this right here is a bit much....too damn much!
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So the Nomad•ness Travel Tribe is headed on it's 1st EVER NomadnessX Trip in a little over a week. 20 of us are headed to Panama for a week. I can't even explain how much I am 10000% looking forward to every aspect of this trip. Haven't been on a plane since Berlin and I'm beyond the itch phase. I need to get the hell out of NYC. All the better, I'm leaving this bitter, disrespectful cold, to get into a tropical climate. Not even to mention that I'll be shooting there and you all will be blessed with a new episode sometime in February, and this time I get to debut the Tribe. I can't wait.
The preparations are showing themselves bit by bit and there's tons to do, including get some funds in my pocket. When it's the top of the month, and you're going on a trip, and you're released from a contract a bit earlier than expected from freelancing, your brain...well my brain, goes a little coo coo trying to find creative ways to build a buck. The standard photos, bags, etc but (don't judge me) I also came across a site that had my mind on a whole other plane. Has anyone ever gambled (legally of course) to raise funds for trips? Randomly came across Party Poker and I had to sit with myself for a second...Would I? Should I? Could I?
Spades is more my thing (blame my ethnicity) but I can tear down in some Texas Holdem. Y'all have no idea! So... egaming, Party Poker, new way to pay for travel? Thoughts? I'm just saying...
The Silver Lining, The Spider Webs!
An unexpected side-effect of the flooding in parts of Pakistan has been that millions of spiders climbed up into the trees to escape the rising flood waters. Because of the scale of the flooding and the fact that the water has taken so long to recede, many trees have become cocooned in spiders webs.
nature has a way of letting you know, she wins... phenomenal.
What is up with today??
Family drama, bullsh!t rumors of Will & Jada separating, and then an earthquake...in NYC?!
Guess I picked a good day to ditch the city for the Connecticut suburbs...
But really though....an earthquake in NYC.
Twitter and Facebook immediately turned not only from the best basis for information on the situation, but also the most entertaining piece of news out there. Big ups to social media for being on it and reliable during times of crisis...More so than any phone carrier on Earth, right now.
Still my favorite status update: "PIMPPPP DOWN. EARTHQUAKE IN NYC. PIMP DOWNNNNNN!"
I can't with some of you...stay safe everyone.
It's no secret in NYC that W4th Street is funny, and extremely homosexual at night. It's very LGTB friendly, complete with drag queens and all. A safe, non-judgmental haven. I can resprect it. Last night was funny though. I walked past two girls that were posted up at the top of the staircase headed to the train.
I waited for it. What? I didn't know. But the silence when I walked by was an obvious precursor.
On cue one of the girls yells, "I'd f*ck you from the front!"
Wait. What does that even mean?
Immediately, instantly, I responded with robust laughter, both due to surprise and lack there of. Oh, New York! Without breaking stride, I yelled back "Have a good night, yo!" They laughed and the girl apologized, offering an explanation for her outburst. None was needed.
In a sick, twisted, witching hour, New York City, West Village way, it was a compliment. I took it as such.
I still got it...even with the ladies!
Ever feel like all the juice has been sucked out of you?
This week put me on an emotional rollercoaster of epic proportions. My inspiration has been buried somewhere underneath working two mentally intensive and time consuming jobs, searching for one job that can condense the workload of the two, speed editing through the first draft of my book so I can send it to an agent, trying to find time in the day to get back to the Nomad•ness vigor, editing photos from shoots last week, and oh yea trying to sleep.
Simply put..I'm doing too much and my inspiration is suffering. Valentine's Day, which I have given a blip of thought, is fast approaching. I'm re-remembering that although I have a man, I need to remember to love me. Patience, rest, and compassion.A friend from high school put up a status on facebook recently about how people over emphasize the 'grind' (or at least the advertising of it). I agree. I also agree that sometimes, in order to keep on track with you, and balance, we all need to sit our asses down for a second and breathe. The quote I hate the most is "I'll sleep when I'm dead." Oh I find so many levels of delusion with this statement. This coming from the woman who practically turns into a machine once in the zone. Right now my brain is zoned out.
I need to do something this weekend that inspires me. MoMA?
Yes, it's January here in New York. The forecast calls for two days of snow approaching and I'm here thinking about winters elsewhere.
Two hours away from the city I lived in, in Japan, there's a place called Nagano. From Niigata, you can see their mountains in the distance. Not bad waking up with mountains on one side and beach on the other. In the onsens of Nagano live their Snow Monkeys. Both frightening and beauitful at the same time. I vow that if in Japan during the winter again, I will be going to Nagano to witness this for myself.
Then...thanks to #TNI on Twitter for two weeks people have been bringing up the Ice Hotel. I believe there is more than one but these photos are of the hotel in Quebec, Canada. Never had a reason to go to Canada...has that suddenly changed?
So, my Mac does this really annoying thing where it automates the "Mail" application that comes with the laptop when I click on a site to email someone, yet I do all my emailing through Gmail. Any who, I usually ignore it and close the App. Today I didn't and I realized the sole, lone, email that I ever attempted to send through it was back in July of 2006.
It was filled with thirty-six photos of my trip from Paris to Amsterdam. A trip that I have since lost most photos of, if they were shot digitally.
This was my first REAL trip and this is where it all began! Six weeks after graduating from college, I moved all my shit to Paris and within twenty-four hours upon landing, I took a train to Amsterdam for a weekend alone. A very interesting, intruiging weekend I must say. Glad I did the first trip to Amsterdam alone. Ahh the photos don't give it justice. Now that I've found this memory bank, there will be more!
All I can say is that that weekend would have been one hell of a Nomad•ness episode!
There's another side to travel that people who don't do it often, don't really know about....coming home.
Reverse culture shock is an actual thing. After being on the road, or getting used to a country's way of life, there is an adjustment period that takes place when you arrive back 'home'.
There's an unspoken bond among travellers, those who truly have it as a lifestyle for a period of time. We get the idea and understand the inevitable stress related to attaching and detaching to a place. When we come home, there is a psychological adjustment that has to take place.
When home, though most people from the outside see it as the place where you can chill, it's mentally chaotic for a little while. Varying side effects can include anxiety, depression (raises hand), feelings of being in a dream, disconnection from that once normal, disgust for that once normal, loneliness, and paranoia at all the new people who have popped up out of your ass apparently curious to see what you've been up to. It's a mind fuck. Apparently mine has been conjured up along with the holiday spirit.
What has me the most warped right now is that I realize that of those people that I consider to be best friends...people I can do the ugly cry in front of, yet still love me in the morning, about 95% of those people are scattered around the world. It's a bit of a hard pill to swallow, especially in New York. I always say New York has one of the highest populations of a city in America, yet you can feel like the lonliest soul walking these streets sometimes.
I don't run in a pack. Extrovert with very introverted tendencies. Yet, I miss the allure of friends. Of all the places I've been, New York is probably where I spend the most time by myself. The photo above shows what was nearly an every weekend occurance when I lived in Japan. Thailand...shit I lived in a house with five other people, enough said. Even my small bouts of time in other countries, you mingle and have a good time with people on that same personal journey as you. I find the hardest struggle in this area to be when I'm home. My phone can not ring.
Acquaintances and networks are one thing. But when you need substance, you need your friends. So my heart reaches out to Ferndale, Michigan; Calhoun, Louisiana; Madrid, Spain; London, UK; Niigata, Japan;Sydney, Australia, as well as New Rochelle, Yonkers, Bronx, and Poughkeepsie.
It's sinking in...I'm really home.
Forwarded to me by my lovely friend Aki, in Niigata is a promo full of street interviews in my previous home in Japan.
Yes, there was a sense of nostalgia seeing Bandai Bridge, Shinano River, LoveLa, and I believe even Furumachi.
Brings me back...anywho, check my friend Dustin's cameo at abot 1:58. Hysterical.
If in Niigata, make sure to check out his bar called Northern Lights right in Bandai next to Niigata Eki (station) kudasai.
No, I have no idea what Kawasaki Shokai is, nor what was going on in the video. Nihongo ga hanasemasen.
1. Heated Toilet (Japan)
You don't know what you're missing in life, until you wake up on a freezing morning (in Japan) and sit on a toilet that is as well heated as the room you just stepped out of. Seriously! When your ass is warm, everything else truly just falls by the waistside. Best invention ever. If you're daring, like me, you'll learn to love the bidet as well.
2. Siesta (Spain)
Do I need to say more? Nap time, as an adult. In conjunction with this, the 35/hour work week would be a great addition as well.
3. Fish Spa (Cambodia. Thailand)
Craziest, weirdest shit ever, but so practical. Have hungry fish eat the dead skin off the bottom of your feet, in a big tank. If you're brave, just jump in. Give it a half hour and your entire body will feel like a baby's bottom....although you may be plauged with nightmares for life.
Remember my go at it?
4. Red Light districts (The Netherlands, Thailand, others I haven't yet visited)
Sex is sex. The more we look to hide it, the more dangerous (and alluring) it becomes. Red Light districts allow sex to live in a raunchy way, in it's own contained area. It's bought and sold with a person's own free will. In many countries it fuels the economy.
I would like to say that we could learn something from countries that I feel execute it well...like the city of Amsterdam. They are the blueprint of doing it, and doing it well. It's government run, the women are tested regulary and given health insurance. They are given safe places in which to do their business. The whole operation is regulated, and perfected as time goes on, in search of better safety and efficiency practices.
5. Healthy Eating/Portion Control (umm...everywhere outside America)
From personal experience, I lost fifteen pounds in five weeks while living in Paris. It is what jump started what is now a fifty pound weightloss that has been kept off for two years. Still eating baguettes, and pasta for dinner, the pounds fell off, much to the work of portion control and food that was free of preservative and full of nutrients. I can't talk enough about foreign menus. They put our American foods to shame. The compare and contrast of health value would shock and awe.
Even their junk foods are made of fresh rice, vegetables and fruits. Their sweets tend to hold less sugar than ours, and from the outside looking in "Yes, America you're fat." More importantly, we're unhealthy. I remember being surprised that vending machine candy packets in France were half the size of ours. I had the nerve to feel like I wasn't getting enough product for my money.
More what, Evita? Fat. Sugar. Calories. Cellulite. What?
Or how I was pissed walking into a Japanese Mos Burger for the first time and watching them weigh my fries to make sure everyone had the exact same amount, and a healthy portion? I'd kill for some Mos Burger right now. You have no idea!
America, we eat too much crap! In terms of priority, this is definitely number one.
United unvieled the Oprah plane that will be in route during all its domestic flights. The plane was built with the intentions of commemorating her 25th, and final season. Yet, the promotion for United can't hurt either. With this plane in rotation, I wonder how many calls they are getting asking if customers can definitely be booked on her plane.
So far T-Shirts, blankets, and an on-air message from Oprah have all donned the cabin of this United aircraft. She's also giving away a trip around the world, for one lucky passenger. Hell, maybe I need to start flying United more often.
Left. Right. Up. Down. Where to go?
Ever have a situation in your life shake shit up so much that you feel like everything you think you knew, and thought you believed was all tossed back into the air at once?
Concrete theologies, certainties...blown to bits and your mind, rapidly and persistent, tries to understand what the hell is going on.
I'm not sure anymore. What do I believe? What is right? What is worth it? What is my truth?
Figuring it out...I guess.
I haven't let the stream out in awhile...when did this all start?...I still don't know how I feel about Thailand, and everyone keeps asking...work today felt great...New York has my respect...I don't want to be the face of other people's shit anymore, therefore no I'm not applying...I love my sister...my Mom passes judgments, but she's learning to apologize...Jason is the best friend for real...I wish Bethany was around...in another space and time, it could have happened...Kombucha would be nice right now...red wine fucked my stomach up... I want to feel sexy...acknowledgment...is needing attention bad, or normal?...I'm getting sick of Facebook updates...sometimes I get scared when I check pages in Twitter...I feel overwhelmed, not because of work, but because of my brain...I want to go see Rudi's bedroom...one day he told me I was a genuis who thought too much, that's why I had anxiety...he's fucking right...sex...passion...lost to be found somewhere...money comes when most crucial...relationships are hard work, every type...need a vacation...need to sit down...mad at myself for not finishing the memoir...Jeremiah's one liners...Jean-Pierre's man crib...this long curly hair...balance being honest about my life and keeping enough hidden to suffice others...this writing is probably the most therapy I've had in months...working out again...feeling better, while feeling worse...why did he ask about soul mates?...leave me alone...Natalie Imbruglia "Torn"...feels like I am once again having to prove myself, just a different scenario...be here, now...i am...real talk...letting out...let me.
It's been two years since being home for Halloween. Halloween is my favorite 'holiday' and definitely the creative playground for New York City. It's when the 'normal' can become crazy and the 'crazy' can act normal. Halloween in NYC is always known for the annual Village Parade, with thousand of people lined up down 6th Avenue, starting from Spring Street up to 16th. Favorite part of the city. Favorite holiday. I was in there...at least in the beginning.
Can someone please tell me what year Halloween became so cold? I remember yesteryears when I used to partake in Mischief Night, and Halloween was an all out free fall. Maybe a light jacket was needed, but the last few years Halloween has been an indication of an impending winter as much as it is of candy. I mean damn! Last night felt like -100 degrees. It was probably somewhere in the low 50s, with a Manhattan wind chill that made it feel 10 degrees less.
I don't understand, anymore, how people (grown women) can stand outside for hours in scantily clad costumes. If you want to be sexy, go tight but go covered. Body suits, cat suits, astronaut suits, what have you.
I pray for the rest of you waking up with pnemonia in the morning. I took about an hour of the inclimate spectacle. Twenty minutes of which was in a pizzeria watching a man argue with a woman about how New York City pizza is better than anything made in Minnesota. She kept throwing her cheese into the box, in disgust. It was entertaining.
So I rummaged through the streets, kept my eye on the costumes, and realized my next Halloween here will have to have one thing added...a party. Next year, I want to invest in the Webster Hall Halloween Party. The parade is amazing, as per usual, but the weather is making it nearly unbearable to witness in entirety. Something enclosed works best.
This dude Jigsaw is the hardest working killer in Hollywod right now.
Couple Halloween costume executed very well!
A few pointers for next year:
Depending on how long you want to be outside, pick your viewing spot smartly.
If you know the cold is too much and you still want to see the actual parade, head father downtown, as close as you can get to Spring St. That way you don't have to be out all night to see it all.
If you want to show up a little later and catch it, and you don't mind massive crowds, I'd say for you too head around 11th to 15th Street around 7:30-8:00pm. You'll be there for the good stuff and at the most crowded point (14th Street).
Hope everyone's Halloween ended up well. I was slightly drunk at Applebee's with Jason by the end of the night, and drinking Apple Cinnamon tea in a Diner with Nelson before bed. I'm no fool!
Little did I know my second morning in Cambodia would be full of creatures of the wild. I woke up in a bed of red ants.
Then while walking down the street, in search of breakfast, I found that a Cambodian delicacy is that of eating huge spiders. Cooked tarantulas being sold on a random corner. Sweet. (No, I did not try!)
I had been eyeing it for awhile. Walking down the streets in Thailand, you see people with their legs knee deep in huge fish tanks. The sight looks like something out of a horror flick, but apparently this is their rendition of a spa. My curiosity for the weird never fails me. I knew I’d do this, I just never knew when.
After a glass of wine, on Pub Street, I gave my feet over to the fish in Siem Reap. They eat the dead skin off of your feet. It feels crazy and is so much more psychological than, I think, it is physical.
Insane! Enjoy the video...
Living in Thailand, and traveling throughout Asia, you become quite familar with the ride known as the tuk tuk. You see them everywhere and tend to be the cheapest form of transporation, for the money.
In Thailand, the tuk tuk is like a moving wagon in which three peole can fit in comfortably. It tends to run on a motor, al as one unit.
Well in Cambodia, these drivers pimp out their tuk tuks like never before. First off, instead of it being one unit, they found a way to lodge the actual carriage part onto a full powered motorbike. Thus, creating the fastest and most agile tuk tuks I have ever seen. A few stood out to me. I couldn't help but love the cleverness of the bat mobile. Then you have the bed head board, shiny metal, relaxing version. There was even a "rock and roll" version driving around. This guy would allow you to plug in your mp3 player and play whatever music you wanted while being driven through..say, Angkor Wat. Dopeness.
Thailand...it's time for you to start pimping your rides.
I’ve become accustomed to showering with many different things in my life, yet more specifically, while in Thailand.
I’ve had beetles, waterbugs, pink lizards, mosquitoes, and other forms of life crawling within my bathroom walls, but today was different.
Today, there was a frog.
These are the possibilties of shit you can find on the road while driving in Chiang Mai, Thailand. That is my word, there are two imaginary lanes that come in and out of creation depending only upon how close to the edge the drivers want to live that day, or night. It's bananas!
And sometimes you will see babies, or three family members driving on one bike here. I can't! I will say this...Thailand doesn't have shit on India. If you multiply Chiang Mai's streets by 10, add buffalo, camels, pigs, and throw in some monkeys for good measure, you will get a taste of driving in India. There is no recognition of red, green, or yellow lights there.
Tonight, all of these viable options were on the road.
Everyone please drive safe Love ya!
