Light in Abstract

Light vs. night sky. No digital manipulation. Enjoy.

The Long Table Party

Every year my wife Sophie and I have an outdoor party in our back yard that we call, ‘The Long Table Party’ – it’s a great evening under the stars filled with great friends, delicious food, decadent wine, hundreds of candles, fairy lights overhead, good music in the air and laughs all around. Here are a few photos that capture the feel of a special night – enjoy!

Das Macro

The USS Bowfin Submarine – a photo essay
Location: Pearl Harbor, Oahu, Hawaii
Ambient light, 1600iso, digitally shot, rendered B&W in post production.

Scott Kennedy – Reissued

I was using my typewriter today – I have a strange fetish for the old beauty and I was reminded of this piece that I wrote a few years ago. It’s all about my Olivetti… in the time since I hammered out this piece Polaroid has discontinued making film – makes the story all the more relevant if you ask me….

Risking Reward
Originally written in 2003 (previously unpublished)

I have made a rather amazing purchase. I was at the recycling centre in Wanaka looking around for hidden treasures within the various bits of junk. As I was sifting through the crap something caught the corner of my eye. From ten paces away I could see exactly what it was. I stepped closer and my heart skipped a beat. I had found what I had been looking for. There it was in all its mint green glory, an Olivetti Lettera 22 Typewriter! Pre-dating the computer by a decade, this classic sports the little arms that WHACK the page, the death-star style ball was still a wave into the future for this beauty.

I scoped the masking tape that stuck to the top. One dollar. I fished through my trousers and came up with the coins to buy my new toy. Wrapped with excitement I sped to the stationary store to get the necessary supplies. First a ribbon, the one on the machine was installed when Christ was in short pants so needless to say it was dry as dirt. Second was paper, typewriter paper.

Once I got home I set up the machine. And there it sits just to my right, on the desk beside the laptop. About the same size actually, but no cord, no instructions, no sound effects, except of course for the resounding DING at the margin and the ever present CLICKCLICKCLICK of the keys striking the page.

It's amazing I thought that it would be a hoot to type out shopping lists and type the odd letter for a laugh. But it has grown into something quite different over the past couple of weeks since that fateful day at the recycling centre. The typewriter has begun to symbolize something deeper, something I have been striving for.

A few months ago I purchased a Polaroid camera and this typewriter is very much on the same spirit as it. In our ever-boring world there seems to be something lacking. The safety net of technology has cradled us to a point where we have been washed clean of our character. Sanitized of what makes us who we are.

Take this article for example. Before you read it, Word will automatically check the spelling on it and correct all the mistakes that I will make as I peck away. And you will never be the wiser; in fact you will assume that my spelling is in fact perfect. All my imperfections removed in one simple click of the mouse. Thanks to my computer all my little rough edges will be smoothed out for the benefit of everyone and I will be just like everyone else.

There is no delete key, no spell check, when you get to the end of the line and the word doesn't quite fit it doesn't get picked up and put onto the next line, it stays there, half finished. When the power goes out I can hammer away by candlelight, striking the keys with a force that propels the words onto the page. Everything I type, every letter is embossed onto a page, forever. In our throwaway world of email over letters and txting over phone calls, these words are permanent; there is a sense of commitment. Everything that is typed is there for the world to see, no second thoughts, no second-guessing.

Maybe that's what we all need, maybe that's what some of us are looking for, and maybe, just maybe some of us have found it. A return to a world that has consequence, where you are responsible for your mistakes. A world where reward and penance are earned, not electronically transferred into our accounts.

For some it's the risk of climbing a mountain or surfing a giant wave that re-touches them with the primal desire of responsibility. Maybe that same feeling can be achieved with a risk of a different sort. Maybe that risk can be a social risk, like daring to use the wrong 'there' in a letter or daring to ask someone to dance. It's that risk of failure, regardless of the consequences, that makes us human. From my point of view, that very thing that makes us human is being taken away by the technology we have created.

Do something today that scares you, you know you need to.

it's just like being there....

Hello blogland, I felt the need to pass this video along as soon as I saw it. It was shot and edited by an old friend of mine, Josh Rhea. Josh and I go way back; back in 2001 we were interns together at Powder Magazine in good ol' San Juan Capistrano, California. Good times back then, we both learned heaps about the publishing world, how to catch waves at San Onofre and all sorts of other stuff not safe for public consumption.

Anyway Josh just sent through this great little mountain biking video that I’m happy to pass along. It’s full of great helmet-cam footage – check out how steady it is, that’s mega hard to do.
Enjoy!
Sk


Ohio Freeride Fest from Josh Rhea on Vimeo.

Bikram Yoga and me

For the past three years yoga has been an extremely important part of my life. As an athlete, I was first drawn to the physical side of yoga – through yoga I was able to take 30minutes off of my best marathon time and prepare for the 60km Kepler Challenge mountain run. For the last 18months I’ve been practicing Bikram yoga and have successfully integrated it into my training program. Bikram Yoga has been a huge part of my Tour d'Afrique training program.

for those that don't know Bikram Yoga is a style of yoga that is practiced in a room heated to about 40c. at first the heat is nearly unbearable, but eventually you get in tuned to the environment and you let go...

For this expedition my training has consisted of many hours on the bike but also a regular dose of Bikram yoga. Bikram is the perfect preparation for this adventure for a variety of reasons. First off, it gets you strong. My legs are stronger then ever, and that’s thanks to Bikram. The second thing Bikram Yoga is great for is heat preparation – during my ride I’ll likely encounter temperatures in the 40c range. I’ll have to bike up to 130km a day in that heat – Bikram has taught me how to handle that heat and has helped prove to myself that I can actually exercise in it. The third aspect that Bikram has brought to my training is endurance. By endurance I’m referring to the root word – endure. Through Bikram I’ve learned that I can push myself to the very limit, and at that edge of supreme effort there is a moment of calm and clarity. A crystalline moment of thought that can only be achieved when you’ve pushed yourself to the limit. Yoga may have started as a physical element to my training regime, but now more then ever it has evolved into training for the mind. The mind is after all the strongest muscle in the body.

I've been lucky enough to have the support of Studio Sangha during my TDA prep. I am full of gratitude towards Peggy and the whole Studio Sangha crew – it’s really felt like a team effort to get ready for this adventure. It’s going to be an amazing experience, and thanks to my Yoga practice, it’s going to be an achievable dream.

if you live in Queenstown be sure to go and support Studio Sangha - you can find a link to their website on the righthand side of this page - if you're reading this from elsewhere in the world, have a look at http://www.bikramyoga.com/ for a class near you.

~Namaste
Scott

One Revolution

Have a look at this trailer for a pretty inspirational expedition on Mount Kilimanjaro. I know I’ll be following along this March when Chris attempts Killi – it’s going to be mega inspirational stuff! You can check out his webpage and blog HERE.



Also have a look on the vid for my great friend Sarah Wallis doing her bit in Tanzania. Longtime followers of this blog will know all about Sarah and her work with The Plaster House in Arusha, Tanzania. It’s an amazing project and has been my charity of choice for a while now. Have a look HERE and HERE for more about the Plaster House and do what you can to help them out – the work they are doing for the kids is awesome!

SK

5 easy steps to hating Robert Plant

How could you possibly hate Robert Plant? He’s the frontman of Zeppelin! Ramble On, Whole Lotta Love, Stairway… They rock with the force of some sort of mythical Gallic troll (I’m assuming that’s what Robert would have said). So how can you hate the guy? Easy – follow these five steps.

Step one – Jimmy Page, Jason Bonham and John Paul Jones start practicing music together. They enjoy it. They get excited about rock and roll.
Step two – Robert Plant makes an album of really mellow folk stuff with some chick you’ve never heard of.
Step three – Plant declines, yes, says NO!?! To a full on Led Zeppelin reunion – he claims he’s more into mellow music now and doesn’t want to play rock and roll anymore. You must forget of course that he got on stage with Pearl Jam earlier this year and rocked the shit out of some Zep covers.
Step four – Page, Bonham and Jones recruit the guy from Alterbridge to sing with them on the rumored reunion tour.
Step five – this opens the door for the remaining members of Alterbridge to reform with their former lead singer. Scott Stapp. Yes, because Robert Plant, possibly the best frontman in the history of rock declining to reform perhaps the best band ever we have to endure the ultimate kick to the guts, the reformation of Creed – the worst band ever – and by ever I even includes Nickelback.

Why Robert? Why?

Same same but different

I came across this amazing surf photo today and it was a great reminder of how varied a sport can be. Surfing, skiing, climbing – they all share the idea that you can participate at so many different levels that the high end vs. the low end doesn’t even resemble the same sport. That’s what I love about outdoor sport – even though all of us fit somewhere into a vast line of experience and expertise – we are all doing the same thing. All of us are after that moment of freedom where it feels like we can fly. Forget about pre-conceived notions of expectation and remember the pure joy of doing what we love to do. Although, I’m not sure how much Flea is enjoying the end of this ride at Wiamea…

Tour d’Afrique – Giving Back

I’ve struggled for a long time to come to terms with my philanthropic strategy for my African adventure. My trip will pass through some of the most economically disadvantaged areas of the world – and there is no doubt that I want to do something to give back and help these people. And I want to encourage all of you to help. But where I encounter the rub, is the idea that I am somehow doing this trip for the sole reason to raise awareness or funds. To say that would be a lie, a lie that I couldn’t live with.

The first reason why I am doing this trip is for the pure adventure of it – when I first learned of the TDA I was blown away by the potential of it and that aspect hasn’t diminished one bit. This is wildest dream sort of neighborhood for me, this isn’t some exercise in deprivation for the sake of a charity cause. I’m not running laps at the local YMCA or starving myself for 48hrs to implore you to dig deep into your pockets and help those in need. I’m not going to strong-arm you into writing a cheque just because I’m going to ride my bike in forty degree heat. I’m choosing to do this; I’m not looking for your pity.

That’s not to say that I don’t want you to help out the cause – but I want you to help out for your own reasons. I want you to help those in need because it’s something you feel is important to do – not out of obligation. Too often charities do little more then open up their hands and ask for cash and offer too little in the way of accountability. Likewise, expeditions funded under the thin veil of charity head to the far corners of the globe to fight disease, but the reality of a fully funded expedition looms just below the surface. I’m not going to go down that road and I don’t want you to follow me.

The charity I’m working with on this trip is the Tour d’Afrique Foundation. Every year they raise funds to by bicycles for doctors, outreach workers, teachers and others of influence in need of transportation. With these bikes, these valuable members of the community can get into the far reaches of the countryside and help those in need of their specialized brand of help. It’s a fantastic charity that I hope you’ll support, for the simple fact that they are doing amazing work for those truly in need. It is my goal that through my adventure and the telling of the tale I can encourage you to see the value in this charity. It’s a fantastic organization that is really making a difference for those who really do need outside help in order to survive.

Have a read of their website and do what you can, not for me, not for you – but for them.

http://www.tourdafrique.com/foundation/projects.html

sk

Uber-cool link of the day

http://www.notcot.org/ – this is my defacto go to site for visual inspiration. There is a virtual flood of creative output coming from these guys. They usually post in the neighborhood of 30 blog postings a day of visual art, photography, fresh design, fashion and heaps more. According to their site, “notcot has become the daily sources of inspiration for creatives everywhere, fighting the good fight against "creative block" since 2005 with visually stunning imagery, the latest in international trends, and a passion for all things well designed. notcot is a community of creatives, design lovers, and trendsetters - where each image and caption brings you to a place worth visiting. It's about sharing what inspires you.”

Check it out!
Cheers to Hinterlands for the heads up on this one.

sk

A thousand pictures

I travel all the time and I find myself on lots of airplanes, for hours at a time with not a whole lot to do. I also love film, so when I fly, I tuck into the films that are on offer and dig in. much of the time the choices are pretty dire, with only pop rubbish represented. My flight the other day from Hawaii back to NZ was a little different. I was lucky enough to see a film called, “Once” (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0907657/). It’s the story of two struggling musicians trying to make a go of it in Dublin. The only way to accurately describe this movie would be to call it a musical. No, this isn’t Chicago, or Mama-mia (just the thought of those two movies makes me throw up a bit into my mouth). This is more like rock opera, think Tommy not South Pacific. It’s truly a touching film that I can’t recommend highly enough. What makes it so good has nothing to do with the music, the plot or the acting. What makes this film exceptional is the emotional impact of the story. I don’t want to give anything away but safe to say, I watched much of it with a lump in my throat.



The other film I want to talk about today is another emotional ride. I have nothing but the trailer to go on for this one but it looks amazing. And what makes it all the more remarkable is the subject matter – pro wrestling?!?!



There is a saying that a picture is worth a thousand words and a feeling is worth a thousand pictures. Art that can tap into us at an emotional level goes beyond the aesthetic and becomes greater then the sum of its parts. Lofty goals without doubt, but what we all aim for…

sk

Goodbye Hawaii - the video version

so long Oahu

one last shot for the road...

Country Feeling Surfboards

Today I met some really cool guys on the North Shore of Oahu. Jeff Bushman and Kyle Bernhardt started a surfboard shaping business called Country Feeling Surfboards a couple of years back. Far from greenhorn board-builders, these guys have been building some of the best surfboards in the world for years. They’ve shaped boards for Ross Clark Jones, Pancho Sullivan and Jack Johnson (surfer/filmmaker/rock star) – so they’ve got a rep to be reckoned with. But it’s what they’re doing with their new company that’s even more impressive. Taking the earth friendly high-road they are building surfboards that are the most eco-friendly on the market – by a long shot. While most boards are made from a laundry list of not-so-nice materials, the Country Feeling boards have deck inlays made from hemp, organic cotton, bamboo and silk; and resin that is catalyzed by the sun. The boards are improving all the time and they expect these eco-boards to soon be in full use on the pro tour.

Great guys and fine ambassadors for the North Shore. They’re breaking new ground doing and their bit for the earth – if you’re in the market for a new surfboard be sure to check them out. http://www.countryfeelingsurfboards.com/

Aloha,
sk

Book ‘em Dog.PI

It’s an interesting gauge of the arc of modern culture and pop culture to look back at the last 40 years or so of Hawaiian cop drama on TV. It’s kinda cool that the iconic cops and robbers shows from the 60’s, 80’s and the 00’s were all set in Hawaii. Three very different worlds, that’s for sure – have a look at these clips and see just how much the world has changed in the last four decades. And hey, just try and get these theme songs out of your head!
Aloha!

Trust me, I'm a professional

Pipeline

To a surfer just saying the words North Shore conjures up images of monster waves, iconic beaches and legendary competitions. Hell, you don’t even have to say, the North Shore of what island for those in the know to know exactly what you’re talking about. The other day I was up on the North Shore, walking along the beach at Pipeline. Banzai Pipeline is perhaps the most famous of the surf beaks on the shore. The barreling waves are legendary, especially in the winter season when the wave heights jack up to epic proportions. It was a few days prior to the start of the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing – one of the biggest pro surfing comps of the season. All the top pro were already on the island getting ready for the competition. It was a beautiful mid-week day. The waves were overhead and there was about 3 people on the beach. I sat there for about an hour and watched the best of the best session these awesome waves. It wasn’t for competition, it wasn’t a film shoot – these guys were out there just having fun. They were sitting in the line up laughing and cheering each other on. It was one of those moments that you experience when your traveling that you can never plan for or even expect to happen – you just have to be there when it unfolds.

Two minutes and forty-two seconds of bliss

You can always trust the folks at The Banff Mountain Film Festival to put together a great trailer to get you stoked to get out and have some fun in the outdoors. If you haven’t had the pleasure of checking out the festival in Banff (every October) or the World Tour – I highly recommend it. The films are the best travel and adventure flicks of the year and this clip of the best of the best really encompasses everything that I love about adventure…

Enjoy!

Friday Acoustic Session

Hello Blogland,
As a Friday treat I’ve posted three music clips that I think you’re going to enjoy. In keeping with the mellow-yellow Hawaiian vibe I’m enveloped in right now, the through line on these tracks is acoustic instruments and a performance that feels less like a concert and more like just hanging out with friends and sharing some tunes.

Enjoy!



Damian Rice - The Blower's Daughter



Stone Gossard - Your Flames



Liam Finn - Gather to the Chapel

Coming soon…

200km of cross country running, climbing and suffering. All completed in alpine style, meaning that there will be no camps, no support crew, no big packs, no tents, no hot meals and most significantly – no stopping, no sleeping and no companions. It will all be in one continuous push, from my front door through the mountains and finally to the sea. That is there where, the when will be in the first portion of 2009 – as for the why… the story of the why, will be the story of the adventure. Stay tuned.

Shock and Awe

There are two sides to Oahu, well many more then two, but two big ones come to mind. The North Shore is home to big waves, little towns and a distinctly bohemian outlook on life. Go a few miles south, into the vast interior of the island and everything is, so, so different. This area is home to a chain of military bases – nearly all branches of the armed forces are represented and sit in blinding contrast to the hippies to the north. Somewhere in the pineapple fields that separate these two distinct cultures is a very deep line in the sand. The North Shore has an uber-laid-back feel with a definite no shirt, no shoes, no problem policy. In the interior the army base town of Wahiawa is anything but bohemian. With literally thousands of solders living within a couple miles of the town, there is a not-so-subtle Palin-Power undertone to the community.

It’s rare that I visit a town and am left with only sadness as I leave. More churches, strip-clubs, liquor stores, fast-food joints and homeless people wearing desert pattern fatigues then I’d ever seen - anywhere. It was a sad example of what this country has done to its military men and women. The war in Iraq and to a lesser extent in Afghanistan were both ill advised in my opinion and massively unpopular in nearly everyone else’s opinion. But to have these brave men and women who’ve done nothing but join the military for the love of their country and a desire to get out of poverty, be forced to live in a states-side shithole like this, just isn’t right. Maybe it’s the chicken vs. the egg – maybe these guys really just want to have a lap-dance and a Taco-Bell on their day off. Maybe they want to get drunk, repent their sins and forget their reality. But what a strange world it is – this forgotten existence of young men and women who live just 7 miles from paradise in a house filled with excess, irresponsibility, debauchery and hopelessness.

Sorry, I don’t understand

There is one aspect to travel that can be both insightful and unbelievably frustrating. Being understood is something that every one of us takes for granted every day. When you travel to a destination where the main language isn’t your native tongue that security blanket of understanding is unceremoniously yanked away and you’re left out in the cold. At times this can be a culturally immersive experience where you get tapped into the groove of a culture by having it flowing all around you. On the other hand not being understood and not understanding is bloody frustrating and hard work.

Today while I was eating lunch at a rather posh golf course I experienced, or at least observed this phenomenon first hand. Seated at the table adjacent to me was a young Japanese couple who spoke not a word of English. The waiter didn’t possess an ounce of understanding or compassion for their situation – he just used the time honored tradition of just increasing the volume of his voice as a means of interpretation. They sat and looked more and more confused every time the waiter said, “Cesar salad, CESAR SALAD, C E S A R S A L A D!!!” I had particular empathy for them as the last place that I traveled to where I couldn’t be understood was in Japan.

The irony – it was a Japanese restaurant.

Aloha,
Sk

Aloha!

Every job has its perks – and at the moment things are looking perky. Those who’ve been following along at home or if you’ve had a look at the ‘where in the world is Scott’ box on the right-hand side of the screen you’ll know that right now I’m in Hawaii. Hawaii home of grotesque button down shirts, McLovin, Ukulele solo’s, lots of big surf and for the next three weeks or so, me. It’s been a great trip so far – I arrived day before yesterday and have settled into my condo nicely. But every trip has its challenges. One of the reasons this blog has been pretty quiet over the past few days is that my computer went through a full-on meltdown. Joy of joys I had to wipe the entire hard-drive including the operating system and re-load from scratch. Luckily this has happened to be before so I don’t leave home without backup copies of my installation discs and a external hard drive to back-up everything. That’s my insider tip of the day, Murphy’s Law is in full effect when traveling with a laptop – prepare for the worst.

I’ll leave you with a couple of pictures and the promise of more stories to come!
Aloha,
sk

The other side to change

There is little doubt; it has been a momentous week in the political world. The election of Mr. Obama in the United States has been a huge shift to the ideological left. One could argue that this was a conscious decision, to move away from the much maligned Bush doctrine. You could also say that the nation was yearning for a change and a fresh face, that didn’t fit the Bush mold would have won with nearly any policy promises. I believe that it is an admirable combination of both of these two factors that decided the course of the election. While there was a strong desire to vote for anything not Bush, the underlying desire to move the political landscape leftward prevailed.

Now what I want to talk about is the other side of change – in New Zealand we just had our federal election, only a couple days after the US version. Our Prime Minister, Helen Clark has been the PM for 9 years. She’s done a good job for the most part. She’s a left of center Labor Party leader who’s struck a balance between social needs and financial gains. But for the last few years the writing has been on the wall – NZ was looking for a fresh face. It was the current financial meltdown that sealed her fate.

As election day drew closer the leader of the National Party, John Key took the lead and never looked back. He campaigned on the same platform as Obama – the desire for change. But here is where things are a bit different. Obama was talking about a change to the left, Key a change to the right. Key cashed in on the groundswell of support that Obama had generated and convinced the New Zealand public that it was the exact same situation as in America and a vote for him was a vote in the right direction – no pun intended.

Obama was the antidote to the mess that Bush created. Helen Clark was not George W. Bush. But this desire for a fresh face has netted a result that is very different to that of the states. The change that will occur here will be fewer taxes for the rich, reduced social programs and funding for the arts. Tighter reins on immigration and a more aggressive foreign policy (Key supported sending troops to Iraq).

Don’t fear change – but change for the sake of it is just as dangerous is being perpetually content with the status quo.

sk

The Audacity of Hope

Some years ago when I was in art school studying photography I was lucky enough to have a very charismatic lecturer that really left an impression. He was early 40’s and had that sort of Robert Redford, too-much-time-in-the-sun, creased face and a mob of ginger hair. He walked around with a worldly swagger, like someone who’d seen it all before. His one lasting quote was regarding stock photography, “editors have seen a million photos of the Eiffel Tower – but they haven’t seen mine.” Some of my fellow classmates took this as pure ego and blew it off as the ramblings of an over-praised photographic-savant who’d Od’d on his own Kool-Aid long ago. I saw it a bit different. We all have our own opinions and impressions – even the obvious is open to interpretation.

Last night as I sat in front of my television for hours and hours on end watching election results – I thought of the Eiffel Tower.

To try and surmise the gravitas of the Obama win in the election is like trying to explain water to the thirsty or food to the starving. This goes beyond what we needed and reaches further into a more primal elemental sector of our collective consciousness. This is the antidote to a poison that has been working its way through our body. Killing us from the inside, spreading like a cancer, threatening the very existence of our society. Am I overstating it? I don’t think so. America was a train wreck in slow motion – it was like watching a good friend destroy themselves. It needed an intervention and that’s what it got.

But this wasn’t a fire and brimstone, shape up or ship out sort of reaffirmation. No, it was a loving embrace that promised nothing but potential. For a long time America lost its way. The quest of the American dream was so badly off course that it looked for a time that salvation was too far away to ever be a reality. That was until Barack Obama arrived on the scene. America was built upon a foundation of eternal optimism, the notion that dreams can come true. For too long those dreams had turned into nightmares – but now because of the notion of hope and the resurrection of that most American of dreams, the ship is finally heading back onto its intended course.

Yesterday the generation that has no heroes stood up and chose a new direction for America. They chose to elect an African American man to the most powerful position in the world. This fact should not be glossed over – only half a century ago, a black man was not even allowed to ride at the front of a bus in America, drink out of the same fountain or attend some universities – now a black man is president. For a nation to look beyond race with a history of such painful race relations is a true sign that things are finally moving on.

Obama has been accused of being a political lightweight and merely a good orator. I think that is just what America needs – inspiration. Will Obama be a good president? I don’t know. Will he be better then Bush? Of course he will, fuck even Palin would be better then Bush. What I am so enamoured with, what the whole world is enamoured with is the excitement, the energy and the hope that this man has fostered. It is a dark time in the world – economics are looking worse then ever, there is much war, poverty and threats to the environment. Solving these problems will take effort and sacrifice – finally we (lets be honest, no matter where you live in the world, ’we’ is appropriate) have a leader that will lead us through the dark and into the light.

As a kid I remember asking my father what it was like to hear JFK speak – I know now my kids will ask me the same thing, but they won’t be speaking of a long dead president. They’ll be talking about President Barack Obama.

-sk

The New Chapter

It took a lot of blood, sweat and tears to get to where we are today, but we have just begun. Today we begin in earnest the work of making sure that the world we leave our children is just a little bit better than the one we inhabit today.

-Barack Obama

Dr. Gonzo we need your help

The other day I was lucky enough to see a film in the Queenstown film festival that really struck a chord. Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0479468/) is as you’d guess the story of Hunter S Thompson. He’s the infamous writer of books like Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, countless Rolling Stone articles and other works of literary note. Many people assume that his writing is just the drug addled musings of a post-bohemian madman who’d done too much acid back in the day. Knocked out on pills and dancing to warped Grace Slick records, musing about the good old days when the sex was dirty and the water was clean. This veneer of debauchery distracts from the fact that Dr. Gonzo was in fact an exceptional writer.

Hunter wrote with an emotionally evocative power that was keyed into the time and rendered immortal. He was able to crystallize an era of our time that was so hard to define in traditional terms. You compare the writings of the day, Norman Mailer, Thom Wolfe they all fall flat with the dull thud of a past generation. Hunter was able to conceptualize the mad times of the 60’s into a narrative that described it in all of its non-linear beauty. But Hunter was more then this; he was also a damn good reporter. He followed politics with the fervour of a dumb-struck rabid dog. He got amongst the establishment and ripped it apart form the inside – and he ushered us all in.

In 2005 Hunter blew his brains out with a .45cal revolver – exactly as he promised to do for the quarter century leading up to his death. Better to burn out then to fade away? Hunter had lost his edge, if only in his own mind. But what a pity, couldn’t we have used him now. What would Hunter have said had he been imbedded into McCain’s campaign? What would his dispatches have described? One can only wonder and long of the musings that never came to pass. All we are left with is the words and the influence of a writer who went beyond his station and spoke from his heart with honesty, flair and the rye grin of wordsmith at the top of his game.

“There was madness in any direction, at any hour. If not across the Bay, then up the Golden Gate or down 101 to Los Altos or La Honda. . . . You could strike sparks anywhere. There was a fantastic universal sense that whatever we were doing was right, that we were winning. . . . And that, I think, was the handle—that sense of inevitable victory over the forces of Old and Evil. Not in any mean or military sense; we didn’t need that. Our energy would simply prevail. There was no point in fighting — on our side or theirs. We had all the momentum; we were riding the crest of a high and beautiful wave. . . . So now, less than five years later, you can go up on a steep hill in Las Vegas and look West, and with the right kind of eyes you can almost see the high-water mark — that place where the wave finally broke and rolled back.”
-Hunter S Thompson form Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas

low light, late nights, fast film

1600 iso - shot digitally, ambient light, found objects in the office. The longer you spend in your environment, the more you see.

Good Looking Celebrity People Saying Swear Words

Do we need yet another reminder to vote? Yes, New Zealand and America I’m talking to you. A swift kick in the ass is never a bad thing when the timing is right – and that time is now. So even if there is a sense of complacency rolling in, remember you need to vote. We all have opinions of which way we want these elections to go – but unless you actually put pen to paper on the day then your opinion is absolutely useless.

But don’t take my word for it – have a look at this vid where the fat kid from Superbad reminds us of our right to lose the war on drugs while playing Halo and Sarah Silverman takes her bra off… man I love politics…

I Am Buffman

This is a big shout-out to the fine folks at Buff headwear. They’ve been kind enough to offer team for the Tour d’Afrique sponsorship for our adventure! For those of you not in the know a Buff is a sort of scarf come neck gator that is a great little product for the wilderness. It protects you from the chill as well as the sun – which will be the big plus in the desert. They do a great job of blocking out blowing sand, shading eves for sunny naps and working as a emergency toque (I am Canadian after all)…

Cruise on over to their site and have a look at what they have to offer – they’ve been great to us, so if you’re looking for a stocking stuffer this Christmas; try and return the favour!

http://www.buff.es/en/index.php?p=NZL

Scott Kennedy - Reissued

This piece was written in the days following my running of the Motatapu Marathon for the second time in March 2006. I’ve since run this even twice more – once with music and once without… I hope you enjoy!
Sk

A Marathon In the Key of Life

Last Saturday I ran, for the second year in a row, the Motatapu Marathon. it is a backcountry race that crosses several back-blocks sheep stations that for the other 364 days a year are closed to the public. so there is a two-fold draw to race in this event. first, the obvious draw, to race against the competition and yourself. but the more lucrative purpose is to get to cross this amazing piece of land that you only have one chance a year to do. with a mix of both of those reasons dancing in my head, I fronted up to the start.

For me music is more then something that you hear on the radio. When I write I hear music, when I ski, the music plays. And when I run, my iPod is my most reliable training partner. Maybe it's something to take away the boredom, the pain, maybe it's the placebo that carries me through. I'm not sure the answer, but it's safe to say my life has a soundtrack.

8am, its cold I can still see my breath. 500 runners shuffle nervously at the start line trying to mentally prepare for what's about to happen. I feel good, prepared, stretched. I want to go. I want to start. I'm sick of waiting around. Let’s go. Under starter’s orders now, the briefing is done. I feel beneath my shirt and press play. Then the gun.

"Beautiful Day" U2 - ”it's a beautiful day, sky falls you feel it, it's a beautiful day, don't let it slip away." I feel great, off running as fast as I can, keeping pace, feeling good. there is blur of people all around, mad passing, jockeying for position, elbows out, fight for good road. "Take me to that other place, teach me, I know I'm not a hopeless case" getting into rhythm now getting to my pace all feels good - this is what I trained for.

"My Music @ Work" The Tragically Hip - it's time to get down to business, I'm here for the long haul this isn't a sprint, get settled in. at my pace now, I pass some, some pass me. not worried, I'm racing my race. it's all in my head now "outside the darkness lurks, my music at work, my music at work." 7k's down all feeling good.

"Last Exit" Pearl Jam – I have to drink, have to breathe, "Under my breath...I swear by sin... For better or for worse...a best we began... Let the sun climb, oh, burn 'way my mask Three days, and maybe longer" the pain has begun, I knew it would arrive, it always does. Slow at first, creeping in like a low fog. it touches my lungs first. The air stings to breathe. big exhale, clear the lungs, reset the system. still the fog creeps, deeper inside. I close my eyes, time to make peace, time to relish the pain that will come. If I fight it now, it will only lash back twice as hard. This is what I signed up for.

"World Wide Suicide" Pearl Jam - "And in all the madness, Thought becomes numb and naive, So much to talk about, And nothing for us to say, It’s the same every day" it's a crazy sport, to choose to put yourself out there, to choose to hurt when you don't have to. there isn't some wildebeest chasing me, I'm not perusing a buffalo to feed my family, I have decided that I want to do this. I try and put those thoughts out of my mind and just concentrate on putting one foot in front of the other, I start to pass into my own world, in a cocoon away from the others around me. In a crowd completely alone.

"Know your rights" The Clash - I'm angry now. The hunger to achieve, my best is flowing through me. Attacking hills and charging down the other side, "This is a public service announcement, with guitars" the music is feeding me power now, not just reflecting my mood but projecting it. Joe Strummer screams in my ears, "Get up and scream!" It keeps me going. 20k's down, feeling alright. I see a friend at an aid station, I'm too buggered to form words of hello, I just smile and wave as I take the cup of water. The sun is high now, hot in the sky. I put on my cap to shade my eyes. I try and remember to drink but my dehydrating brain can't fend for itself. I look to my arm where I have scrawled projected split times and words of encouragement like, "DRINK" and "EAT", I take a sip of energy gel, it has the consistency of maple syrup and tastes like children's cough medicine. Horrible stuff, but it works. The aid station is a spec behind me now. I'm in the high hanging valley now. 15km uphill in the heat of the sun, this is the crux.

"Sweet Emotion" Aerosmith - I'm in the grey world now. it is like there a shadowy blanket around me, insulating me from the joy of the world. the scenery is spectacular but all I can feel is pain. my throat burns from breathing hard for hours, my chest aches from overfilling my lungs a thousand times in a row, "Said my get up and go musta got up and went" my legs are like stone, my knees throb. I take another drink and put my head down, "sweet emotion, sweet emotion" I remember the goal to finish.

"Where the Streets have no Name" U2 - the organ brings me back to the now, pulling me out of the shadow world. I look to the sky and see the most amazing place on earth. untouched valleys, golden grass as far as I can see. "I want to run, I want to hide, I want to tare down the walls that hold me inside, I want to reach out and touch the flame, where the streets have no name." for the first time in hours a smile reaches my face. Some people talk about a runners high, until you have felt it you really have no concept for what it's all about. "blown by the wind, blown by the wind" it feels like you are on a ride, detached from your legs as they run on their own beneath you. I look down to my legs and I can't feel a thing, the pain is gone, I'm not even telling them what to do anymore, I'm on autopilot now. I laugh, look to the mountains, take a drink and kick up the pace. it's time to go, time to move before the endorphin high wears off and I plunge back to reality.

"Run" Pacifier - "And so you run, What you holding on, holding on to, Run, Life is going on, all around you, Run, What you holding on, holding on to, Run, Look what's going on, all around you" still on a high I pass the 30k mark, downhill now, I'm off pace but happy, I pass a few people and feel good, drink, gel, drink. "Don't want to have to make a change, wouldn’t want to exaggerate the pain, Go running back to the old ways" skipping downhill my knees hurt but I don't care. 32k's, 10ks to go I pull out the secret weapon. The Red Bull hits me like mainline heroin, the caffeine rocks me and the sugar lights a fire beneath me.

"Rockin' in the Free World" Neil Young - like an old friend Neil's scream in my year urging me down the home stretch, "Got a man of the people, says keep hope alive, Got fuel to burn, got roads to drive." I pass a few others and try and keep something for the home stretch, into the trees now, muddy in places and all over the place. Watch the footing, too close now to fuck up.

"Home Again" Shihad - "It's been a day of, tiny triumphs, it's been a week spent in despair." the end is near, soon it will be all over and the pain will start to fade, and it will be all worth it. The going is steep now, loose gravel and rocks threaten my steps. keep focus, stay in the now, charging hard I hit the flat riverbed at the bottom. 6ks to go. the pain is returning, I can't fool my body forever, it knows the race is almost done. there is only so long I can keep up with this output. I swallow some more water and hit the first river crossing. refreshing at first. but the cold fills me to the very bones. My feet are numb by the time I get to the other side 10 meters from the far side. I take a few strides and my feet scream. the glacially fed river came to just past my knees but it is my feet that are paying the price. I shuffle a few strides before I force myself back into a pathetic jog. as my feet return to life I see the next river.

"No one knows" Queens of the Stone Age - "I journey through the desert, Of the mind, With no hope, I follow" the second river hurts more then the first, the third is worse yet, by the time I hit 4 and 5 my legs are totally numb and I am so fucking over this race. then at the darkest moment between songs I hear something else, I hear a cheer. I'm almost there, 2ks to go. I find a new gear and kick it in. it's almost over and I am going to finish this as a sprint!

"Mr. Brightside" The Killers, "I'm coming out of my cage, And I’ve been doing just fine, Gotta gotta gotta be down, because I want it all." I round the corner to see a couple hundred people cheering me on to the finish. I give it everything, no point in leaving fuel in the tank, charging hard I cross the line and the clock stops. for the first time in four and a half hours I stop. it feels odd, like when you first get off a treadmill, uneasy with the lack of inertia. I feel ill, sick, my head is spinning, I walk to the drinks table and down two glasses of water before I realize Soph is in front of my. We hug and the race is over.

The music stops, the dance is over. I walk and stretch and talk to friends, Soph holds my hand and for the first time in hours I feel love. The pain and toil that the race provided was a beast to be overcome, I fought it with everything I had and I won. The war was over and the peace was enough to bring me to tears.

26 miles
42 Kilometres
4 hours 30 minutes
73 songs

Paradise Lost and Found

In this blog I talk at length about the joy of setting sail to far away lands and the spirit of discovery. Sometimes that distant land is a closer then you think – this past weekend I went on a fantastic mountain bike trip with a group of good friends. We rode into the historic Skippers Canyon – only a few kilometres from our homes in Queenstown. This seldom visited canyon is a treasure-trove of fun riding and run-down structures from a forgotten era. A century and a half ago, before sheep farmers, bungy jumping visionaries and t-shirt shop magnates opened up shop in Queenstown, some 5000 people lived in this neighbouring canyon in search of gold. These days all that’s left is their abandoned homes, mining relics of gold yet to be found and a road that duels with the Road-of-Death in Bolivia as one of the most frightening in the world. This photo essay is all about the spirit of discovery that drew gold miners, dreamers and adventurers 150 years ago into the canyon - and the same spirit that drew seven friends to follow in their footsteps and re-discover paradise lost.

Technology, air travel and perspective

Do you ever get the feeling like people in the modern world take things for granted? Modern technology, air travel, cell phones – we’ve become so used to these things that at the mere mention that they might be taken away we deflate into a blubbering pile of uselessness. It’s an interesting by-product of the modern world. Have a look at this clip of a comic named Louis CK (no, I don’t know who the hell he is either) – he pretty much hits the nail on the head. Cheers to Matthew Good and his blog (http://www.matthewgood.org/) for the heads up on the video.



So what do you think? Interesting social commentary or throwaway talk show fodder? Discuss.
Cheers,
Sk

Sudan – isn't that the place with all the AK-47’s?

As I’ve been preparing for my bike adventure in Africa and chatting to more and more people about it, there is one commonality with the folks I talk to. There mere mention of Sudan congers up feelings of trepidation. Just the name sparks visions of poverty, civil war, genocide and extreme heat. All of those descriptions are true. There is no denying that Sudan is a wild place, there are areas that are definite no-go zones and areas where personal safety and living conditions are maybe too intrepid for anyone who doesn’t have a former SAS soldier as a travelling buddy.

Now let’s be clear, I love adventure, I love challenge and I love shattering predisposed assumptions of destinations. BUT, I’m not stupid. I’m not going any place that I’ll be in any more danger then walking on the street in New York City, catching a taxi in London or riding my bike in Toronto. But there is no denying that it is going to be a very interesting place to travel through – I can’t wait to experience it and do my best to convey what it is like, to all of you.

Have a look at this video – for a taste of what we are all in for!

You can't be neutral on a moving train

Every Friday I have lunch with a few fellow Queenstown fella’s – we call it boys lunch, we sit around for a couple of hours, eat a good meal and solve the problems of the world. You’d think that with a moniker like boys lunch the discussion would revolve around rugby, tits and ass – but I guess we aren’t the usual sort of boys. Politics is the chat de-jour and it’s election season – everywhere. There’s the one that everyone knows about – in the good old U, S and A. but don’t forget that in both Canada and New Zealand are about to hit the poles and elect or maybe re-elect a Prime Minister. The interesting discussion often revolves around the concept that although these elections are in different parts of the world, the issues that are at the heart are the same. As we eat and talk we shake our heads like old men unable to comprehend why the world doesn’t see it our way. It shouldn’t be this hard, but why is it?

When you look at the issues – the environment, the economy, health care, and education – you’d think we’d all want the same thing. At least our Friday lunch group is in agreement – but maybe that’s because we are all a bunch of artsy-fartsy-fucking-liberals. Label me if you want – that’s a label I’ll take any day. Much to my amazement, there are many out there that don’t share this point of view. Some think we should all fend for ourselves – that the environment can take care of itself and climate change is a fraud. Social safety nets are for the weak and the chaff that doesn’t cut it should be scattered to the wind. Only the strong survive and the weak of the heard get picked off by the lions of poverty, hopelessness and war.

How is this idea even possible? How is it that we can look at our fellow man with such disconnection that we’d even fathom such moral atrocities. The more I’ve travelled the more I’ve come to realize that people from around the world are not the vastly different cultures we’ve be bred to think. We all have the same base ambitions – we want a place to live, a safe environment for our families, food to eat, clean water to drink and the opportunity to be happy. Why is it that in western culture we have the ambition to get away from those base needs and swim into the murky waters that are governed by monetary ambition and greed? I’m not indorsing the notion of communism, nor the ideal of socialism – what I am hopeful for is a global re-emergence of a sense of family. A family that looks at everyone as a brother, a sister or a cousin. In the world today what we do locally has an impact across the globe – we have power, like never before. As a society we have the ability to take the power back, just by making choices – we can drink fair trade coffee and change the lived of African workers. We can eat free-range eggs and change the way chickens are raised – Jamie Oliver, a fucking-celebrity-chef is changing the way the UK eats chicken, just by showing how battery farms work on his TV show. We can eat organic vegetables and drive the prices down to the point where they are affordable to all. There is squandered power in our numbers.

We need to seriously look at what we are doing to this planet and collectively start to give a shit. Granted we’ve come a long, long way. Even looking back to the pre-Inconvenient Truth era and there is an ocean of improvement. People are thinking about issues like recycling, alternative energy and climate change. We need to look at these issues in terms of how they can benefit our economy – not hinder it. By putting money into research and development alternative energy technology can be found and a solution to climate change can be gleamed and profit can be the result too. We’ve done so much to get the momentum changed and get the ball rolling. We can’t let it stop now – it’s to the point where if we keep the pressure on, we can win this fight.

There is no denying that the global economy is getting the shit kicked out of it. I won’t dare make light of that – innocent, everyday folks are going to lose money. Except for the everyday folks who are CEO’s of major corporations – they’ll be fine. In fact if the right-wing parties are elected in said elections, these well-off citizens could see a healthy lowering of their taxes. The National Party in New Zealand (the official opposition at the moment, and looking poised to win this election) is promising to lower taxes across the board. Hey, who doesn’t want to pay less tax? The problem is that the government is pretty much running just above water at the moment – meaning that to lower taxes, social programs will have to be cut. Perhaps it’s the Canadian socialist in me – but I’d rather pay a little more tax and have things like, oh I don’t know – a hospital, a school, how about a nicely paved road. I think all that is worth twenty bucks a week.

The biggest choice we can make is in the voting booth. Canada that means you tomorrow – America next month and NZ a couple days before. We can change the system – we can take the power away from the fat-cats who turn their backs on the environment, the middle class and the next generation. I believe in the ties that bind us together, the band of brotherhood of decency that we all share. I believe that we won’t leave people behind not just in far off corners of the globe but from the streets in our own cities. We can choose to make more money and leave the less fortunate behind – or we can choose to change the system to a mechanism that cares. A system that doesn’t fast-track the road to war and refuse to fight for the environment.

Of course, like my Friday boys lunch – I could very well be preaching to the choir. You could all agree with me, nod your head and move on – but that’s not good enough, not any more. Today you have a homework assignment. We all have friends that don’t necessarily share our political points of view; we need to talk to these people – tell them our points of view, tell them what matters to us in the world today. We need to convince them that this isn’t a lost cause, that the environment, the poor and the disenfranchised are worth saving. We can draw a line in the sand and say no more, not on my watch. Hope will guide us through, hope in what our countries can become, because without hope, we have nothing worth fighting or voting for.

Rise. Life is in motion. I'm stuck in line.

Rise. You can't be neutral on a moving train.

And if hope could grow from dirt like me. It can be done.

Won't let the light escape from me.

Won't let the darkness swallow me.

This is our chance to make a difference – I for one am not going to sit back and let opportunity pass me by.
Scott Kennedy
October 13, 2008

So what’s with this new logo?

Keen observers of this blog will notice that this logo has made an appearance as of late. There is a reason for that number 10 in the centre of it all – in 2009 Adventureskope is 10 years old! Woo-hoo! In 1999 I began my career as a photographer and writer – it’s been a great ten years, I’ve worked with some awesome people in some incredible locations and I’ve loved every minute of it! To help celebrate this milestone 2009 is going to be a special year – it’s starting off with a real bang with my big biking adventure in Africa and promises to go from strength to strength. I’ve got some cool things in store – but you’re going to have to be patient –it’ll be worth the wait! One thing you can go have a look at is my newly re-furbished homepage on http://www.adventureskope.com/ - hope you like it!

So even though it’s a bit early to start popping corks – I do want to start the ball rolling and say a huge thank-you and cheers for all the support to those who’ve been with from the beginning! Stay tuned for more specific soliloquies of thanks, blasts from the past, new t-shirt designs, commemorative art and more!

Cheers!
sk

Local heroes

I was lucky enough to check out a pretty inspirational slideshow last night in Queenstown. Max Grant, Kiwi sea kayaking guru, put on a great talk, with stunning imagery of his recent trip paddling around Fiordland (The Southwest corner of the South Island of NZ). Along with his daughter and a few friends they tackled some really far out sections of the coast – miles and miles from any sort of civilization in weather that alternated between picturesque and utterly horrible. The sea conditions were everything from mill-pond flat to churning white-water that was severe enough to give one expedition member sea sickness to the point of evacuation. It was a great show – but what really stuck was a sentiment Max put through right at the end. Every year he uses his holidays to go on these amazing trips in New Zealand – he isn’t some sponsored athlete. He’s just a normal guy with a lot of ambition and vision; he ended the talk by saying, “you guys are so lucky down here, this sort of landscape is right on your doorstep.”

The comment sent a slight shutter through the crowd and a collective, “shit, we better do something cool this weekend.” Now here is a similar story, half a world away – good British friends, Steve Brown and Leyla Fuad are in the midst of riding a tandem bike the length of the UK, raising money for Leukaemia research. It’s an amazing trip, and they’ve almost completed it – if you want to help them raise some funds check out their site (http://www.justgiving.com/steveandleyla). What do these two adventures have in common? The proximity to home.

Too often we assume that adventures, cool trips and worthy goals have to take place a million miles from home. Not so, as these two very different trips prove in spades. It’s a concept that has been near and dear to my heart for quite some time and it’s an idea that I’ll sing from the rooftops. Adventure is everywhere and available to all of us. Yes, I’m getting ready to ride my bike across Egypt and Sudan – but in my mind Steve and Leyla’s trip is just as exciting and all they did was head out the front door.

The great Walter Bonatti once said, “The mountains are the means, the man is the end. The idea isn’t to reach the top of the mountains – but to improve the man.” Adventure, challenge, travel, climbing, cycling, kayaking – they are all the means. And all of us can find the means – and with that seek out our dreams. Dreams plus effort become reality - just ask Max, Steve and Leyla.

sk

Scott Kennedy Bio - Video

So who am I? If you really want to know what i'm all about have a look at this new bio video - it's hot off the press!
enjoy,
sk

Guest Blogger – Bruce Springsteen!

Ok so Bruce and I couldn’t get our shit together and decide on a day for him to take the reins of the Adventureskope Blog and in the end I thought it was easier just to pass on a speech that he made at an Obama rally in Philadelphia. Actually I don’t personally know Bruce – I have however grown a soul patch in the past and I do own a white t-shirt and a red baseball cap. Kidding aside I’m passing on this speech today because ‘The Boss’ has really hit this one out of the park – he’s captured the feelings that are palpable around the globe. It’s time for a change, but not just a change in America – the American dream and all its incarnations around the globe need a fresh start…

Bruce Springsteen’s Speech:

“Hello Philly,

“I am glad to be here today for this voter registration drive and for Barack Obama, the next President of the United States. I’ve spent 35 years writing about America, its people, and the meaning of the American Promise. The Promise that was handed down to us, right here in this city from our founding fathers, with one instruction: Do your best to make these things real. Opportunity, equality, social and economic justice, a fair shake for all of our citizens, the American idea, as a positive influence, around the world for a more just and peaceful existence. These are the things that give our lives hope, shape, and meaning. They are the ties that bind us together and give us faith in our contract with one another.

“I’ve spent most of my creative life measuring the distance between that American promise and American reality. For many Americans, who are today losing their jobs, their homes, seeing their retirement funds disappear, who have no healthcare, or who have been abandoned in our inner cities. The distance between that promise and that reality has never been greater or more painful.

“I believe Senator Obama has taken the measure of that distance in his own life and in his work. I believe he understands, in his heart, the cost of that distance, in blood and suffering, in the lives of everyday Americans. I believe as president, he would work to restore that promise to so many of our fellow citizens who have justifiably lost faith in its meaning. After the disastrous administration of the past 8 years, we need someone to lead us in an American reclamation project. In my job, I travel the world, and occasionally play big stadiums, just like Senator Obama. I’ve continued to find, wherever I go, America remains a repository of people’s hopes, possibilities, and desires, and that despite the terrible erosion to our standing around the world, accomplished by our recent administration, we remain, for many, a house of dreams. One thousand George Bushes and one thousand Dick Cheneys will never be able to tear that house down.

“They will, however, be leaving office, dropping the national tragedies of Katrina, Iraq, and our financial crisis in our laps. Our sacred house of dreams has been abused, looted, and left in a terrible state of disrepair. It needs care; it needs saving, it needs defending against those who would sell it down the river for power or a quick buck. It needs strong arms, hearts, and minds. It needs someone with Senator Obama’s understanding, temperateness, deliberativeness, maturity, compassion, toughness, and faith, to help us rebuild our house once again. But most importantly, it needs us. You and me. To build that house with the generosity that is at the heart of the American spirit. A house that is truer and big enough to contain the hopes and dreams of all of our fellow citizens. That is where our future lies. We will rise or fall as a people by our ability to accomplish this task. Now I don’t know about you, but I want that dream back, I want my America back, I want my country back.

“So now is the time to stand with Barack Obama and Joe Biden, roll up our sleeves, and come on up for the rising.”

Thin Air

“Aisle or window?” – it’s a question as a frequent traveller that I get all the time. Everyone has their preference – although you’d struggle to find anyone who requests the middle. Some people are die-hard aisle people; the freedom to get up whenever you want is a biggie for people. I’m a window seat man – always have been. Maybe it’s because I always get clobbered in the elbow by the drinks trolley and the person sitting inside me has to use the bathroom at the same rate as a six year old. For me it isn’t really the lesser of two evils, I really like the window. I’ve paid a lot of money to go for this ride and I want to see where I’m going. I love looking out that little porthole and seeing the world go by. I could sit there for hours (and often have) and just watch the landscape unfold below me. Here are three photos that illustrate my point – you’d never get to see these things sitting on the aisle…

Southern Alps - New Zealand

New York City - USA

Alberta Wheat Field - Canada