Portland, Or
Day 29
Wednesday, June 20, 2018
The week began with work. I really haven’t mentioned that I am still working on this trip. The beautiful thing about freelance designing is that I can be anywhere in the world with an internet connection and get my work done. Sometimes with a friend by my side, sometimes with a cocktail. And sometimes, both.
Check-Ins
Day 29 – June 20, 2018 ∙ 12:00pm
Wednesday, work, and whiskey.
Day 29 – June 20, 2018 ∙ 9:52pm
A well-earned drink. I’m sure there was some food as well.
FUN QUOTE: "If you look on the ground in search of a sixpence, you don't look up, and so miss the moon." —W. Somerset Maugham
Check-Ins
Day 29 – June 20, 2018 ∙ 12:00pm
Wednesday, work, and whiskey.
Day 29 – June 20, 2018 ∙ 9:52pm
A well-earned drink. I’m sure there was some food as well.
FUN QUOTE: "If you look on the ground in search of a sixpence, you don't look up, and so miss the moon." —W. Somerset Maugham
Portland, Or
Day 30
Thursday, June 21, 2018
It is strange, this connecting with people. When you met as many people as I have with the specific purpose of connection, you begin to notice the gulf between the ease and difficulty of it all. I feel it comes down to expectations, desires, and intentions on both sides. But most importantly, understanding—being able to communicate all of them clearly and well.
On this night, with an interesting and intriguing person sitting across from me, I failed. Whether that was my poor communication or my intentions not aligning with internal desires, or perhaps both, I do not know. I am trying not to beat myself up over it. But it is difficult.
Check-Ins
Day 30 – June 21, 2018 ∙ 5:38pm
I jump on my bike to explore some breweries and bug patrons with deep and meaningful conversations!
Drinking: Phaedrus IPA.
Day 30 – June 21, 2018 ∙ 6:39pm
Beers were super yum, but when the bar top is full, it’s tough to find randos to make small talk. At the bar, people fall victim to my proximity, and assaulting them with my small talk is a painless affair. Deprived of this, I haven’t yet the unabashed audacity to ask strangers if I could invade their presence.
Drinking: Danny’s Special Belgian Blonde, New Wave Amber Amber, 5th Anniversary Blended Olde Stock Ale, Nomadic Blood Orange Brett DIPA, S'more Stout.
Day 30 – June 21, 2018 ∙ 7:31pm
Striking out again with randos, the goddess of serendipity intervenes. Observatory overseas lady texts that she’d like to meet up!
Day 30 – June 21, 2018 ∙ 10:40pm
We come together and she utterly destroys me at every game we play. I have become convinced she was abandoned at a Chuck-E-Cheese as a child and raised by animatronic, andromorphic animals to dominate at these games.
Day 30 – June 21, 2018 ∙ 11:49pm
We ended our night with great conversations, cocktails, and some awkward flirting. As it drew to a close, we said our final goodbyes, and Tim the Uber driver escorted her home as I was still bike-bound. We never saw each other again after that night. 😞
Check-Ins
Day 30 – June 21, 2018 ∙ 5:38pm
I jump on my bike to explore some breweries and bug patrons with deep and meaningful conversations!
Drinking: Phaedrus IPA.
Day 30 – June 21, 2018 ∙ 6:39pm
Beers were super yum, but when the bar top is full, it’s tough to find randos to make small talk. At the bar, people fall victim to my proximity, and assaulting them with my small talk is a painless affair. Deprived of this, I haven’t yet the unabashed audacity to ask strangers if I could invade their presence.
Drinking: Danny’s Special Belgian Blonde, New Wave Amber Amber, 5th Anniversary Blended Olde Stock Ale, Nomadic Blood Orange Brett DIPA, S'more Stout.
Day 30 – June 21, 2018 ∙ 7:31pm
Striking out again with randos, the goddess of serendipity intervenes. Observatory overseas lady texts that she’d like to meet up!
Day 30 – June 21, 2018 ∙ 10:40pm
We come together and she utterly destroys me at every game we play. I have become convinced she was abandoned at a Chuck-E-Cheese as a child and raised by animatronic, andromorphic animals to dominate at these games.
Day 30 – June 21, 2018 ∙ 11:49pm
We ended our night with great conversations, cocktails, and some awkward flirting. As it drew to a close, we said our final goodbyes, and Tim the Uber driver escorted her home as I was still bike-bound. We never saw each other again after that night. 😞
Portland, Or
Day 31
Friday, June 22, 2018
I think a week of imposing on my friend’s couch is long enough. It was a great reprieve from being on the road, and not have to plan every day, to catch my breath as I prepare to move ever northward. After a month of travel, I am beginning to see this trip is either going to be quite a bit longer than envisioned or I am not going to stick exactly to my proposed route. Oh, the beauty of flying by the seat of your pants!
Check-Ins
Day 31 – June 22, 2018 ∙ 9:00am
Paying strangers to forcefully touch my mostly naked body is nice.
FUN FACT: Massages don’t increase circulation in any meaningful way, they don’t remove any ‘toxins’ or ‘detoxify’, don’t reduce inflammation, nor give you an endorphin rush, and a big no to reducing cortisol. Also, muscles being tight or loose have no correlation with pain or stiffness.
Day 31 – June 22, 2018 ∙ 10:27am
Definitely not the most memorable or yummy dining experience. But there was a pink Cadillac parked in the corner. So, there was that.
Day 31 – June 22, 2018 ∙ 9:34pm
A final dinner before heading out tomorrow!
Day 31 – June 22, 2018 ∙ 10:43pm
It's been an amazing trip so far and I owe it to all my friends, old and new. Curtis and Rene, you elevated my trip to new heights. Thank you for everything.
Check-Ins
Day 31 – June 22, 2018 ∙ 9:00am
Paying strangers to forcefully touch my mostly naked body is nice.
FUN FACT: Massages don’t increase circulation in any meaningful way, they don’t remove any ‘toxins’ or ‘detoxify’, don’t reduce inflammation, nor give you an endorphin rush, and a big no to reducing cortisol. Also, muscles being tight or loose have no correlation with pain or stiffness.
Day 31 – June 22, 2018 ∙ 10:27am
Definitely not the most memorable or yummy dining experience. But there was a pink Cadillac parked in the corner. So, there was that.
Day 31 – June 22, 2018 ∙ 9:34pm
A final dinner before heading out tomorrow!
Day 31 – June 22, 2018 ∙ 10:43pm
It's been an amazing trip so far and I owe it to all my friends, old and new. Curtis and Rene, you elevated my trip to new heights. Thank you for everything.
Lacey, Wa
Day 32
Saturday, June 23, 2018
Even as I say goodbye to one, my plan involves greeting another childhood friend who has moved away. There is something about not giving up what made us happy as a child. Nostalgia is a powerful force and adulting is a difficult endeavor. Jeff definitely has retained some of his child-like jubilance and it is on quite the display in his arcade-inspired garage. The night was spent drinking beers from his beer fridge, playing darts, arcade games, reminiscing on being stupidly reckless kids, and catching up on these adult people that we both turned into.
Check-Ins
Day 32 – June 23, 2018 ∙ 12:32pm
After a drive, it was nice to see one of my oldest friends who has agreed to let me occupy his couch for the next few nights. He also just happens to have converted his garage into an arcade-driven man cave with beers on tap. No other check-ins will be needed on this day.
Check-Ins
Day 32 – June 23, 2018 ∙ 12:32pm
After a drive, it was nice to see one of my oldest friends who has agreed to let me occupy his couch for the next few nights. He also just happens to have converted his garage into an arcade-driven man cave with beers on tap. No other check-ins will be needed on this day.
Tumwater, Wa
Day 33
Sunday, June 24, 2018
When I was young, I had a babysitter. It was called Ragging Waters. Ragging Waters was a water theme park in San Dimas and all summer long, my mom would drop me and a friend off there, then pick us up at the end of the day. One of the rides there was the Lazy River. But when you could do things like fall 40 miles per hour down a seven-story slide, floating down a river on a tube at a slow pace was not high on our to-do list. A few decades later, substitute in a real, actual river, some rapids, and beers, it becomes one of the greatest days of my trip thus far. Sorry for the lack of photos, wasn’t really a priority.
Check-Ins
Day 33 – June 24, 2018 ∙ 2:00pm
This whole trip has just been all about perfect timing. Today Jeff, along with his family and friends, had planned to grab some tubes, drinks, and float down the Deschutes river! I eagerly joined them. And we only lost one little human to the man-eating piranhas. It was a perfect day.
Check-Ins
Day 33 – June 24, 2018 ∙ 2:00pm
This whole trip has just been all about perfect timing. Today Jeff, along with his family and friends, had planned to grab some tubes, drinks, and float down the Deschutes river! I eagerly joined them. And we only lost one little human to the man-eating piranhas. It was a perfect day.
Olympia, Wa
Day 34
Monday, June 25, 2018
Exploring my first state capitol, hello Olympia! Unfortunately, a Monday afternoon wasn’t the most hip-hopping of times, i.e. the town was pretty dead. Then, out of nowhere, someone shot me in the back! Well, okay, while it might have felt like that, it seems my back just gave up due to the not-so-light backpack I have been hauling around for over a month. The rest of the day was me finding the tastiest of medications.
Check-Ins
Day 34 – June 25, 2018 ∙ 1:01pm
Biking to the Capitol!
FUN FACT: There is a war wagging over the artificial lake created in 1951! It’s been closed to swimming and boating for decades because of poor water quality. Some people, and experts, think it’s unnatural, unsafe, hurting the ecology, and causing major water quality issues in the area. They want the dam removed and have it returned back into an estuary. Nostalgic others want their pretty lake.
Day 34 – June 25, 2018 ∙ 1:46pm
Hey look, Washington’s Face! No More Kings!
FUN FACT: No More Kings, besides being Washington’s battle cry, is a fantastic musical band that sings about The Karate Kid, Knight Rider, Short Circuit, and Dungeons and Dragons. You should check them out.
Day 34 – June 25, 2018 ∙ 1:55pm
The interior designer has done wonders with this space. I wonder if they have an Instagram.
Day 34 – June 25, 2018 ∙ 3:42pm
After hauling my DSLR, 15-inch laptop, sketchbook, water, snacks, and a large cinder block on my back every time I explore a new city, my back finally said, “Fuck you, I’m out.” Time to medicate. This 7.1% hazy IPA should help.
Day 34 – June 25, 2018 ∙ 4:31pm
Strange that the bars are empty on a Monday afternoon, it’s like everyone has something better to do.
Day 34 – June 25, 2018 ∙ 5:17pm
Finally, Jeff and friends came out to join me. We drank and spoke of times past.
Check-Ins
Day 34 – June 25, 2018 ∙ 1:01pm
Biking to the Capitol!
FUN FACT: There is a war wagging over the artificial lake created in 1951! It’s been closed to swimming and boating for decades because of poor water quality. Some people, and experts, think it’s unnatural, unsafe, hurting the ecology, and causing major water quality issues in the area. They want the dam removed and have it returned back into an estuary. Nostalgic others want their pretty lake.
Day 34 – June 25, 2018 ∙ 1:46pm
Hey look, Washington’s Face! No More Kings!
FUN FACT: No More Kings, besides being Washington’s battle cry, is a fantastic musical band that sings about The Karate Kid, Knight Rider, Short Circuit, and Dungeons and Dragons. You should check them out.
Day 34 – June 25, 2018 ∙ 1:55pm
The interior designer has done wonders with this space. I wonder if they have an Instagram.
Day 34 – June 25, 2018 ∙ 3:42pm
After hauling my DSLR, 15-inch laptop, sketchbook, water, snacks, and a large cinder block on my back every time I explore a new city, my back finally said, “Fuck you, I’m out.” Time to medicate. This 7.1% hazy IPA should help.
Day 34 – June 25, 2018 ∙ 4:31pm
Strange that the bars are empty on a Monday afternoon, it’s like everyone has something better to do.
Day 34 – June 25, 2018 ∙ 5:17pm
Finally, Jeff and friends came out to join me. We drank and spoke of times past.
Lacey, Wa
Day 35
Tuesday, June 26, 2018
For the first time in 35 days, I did not go anywhere. I am no stranger to injury. So, I knew my back was not going to heal in a day. It needed to rest. Tomorrow, I leave for Astoria, after that, camping in the gigantic Olympic National Park. However, due to my back, I am thinking I might skip the camping and all that biking and hiking. Plus, it is always a good idea to be in peak health when running away from bears.
Check-Ins
Day 35 – June 26, 2018 ∙ 12:00pm
Comment
Caught up on work and rested my back all day while I enjoyed this magical medication dispenser.
Check-Ins
Day 35 – June 26, 2018 ∙ 12:00pm
Comment
Caught up on work and rested my back all day while I enjoyed this magical medication dispenser.
Next Week on Dean Runs Away!
Even more battered, and kind of broken, Dean managed to take the state capitol and dominate the rivers of Washington! But this next week might be his most precarious yet! Difficult decisions await, as do shipwrecks, underground cities, haunted ponds, and zealous immigration officers! Will Dean be eaten by a very polite Canadian Bear?! Will he be abducted by a 1940-style spaceship!!! Or will he join a group of young misfits and set out on an adventure to find a legendary pirate’s long-lost treasure?!
Continue the adventure into Week Six to find out!
