Moved to New Site

Thank you for visiting.  I have moved all bloggin pages and more over to nathansandidge.com.  I will be using that site going forward, and you can get all your updates from there.

Thank you for reading, and i hope to keep the great posts going!

Illinois - Jell-O Legs

Oh yeah! I made it!  Chi-Town, aka Chicago, was here.  I woke up, and drove into the north side of the city to where my friend Abby lives to claim a parking spot.  Though she lives about 10 miles north of the city, I didn’t mind the long bike ride as it went down the majority of the waterfront trail.  Bag stuffed full with essentials for the day: bike repair kit (learned my lesson), climbing gear, photo gear, rain gear, food, and water. Destination: Millennium Park.

Illinois - On My way

Another day, a new home, not much more. I wanted across the river, and border, to Illinois in hopes that the other two cities in the quad city area would have more attractions.  They didn't.  Determined to move about and discover, I hopped on my bike. Thankfully it was a Sunday, so there was zero traffic out to get me.

Iowa - Doldrums

Done in Des Moines, and still lost as with what to do, east seemed like the best bet.  I made it to Iowa City, which turned out to be a huge college town, rife with everyone moving in, scared parents, and jay walkers.  Being slightly lost here meant not only juggling between figuring out where I am, and trying to not hit anyone in the process.  Suffice to say, I made it.  But there was nothing here for me, and I turned north to Maquoketa Caves State Park.

Iowa - Funnel Cake, Nightmare Fuel, and a Climbing Wall

Oh look, more rain.  Joy.  But thankfully it quickly ran out, and the weather report said no more for the remainder of the day, so I decided to take my chances.  I drove into the city to get a bit closer, found a park, and packed my stuff for the day.  Then I set off, in hopes of staying somewhat dry.  The first stop was the John and Mary Papp john Sculpture Park in the middle of downtown.  A great park with some fantastic pieces.  As well as some questionable pieces that seemed more like the artist waited until the day before the unveiling to start the piece.  Regardless, all the sculptures are larger than life in some way, and feature a multitude of mediums for materials.  A great start to the day, and next up, the Iowa State Fair!

Blogging is Weird

I’m just talking, erm, typing, to nothing, something, the world, maybe some kid in the far reaches of the planet who just got internet, maybe to your grandma.  Blogging is strange.  What tense do I use?  Do I use the first or third person?  Do I reference myself, or just keep it factual and all just general?  Who am I speaking to?

Iowa - Goose Chase and Rain

It’s not heaven, it’s Iowa.  It’s not much, it’s corn fields.  It’s not home, it’s different.  I finished up my time in Omaha, just a few hundred feet from Iowa, split only by the Missouri River.  On the west, Omaha, and to the east, Council Bluffs.  Two very different cities in two very similar states.  I rolled into Iowa at mid-day hoping that I could find a visitor center to point me in the direction of activities for the week.  Though, there were no signs on the highway as I entered the state.  But upon turning around, just before the last exit to leave the state, signs popped up for the visitor center. Odd.

Nebraska - Departing Thoughts

Nebraska, the greatest curse about the state ended up being one of its best features, that there is nothing around for miles on end.  It means driving for hours just to roll into a small town that really has no business existing except that it’s a hub for all the farmers around.  But with that nothingness comes immense beauty.  On my first night I was treated to an amazing star gazing experience and could clearly see the Milky Way from just outside my car…house…residence….the place where I sleep.  Unfortunately I did a lot of driving that could have been avoided if I had planned better, but oh well, the great audio book kept me awake and made the drive much more fun.

Nebraska - Lincoln and Omaha

Nearly three years ago, almost to the day, I was driving from Detroit to Denver with my mom to begin final preparations to move to Florence, Italy for 4 months.  On that drive, we cruised past the National Strategic Air and Space Museum and decided to stop by to check it out.  Unfortunately we were too late, and it was closed for the day.  But hey, it was a fun quick hop off the highway, and started my desire to always try something, because, why not?

Nebraska - I Suck at Planning

Minnesota seemed to fly by, but go so slow as well.  Having a partner in crime made the time move…differently.  But now, I had to move on to the next state, as my time was up.  Problem was, the two things on my list in Nebraska were on the western side of the state, and I was far from even the eastern border.  Smooth shooting there.  Ahead of me, gps called out an 8 hour drive assuming I took the fastest path, which I usually don’t, and if I made minimal stops, which again I usually don’t.  So, audio book loaded up, I set off for my destination, hopefully reaching it by nightfall: Valentine, Nebraska.

10 hours later.

Minnesota - Departing Thoughts

Minnesota is known as the land of 10,000 lakes and I’m willing to bet they missed a few when counting.  With highways bending around the lakes and through the land, I wonder if this is where little red riding hood’s grandma may live?  It was also a great change of pace to be submerged in trees again, after a long while in the mid-west plains, having shade that wasn’t a result of huddling behind my car was welcomed.  I was also fortunate enough to have a partner in crime for a portion of this state who not only gave me some photography pointers, but some much needed motivation, company, and help paddling.  Overall the week moved slowly on a daily basis, but it was one of the more natural progressions to see a whole state that I hadn’t quite felt yet.

Minnesota - Twin Cities

Saying goodbye is hard.  When I have family events, usually saying goodbye turns into a 30 minute ordeal as I go around to everyone.  In this case, I was saying goodbye once again to one of my best adventure buddies, Hoobs.  We were heading in different directions, but the short time together was awesome as always, and I know we’ll find a way to link up again in the future.  But for now, I had my sights set on the Twin Cities to not only explore, but get some much needed work and planning done.

Minnesota - That's a Paddlin'

Overcast. Cold. Damp grass.  It was a pleasure to wake up not in a parking lot.  The dogs at the house across the street (dirt road) barked at me as I exited my car, a proper second alarm.  Awake before Hoobs again, I decided to do some work and watch a movie while he slept, it was a good choice.  Once awake, we cleaned up and made the last bit of driving to Voyageurs.

Minnesota - Ridin Dirty

Traveling solo is awesome.  You can find a million and a half blogs online (if you have internet) and see why many profuse that traveling solo is the way to go.  I’ve been doing it, and so far its worked out well.  But having a companion to not only see and crash on their floor, but to also go out with you on long days and experience the wonders around you is also truly wonderful.  Travels are worth little with no one to share them with.

Minnesota - Land o Lakes

The border from North to Dakota to Minnesota is in the middle of two cities, simply a river.  So there is no sign at the crossing to stop and take copious amounts of photos.  I’ll have to remember to do that at the end of the state.

With a quick stop at the visitor’s center, I was again greeted by another overly happy attendee giving me a miniature library of books and maps for which to guide me this week.  The first stop, with homage to the cult classic again, Duluth.  An easy 4 hour drive across the state with many pit stops to fill the day.

North Dakota - Departing Thoughts

North Dakota is known as “The Peace Garden” state, and has the slogan “Legendary” on its welcome sign.  Though, the Peace Garden is situated half in Canada and half in the state, and is so small, no map even shows it.  If it is Legendary, I have yet to hear the legend, or meet anyone else who has.  The state, though it may have plenty to offer, had not much to offer me.  All the farmland is key to supplying America with its various crops, and the oil boom is not only keeping my car running, but millions of other cars as well, not to mention the tons of jobs it opened up.  But I now know that my suspicions that there wouldn’t be much to do here was right.

North Dakota - Viking Voltron

Playing in traffic is the classic “don’t do it” as a kid. But as a photographer, especially a self-photographer, it’s kind of warranted.  On my way to Jamestown for the evening, I stopped to enjoy the sun set and think a bit.  This would make one bad ass emergency runway…if you ever had an emergency over North Dakota and needed to land ASAP.  The sunset was beautiful, and I found further beauty in it with the silhouette of my car in front of it.

North Dakota - Welcome to Wally World

Occasionally I play in traffic

Waking up in a Walmart parking lot will always be a combination of graciousness, and disorientation.  The safety, or illusion thereof, is one that can only be found in the asphalt ocean of the parking lot.  The ritual of wandering in, washing up, searching for wifi, and returning to my car has become second nature now.  The wifi, when present, offers my daily connection to the rest of the world.

One Month

It’s July 31st, and tomorrow will be the official 1 month mark of this crazy….whatever it is.  Maybe that’s a good place to start: what exactly is this?  Through talking to people as I pass by, I’ve been called various things, as well as what I’m doing.
Names for myself include: hippie, bum, crazy, adventurer, friend, and random guy.
Names for this include: sabbatical, post college trip, walk about, once-in-a-lifetime-trip, and cool adventure.
But as of now, I think I can offer a better name for both.

North Dakota - What to Do?

Saying hello is awkward.  Saying goodbye is hard.  Waking up to my final morning in Montana was hard, but a quick pack, and multiple goodbye’s later, and I was on my 9 hour speed run for the border: North Dakota.  Sleeping in a rest stop, and watching the sun set one last time in Montana, the colors again dazzled me.

Montana - Departing Thoughts

Montana, what an amazing state.  Though I again only saw a small sliver of it as I zoomed through on my way to meet with friends, I was struck with how empty the Eastern half of the state was.  All the beauty and amazing-ness of the state seemed to be confined to the Western half.  Greeted with a beautiful sunset and rain storm was a beautiful way to do so.  I also slowed down a lot from my previous pace the past two weeks.  It reminded me that I am human, and not out just to cram as much as I can into a week, but to also smell the proverbial roses and enjoy this amazing journey I’m on.  ]

Montana - Rockin and Relaxin

Thoroughly exhausted from the backpacking trip and getting home extremely late, we decided to get up early. Kidding. We slept in, and it was glorious.  A relaxing morning playing with Samuel (Max’s 2 year old nephew) and we went off to run some errands.  First stop was the local REI to snag a climbing harness for Kristin, and pick up a guide book on the area.  Mountain Project wasn’t exactly helpful.  With a harness in tow, but no book, we got the low down from an employee who pointed us to two book stores that might have it.  One of them was next to a pancake parlor.

Montana - Glacier day 3 and 4

Because the night was beautiful and clear, I only had the rain fly on my tent half way to allow for more air, and if I should wake up more, star viewing.  The morning light and a gentile alarm woke me up, and I laid in my warm, cozy sleeping bag, gazing at the beautiful mess of trees and clouds around me.  Slowly coming to, I felt a small drop on my face.  Followed quickly by another, and almost immediately after, the tell tail sound.

Rain!

Montana - Glaier day 1 and 2

A few alternate titles for this post include: 1) The Misadventures of Blind Smoke, 2) Frantic Planning and Majority Execution, or 3) Ow, My Feet.

We awake Monday to more packing; a single truck load comprised of all of Max’s possessions (I’m not the only one!) to send to the new house before our trip.  All moved in, we packed up the trunk with all the gear for the trip, and set off on the 3 hour drive to Glacier National Park.

Montana - Sigthts and Moving On

Saturday morning we slept in, late.  Waking up at 8:30, I felt still tired, but refreshed enough for a fun and work filled day.  A quick breakfast and some house chores, we piled into the car and went downtown to check out the local Missoula Farmers Market.  It was schanzzy.

Montana - Missoula and Not Dying

Spending the night in Custer National Forrest was my goodbye to South Dakota (even though it’s in Montana).  A legit camping site, not just a pull off, helped to make the night quiet and safe.  With a bit of reading to wind down from the day, and excitement for the week ahead to be filled with lots of adventure, a real bed, and an adventure buddy.

South Dakota - Departing Thoughts

South Dakota.  I still grapple with the thought that I didn’t actually see the whole state as I had the previous week in Wyoming.  But instead, I immersed myself into one of its national forests, the Black hills, and two of its towns, Custer and Rapid City.  My whole week only spent in the south west corner, I still enjoyed it, the many new people I met, and the great places I got to see.  The pace of the week felt much more relaxed, though I did front load the first few days with jam packed schedules, the latter half was a much slower pace.

South Dakota - stopping, driving, walking

Waking up in the Black Hills National Forest for the last day was bitter sweet.  My last day planned to be mostly driving, I wasn’t excited, but ready to take it slow and meander about.  The first stop was Deadwood, a town that turned out to be 90% casinos.  With a visitor center that was neither open nor closed, a bit of loitering got me by till they were officially open.  The lady at the desk was the least enthusiastic visitor center attendee I’d yet to meet, and the info she gave me was lackluster at best.

South Dakota - More Black Hills

One thing I really wanted to do on this trip was minimize back tracking or driving the same road multiple times.  It seems like that has sufficiently failed during my time in South Dakota, but I can’t say I’m terribly mad.  Also, given that I’ve stayed in the southwest corner of the state for the whole week, it was pretty much inevitable.

Cascade Falls was a nice place to sit and eat breakfast, though nothing insanely beautiful to call home about.  I wandered north to Wind Cave National Park for another cave tour, embracing natures air-conditioning.  The ranger selling me the ticket warning that its 53 degrees down there, my t-shirt and shorts probably not sufficient.  I smiled and thanked her for the advice.

South Dakota - Bad Lands

Wrapping up from my day of work in Rapid City, I wandered down the main route, highway 90, for the hour drive to the Badlands.  As all highways, there were advertisements along the side for upcoming attractions which I just kind of ignored, until I noticed a pattern.  Nearly every single mile, a small sign was placed calling my attention to “Wall Drug” because that didn’t sound conspicuous at all.  Interest piqued, it was also the same exit as for the Badlands, and I had time to kill.

The town itself is called Wall, South Dakota.  In Wall, there’s essentially a miniature theme park / visitor center / convenience store / buffet / every South Dakota and Badlands themed trinket you could think of, and some you couldn’t.  A massive store, akin to almost a local Walmart, and equal in size, it began to give me small panic attacks akin to grocery shopping when I returned from my trip to Europe.  I quickly escaped, glad to be out and on my way to the Badlands.

South Dakota - Rapid City

Arriving just in time for the Thursday evening music festival was a stellar introduction to Rapid City.  The sound booming through the streets, the dance infection slowly spreading and receding in waves.  A setting sun cast orange, blue and red glows on the already vibrant city as musicians closed their sets with classics anyone could jam to.

As I found my home for the night in the back of a Walmart parking lot, I blended into the RV's and trailers of various sizes.  All arranged neatly like a game of battle ships on the asphalt prairie, the painted lines merely suggestions for spacing between ships.  I made the trek to the store bathrooms to clean up, the cold running water feeling like a splash of heaven.  Again, my mom's words rang in my ear, probably a recurring theme for this trip, "we are defined by our choices."  What kind of life choices am I making that I find it acceptable, normal even, to brush my teeth and wash my face and hair in a Walmart bathroom in a strange town?  I'll leave that up to personal interpretation.

South Dakota - Black Hills day 2

Finding "home" in darkness will never be easy.  Obvious signs shrouded by oncoming head lights, sketchy dirt roads being private, and horrible maps with no scale or markers all make the task its own dilemma.  Thankfully I did slightly plan ahead by download a map of America to my phone before the trip, knowing that GPS will work even cell signal won't.

After a few questionable turns and slow driving, the trail head turn off presented it self.  The parking area adorned with signs of the infamous (or famous?) no camping sign.  I was exhausted and planning for an early wake up tomorrow, I knew I only had to be awake 30 seconds before a ranger showing up to be in the clear, a gamble that was well worth not having to keep hunting.

South Dakota - Black Hills day 1

Waking up next to the highway again.  One week/state down.  The semi-trucks racing by don't seem to bother me any more.  Though I spent every night "illegally" camped, thanks to LNT and common sense, I survived this time.  Then, I hit the next hurdle.

My glorious plan of flying by the seat of my pants, guided only by visitor centers and weather quickly came to a halt thanks to the lack visitor center.  Even though I had arrived along a well traveled route, it wasn't the main highway, 90.  So, with a lack of official visitor center, I wandered to the first stop on my list, Jewel Cave, and hoped for the best.

Wyoming - Departing Thoughts

So far, I've mostly talked about what I've been doing, but not necessarily my thoughts along the way.  Here's my attempt to remedy that by talking about the week in review and thought's about the places I visited, didn't visit, and people I met.

Wyoming - Devils Tower

The great thing about living in your car is waking up in new and beautiful places almost every day.  The not so great thing is having to find those places, usually in the dark, and hoping you don't get in trouble for just trying to get some shuteye.  This day, I awoke in a pull off and a stunning view of the Devils Tower looming in the distance.  Only a few miles away, I wandered into the park, officially breaking even on my National Parks Pass!  Being so early, even the visitor center wasn't open.

Devils Tower is known as not only a great family tourist desination, but also an amazing climbing destination with only some of the hardest routes making it to the summit.  I cleaned up in the washroom, made my sign, and sat at the entrance with a book in hopes of finding a climbing partner for the day.

3 hours later. Nothing.

Wyoming - Wild Iris / Lander

Departing Yellowstone and the Tetons was hard, I could spend months just there hiking and exploring around, but my crazy time table said it was time to say good bye. The next leg wouldn't be solo, and human interaction sounded nice. A person to discuss how crazy this week had been, being only 4 days into the trip. I was set to meet with Kari and her father to climb in Sinks Canyon for a few days, as well as slow down and collect my thoughts. (Not to mention maybe bribe Kari's dad to show me how to fix my stoll broken window).

The drive uneventful with beauty scenery, meaning a few stops for photo opts. As well as spotty cell signal to let my parents know I'm alive so far, which was actually saying something.

As I coasted into Lander, I was reminded of a few things.

Wyoming - Yellowstone NP

It's not an adventure unless something goes wrong. Isn't that the saying? Well, it didn't take long. I stopped at the Yellowstone sign to get some pictures and enjoy the sunset. I still had plenty of time to get into the park, find a place to sleep, and maybe make a decent dinner.

Then, my driver window wouldn't roll up, again. I've been having issues with it the past few months and after two services, thought the problem was solved. I guess I thought wrong.

Wyoming - Grand Teton National Park

It's 430 pm, day 2, and I'm currently sitting in my camp at Delta Lake in Grand Teton National Park. The road just to get here was more mentally exhausting than anything.  But I've had my nutritious and delicious dinner of ramen noodles, so now seems like a good time to recap.

Yesterday, July 1st, I left Denver for hopefully another year but this time with more freedom than I could fathom.  The final items were packed into my car, I hugged and kissed my mom's goodbye, then made one last stop at REI. Being the first of the month, now was the best time to get a National Parks Pass and use it to its full potential. Then, I traveled north...my first destination the Tetons by the end of the day.

Test Weekend

Cut off for trail head. Slept here for the night

This past weekend, June 27th and 28th, 2015, I took my finalized camper car out for a test run before going off to see America.  To test it, I decided to combine it with another item on my list that I've wanted to complete for a while, hike a Colorado 14er.  For those unfamiliar, there are 53 peaks in Colorado with an altitude over 14,000 feet, and a prominence of at least 300 feet from any adjacent peaks.

Car Conversion! - Part 2 of 2

If you haven't seen it, I'd recommend part 1 where I tore my car apart to create a sleeping platform.

Now that I had the platform made, it was secure and level, it was time to figure out how to arrange everything to maximize space and not cram myself with too much stuff.  The first and biggest item on the list: the bed.  The goal was to make a bed that would fit the width of the opening to the trunk as well as not to be too thick that I couldn't move around.  My parents had an old memory foam (i know, luxury) mattress pad topper laying around.  Conveniently enough, Cutting it down the middle fit perfectly!

Cutting the memory foam down the middle.

Car Conversion! - Part 1 of 2

If I'm going to live in my car for the next year, a few additions are going to be needed to make living and sleeping in it a bit easier.  But, one important goal of this build is to not do any permanent modifications to the car.  All additions need to be reversible so that the car can be put back together when this crazy adventure comes to an end.

Starting Stock Back Seat

Risk, Reward, and Pushing Yourself

Recently, an innovator by the name of Dean Potter passed away while practicing one of his many crafts, wing suit flying.  If you haven't read the articles, a quick Google search will yield plenty.  But one idea that consistently arose again and again was the idea of risk, and that he finally pushed too far.

Often in my endeavors to live a little and experience more, people warn me of the risks and cite the worst case.  Friends and family say they are scared for me and what I'm doing; but when I tell the stories later on, they praise them.  It's strange to keep getting these mixed messages for doing the things that I love.  But let me make it clear that I do these things out of passion, not adrenaline.

This isn't a high that I'm chasing, or a buzz that has to keep being sought after. I'm not thrill seeking, I'm doing what I love, and if I do get my adrenaline going, then something has gone wrong.  The whole point of what I do is to be consistent, plan ahead, focus, remain calm and occasionally enjoy the view.  I'm not going out trying to prove anything to anyone, but instead, to refine my skills, push myself and grow from the experience.

In the end, am I taking a risk? Of course. But we take risks all the day. As Alex Honnold has said, we drive every day, that's a huge risk but it seems so normal that no one bats an eye.  I am taking a risk that I deem acceptable for the reward.  My risks are no different from any one else's, other than the environment in which they are made.

Presidential Traverse

Some dreams start out as dreams from when we were kids.  We fantasize about the day they'll be fulfilled and train for years to be ready for it.  Other dreams start with an impulse, grow to become nearly impossible, and are eventually...completed.

Six months ago for Christmas, i was given a Backpacker magazine, with the cover story, "The 2015 Hikers Life List."  Like all lists, it was a fun fantasy to read through, but would just be another list to fall to the wayside.  Except one hike stood out to me, #77, the Presidential Traverse in a day.

Normally a 3 day trek with lots of boulder hopping and almost entirely above tree line, its no easy hike, especially if undertaken in a single day push.  The Presidential Traverse is a 26.4 mile hike in the White Mountains of New Hampshire and crosses some of the only alpine terrain in the east coast.  It is mostly along the Appalachian trail, but also uses smaller tails in the area for navigating on and around some of the peaks.  The biggest issue is the weather.  Mount Washington, approximately the middle of the hike, is known for having the worst weather in the world, and until recently, the highest ever recorded wind speeds on Earth.  Not a fact to be taken lightly.

I asked my good friend Andrew if he was up for it way back in January, more of a joke than anything.  We tentatively planned to do it the weekend before I graduated in May if notorious weather was good enough to do it.  But, the weekend quickly came and past with out even a thought and life was going to move on.  Except, life paused instead.

As a great way to end our week, Andrew and I decided to finally make this dream become a reality.

It was the most miserable fun I've had in a while.

What a "Week Off"

You make plans in hopes of doing something fun and exciting.  You then make more plans for after the first plans so the excitement continues.  But when the first plans fall through, what are you left to do?

I found myself with a whole week to kill, stuck in Rochester, New York.  Now normally this would be awesome because there's a ton of unexplored terrain around here that i never got to see due to school life.  But, one small issue: I'm officially homeless.  It's a little bit hard to explore when living in your car, especially when every item you own is in that car leaving very little room to sleep.

Thankfully, after living in Rochester for nearly 5 years, I've come to know a few people who live here as more than just students.  My great friend Andrew agreed to let me crash at his place, and go on nightly adventures after he gets off work.

Score.

The first day, Sunday, we rappelled into abandoned water towers at Cobbs Hill.  The graffiti around both towers is beautiful.  The artists that haunt here are very talented and have put hours of work into some of these pieces.  But not all of the artwork is outside the towers.  Some of the best works are inside, which is only accessable by climbing some sketchy trees and then rappelling down with climbing equipment.  Thankfully, I have both of those skills, and with Andrew as my guide, we found some great hidden Rochester gems.

The day finished off with just slack lining in the park and some local BBQ.

The following day was spent hiking around Green Lakes State Park and some water fall.  It wasn't so much of a hike...at all...but still a beautiful state park.  One lake is secluded and few people wander the short path around it; the other has a beach and is where most people go to bbq and enjoy the nice summer day, in this case, Memorial Day.
Next night was an off night to relax and plan.  The dinner was delicious, the plan was insane, and the ideas were grand.  It was definitely going to be one week worth remembering.

We then explored the Middle falls in downtown Rochester.

The final night we went to buffalo to go kayaking and explore some abandoned buildings.

Finally, we did our goal from the begining of the semester, which I'll talk about next post, so stay tuned.

Starting at the End

It seems fitting to start at the end.

A few days ago on May 23rd, 2015, I was fortunate enough to graduate from Rochester Institute of Technology with a Bachelors in Mechanical Engineering with an emphasis in Aerospace and a concentration in Communication.  That's an insanely long way to say I'm good with numbers, bad with words, and will probably stare at your feet when we converse.  So I apologize now for misspellings, bad grammar, and general nonsense you may find throughout this blog.

My graduation weekend also coincided with the Rochester International Air Show.  Throughout the weekend the skies were packed with planes of all sorts practicing over our heads.  It seemed a strange tribute, graduating as an engineer with a focus on aerospace that this would happen.  But it also struck me as...strange.  I'm lucky enough to live in a time and place where hearing and seeing these planes strikes awe and inspiration.  There was a time when the original purpose of them was to strike fear and create destruction.  It reminded me that I have been very blessed to live the life I have.  Many things have lined up, sacrifices made, challenges faced, and decisions made to get me to where I stand today.

I thank all the people that have helped me along thus far, all the people still helping and all those I will encounter.  Without all of you, this journey wouldn't be possible.