On a cool, crisp spring morning in early April, it was time to set out on another epic adventure. I packed up my truck with all of my essentials and eagerly set out from Seattle on an epic five-day journey back home to Chattanooga. This journey would prove to be a test of patience and... Continue Reading →
The Undeniable Allure of A New Place [travel blog][photos]
There is something special in the emotional unfolding of settling into a new place that I find invigorating and tantalizing. There is something in the sensational, wide-eyed nature of delving into the unknown and the unfamiliar. There is something in the mental transition from feeling lost in a foreign land to feeling the comfort and... Continue Reading →
The Subtle Art of Being Alone With Your Thoughts
I think back over the past decade and can’t help but think about how much time was spent on my phone. It’s astonishing if I think about it. Communication and distractions on phones take up a large chunk of our lives and have fundamentally changed the routine of our days and our interactions with our... Continue Reading →
A Sequoia Adventure: The Captivating Forest of Dreams
Some places I wander into in nature captivate my soul in special ways, not just for their beauty and grandeur, but because they whisper into my very being and offer me something that we all need a heavy dose of from time to time, humility. Sequoia National Park was that special place that I recently... Continue Reading →
Finding Clarity and Purpose in the Fear of Death
I feel like I too easily grow complacent with life, as the drudgery of my routine experience ebbs and flows from day to day, month to month, and year to year. Everything has its place, is endlessly predictable, and seems to bleed on forever in the same old fashion. It’s so easy to seek comfortability,... Continue Reading →
Facing Mortality and Finding Inspiration in a Ghost Town [photos]
Living along Route 66, you find yourself stumbling upon a wealth of unusual places that bewilder and inflame the imagination. Some of these places seem lost in time, where shells of legends can be heard echoing through the forgotten thistles of a vast expanse of space. You wander upon the strange, the bleak, the gimmicky,... Continue Reading →
Do You Ever Feel Lost in a Whirlwind of Contradictory Emotions?
I have a week left living in Flagstaff after three months here doing contract work and I am experiencing a whirlwind of emotion. A week from now, this charming small town, wonderfully tucked away in the Coconino Forest and Northern Arizona mountains will be but a memory. I have no complaints. It’s been a lovely... Continue Reading →
Transforming From Victim to Being the Boss of Your Life
It’s funny how life has presented me with recurring epiphanies about how I am in charge of my day, or maybe it’s a sign I need to pay more attention and apply what I have learned. Either way, I had a recurring epiphany this week when I was feeling stressed, discouraged, and like I just... Continue Reading →
Learning to Recognize the Patterns of My Anxiety
Step one to solving any problem is admitting you have a problem, right? It seems so basic and yet can be so elusive if we lose focus. I was talking to my therapist this week about my anxiety and I told him that this week has been a decent week for me with managing stress... Continue Reading →
Humphrey’s Peak: A Test of the Body, Mind, and Spirit [photos]
Humphrey’s Peak has been teasing me ever since I moved to Flagstaff, AZ a couple of months ago. I knew at one point I was going to set out to climb the mighty peak, it was just a matter of when. I have fallen in love with the area since I have been here. Flagstaff... Continue Reading →