Wrapping up the Elevens

Wow, is 2011 already over? I haven't blogged for six months!?!

Well, not too much has happened in the last half a year. I lived in my cute little Mount Tabor house for six months with my old friend and former-roommate Kyle. Then in November we cleared out and I turned my house into my first rental home. Two cool guys moved in at the beginning of December and I moved back into my Dad's empty South Waterfront condo.

I took two trips to Maupin this year. I officially had the best and worst runs over Boxcar ever. The best happened with a completely full raft (Project Mayhem) and everyone got dumped into the cold, swirling water. (Chase held on the longest, but when the raft is upside down you eventually have to let go) On my second trip out I took a few of the kids and somehow I went BEHIND Boxcar and missed the rapid altogether. We carried Bumblebee Tuna back up the road and hit Boxcar a second time. It wasn't easy, but it was worth it.




My pair of calico kittens were split up. In September I allowed both kittens to wander around outside while I ran a 20 minute errand. I rarely let them outside, but it was a nice day and this was the first time that I ever let them stay outside unattended. When I returned 20 minutes later one of the kittens had vanished. It turns out that a young girl who was walking home from school picked the kitten up and carried her home, five blocks away. She kept it overnight and then let it go in her back yard. That was the last that anyone ever saw of her. On the bright side, the remaining kitten got much friendlier now that she was solo. What can ya do?



My addiction to cars runs unabated. I bought a 2005 Pontiac GTO soon after I bought the Jeep. The 450hp GTO made the Jeep seem REALLY slow, so I sold that and bought a 2007 Dodge Ram with the Hemi. Sold the Bondo Condo to Windell's Camp near ZigZag on Mt. Hood (so look for it on your right side when you head up to the mountain) Then the GTO started falling apart (100,000 abusive miles) so I sold that and just recently bought a 2005 Nissan 350Z convertible from a little old lady who barely drove it. I don't think there is any cure for the motor oil that runs in my blood.




I spent both of my holiday vacations in Idaho this year. I went to Lewiston, Idaho, for Thanksgiving with my Livengood family, where Inge, their grandma, treated us to colorful German stories and even better authentic German food. (Schnitzel, anyone?) Then for Xmas I headed to Pocatello, Idaho, with my Dayborn family and enjoyed the company of a couple of my brothers (Zack and Seth are really Sierra's brothers) along with Mica+Jodi and Mica's parents. One night Mica's grandma Marie came over and taught me how to play Mahjongg. She is 95-years-old, very feisty and liked to erupt in German randomly. What are the chances of two authentic German grandmothers in two different Idaho towns over two different holidays?

And now the adventure continues into 2012...

Jeepin', Montavilla and Asian-Alcohol-Pets

I have now been back in my homeland for two months and the time has flown. It is hard to explain, but things are just easy. I don't have to stress out at the grocery store worrying about unintelligible labels or conversion rates. I realize how much I missed the freedom of driving where I want, when I want. (but not missing how great it felt not to be shelling out for gas and insurance) As much as I am still trying to avoid the collection of "things" I am glad that I have a few more of life's basic necessities. (and not having to continuously cram them into a small backpack) I can tell that there will be more adventures like the great 2010-2011 trek, but for now I am just relaxing.

One of the first tasks I knocked off of my return list was to get my transportation back in order. That was achieved with the procurement of a bad boy Wrangler four-door which I look forward to rolling around in this Summer sans top and doors.



Now mobile, I directed my attention to my living situation. The first month back was spent crashing in Dad's vacant South Waterfront condo, but since he returns to Portland in the summer there was an hourglass in the back of my mind. I found a small two-bedroom house in the evening shadow of Mount Tabor. It's a little green yardless cutey tucked behind some trees and bushes. I've always wanted a shop for my boy toys, and this house has a 35x25 behemoth in the space where a backyard should be. It works for me!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_DVIoUrVq8

I spent the first couple of weeks cleaning out the massive shop, painting a cool mural on the back wall and painting flames around the entire lower perimeter. My ex-roommate Kyle happened to be building a race car to compete in some Formula D drift competitions this Summer, so I have rented out half of the shop to him. It's cool to wander out to the shop to follow his progress.



Since I had a residence and a roommate again, I added two more little roomies that get to live rent-free. Two Calico sisters (that are both sleeping peacefully on my lap as I write this) have adopted me and are creating havoc with my unpacked boxes and loose items. The black one is Sake (sah-kee) and the white one is Sujo.



Now that Summer is approaching I look forward to all of the activities that I used to do before I owned a boat: hiking, biking, camping. For now, I am just taking a deep breath and appreciating where I am. Welcome home!

Home Sweet Home (100th post)

It feels like it was all just a dream. I'm back in Portland now, after a day without internet. After a day of cold and wind. That's just the way it is at 30,000 feet. I snuck back into town so I could surprise a few people. I told the two kids that I mentor that I had extended my visa and wasn't coming home until August. They freaked out when I knocked on their doors. I tried to trick my mom into buying magazines from a high school kid to fund a trip to Australia, but unfortunately she didn't take the bait and slammed the door in his face as I tried to surprise her by stepping out from beyond her field of view. She thought she was about to experience a home invasion and was extremely relieved when she found out it was just me. Oops.



The funniest thing is that the first true realization of being home was when I went to turn on a light and the switch went up instead of down or sideways or in or whatever. It is the little things that really define what home is. I want coins that make sense (the Australian $2 coin is the size of a dime and the twenty cent coin is almost as big as our half-dollar!), I want to understand what strangers are saying (true, Oz was easier than China, but sometime it was nearly as futile), I want to eat effortlessly (not easy unless you choose Micky D's as your main staple) and I want to see the people that make Portland my home. Ahhhh, it feels good to be home.

Of course, I am technically still homeless. Now that I am back I am going to get my driving and living situations sorted out ASAP. I'm still living out of a backpack and I'll be driving a rental car for the next week. In the next month I hope to either find a house to buy or find an apartment that I can temporarily call home.

And now, a few of my favorite moments from the past four months...


Meeting Elvis, the huge Napoleon Maori Wrasse that lives in Blue Pearl Bay


Surfing the coast with the Mojo Surf Camp in Crezzo and Spot X


Drinking more than too much with my fellow Wolfpackers from Sydney to Airlie Beach


Wakebarding at the cable park outside of Noosa


Successfully ordering our first meal from a non-English-speaking restaraunt in Shanghai


Hanging out with the Shanghai Crew at the Bulldog while we proved how much trivia we didn't know


Spending a true week relaxing, recovering and revitalizing at the Southern Cross Hostel in 1770

Internet Troubles

Just found out that my access to the Internet will be down for at least the next 24 hours. No new news anyway, so I'll be quiet for a couple of days. It's supposed to be very cold and windy tomorrow anyway...

Doing Nothing

Yesterday I was hungover, but today I feel great. Light clouds have rolled in and the humidity has evaporated so it is a perfect 80-ish degrees and occasional sun. There is even a nice little breeze! I swam some laps in the pool this morning, played a few games of ping pong and now I am back in the hammock working on my book. (Not a great book, so it is kind of work)

The family that owns/runs the hostel know me now, so it is starting to feel a little like home. I might stay a few more days again. The only downside is that the internet is up and down all of the time so I never know if I can get my messages and read the news. There are worse things.