Toasty Road Observation 19

City bathroom tip number two. (Tip Number one) If you gotta go and you can't find any respectable receptacle you can always do as this lady did. Poop or pee in between two cement construction guards. I only took a quick glance as I'm sure others only did too, so it's safe to do the doo doo.

-Stephen

Just Finished Reading

I just finished reading "Emergency This book will save your life" by Neil Strauss a book that I bought a few days ago. It's and interesting book about a man's journey to become a survivalist to protect himself from the world and through the process learns to embrace life and humanity.

The last two pages of the book are awesome and I just thought I would post them here.

EPILOGUE
She was a nineteen-year-old student. She sang, played piano, went to church every Sunday. Today there was a C.E.M.P call-out to Northridge, where a SUV sped through a red light and hit her as she was crossing the street.
Her body flew several dozen feet though the air before landing face-first on the ground. The jewelry she was wearing clattered across the intersection. The artwork she was carrying scattered in the wind.
She seemed talented. She seemed smart, She seemed Generous.
She never had a chance.
It could have just as easily been me. It could have just as easily been you. But it was her.
Tomorrow, though is another day.


THE PARTING WORDS OF THE FISHWIFE SIDUR TO GILGAMESH:
"When the heavenly gods created human beings, they kept everlasting life for themselves and gave us death. So, Gilgamesh, accept your fate. Each day, wash your head, bathe your body, and wear clothes that are sparkling fresh. Fill your stomach with tasty food. Play,sing,dance,and be happy both day and night. Delight in the pleasures that your wife brings you, cherish the little child who holds your hand. Make every day of your life a feast of rejoicing! This is the task that the gods have set before all human beings. This is the life you should seek, for this is the best life a mortal can hope to achieve."

Toasty Road Observations 18

Lately I have been enjoying looking up. I know it sounds kind of stupid, "looking up". Have you ever made a conscious decision to look up? I walk a ton in the city to and from work and all around on the weekends, all the time I'm walking. Most of the time during these trips I've either been looking down in thought, or just looking ahead. Well the other day I made a decision to look up, simple enough but hard enough to do. To my amazement things are super awesome when you look up. Buildings are tall and impressive, the sky is amazing in color and depth, and clouds create some of the most amazing organic forms I've ever seen. Looking up also makes me feel a bit more in my place, lets me know how large the world is and reminds me to slow down. Nothing makes me feel more like this than looking up and seeing the vast landscape ahead of me of buildings or a road that stretches from one end of the city to the other.

My walk to work isn't so much about getting to work or home but it's also a journey that it's part of my life. The time I spend walking should be enjoyed and cherished, these walks by the way are made up of precious minutes of my life that I'll never get back. Looking up allows me to slow down and refocus on exploring and observing, this tends to make the walk less about the task of getting somewhere. Funny thing is, I remember a time when I hated the in between, I just wanted to be at the destination. I could never enjoy the journey, I never realized that there was a journey. I just couldn't stand not being where I needed to go. Never knowing I would never get to where I was really going, because once I got there I always had somewhere else I should have be. Unfortunately I think this transcended to more of my life than just my travels to one place to another.

I guess I have to stop looking ahead all the time and just look up every once and awhile. Enjoy the path, right?

Mexico Pictures Uploaded

I uploaded my photos from my Cruise to Mexico they can be found on the sidebar under Stephen's Road trip Photos or by clicking here.

Bye Bye Mexico

It's been fun wish I had some more time, but I'm super happy to be
sailing home.

Manzanillo

The port is not much to look at since it's an industrial port.
Manzanillo it self may not be too much look at either. Still hands
down Xtapa is the place to be. We rode around in a car all over up and
down the mountain. I think the one thing I'll remember the most from
Manzanillo is the speed bumps. They are like every twenty feet and are
super big plus when your sitting in the back of a van your bouncing
all over the place.
Tonight we head back to sea for another two days before we get home to
San Diego. Once we got to
Mexico it went real quick and I'm sure the next two days are going to
be real slow as I wait to get home.

People on cruise ships

Love this shit. It's a monkey made out of my towels. A monkey, out of
towels. Every night a new little towel animal awaits my arrival.