Jacksonville Florida, January 2010

“It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end.” 

 ― Ernest Hemingway

I would bet Andrew's coal shovel that Mr. H said this over a cool, sweating brew at Pete's bar while hustling some fool in a game of pool. To be upfront I am by no means an expert on Ernest Hemingway, Jacksonville culture or history, nor really an expert on anything at all now that I really think about it.  However,  the place has that kind of aura about it. It's that 'something' that hangs in the air mixed with the cigarette smoke in a place where great things were thought and said ( The Golden Ox has a slightly different feeling about it).  Based solely on this gut feeling can I say that this great man sat in this same bar some 50+ years earlier and uttered these words, or at the very least it crossed his mind.  I cannot say the same for us. 

Pete's Bar-- 117 1st Street Neptune Beach FL 

Palm Tree in front of the Bowles St Beach House

Jacksonville Florida, January 2010 is without a doubt my favorite adventure of all time.   Not because it was the ideal vacation but because it was a great misadventure.  Nothing seemed to go the right way besides the fact that we got there and home without incident and no one got hurt.   Besides that it could not have been further from what I had expected it to be, and for that reason more memorable than any other trip I had ever been on. 

5 of the 6 castaways

When foolish midwesterners think of Florida we think, hot and humid and beautiful all the time.  We were in Florida for a record breaking coldest week in the history of the state.  What looks like a nice day at the beach with some good looking chaps is really 55 degrees, both air and water. 

...[So] began the part of my life you could call my life on the road.”

                                                                        

-Sal Paradise, On The Road

I heard a story once, told by a disputed "visionary." It captures the spirit of adventure and spontaneity I wish I had everyday of my life.   It began with three friends sitting in a dark, dive of a bar watching whatever game was on during whichever season it happened to be. Several minutes of uninterrupted silence had passed between these friends;  only the sound of the game, clinking glass and the murmur of the thin tuesday night crowd could be heard in the background.  When suddenly, the friend in the middle sits up straight,  inflated by the thought that had just entered his mind and says, "guys, I've got to get out of here."   The friend to the right, only half listening still glued to the screen, says something like, "yea, okay Phil I'll drive you home in a few minutes." Phil now sliding off his stool looks directly at his buddy's eyes and says, "No I mean I need to get out of here." The friend now meeting Phil's gaze, only because it is a better option than the commercial break that the game is now in,  says "Phil what are you talking about? We can go to Sports Page I guess. Why do you want to leave? "   Phil now taking on a slightly crazed/ determined look ignores the questions and says,  "You don't get it,  I have to get out of here. Out of this bar. Out of Arlington Heights. Out of Illinois. Tonight!"   An odd moment passes, all three men on their feet, as two sets of puzzled and concerned looks are the only response to this bizarre turn of events. Phil's face covered in determination and joy at this idea he has had.  The third friend, silent to this point breaks the tension by saying,  " I'll drive."    The next morning the three friends ate denver omelets in a diner near the airport in Denver Colorado.

In seven days I have the great fortune of being able to embark on an adventure I have always dreamt of.  I get to fill my summer with as many cities, domestic and foreign, as time and my bank account will allow.  Which is to say,  far fewer than I would like,  though more than I could ever have wished for.  That being said, and this being the year 2013 I figured I should get with the times and do what the 'kids' are doing and start social media-izing my life experiences.   So here on this page I will try my best to make daily posts about where I am,  who i've met, what I have seen, done, tasted and experienced.  I want to immerse everyone in the unique experiences I hope to have.  It should be a pretty wild ride and I wish more than anything that I could have friends and family to share this experience in person but, alas, Twitter, Blogger and Facebook will have to do. 

To get used to this process of organizing and sharing my thoughts and experiences in, hopefully, an interesting, honest and informative way I will be sharing some of the greatest hits of the trips I have taken in my life to this point.  Bear with me through the next week of memory lane because Friday May 14th is when the true adventure begins.  Also bear with me because I have not actually written stories since high school,  so it'll all begin around a C + sophomore year creative writing level at best.  As an example I thought the phrase "bear with me," used the spelling bare, which would mean something more like get naked with me, rookie mistake.   Join me on my travels if it floats your boat, I look forward to sharing it with you.  

“Not all those who wander are lost.” 

― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Rings