Joaquin!

Despite three competing entries (Heidigger, Sarah, and Deb's Car), Joaquin won out as the name for my trusty steed.

UPDATE: I realize that in the comments, Deb stated a strong aversion to the car being named. She actually approved of the name "Joaquin."

Crater Lake

I am still blown away by Crater Lake. It was my first time going and from most accounts I’ve heard from people, it’s a place they’d like to go, but haven’t been.

Crater Lake was formed after a huge volcano had a massive eruption and the volcano peak sunk to form a caldera and over the last 7000 years, it has filled with water and snow. (Water leaves every summer due to seepage and evaporation.) You may be thinking, what do you mean by a huge volcano? Estimates have the volcano at 12,000’ pre-eruption. The surrounding volcanoes top out at about 9200’. This would have towered over them. Also, keep in mind that Crater Lake has a diameter of about 5 miles, give or take. If you think about it, you realize how massive the volcano must have been to cover the whole lake.

And then the water is almost an impossible shade of deep dark blue. The whole thing is breathtaking in size and beauty. The pictures I have up here do not do it justice especially since there should be a third picture between the two below. Just know that I sat at one of the overlook sites and just tried to comprehend the whole thing – a volcano that forms over hundreds of thousands of years, blows its top, and then almost instantly (especially when compared to the amount of time it has been around) becomes one of the most beautiful and pristine lakes in the world, just 7000 years ago. And yet everything around it remains in balance.



I’m sure that a wiser man than I could draw deeper meaning from this, but for me where I am now, it illustrates the importance of being willing to change, even catastrophically so. I often approach change gradually – at least in my mind. I am normally comfortable with each step of the way when I make change. I don’t know if I could envision what a Crater Lake type of transformation would look like for me.

Day Two of The Journey

I am now sitting in a bar in Twin Falls, Idaho. I may have broken my “no restaurant chain” rule, but I think I can justify it on two accounts. First, I needed to watch the second half of the Spain – Portugal match since I couldn’t find it anywhere on the radio. Second, I am only sitting in the bar drinking a Deschutes Black Butte Porter which is practically a local beer.

The drive yesterday was a bit of a haul. I left Crescent City very early with every intent of making up the lost time from Sunday. I had already decided to abandon my plan to go to Klamath Falls. That made me sad, but I really wanted to get to Crater Lake and to Bend to see Chris, so Klamath Falls fell on the priority list. It’s also closest to SF, so I can always go some other time.

There was so much to see on the road. I took 199 from Crescent City through Arcata to Grants Pass. Then took I-5 for about 15 miles until the turnoff for Crater Lake. I guess I had some romantic impression of Oregon. I expected the entire state to be devoid of warehouse stores, but that wasn’t the case. Oh well.

I had some great music to accompany me. Listen to The Whitest Boy Alive here's a link to one of the songs called 1517. It’s a fantastic album and is great driving music. Funky. I was also listening to two Leonard Cohen songs on repeat: First We Take Manhattan and Everybody Knows. How do you not get psyched by a song that has the lyric: First we take Manhattan/Then we take Berlin? Everybody Knows is such a dark song. It might be the headliner on my Songs Never To Play At A Wedding playlist. If not, it’s definitely behind No Children by the Mountain Goats.

Well, Portugal weren’t able to put anything together on offense against Spain’s defense in the last 20 minutes of the game. They needed to push much harder, but just couldn’t get it going. Spain’s goal was pretty lucky (I missed it in real time), but it just looked like Spain was in control and had lots of different opportunities.

I can’t wait for the quarterfinals – we’ll see how many I’m able to watch. I guess I can watch whichever ones I want. I just need to make time for them. Netherland vs. Brazil and Argentina vs. Germany are pretty much "must sees".

I already mentioned part of the road from Bend to Boise - specifically the part from Bend to Burns. At that point, it got really dark and the road started going up into the mountains. I was following a thunderstorm, so there was a lot of water on the ground getting kicked up by semis coming the other way. Although I could see flashes of lightning light up the sky. At certain points, the road just dropped off on one side or the other. I wanted to see where it went, but I had to concentrate more on where the road actually went and not where it wasn’t going. If only the full moon wasn't hidden by clouds.

I must admit that I got a little bit scared on the drive especially as it became midnight and I still hadn't slept in a bed in almost 2 days. To be perfectly honest, I started getting REALLY tired about 10 miles outside of Boise. Rather than toughing it out, I pulled over, slept for about an hour and a half and then pulled into a motel after driving ten measly miles.

Made It To Boise!

Current Location: Boise, ID
Miles Traveled: 1010

I am reallyfuckingtired. But I made it to Boise... after a slight miscalculation in how many miles I needed to drive. For some reason, I thought it was only around 240 miles instead of 300. It's not that much of a difference except at 1:30am when you have 60 miles to go.

What a day. I started in Crescent City, drove to Crater Lake, up to Bend, and then over to Boise - about 600 miles. I am really looking forward to sleeping in a bed tonight and shaving and showering.

One quick update before I go to sleep:

I am finally able to answer the question, "What the heck is out there beyond Bend, OR?" The answer: Absolutely NOTHING. It's the high desert out there and I wasn't sure what it meant until I drove through it. There is nothing out there. In the 125 miles between Bend and Burns, I counted fewer than 20 permanent structures, 3 small farms, and about 50 cows. And amazingly, I had a lot more cell phone coverage than I did on the drive up the California coast yesterday.

Here are a few pictures of the drive from Bend to Boise. It seriously looked like this for the first 125 miles. Despite the desolation, it was still quite scenic!

The clouds here looked like they were painted.

I did not stay here, but only because they were like 60 miles away from Boise.

My Vehicle Needs a Name!

WANTED: NAME FOR THIS RED HONDA CR-V

Deb refuses to name her car. I have proposed several names: Bessie, Ursula, Veronica, Tom, Aaron, Erin and she nixes each one. So I have decided to turn to you all for help in naming my trusty companion on the drive. I think the car can be male or female, but I'd like to have a good name for him/her.

Any suggestions?

Day One?

Current Location: Crescent City, CA
Miles Driven: About 400

You know, it’s really odd when you don’t sleep through the night in a bed and you only take naps. Do I call yesterday Day One? Or am I still on Day One now. It’s tough to tell.

True to my nature, I got started a little bit late yesterday. I had intended on leaving around 1pm. As it all fell out, I found myself leaving Burlingame around 5:15pm after paying my rent and going to the bank. The journey started with the song Bulletproof by La Roux which has been stuck in my head for the last two weeks. Believe me when I say that I’ve listened to it several times so far this trip. I am not embarrassed by any of this at all.

My route took me across the Golden Gate Bridge and then over to Stinson Beach and up Highway 1. This is not the most direct route, but it is a very scenic drive. By the time I was at Stinson, it was about 7pm and the sun was beginning its long descent.





There wasn’t a cloud in the sky and I was able to appreciate the sunset for a good two and a half hours. It was amazing, especially after the sun went down. The afterglow produced a deep orange color layer just above the horizon.

I had decided to forego a sit-down dinner because I got started so late and picked up a deli sandwich at one establishment and a 2 pound bag of salt water taffy in Bodega Bay. About 7 miles north of Bodega Bay is the town of Jenner (population 107). Just north of Jenner, there is a gate on the road that was luckily open. The next 15 miles of driving is incredible and a little bit scary, too. You’re essentially driving along the cliffs over the Pacific Ocean. There is a huge drop off and no guard rail, plus the road is SUPER curvy. With the dark blue sky over the yellow and deep orange horizon, it was a spectacular drive and well worth the time it was setting me back to take Highway 1.



Unfortunately, I found myself getting tired early on. I needed to pull off the road and took an hour nap around 10:45pm and I wasn’t even at Fort Bragg yet. After driving for a couple more hours (just short of Eureka), I took another hour nap. And then again midway between Eureka and Crescent City, I took a two hour nap.

I am now at a local diner called Fisherman’s Restaurant and am having their Oyster Casino Scramble – it’s eggs scrambled with bacon, oysters, and mushrooms and is QUITE tasty despite the fact that I ate a bit too much beef jerky (a road trip essential) and salt water taffy on my way.

I discovered that the California coast is much less populated than I had thought. There was almost zero cell phone reception along the way. I did manage to get a call in with Sandra around 4:45am, though. However, I’m worried that if the rest of America is as sparsely populated, my plan to do phone dates may be hampered.

Other stuff:
- I passed Confusion Hill on the way, but didn’t stop. I wasn’t sure what to think of it.



- There was a Van Damme State Park (see picture). I really wish this was what I envision it being.

- I saw Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox!



Music
The music that really stood out for me beyond La Roux was Miike Snow’s album, Daptone Gold (daptonerecords.com), and an album I got for free on amazon that is titled something like 4AD Sampler. Look it up and I think you can get it for free, too.

Just finished breakfast and am going to try to get to Crater Lake by 11am or so, get a hike in and the head to Bend to meet up with Chris Mezzetta who I knew in high school and was a mentor of mine there!

Driving to Fort Lauderdale!

I'm leaving about three hours later than I am intending, but I'm about to head out and drive to Florida.

I have actually never driven all the way across the country before (though I have made it from Stanford to Chicago in 44 hours and that was pretty nuts), so I am excited to be doing it.

For those of you who are Settlers of Catan fans, I am going for the longest route. My journey will take me up to Oregon and Montana, then down through the Dakotas, Wyoming, Colorado and across Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Tennessee, Mississippi, and Alabama and drop me in Florida. There will be a lot of driving and exploring. Click here to see the route.

Why am I doing it? Well, I’ve been car sitting for my friend, Deb and now she needs her car out in Fort Lauderdale. I offered to drive her car out to her and will now be doing it. I figured that if I’m going to do it, I might as well see a few states I’ve never seen before (Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Alabama).

I have set a few rules for myself:
1) Be willing to change your itinerary at any time
2) No major highways unless absolutely necessary (so no 80, 90, 50, 70, etc.)
3) No eating at chains unless they are local chains
4) Visit people I know on the way
5) Don’t drive when drowsy – Drowsiness is Red Alert. If I’m going to miss a destination because I’m too tired to drive, see Rule #1

Hikes

One of the best things about our family vacation in Graeagle is all the hiking we get to do. I think that the Lakes Basin area is some of the best and most accessible hiking around. There are numerous mountain peaks – Mt. Elwell, Mt. Washington, and the Buttes, and several different trails that all meet up here and there. In the Lakes Basin area, there are probably some 30-40 official named lakes that range in size from tiny to decently large and several waterfalls.

Check out these maps to see all the sights:
- Lakes Basin Trail Map
- More Official Looking, Non-Hand Drawn Map

On Thursday, June 17, Zack, Sarah, Leslie, and I drove out to Salmon Lake with the intention of hiking up to Deer Lake. Deer Lake is one of my favorite lakes in the area because it sits at a very high altitude and has an amazing view. I feel like I’m on top of the world when I’m at Deer Lake. Plus, the lake has an amazing view of The Buttes. This picture is from a few years ago, and yes, the water is quite cold!



In this picture, you can see The Buttes in all their glory. At the very top of the highest peak, you can see a small box-like structure. That is an old fire lookout building that was built at the top. I’ve never hiked to the top because the trail is normally covered in snow in June while we’re there. My dad and older brother have hiked there once and you can go up to the tower which apparently is scary as shit!

This is all beside the point. The trail up to Deer Lake was completely covered in snow. We were trying our best to make it up to the top, but found the going to be quite tough. Hiking uphill in the snow is tough and not all of us had waterproof boots. Rather than toughing it and hopefully finding the lake, we decided to change course and hike up to a peak that overlooked Salmon Lake and the surrounding area. After struggling to go down and then back up, we found ourselves with the view that you can see in these pictures and video. Apparently the video upload doesn't work. I'll work on it.





The hike down was so easy because of all the snow. In a couple of places, Leslie and I slid down on our butts…

It was a fantastic 4 hour hike. For those of you who are big hiking or camping people in the bay area, you may want to consider this area instead of Yosemite – there are far fewer people around and what you give up in waterfalls, you gain in lakes and accessible mountain peaks. On a clear day from Mt. Elwell, you can see all the way to Tahoe and all the way north to Mt. Lassen.

Taking a Vacation From Vacation

Yes, I know I’ve been on vacation for the last six months, but it’s still nice to get a vacation here and there. Since June 13, I’ve been on my family’s annual vacation up in the Sierras. We’re staying at the Feather River Park Resort for the 35th time. I was two months old the very first time we came up here and we’ve been coming ever since.

We look forward to this trip every year starting around January. In my mind, it’s a perfect family vacation – time with the family, time in the sun by the pool, time spent hiking and playing golf, time spent relaxing and reading, good food, and really, it’s just nice to be able to get away from it all. We get a couple of really good mafia games going each year, build a puzzle (this year it was a photomosaic puzzle of Elvis), sometimes play an epic Risk game and in general, just have an awesome time with the family.

I’m actually leaving today which is really sad, but after a couple weeks, I think I’m ready to embark on my cross country driving adventure.

This year, I went on four hikes (I’ll post pictures and videos from two of them) and played four rounds of golf. The snow levels up here were the highest I’ve seen in the last 20 years. I’d say highest ever, but I can’t remember some of the earlier years of my life. We had to abort one of our hikes because the trail was completely covered up by snow.

Anyway, I need to close this post up since I’m starting to fall asleep.

USA USA USA USA!!!

I got a fever! And the only cure is more World Cup Soccer!!

What a freaking tournament it has been thus far and it only promises to get better as each game is now an elimination game.

Here are a few of my thoughts from the first couple of weeks:
- The US-Algeria game was so INCREDIBLY exhilarating. I could not believe that our luck was so bad that we weren’t going to be able to get a goal in despite so many opportunities. And then Landon Donovan’s game winner in the first minute of stoppage time was unbelievable. I kept waiting for something to overturn the goal.

- I think that karma finally caught up with Italy. In 2006, while they did play some of the best defense I’ve seen a team play, I was extremely disappointed with their diving... ESPECIALLY against Australia. I know it’s part of the game, but they take it to such an extreme that it was nice to see them lose.

- Argentina looks really really good. I hate that Mexico has to play them so early in the elimination rounds, but it should be a fantastic game.

- South America is cleaning up. Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, and most likely Chile will be advancing. That would be every team from the region. Impressive. Most impressive.

- I’m actually impressed that there is far less diving this year than I’ve seen in previous years. Granted, it’s still there, just not as horrendously obvious… with a few exceptions. The Ivory Coast player who went down with a face injury after running his chest into Kaka’s elbow was the most egregious example of poor sportsmanship thus far. In general, the more the guy is writhing in pain, the more likely he is to shake off the injury and continue his soccer career. It’s kind of like the WWF in that regard. The punches that are thrown are real punches, and jumping off the top rope is still jumping off the top rope, but you can tell when someone is really hurt and when it’s all just part of the act.

- I can’t wait for the US-Ghana game on Saturday morning. Our defense has been porous at best and I’m worried that Ghana’s speed will exploit our weakness, but I think we’ll match up well against Ghana. Should be a fantastic game.

Driving Instructor

Over the last few months, I have taken on an entirely new role: driving instructor. My nephew, Chris, turned 18 on January 23 and he decided that it was finally time for him to get his driver’s license. As an added incentive, I had told him that once he passed his test, I would give him my Honda Civic as a gift.

Unfortunately for Chris, he wanted to learn how to drive during tax season (my brother is a CPA) and neither Matt nor Julie had the time to dedicate multiple hours to teaching him how to drive. So I offered to help out.

Now I’ll be honest, after I offered to take on this role, I started to doubt whether or not it was a wise decision, but I figured that we would see how it all went. Chris is a good kid and I knew that he was going to do his best.

On our first day, I took him to where I grew up and learned to drive – Burlingame. I felt most comfortable there because I knew the roads and could slowly ramp up the difficulty factor. In a couple of hours, we got him from residential streets to El Camino and then finally up to Highway 280 for a mile or two. (I didn’t go on the freeway for the first time until after I had passed my driving test.)

After that, Chris and I went driving probably 7 or 8 more times until his driving test on June 3 in Daly City. Believe it or not, there was a HUGE backlog of driving tests at the DMV and the earliest one we could find was 30 days away – in Daly City instead of Corte Madera where he lives.

In all of our driving, I think that there were only 3 times when I thought that we might not make it. Each of those was a good learning process (he learned how to handle the situation and I learned how to let go of being in control). In the end, I felt perfectly comfortable as a passenger as Chris drove us from Corte Madera over the Golden Gate Bridge, through SF and down to Daly City for his test.

Chris passed his driving test on the first try. He got four marks against him (the max allowable is 15), but he passed with flying colors. I think I was more nervous than he was – that may have had something to do with the car I bumped into when parallel parking at the DMV right when we got there. I hope he didn't mind since the car is now his!

The best part, though, was that I got to spend a good deal of time with Chris – driving and talking. He’ll be joining the Air Force this August and I’m sad that I won’t be able to spend as much time with him once he heads out. I really respect his desire to make the world a better place. Like any 18 year-old, I think he is a bit overly idealistic, but I'm happy that he has been getting experience through his interning with the Corte Madera Police Department and joining the Air Force.

WTF?

Quite some time ago, I bought myself a Playstation 2 so that it would double as a video game system and a DVD player. I have gained quite a bit of mileage through both, but that isn't the point. Back when I was setting up the PS2 for the very first time, I had to enter a code for parental control. I don't remember it clearly, but I don't think I had much choice about whether or not I could use the control.

On Wednesday night, Leslie, Ringo, and I had a few people come over to watch The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth. Both DVDs required me to change the parental control to Level 8 (I think it's the highest setting). It struck me as odd that two kids movies would require such a high parental control level. At the time, I made a comment, but decided to let it go.

Last night, I threw in Sin City. Parental control level? Six.

World Cup Soccer Is Here!!

I love the World Cup. I think I look forward to this more than I look forward to the Olympics. There's something extremely exciting about 32 countries playing just one sport for ultimate dominance... once every four years. Even more so than the Olympics, you know that EVERYONE around the world is watching this (except maybe in the US).

I am currently watching the first match of the World Cup: South Africa vs Mexico. Before I talk about the game, let me first say, thank goodness for Univision! ESPN at my house (and about 30 other cable channels) are giving an error message saying, "One Moment Please - Your Channel Should Be Available Shortly." Kind of a big problem and one that has happened occasionally before, just not during the World Cup. It normally fixes itself after a while. I called Comcast (click this one, it's worth it) and they have no idea what's going on. They're sending a technician tomorrow at 2pm. I cannot contain my enthusiasm for this sort of efficiency.

Luckily, Univision is getting reception. And truth be told, this is probably a better way to watch the game. No goals yet, so I haven't heard the GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL (with apologies to Mexico) yell yet. (BTW, try typing gooooooooooooool into a Google Search. You can put almost as many o's as you want and you'll get a result.)

What a spectacular opening match. South Africa looked completed overmatched to begin the game. Deep down, i don't really care who wins, but I think that I'm pulling for Mexico a little bit more. That said, I didn't want Mexico to score in the first four minutes of the game (which almost happened a couple times) - that felt like it would be rude to the host country. Both teams have had several terrific scoring opportunities and just couldn't convert.

Whatever happens, I'm looking forward to an amazing Cup!


QUICK UPDATE
Watching the second half of the game, they showed a player for the Mexico team - #10. My first reaction was, "that guy looks like he's 40 years old." It turns out that he is a 37-year old forward named Cuauhtemoc Blanco and that he is a legend in Mexican soccer. Legend or not, having a 37-year old guy on the field with 21 year olds is pretty inspiring.