Oh the Places You'll Go!

It finally occured to me that it might be nice to have a some sort of record the countries and states I've visited. World66.com offers such a service with simple to use maps showing every place the well worn travel has trodden. There are more elaborate map making sites out there, such as Travelpod, but all are complicated and time consuming to use. I'm looking for the asy way out. ........Anyway, I've created four three personalized maps. Check 'em out and please let me know if anybody gets one of their own.

The world:

http://www.world66.com/community/mymaps/worldmap/HRBOJPHUJMTWTHPEROVACNCLCAITVNCZATCQIEIDUSMYMX.gif

USA:

http://www.world66.com/community/mymaps/visitedStates/statemap/AZCACODCFLHIILINIAMDMIMNMONENVNMOHOKORPASDUTVAWAWVWIWY.gif


Canada (It's a bit cold up there, eh?)

http://www.world66.com/community/mymaps/visitedCanadianStates/countrymap/BCON.gif

Europe (both Old and New!!!!)

http://www.world66.com/community/mymaps/visitedEurope/countrymap/AUCRCZHUIEITROVC.gif


And since this site doesn't allow you to make a map for countries that one desires to visit, I'll list mine here:

Egypt (great diving in the Red Sea, large pointy building abound)
Morroco (I'm comin' Bogey!)
England (may be there in January....)
Norway
Sweden
Finland
Iceland
Denmark (including icy Greenland)
Holland
France
Spain
Portugal
Poland
Germany
Slovenia
Switzerland
Serbia
Brazil
Argentina
Costa Rica
Belize
Cuba (Attn: CIA ----- go ahead and put me on the "To Watch" list)
Australia
New Zealand
Laos
Cambodia
Myanmar (Burma)
India
Nepal
South Korea

And probably another two dozen I'm forgetting. However, this list will do for now.....

Hiking: Red Mountain

Every weekend in Flagstaff brings a new experience. A couple weeks back I hiked Red Mountain. The east face was blown off in a volcanic eruption long ago. The result? A walk that takes the hiker inside the mountain where hoodoos and slot canyons abound, creating a playground for the adventureous. Sweet.

Teetering rock piles.

Looking out from a slot canyon

Patrick and Terra at the end of the slot canyon.

Tight squeeze!

Patrick and the hoodoos

Hills of sedimentary rock within in the mountain.

All the King's men....and a woman

Oh the pleasure I get from watching King George's throne slowly collapse from beneath him. It only took six years, but it now seems that every other week there's a new scandal followed by calls for some arrogant punk's resignation. Donny is long gone, swept away after last November's well-deserved change of guard. Alberto is in it up to his arm pits, and the waste water continues to rise. Paul Wolfowitz, head of the World Bank and one of the architect's of our amazing Iraq strategy, is also on thin ice (btw Paul, I've not been reading the news lately.....how's that Iraq thing going?). It's only a matter of time until he falls through.

As such, the obvious question arises: when will it be Condi's turn? And what for? Please, please, please let it involve male dancers and State Department petty cash. We have our cake.....can't we at least have some icing on top?

What's the deal with Joe?

It's been a while since I've blogged, and it's been even longer (as in never) since I've given an update on my life. I'm still in Flagstaff, AZ. Things are going well. I landed a job as an undergraduate admissions counselor at Northern Arizona University. The money and benifits (free classes!!!) are good, the work is varied and most of the time enjoyable, the co-workers and students are a joy.....yep, it's a pretty good deal. I get to travel quite a bit, all of which is paid for by the university. I stay in nice hotels. Hotels are great. You can miss the garbage can and then go to bed with a guilt-free conscience. Housekeeping will take care of it within the next 12-15 hours. They sometimes leave a mint on your pillow.

Despite this development, certain things never change. I continue to spend my free time in the outdoors. Climbing in Arizona brings happiness that I can't quite describe. The hiking and mountain biking trails are abundant. This has caused me to drop $600 on a brand new Kona Blast bike. I broke her in yesterday over the course of a 45 mile ride from Flagstaff to Sedona via mountain roads and some single track paths. Surprisingly, I was able to get out of bed this morning without assistance.

More on the ride and some other happenings at a later date.