Now I Want to Give Away What I've Taken Back

Came home the other night to this:

 













My drywall ceiling decided to collapse and I have no idea why.

We have open arms for broken hearts

Climbing at Lost Cove with Laura. Warming up with yoga. Back to Laura's family's farm for the night. Puppy dogs! Piece I did in art class. First time using charcoals since the 12th grade.

Sleep Like Dead Men, Wake Up Like Dead Men

Went back to PA for the holidays. Brian came in from Portland and Danielle from SF. We crashed at Sam and Drew's place in Philly. Una loves her ball. Fried tofu and fries and a nice seitan sandwich at The Pope. We got to check out Drew and Sam's new roof deck. Great 360 degree view of the city. My favorite vegan place in the city is now under new ownership. They changed the name and the menu but everything is still vegan. I had slice of the haymaker and it was amazing. Brian got the philly cheesesteak. I was actually too full for dessert which I now regret. Back in NC, a group of us went to Luchadoras 2 at Motor Co. in Durham. Female Mexican style wrestling to raise money for a good cause. Thanks to Grey for buying me the UNC mask a while back. That is The Scrambler in the red mask taking on The Norwegian Nightmare. Heather (purple) and Katie (aqua) got to fight it out in the ring for a wrestling mask. The next match featured Crazy Legs in black against La Baguette. Crazy legs was victorious and retained her championship belt. Grey put on my mask and hopped in the ring with Brennan but wisely stayed away from the bigger dudes. This is Sweet Buns and La Bomb-ba in the squared circle. Tag team bout. This girl was probably 6'2" or taller. The much smaller opponents did not stand a chance. I'm already looking forward to Luchadoras 3.

We Wear Our Scarves Just Like A Noose, But Not Because We Want Eternal Sleep

It's been a long time since the last post.

Went to see a show at the Local 506.

Wavves opened the show. Southern California Surf-Punk. Really fun and energetic.


I really came to see F*#k Up! Great punk rock from Canada.


Best show I've seen in a long time.


Rob and Sabrina opted to tie the knot in a very low-key fashion.


Rob wasn't dressed up enough so Grey made him a tie out of duct tape.


Thanks to some leg work by Rob and Sabrina, Grey now has the power to marry people and baptize children. Scary.


The deed is done!


Signing the papers to make it legal.


Reverend G. M. H.


Matt and Ariel swung through Carrboro and brought vegan cinnamon rolls from DC. I got a belly ache from eating too much goodness.


Grey and his roomie organized a DIY half marathon. Coffee before the run.


And coffee again after the run, 2 hours and 10 minutes later.

Baltimore to WV

The last leg of our trip included a stop in Baltimore and then a quick weekend of climbing in West Virginia.


We arrived a few days before the 4th of July. Josh, one of Rebecca's many cousins, took us out to a field behind his house for a game of baseball.


Prior to playing softball in Portland, it has been a couple of years since I swung a bat. The weather was hot but we had a lot of fun.


The next day we went climbing with Josh and his sister Jenny.


This was Josh's first time climbing and he killed it!


Our dear friend Michael Holmes was back in the country for a few days so I drove back up to Philly to see him.


We each bought a new Phillies hat.


Ian and Diana, my brother and sister-in-law, organized a big group climbing trip to the New River Gorge. I've posted numerous photos of my past climbing trips here so I'll only add a few new ones.




Here I am letting others have a taste of "Van Life."

Now that our trip has come to a close, I've prepared a brief summary of events.


Miles traveled: 13, 666
Flat tires: 0
States visited: 31
Number of nights I slept in the van: 33
Number of skate parks skated: 10 (most in one state: CO with 3)
National Parks visited: 4
Books read on the trip: 8 (Favorite book Affliction by Russel banks)
Bowling alleys visited: 14 (High score=279, Low score=158)
Vegan doughnuts consumed: Too many to count (Yes, I am ashamed)
Art Journals filled: Just 1
Hot springs soaked in: 4
Favorite new city: Tie between Chico, CA and Leadville, CO
Item I wished I packed: Bike
Item I didn't use enough: My hammock
Favorite restaurant: Is Voodoo Doughnuts a restaurant?
Longest stretch without a shower: 5 days
Time on the road: 5 months