorate it and have a lot of bookshelves and a desk and a comfortable couch.

before i come home for thanksgiving

Before I head back home early tomorrow morning for a long Thanksgiving break, let me share about the last two weeks. Two weekends ago I woke up early and Eric picked me up in his Jetta and we drove about an hour and forty five minutes north to Prescott, Arizona, for an Ultimate Frisbee hat tournament. We got split up into teams and played three games in the mile-high altitude, a nice breeze, and a deceptively blistering sun. I had to tape up and pad my right middle finger because it was still wide open from the jack-o-lantern incident. This effected my game a little bit but overall it was a good day with my team losing all three games. From the fields at Riddle-Embry College we went with Eric's friend Jee to the Hotel St. Michael which is located right on the square in downtown Prescott on Whiskey Row. There we showered and readied for a night out on the town.

At the Raven Cafe we got all-you-can-eat pasta and garlic bread and two free beers (all part of the $20 tournament cost). There we hung out with the other Ultimate kids, and had an especially good time with the Northern Arizona University women's team (as seen here with Kerry, Paula, myself and some drinks).

From the Raven, where we got happy-hour prices all night, we headed to some place down Whiskey Row and had more good times (as seen here with Jee and Eric).

And from there, to bed. We woke up in the morning late and didn't attend the next day of the tournament (many others had already left). Instead, we walked around the square on a beautiful cloudy day in Prescott.


All I have to say is that northern Arizona is where it is at.

Last week, was filled with more interviews, a back and forth from my apartment to work on my bike, and training for my half marathon in January. But I also got to see some of Phoenix. Katie, Eric, Joel and I drove into the city and ate at the Old Spaghetti Factory before heading over to see the Suns fight, I mean play, the Rockets. It was great finally getting to do what people are supposed to do in big metropolitan areas. This past weekend included more of that as I went to Spinato's Pizza (where you bring your own beer) with Eric and Joel on Friday, but then on Saturday, after helping Bike Saviours move and organize into a new spot, I went with Eric and his friend Richard to an Arizona Fall League game where they inducted Derek Lee into the AFL Hall of Fame. After the game we went and saw Bond. Then the next morning, on Sunday, I woke up early and went hiking for three hours with Ryan Guzy, or the Bike CoOp, and his wife at South Mountain. This is the largest municipal park in the U.S. and is a huge "green" (but really brown) area in the south of Phoenix. The hike was beautiful and gave a view of the entire valley from the metropolitan centers to the mountainous outskirts of which Ryan knew most of the peak names and ranges.


Other than that we had an event last night for the Foundation where the Scholars got to "speed network" with all of their potential Mentors and I just watched. Tonight, after one more interview, I'm going to hang out and then...

I'm on my way home.

a good feeling

During my days of interviewing former Tillman Scholars and building context and comfort for my project here in Tempe, I have also been able to read and reflect - a lot. Over the past month, I've been reading about what is going on in the world, what has gone on in the world, and what will go on in the world.

I've also been meeting people, from the friends I mentioned in a previous post, to my new roommate, to the Tillman community, and with each new person I have gotten to hear a new story, and with each new story I feel that my story is being shaped.

Really what this post is about is that I have a good feeling. I have a good feeling about today, a good feeling about tomorrow, and a good feeling about my future and the future of this world.

Just thought I would share before I head to Prescott this weekend to play in another Ultimate Frisbee tournament with a sliced open finger and a busted shoulder.

Peace.

a jump rope champion in san francisco

I traveled this past week through the desert, up the Pacific coast, and into the colorful house-filled hills of San Francisco.

The trip started after I unpacked my car at my new place on Tuesday night and then dropped Shawn off at the office on Wednesday morning and headed on my way through Phoenix and western Arizona towards the Colorado River. After briefly stopping at a checkpoint to cross into California and passing through Blythe and Coachella, I made it to Palm Springs and the Morongo Indian Reservation (and casino) and saw more of the future in between in a place called Whitewater.

I passed through L.A. in a blitz and made it to where the hills hit the coast.

I drove the 101 to the 1, going back from the future,...
passing the elephant seals,...
driving through and above the clouds, and...
taking a few photos of the car.
I cruised in and around the hills, hugging the hills when coasting right and scaring myself when leaning left. I drove through the trees as the sun set and spent the last hour in the dark, the entire time thinking of some late night drives through the Ozarks back and forth from the Buffalo. I spent the night in Big Sur, sleeping next to a river which less than a mile away joined the ocean.
It was amazing waking up to some chilly weather and underneath leaves changing color. I packed up camp and drove 12 miles north and stopped at Bixby Bridge, one of many historic concrete bridges along the way, but the most amazing. Here is where Jack Kerouac spent most of his adventure in his book Big Sur and is one of the spots I planned to spend some time.
I climbed down the several hundred feet to the coast and hiked along a creek trail. At the beginning of the trail were some old, rusty cars that seemed liked they had been pushed off into the canyon after a long cross country adventure. One was decorated with a pieced together driver with a sign on the back bumper stating that he was "going to the beach". I added a touch to this pile of junk.
Seeing the fresh water creek flow into some smashing salty sea waves underneath a great concrete expanse was a good start to the day.After this stop I made my way up the coast, stopping in Santa Cruz for a hot dog, coffee, and some bike riding (up a hill to UC Santa Cruz, which I couldn't find entirely) on my new old rusty women's Schwinn Sprint. Back on the road I made it into San Francisco right to the workplace of Ryan Lewis at 826 Valencia... where I met Lauren from Arkansas. That afternoon we dressed up for the Halloween party with the kids. Ryan was a Ceiling Fan and I was Elmo.

That night Ryan and I walked by some amazing graffiti, seeing one of my favorite artist's work (her name is Swoon).And then met his friend Kate at the Pirate Cat Radio station to watch All My Pretty Ones perform on the air. After that good show we crossed Arkansas street...and headed to Bottom of the Hill to watch another show (with one of Ryan's coworkers in it).

On Halloween we went to the office, did some work, and I met my cousin Christy for lunch. Later we readied our costumes and I sliced open my finger while carving some amazing Ipod and headphone pumpkins.While my finger bled we passed out candy to the tricker-treaters and finally headed out to a party where Ryan the Lumberjack and I ran into the local cat lady, a group of toys, Michael Phelps, and some Palins (both Sarah and Bristol).We next headed on the bus to a downtown party during which the entire front half of the bus sang a Little Mermaid song. That party consisted of a team chess game and no dancing. My costume kept being confused for a tennis player and each player's name that got yelled out I just answered "How'd you know?" But what I really was was a Jump Rope Champion - faster than even the camera could catch.An uncostumed Argentinean tried to out jump me but he forgot that I told him I wasn't just a jump roper, but a jump rope CHAMPION.Halloween ended back at the apartment and to bed around 4:30 a.m.

A slow and rainy morning describes the next day, with an attempt at bike riding to meet Christy and her boyfriend Thom for lunch. I got Ryan hooked on getting a bike in just 15 minutes of riding.That night was capped with sausages and beer at Gestalt and then video games, beer, and napkin trivia at Elbo Room.
Sunday cleared up and became a beautiful day. We jumped at the opportunity to see the blue and white skies, making stops at the Painted Ladies (from Full House) with a city scape view,...at Golden Gate Park and the seaside, at the Golden Gate Bridge,...at Lombard street (the most zig-zagging street in the U.S.),...and finally at City Hall, which has the largest dome in the U.S., and fifth in the world (I read about this once and you can find more information here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Francisco_City_Hall).After a day filled with driving a stick shift up and down the San Fran hills and smelling a bit of the clutch, this extended weekend ended with an amazing concert at Bimbo's by She and Him (M. Ward, Zooey Deschanel, and company) before getting a view of the entire city at night from atop Twin Peaks.

Yesterday told of 12 hours in the car, passing through some more beautiful scenes, seeing an AmeriCorps NCCC group at a gas station, and catching up on the phone with friends. After a great time in Cali, I am now back at work at c/o Hunter Riley, The Pat Tillman Foundation, Suite 214, 2121 South Mill, Tempe, AZ, 85282.