Day Trip

Today I took a day trip to St. Louis! It may seem foolish, to drive 2 1/2 hours each way just to spend a few hours there, but it was a much-needed and well-timed escape. My original reason for going was simply to pick up my new CPU from the Microcenter in Brentwood, but after a long and busy week punctuated by more anxiety attacks, I was in need of something spontaneous to clear my head for a while. So I texted a friend who I knew to be in St. Louis and made plans to hang out with them for the day. Then, like any sane person, I woke up at 7am on a Saturday so I could get in my car and drive 2 1/2 hours so I could spend a bunch of money (please note my sarcasm).

Anyway, I was pretty stoked when I got to Microcenter. I tried to apply for a Microcenter credit card, but you know how it goes: "Oh, you're 20-something and don't really have a credit history? Of course you can't have one of our cards." Alas. My friend showed, I paid for my CPU (look at that lovely Intel Core i7-5820k in the picture) and we spent the next hour or so walking around the store, ogling geeky technological things that we can't afford; eventually we decided to leave. Then she took me into this store called "Five Below" which, as its name suggests, has nothing over $5. So I picked up this lovely Storm Trooper t-shirt for, you guessed it, five bucks! I thought I was cleverly getting away with something, but then they got me at the checkout with a box of buttons; I couldn't resist a couple that I hadn't seen before which I immediately decided that, for a dollar each, absolutely needed to be added to my collection. From there I dropped my car off for an oil change at Dobbs, some chain-looking auto service place right next to Microcenter (this may seem irrelevant to the story right now, but wait until later).

On we went to the mall, where we stumbled into Teavana (I'm not really sure how to pronounce the name, but it's a tea shop) and I found this bag of amazing oolong that is actually off-limits for consumption until fall (I'll write more about it when the time comes). I then re-discovered how much I don't actually know how to properly go about eating a Chipotle burrito, but salvaged some dignity by reminding myself how delicious an iced mocha is when it's hot and I'm tired. We also found a Microsoft store, which made me a little happy; it was the first time I'd ever seen one in the wild and it was good to know that there stands a contender to the sucker-baiting Apple stores. Though in all honesty, it only made me want to return to Microcenter to play around with their gadgets. After the mall we trolled around some random shops that were clearly designed for people with moderately inflated budgets, and finally found a place that I could get excited about!

The record shop.

The store is called Euclid Records and if you're ever in the Brentwood, STL area, you should definitely check it out. They have probably the biggest selection of used CDs I've ever seen, and most of them are actually good. To give you an idea, I perused for probably close to 45 minutes and only saw about half the collection. Nevertheless, I was able to walk out with a Switchfoot CD that (oddly enough) is now the first one in my own collection, and another CD by an artist whom I only knew one song from: ImaRobot! The CD turned out to be cool (I definitely listened to it twice on my way back to Moberly), but I still think this is the song that will forever play in my mind whenever I think of the band:



Anyway, after the record shop I got a call from Dobb's to let me know that my car was ready for pickup, and also to let me know something that came as a bit of a bummer: my serpentine belt is cracked. He asked if I wanted to go ahead and have them replace it, but after he stated the price, I figured "well, I don't really know how long it's been cracked, but my guess is it'll still get me back home and let me tool around for a couple weeks until I can buy the belt and get one of my auto-mechanically-inclined friends to help me with it." So, with that thought in mind, I did what any sane person would do and told them to leave it be. My friend drove me back to pick up my car, and we decided to part ways for the day; it was barely 4:00, but I was already getting pretty tired and didn't want to find myself nodding off while driving home.

And here I am now, sitting up late and wondering how I'm still awake as I type away at this post. I suspect I'll be exhausted again tomorrow, and don't expect the upcoming week to provide any relief in that department. If anything, I'm going to be even more tired by the end of it because I have things to get caught up on before the semester starts in a measly 18 days (I can honestly say this is the first time I find myself not particularly looking forward to it). That aside, get ready for some more posts; I am planning to write more regularly, and part two of a series I started previously is nearing completion.

I wonder how many grains of rice are in a Chipotle burrito.

Picture This

I took my last week of summer off of work to go on an adventure before returning to Moberly for my senior year of college. I thought I'd make a post to share some photos I captured during that adventure. These are all my own photos.
You can click on each picture for a larger view.

Sunset from atop one of the cliffs looming protectively over the North Crossing (Hwy 312) in Eau Claire.

Highway 312 (a.k.a. the North Crossing) bridge over the Chippewa River in Eau Claire, WI. My apologies for the ghost edges on the right side of the picture: the product of bad stitching.

The cliffs at Mt. Simon park, downriver from the previous picture. One of my favorite places to hang out during the summer in Eau Claire.

Downtown Eau Claire as I'll forever remember it.

Though this is actually just a still frame taken from a video, I love the angle here. This is part of the route I took to access the rooftop from which the previous picture was taken.

It's not just the sights that make downtown Eau Claire special, but the sounds as well. Speakers like these are attached to streetlamp posts up and down Barstow street, and the music plays all day.

This van looked pretty rad, so I took a picture.

This small quarry in southwest Wisconsin caught the corner of my eye as I drove past. So, naturally, I just had to venture a closer look.

270-degree panorama of the beautiful downtown of Dubuque, Iowa from atop the Central Street parking ramp. 

The Mississippi River from atop the HWY 151 bridge. Wisconsin is on the east (right side of the photo) while Iowa is on the west (left side of the photo). 

The south side riverfront, downtown Waterloo, Iowa. 

 While walking around Des Moines with some internet friends, I couldn't resist a quick building climb to get a picture.

More of downtown Des Moines.

Capital building in Des Moines. Quite a beautiful place, really.

Home sweet home at this little nugget of solace in Moberly.

Iowa - Part 3: Des Moines

After an adventurous drive involving being offered a jello shot by a random stranger during standstill construction traffic on the highway, I finally rolled into the Days Inn in Ankeny, IA around 3:15pm on Friday. It was a full half-hour later than I had originally intended to arrive, but it turned out to be okay. My friends arrived at the time we had initially aimed for and discovered the Days Inn to be pretty gross. I got there in the middle of figuring out a different hotel to stay in. Eventually, we settled for the nicer Fairfield Inn across the parking lot.

I was meeting some internet friends and sharing a hotel room with them for the weekend while we hung out with other internet friends around Ankeny and Des Moines. This was a new adventure for me. Of the five of us, Katie came from Florida, Jon from Chicago, I came from Wisconsin, and our hosts, Mara and Patrick, lived in Ankeny. I know these people from a website that I've been frequenting for the past four and a half years, though, so it wasn't completely sketchy. We had been planning the event for a few months, and one person I had talking to frequently for several months, so I was filled with positive anticipation for what the weekend would hold.

Friday was interesting. Aside from the nervousness associated with meeting people from the internet, we had a lot of fun talking, playing musical instruments, opening a box containing a traveling eggroll (it's like a flat Stanley, only it's a creepy freaking eggroll) and signing it together, eating veggie lasagna, and drinking a bitter and really hoppy local IPA. There was much merriment, laughter, and good times.

Saturday, we went into Des Moines and ate lunch at Zombie Burger. To be honest, I was a little nervous about eating at a place with such a name, thinking the food might be overrated or overly hyped by the locals, but it surprised me. The restaurant seemed to be more of a novelty than quality in terms of pricing, but the food was pretty good. After that, walked over a couple blocks and explored the sculpture park, wandered around towntown, and played the piano that rests outside the public library. Then for dinner we all went to Jethro's BBQ for what ended up being amazing food. Another friend from the internet, Zeb, also met us there with his wife.

Sunday was Fair day! After spending the morning in the hot tub and pool at the hotel (during which I was reminded of how unpleasant chlorine is), we all piled into Mara's van and went out to the Iowa State Fair after getting lunch at Hyvee. Jon didn't come but had to leave to drive back to Chicago. I've been to the Northern Wisconsin State fair before, but that had nothing on this. The Iowa State Fair is huge. Actually, huge would be an understatement. It's basically a town all to itself. As far as attractions, there are the usual fair items like an endless supply of fried food, $6 beers, petting zoos, camels, farm implement, games, rides, and concerts. But this fair has something that no other fair (to my knowledge) has: the butter cow. After the fair, since it was already late, we just hung out at Mara's apartment before going back to the hotel for the night.  

Monday, Katie and I checked out of the hotel and went into Des Moines to meet Patrick for lunch and then explored more of the downtown area for a while. We checked out the public library, I played the outdoor piano again, and we went hunting atop a parking ramp for a geocache that we were unable to locate. I tried gaining access to the top floor of the tallest building downtown (over 40 stories tall), but was told that unless I had an appointment with the law firm there, I would be unable to access any level above the third floor. Around 2:30, we went back to Mara's apartment to hang out and ended up making a Target run. Then, around 4:00, it was time for me to hit the gas station, add a little oil to my engine, clean my windshield, and be on my way.

The drive from Des Moines to Moberly was both pleasant and nostalgic. It was my first time taking US 63 into Missouri since April of 2013, and I had actually forgotten what much of it looked like. I got into Moberly a little before 8:30 and stayed the night with my friend Caleb and his wife, Sara. Now that it is Tuesday, I'm heading back to campus to help set up sound and tech equipment in the gym, talk with my new boss about work schedule, settle into the dorm, and see somebody very dear to me whom I miss very much. This last week has been pretty crazy, but I'm grateful for God's constant grace. Even in my periods of doubt and disbelief, He holds me and calls me His child. That blows my mind in ways I could never hope to comprehend. 

Right now, that's enough to get me by.

Iowa - Part 2: Waterloo

I've driven through Waterloo more times than I've driven through Dubuque, yet Thursday was the first time I actually explored the city. Needless to say, the adventure was about 3 years overdue. At first, Waterloo reminded me quite a bit of Wausau, WI. The downtown is literally split in two by the Cedar River, with plenty to see and do on both sides. Before I tell you about my adventure yesterday, let's begin with a little backstory.

This isn't the first time I've stopped in Waterloo. In January of 2013, I found myself stuck here for a few days when my car broke down. I remember parking my car in a ramp and being offered a discounted room on the top floor of the Ramada. I ended up snapping this next photo from my hotel room the next morning. This was when I first got into photo editing, so naturally, it's over-edited to the point of looking like a painting. 

That sunrise  through the clouds, though.

Since then I've contemplated returning, but didn't make a serious plan of it until less than two weeks ago when I decided to take last week off of work and to leave home a couple days early. I figured after Dubuque, I could swing down to Waterloo and stay with a friend while I explored the city. So, that's what I did.

My first impression while wandering around downtown was that Waterloo reminds me of Wausau, WI. Though not as pretty as Wausau (it must be a Wisconsin thing), Waterloo certainly has its own fair share of beauty. The riverfront on both sides is primarily concrete with walkways permitting access down to the water below the dam. Since it looked slippery and I wasn't ready to risk losing a second GoPro, I decided not to venture a closer look.

Waterloo has a lot of bridges. I mean, Eau Claire has a lot of bridges too, but four consecutive streets of downtown Waterloo bridge across the water: and that's just part of downtown. There's also what appears to be an outdoor concert venue on the north side of the river (kind of like downtown Wausau). Though Waterloo has a larger population than Dubuque, there seem to be fewer downtown parking ramps, fewer tall buildings, and I did not see any downtown gas stations either.

Also unlike Dubuque, my favorite part of Waterloo was not the rooftops or the scenery. Actually, I found myself frustrated that the one rooftop I really wanted to get onto, and seemed so obviously accessible, I couldn't get onto. If I had maybe eight more inches of vertical wall running ability, I could have gotten access to the obscenely long fire escape that goes up a rooftop that would have offered me a fantastic 360 panorama of the city. Alas, the woes of being short. 

My favorite part of Waterloo lies downtown on the north side of the river. It's called Volks Haus, and it's more than just a German pub that serves delicious brats and German beer: it's a place I'll never forget. The bar top was polished brass and the mugs were frosty.The bartenders happened to be some of the kindest folks I've met, and the people there were very lively for conversation. I don't think I'll forget talking in particular with two people: Mike, and Taylor. 

Mike is a kind-spoken man who works at the Salvation Army. He admits his frustration of working with a Christian-based organization while he struggles to reconcile his desire to believe in a singular deity with his nagging doubts . Curious, I probed around a bit and discovered that his doubt, which seems to primarily lie in the probable implications of there only being one way, is fed greatly by seeing many other world religions claiming to have "the" way. How is he to believe one over the other? He seemed more content to believe that all deities are the same.

Taylor is an environmental science major who enjoys singing, cave exploration, travel, cooking, and bartending. Our conversation branched off from my conversation with Mike and I discovered that this lively woman is quite a bit like me: she prefers to base her judgments regarding belief and worldview on facts. It was interesting to share information back and forth with her. Eventually, more people came in and it got too busy for our conversation to continue. Alas, I was really getting into it too.

Anyway, now that it's Friday, it's time for me to be on my way again. Literally, as soon as I publish this, I have to shower and hit the road for my next stop, where I'll be all weekend. Today I'm grateful for the fact that reality isn't based on how I feel.

"I realize my identity is not in what I've seen but in what I believe to be true." -August Burns Red

Regardless of what I believe to be true, this statement holds weight and credence. I'm reminded that it's crucial to know what I believe. 

Iowa - Part 1: Dubuque

It may seem like little more than a bigger version of Eau Claire when all you're doing is driving through (yawn, yay), but upon closer inspection, Dubuque is magnificent. It's not quite as aesthetically appealing as Eau Claire (though to be fair, few cities are), but it has a river to the east and high bluffs to the west, leaving the downtown area nestled in its own little topographical groove.

As you probably figured, this is where I was yesterday. Instead of leaving Eau Claire around 8am and arriving around 11:30am like I had initially planned (I was serious about wanting to explore all of Dubuque), I ended up hitting the road around 11:00 and didn't cross the Mississippi until after 2:30. This left me only four hours before I had to get on the road again. Four hours is not a long time.

The first ten minutes were spent trying to find a place to park where I would remember to find my car. Fortunately, Dubuque is a city, and cities have parking ramps. Unfortunately, it took me a little while to find a parking ramp that would either let me in (the first one was a public ramp, but the ticket machine wasn't working) or didn't require a permit (the second ramp I tried was permit-only). I finally settled for the Iowa street ramp. 

The next half hour was actually spent sitting on my trunk with my acoustic, noodling around and singing to myself while my GoPro charged inside the car. Eventually, the little camera regained the bar of battery charge it had lost on the way from Eau Claire (I may have stopped a few times for photo opportunities). I put the guitar back in its case, put the GoPro back in its housing, attached it to its head strap, tucked my spare key into my pocket (nobody likes carrying around a big bundle of keys), hid my other keys in the glove compartment, grabbed my sport pack, put headphones in my ears, and was on my way.

Since I didn't have much time (it was already 3:15), I didn't waste any of it. I immediately scoped out the highest rooftop that I could quickly access and went up to snap a couple views. Accepting that I didn't have enough time to actually get around to climbing any buildings (which was a real bummer, since I saw at least a few that I would love to go back and try), I walked around and saw everything that I could see. 

Of course, no trip to a city is complete without getting into at least a little bit of parkour shenanigans. My right wrist and left foot weren't feeling the greatest to begin with, so some things I saw that would have been a lot of fun to try simply didn't happen. In an effort to conserve battery, I also neglected to leave my camera rolling (and thus forgot that it wasn't recording), so I didn't get to capture much at all. I think my favorite part was when I ran up a wall to a low rooftop and a lady down below smiled to the guy next to her and pointed at me. Thank you, random lady. Putting a smile on your face definitely put a smile on mine.

Since I hadn't eaten since about 8am, I got hungry around 4:30 and decided it would be a good time to find a place where I could sit down and process a few pictures. So I went back to my car, paid $3 for my parking, had a conversation with the parking cashier who told me about a few things to explore which I wish I would have known before, and went to the McDonald's across the street. There I sat and went through all of the pictures I had gotten from the day, and ended up with 4 panoramas that I thought looked somewhat acceptable.

After talking on the phone with an internet friend regarding upcoming plans for this weekend, I called another friend who I stayed with last night (and will again tonight), hopped in my car, and drove away to leave the city. Of course, I didn't end up leaving immediately. There were just a couple things that caught my eye. So, naturally, I decided to stick around for just a little longer to investigate these things.

The first one was a freight train parked less than 100 feet away from a railroad crossing. I quickly drove around the block, parked, grabbed my GoPro, and ran around the front of the train to hopefully catch a couple pictures. However, as soon as I got around to the other side of the train, its horn blared and it started moving. Thinking quickly, I switched my camera back to video mode, got down low next to the train (maybe three or four feet away), and filmed the cars as they rolled past. The footage actually doesn't look too bad.

The second was a gas station. It wasn't the gas station itself, though, but the price they had advertised on their sign: $3.25/gal for regular unleaded (with the usual up-to-ten-percent ethanol). It was the lowest price I had seen in a while. Even though prices have dropped a little in Eau Claire, I still paid $3.59/gal when I filled up yesterday morning. So, naturally, I topped off my tank and seized the opportunity to add a little oil to the engine and clean the windshield. 

Now I was on my way. It was about 6:45 when I finally left. I didn't want to keep my friend waiting, so I didn't make any more stops. I did, however, manage to film the sunset as I drove westward. I arrived in Waterloo right around 9:00 and pulled into my friend's driveway a few minutes later. His family so far has been very kind and hospitable. I was pretty tired last night, though, so I don't remember much. I think I dozed off around 11 the first time, was woke up around midnight, and flopped on the couch they had prepared for me.

Now that I have a little coffee in me this morning, I think it's time to eat something and head into town to do a little more exploring. Because this week is all about adventure, and today's adventure is all about exploring Waterloo.

Today I'm grateful for air to breathe, coffee to drink, a hospitable family, and God's relentless grace.