Excuses

If I told you that my computer broke and had to be sent away to be fixed, would that be a sufficient excuse for not posting for over three weeks? What about if I blamed it on the holidays? There are people that believe there should be no excuses in life -- I am not one of those people. I could fill this post with excuses. But lets just put this whole haven't-updated-the-blog-in-three-weeks thing behind us. Deal? Deal.

Today finds me in Denver. I've been here since the 31st. I last posted when I was spewing profanities and cursing babies in Flagstaff, reeling from altitude sickness and lady rage. You'll be relieved to know I calmed down after a few days, although not before I attempted to find the Grand Canyon. You'd think that it being "Grand" and all would make it fairly trackable but that was not the case. I could find it on a map. I found ample signs and directions from Flagstaff. From the entrance to the National Park, I found the Visitor's Center without a hitch. And then the trail stopped there. I was in a maze of parking lots and construction areas. There were lots of signs about where to hike or bike or bird-watch or what-have-you but no simple sign saying "Viewpoint That Way." To be honest, all I wanted to do was see the darn thing, snap a picture of myself in front of it and then be able to say that I saw it. I ended up going in circles, fuming and rehearsing the lecture that I was going to give the forest rangers/park volunteers on their incompetency in making my visit easy. I finally teamed up with other frustrated tourists and we followed clues until we got to the viewpoint. Then, there were just too many people there. Didn't they know I wanted some alone time with nature? I resented them all and headed back to Flagstaff. Thats what happens when I try to sight-see while incredibly cranky.

From Flagstaff I hit up Santa Fe, New Mexico. It was one of my most anticipated drives but, unfortunately, I picked one of the cloudy and rainy days in the Southwest. By the time I got to Santa Fe, it had turned to snow. The drive in was sketchy but the final product of Santa Fe in the snow was worth it. The first night there I walked to a cafe (I love walking in the snow) and got turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy (I love comfort food), read a good book while The Beatles played on the overhead stereo (I love The Beatles) and life could not have gotten much better. I realize this experience is not unique to New Mexico but a standard formula for a good time is appreciated anywhere.

Santa Fe comes highly recommended. The people are nice, the feel is laid back, and the food is fantastic. I tried to get a picture of Old Town to get the overall aesthetic, although the pics came out a bit rushed:

From Santa Fe I headed to Denver, caught a plane, headed to Pittsburgh for a few days, and then flew back. Christmas was a time of family, food, and sloth. I had daily naps and lots of reading.

The only definite plans in the next two weeks is to head to Austin to meet-up with a friend and take in the sights and sounds. And then I think my trip will be coming to an end. Its time for me to get a job. Portland is my final destination where I'll jump into the adult-like activities of looking for an apartment and a job and becoming an asset to my community (something like that.) I can say with certainty that I'm not looking forward to the work but am incredibly psyched to live the Portland experience. I'll keep you updated (with posts more frequent than three weeks.)