Wednesday, May 20, 2009

A Long Flight


A few months ago there was a miraculous plane landing on the Hudson River in Washington, D.C. I remember hearing someone on TV say that this was the second ever successful emergency water landing of a plane. They talked about how hard water is when you are traveling five hundred miles per hour, but looking out the window now, I am willing to bet that the snow capped mountains are a lot harder than water.

In spite of getting a terrible night’s sleep, I am off on the first leg of my Journey. I set out at 8:00 this morning and will be arriving in Alaska at 11:30 PM (2:30 AM central time).

It is incredible to me that man was clever enough to build a large hunk of metal and plastic, capable of traveling through the air at five hundred miles per hour without any sort of wires or cables suspending it. It is even more amazing to me that God was clever enough to build a tiny hunk of muscle and tendon and bone that is not only capable of flying hundreds of miles a day, but also builds itself and “learns” to fly while only a couple of months old without being taught.

Here is a question for the day. If there is a fly buzzing around a plane at 5 miles per hour, and the plane is flying 500 miles per hour, how fast is that fly flying?

I just arrived in the Seattle airport and I have a two quick observations.

The first is that there is a perceptible change in the pace and attitude between people here and those in the Atlanta airport. Everyone seems calmer here, there is less noise, fewer people, and more time to just breathe.

The second is that I just watched two complete strangers have a two minute conversation about how one of them just saw his aunt for the first time in 33 years.

Throughout my travels, I will occasionally be posting pictures that I think help to tell the story. It would be a tremendous help to me if those of you that are reading would leave constructive comments and criticisms about what images and stories you find most interesting. I am doing this trip for myself, but I am doing this blog for you guys, so please contribute and let me know what you like. I have been accepting criticism on my writing and photography for two and a half years now so do not worry about hurting my feelings or making me mad.

Also, I am planning to complete a series of photo projects and photo documentaries as I travel about with the eventual goal of producing gallery showings or a book, so I would like to hear your ideas and thoughts about what sorts of projects you would find interesting.

So let’s hear it. What ideas do you have for photo projects?

Monday, May 18, 2009

The Night Before

I feel kinda jittery tonight.

It is late and I am tired, but I am too wired from pre-trip stress to fall asleep yet. You see, tomorrow is the beginning of a new chapter of my life.

The past few weeks have been all about saying good bye. I just graduated from the University of Alabama with a BA in Adventure Photography, and a BS in World Cultural and Environmental Interactions. I also just finished my fourth year of service as a Campus Life staff at a local high school and middle school, where I invested countless hours into the lives of my students and friends. Saying goodbye to my friends has definitely been the hardest part of leaving. It will be strange to not have the constant support and companionship of people like Kasey, Josh, Marion, and Mary Katherine.

Just a few minutes ago, I said goodbye to my girlfriend Sierra. We only dated for three months, but saying goodbye to her really helped me to feel the shift that is taking place in my life as of tomorrow morning.

Tomorrow I set out on the first leg of my journey. My plan is to travel throughout North America, beginning with a trip to Alaska with my Dad. After a week in Alaska, I will be traveling to Costa Rica and then returning home for a four month road trip around the country.

I am eager to see what the next day holds for me.

Good Night!