Just a quick note to wish everyone a happy New Year, and an open letter of thanks to everyone who helped make this year extraordinary. I've decided to spend the evening with Friar Chris in Denver. That seems fitting, since tonight will be the 9th or 10th visit I've made this year, and The Friary was in essence the epicenter of the year's excursions, starting in March when Chris and I reconnected after about 3-years. It also seems fitting, considering how 2009 is shaping up, to welcome it among those who have played the biggest role in envisioning, planning, and finally executing these visions and ideas. Chris and Laina. It wont be much of a party, either bowling or a couple games of Risk, but honestly it will mean more than the generic champagne toast at a Granola Bar in Santa Fe.
Thanks not only to Chris, but also to the diverse cast of characters that played a role in the sometimes drama, sometimes comedy of 2008. I haven't talked to Eric since I left Denver for Tennessee in August. Not that that's too surprising! I know he still gets the email updates though, so Eric...thanks for everything. I miss mowing the lawns and all the long conversations while driving across all parts of the Denver metro with Jim Rome in the background! I can only imagine the conversations we would have had after the "financial crisis" & "bailouts!" I hope you're doing well; happy '09.
Kim:. It was terrific to reconnect with you after all these years. Glad we've kept in touch, at least a little!
Ken! I just realized that I've had a voice mail from you for, oh, three weeks is it? Fucking Sprint. I'll be in touch soon, probably tonight. Thanks for picking up the goofy backpacker in Idaho. You became one of the main players in 2008's story, and a good friend. I'm glad we've stayed in contact, at least intermittently. I'll bet our paths cross again soon! Kayaks fit in the back of a semi, right? Ha!
Nick: My buddy from the San Simeon Hike n' Bike! Glad we've stayed in touch too, and keep checking the new website. That'll get active soon I hope! Keep peddlin' and good luck with everything.
Cesar: My other truck driving pal from Laredo, TX. He and I still chat now and then too. Great guy. Hope life's treating him well.
Florian & Veronika and Eric & Marine: My rides from near San Simeon to Portland, minus a few days! I've lost track of Florian, but have a nagging feeling that I'll run into him again in Munich. I'll make a point of it. Eric & Marine are back in France and, while we don't really chat much, I have the same feeling about these two. Brittany, eh?
Rich (of freight train fame) and I have chatted a couple of times online. He found his way to Colorado the day after we parted ways in La Grande, OR. Someone bought him a bus ticket to Steamboat Springs, CO or wherever it was he was going! He's planning on going to Costa Rica to bartend in the spring, if you can believe that!
I still hear from Leah in Glenwood Springs occasionally, and Dave and I only exchanged an email or two. Chris & Chloe, my other Couchsurfing hosts, I've not spoken with at all unfortunately. That's how these things go sometimes. I often wonder how they're doing and how life on Bree's 100-year old houseboat is!
I've lost touch completely with Ciel, Pat, Will, Pastor Snake, Jack, Richard the Racist Trucker, Dennis the Drunk Ride Thru the Rockies, Doug the Drunk Ride to Wyoming, Jeanette (Rawlins, WY), and the Homeless Shelter crew in Ft. Morgan. I think alot about Ciel, Pat, Jeanette, and Jesus's Bikers in NC., wondering how they are.
It's funny to sit down and try to reflect on all the people I've encountered just by stepping out the door. And there are more. I have hardly mentioned the people that I met during that two weeks as a carnie! Three of the most interesting people ever. Jimmy, Steve, & Trish. And then of course the Gay Carnival Crew in New Orleans. Did I ever tell you about that?? HA! Suffice it to say I now know what it must feel like to be "fresh fish" in prison.. And no, it didn't end like the scene in Shawshank or Deliverance! They were such drama "queens"! Remind me to recount that sometime.
Finally, I should thank my girlfriend. Really. Who puts up with this shit? While she doesn't completely understand, she's been remarkably supportive of all of this. She's pretty much the only real link left to my radio days, and has had a front row seat on this roller coaster of a life I lead. We've been together for the better part of 8-years now and she's seen it all...the good, bad, ugly...and she's stuck around. That surprises me at times, and she's getting behind these big plans for the next few years. That's loyalty! Hopefully I can pay it back sometime.
That being said, this may just about do it for Running With the Wind. I'm not taking the blog down, and may still post on it occasionally, but Friar and I have fired up a new one to cover the next phase of...whatever this is. January 1st seems like an appropriate time to start using it. It will be a cooperative effort, with posts and past writings and ruminations from both of us. It already has what I consider "highlights" from this blog, and Chris will soon be adding some from his cross country walk. It's not fully active yet, but if you'd like to see it it's here: http://tenosce09.blogspot.com/ There's also a link under my blog list. Snoop around and let me know what you think.
Again, Happy New year! Here's to an exciting 2009!
Travel stories and the occasional rantings of an evolving cynic who's simply in search of a little human authenticity. Tales include hitching across the Rockies with an eventual cop-killer, a weekend with a terminally-ill billionaire, meeting my siblings for the first time, trips to Mexico, and scores of random people from Mass.-Slab City-Chiapas who are often even more interesting...for better or worse!
