The World Has Changed. I See It In The Water. I Feel It In The Earth. I Smell It In The Air.

This world needs to end. It needs to go back to the time when you had to carry everything you own on your back, food was raised by the person selling it to you, and careers weren't even a word.

New years resolution (gotta write it down so I don't forget)

- Live simply (get ride of all my excess clothes, possessions, etc)

- Exercise more regularly (cliche I know but I need to do it)

- Eat healthier (Allison and I have been shopping mainly at farmers markets these days but my vegetable and fruit intake is not only low but also pretty unexciting)

- Finish projects (I have ADD and while I really enjoy getting excited about new projects and seeing what I can do, unfortunately I have a low completion rate with is always extremely frustrating)

I've definitely taken a step in the right direction but it's going to be a hard road to really getting better. Life will always be a struggle but the only options are to keep moving or give up.

My friend Keith commissioned me to make Mjolnir for him to give to someone for a Christmas. Love doing this as a first step before creation.

Gotta love fall camping

Watching my life collapse in on itself in real time is different from how I imagined it.

Recently Allison and I watched the classic film Stand By Me. I don't want to ruin the plot for anyone who hasn't seen the movie but at a certain point the narrator says how he and the other boys felt better than they ever had before because "right then we knew exactly who we were and where we were going". Surprisingly it was at this point that I had a small epiphany.

I realized I had never felt this way before.

Never have I had something that consumed my whole life in that way. A goal that made me feel like I knew exactly what I had to do and why I had to do it. It made me a bit depressed but also made me realize that I was missing that one thing in my life.

The biggest question I need to ask myself now is what that one thing might be.

Tahoe

In 11 days I'll be riding in a 100-mile bike race with my Dad and brother Drew (http://theravenandthesun.tumblr.com/). It'll take place in Lake Tahoe Nevada, we'll pretty mike be riding around the entire lake.

I'm super excited about it because I love to challenge myself when it comes to physical activities but also because this will be the farthest West I'll have ever been. When I was maybe 8 or 10 my family took a road trip to Denver but that was over 15 years ago! I'm so excited to see the rocky mountains again and be able to spend what little time we have, before and after the race, exploring the beautiful landscape.

I'm sure I'll be posting plenty of pictures :)

-J

After taking Allison canoeing for the first time, she said it would be cool to have a nice pair of paddles hung on our wall.

I am now in the process of making cedar canoe paddles. Pictures soon to follow!

I'm always secretly hoping that the lease on our apartment will end, Allison and I will lose or quit our jobs and that she'll finally get the desire to run away with me. I hope that would all at the same time.

It's the perfect recipe to just pack up and drive.