Three years ago, I began a new chapter in my life when my college experience ended. On Aug. 1, 2005, I left Athens, Ga., to live with my mother in Ohio. It was a difficult change to make but it eventually led me to my new home, Visalia, Calif., where I began my career as a journalist, serving as copy editor at the Visalia Times-Delta newspaper. After over a year of work on the copy desk, I began to show an interest in multimedia, prompting my editors to create for me the position of multimedia reporter — a position which afforded me the opportunity to produce video content for our newspaper's Web site. I have been in that position for over a year now, leading me to my next big change. It's August 1 again and I'm going home — again.

It's kind of a rush, to say the least. I find it rather ironic that this point of the year beckons me back to Ohio. Though it is true that I am moving to Columbia, Mo., to attend graduate school at the University of Missouri-Columbia, I am traveling to Ohio to pick up my mother, who will help me move into my apartment in Columbia. The journey begins at 5 p.m. August 1, when my employment with Gannett ends. I will drive to Las Vegas to see my college friends Padmini and Braniff. I will spend Saturday with them before embarking early Sunday morning for however far I can drive down Interstate 70 in one day. On Monday I assume I'll be in Kansas, on my way to Ohio. I'll drive past Columbia and into St. Louis, where I will pick up my sister. Together we will go to Brookville, Ohio, where we will rest and wait for my mother to finish her night shift at the hospital. Tuesday afternoon, the three of us will head back to Columbia, get a hotel room and rest before moving the things I packed this past weekend into my new apartment.

So, yeah, that's the plan. It's really ending. My time in California has come to an end. More experiences in this wonderful state are to come, I am certain, but this detour is necessary. Graduate school, the next chapter in my life, will afford me many opportunities that Gannett and the Times-Delta will not. I will have the opportunity to develop my new media skills beyond the editing prowess and content management understanding I've mastered at the Times-Delta. My dedication to coding and Web design will be re-invested and invigorated — at least I hope. I aim to be finishing up an internship at a major media or new media corporation or Web site by this time next year. I will be cultivating the connections necessary to acheive the career goals I have set for myself in the next 5 years. Hopefully, by the end of that time, I will have re-located to my dream location — Washington D.C. — covering politics and employing my skills for a company that values my skills, intelligence and experience.

That's the dream. And it all starts today, August 1. I have been waiting for this day long before I knew it would come this day, this time, this year. I always knew I would be leaving the Times-Delta. I knew that the Central Valley was not the place for me. I love the mountains, I love the Sierra. I will miss Yosemite. I will miss the Central Coast. Los Angeles will alas quake without me. And I will continue to curse San Francisco, who not only litters my car window with parking tickets but exceeds in thwarting my flirtations with alternative transportation (translation: My bike was stolen last month on Market Street in San Francisco). But all of this is not enough to make me stay. I must move on. Finishing graduate school is something I have known I must do. Now the time has come.

As for my blog, big changes are coming. More on that when I make it a little further from California.

Thanks for reading. See you on the other side.

Posted by Nick at 12:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

It's funny, when the thought occurred to me to move to California (which happened shortly after the state of Georgia passed a blatant, inexcusable measure designed to denigrate gays and lesbians as second-class citizens forever), I figured I would be free from all of that in the bluest of the blue states. On the whole, that is very true. California is a great state and I live confident that even with a Republican governor I am respected and honored as a citizen. But even the blue states tend to have a red streak.

Visalia is a pretty conservative, family place. It's a gorgeous, wonderful place to live, but there are also many Bible-thumping freakazoids that like to throw the good book around into people's faces. Letters often appear in our paper that lash out at the "homosexual deviants," and I place them, because I think it's very healthy for people to speak their minds (even though I don't necessarily agree with them). And, thankfully, there are people who respond to such nonsense. One such response in its entirety:

Homophobia is rampant in this community
Jim Mancini, Visalia

Why does the Times-Delta seem compelled to print so many letters from Visalia's Christian, homophobic community?

I've lost count of the number of letters from Christian dogmatists who usually quote a passage in the bible that "clearly" condemns homosexuality. The latest, from Sam Lukes, quotes one of their favorite passages, (Romans 1:26:27). He says, "God is quite clear."

Even as a high school student who studied the Bible (Roman Catholics' version) for two years every day in religion class, I realized that it is a collection of writings by people of ancient times who were new and zealous converts. Furthermore, someone had to edit these writings and choose which ones to include. So today we have many versions that claim to be the true interpretation.

With all due respect to those who interpret the Bible literally, there are many of us who do not. The social context and language usage at the time that the stories in the Bible were collected, edited and published were much different than today. These writers were from different cultures quite limited in their scientific knowledge. Add to this the various language translations and the Bible is far from "quite clear."

Many modern biblical scholars interpret that passage in Romans quite differently than Mr. Lukes. He might try to open his mind just a little and research other points of view. All the Bible thumpers out there who like to quote verses that justify their homosexual bigotry should also mention that the Bible condones genocide, mass murder and slavery.

God bless you.

Anyways, we have this wonderful "StoryChat" feature on our Web site that makes it very easy for those indoctrinated nutjob drones to instantly respond to a reasoned argument. You can only imagine what things were said, but I thought this response deserved the spotlight (but there are several worth mentioning):

If you don't like the religious justification against homosexuality, how about this.

A lesson in basic plumbing explains it for me. The human body has "in" holes and "out" holes. When it comes to traditional love making, men do not have an "in" hole. Women do! Two men together or two women together have to break the laws of basic plumbing to attempt to make love. Using "out" holes as "in" holes is not a good idea. Seems simple to me.

How about from natures perspective. Natures goal for animals(including humans) is to promote survival and create offspring. man + man = no offspring... woman + woman = no offspring. Again... seems pretty simple!

— ForTheKIDS

You know, he's got a point. I mean, nothing ever comes out of a vagina, ever! Only in. A special trap door must open when it's time for babies or "that time of the month."

And it's a good thing God-fearing Christians NEVER use that other "hole" they must be speaking of (the anus), because they have so many other holes to choose from. And I guess if the vagina has that coveted "in-hole status," the mouth must also be dubbed an "in hole" since things more frequently go in than out. And of course, no one has been impeached or sent to fiery damnation for sticking their dick in that, now have they.

Freaking psychos...

Posted by Nick at 08:02 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

It's hard to believe, but I have been a Californian for a year now. A year ago today I pulled my car up to my new apartment after a week of driving across America. I left my mother, grandmother and Joey in Miamisburg, Ohio and for four days made my way across Interstate 70 to the great state of California. It was an exhilarating experience, one I had been waiting on for so long. I wanted so much after graduation to go some place new and different. Fulfilling that goal was a terrific rush.

A year later, I'm still in the Valley. My apartment is so much more than just the exhumed contents of my packed car and the futon I assembled on my first night in my new apartment. I am so much more than that green, young copy editor from Georgia. I have accomplished so much since I've arrived here.

In just one year, I have bought furniture and things for my apartment, trained and completed a marathon, climbed the tallest mountain in the state and even fulfilled my promise to my good friend Nicole and made it all the way to France. I'm so thankful for the opportunities afforded to my since I got my job. I feel I have purpose and direction which a year ago were things I desperately sought. My life here is invigorating and I look forward to what the next year has to offer.

A year from now, I hope things will be very different. My goal is to apply to graduate school in the fall with an assistantship at a school in California or hopefully in Washington D.C. or New York (two places I have dreamed to have lived). Before I do that, though, I hope to achieve more in New Media at my newspaper. On the Saturday after Thanksgiving, I will begin training for my next marathon, the Georgia Marathon on March 25 in Atlanta, Ga., which I will be running with my friend Marilia. I am also ironing out the details of a trip to Las Vegas with my friend Jeremy to see our fabulous friend Padmini and visit the hallowed landmark The Cheetah, where they filmed the film classic "Showgirls." I'm going back to Ohio early this January to see my mother and grandmother. I may also be going to see Jeremy in Ann Arbor, Mich., next year.

Apologies, setting goals like this keeps me motivated and keeps things interesting. Like I said, I accomplished so much this last year, and if I hadn't laid out so much I probably would have just wasted away in the boring Central Valley.

Well, before I go, I thought it might be interesting to share my iTunes Top 25 Most Played playlist over the past year. Here it is:

Top 25 Most Played on my iPod

1. garbage - Run Baby Run
2. Amuro Namie - Come
3. Relient K - Who I Am Hates Who I've Been
4. Day by Day - Itazura Na Kiss
5. garbage - Happy Home
6. The Cure - Push
7. New Order - Turn
8. New Order - Regret
9. The Smiths - Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others
10. The Cure - Just Like Heaven
11. New Order - True Faith
12. Relient K - More Than Useless
13. New Order - Bizarre Love Triangle
14. Relient K - Be My Escape
15. Madonna - Forbidden Love
16. The All-American Rejects - Dirty Little Secret
17. Ayumi Hamasaki - Dearest
18. The Cure - Friday I'm In Love
19. Kelly Clarkson - Since U Been Gone
20. The Killers - Smile Like You Mean It
21. The Flaming Lips - The Wand
22. Nada Surf - Inside of Love
23. Tears For Fears - Head Over Heals / Broken [Live]
24. The Smiths - This Charming Man
25. garbage - Cup of Coffee

And, just for reminiscence sake, check out my letters from last year. I chronicled my whole trip from Ohio to California, reflecting on my three months with my mother as well as reflecting on my experience in Visalia a month after I had arrived. It's pretty sweet, check it out.

Posted by Nick at 02:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Since last week, the city of Visalia has been terrorized by vicious, man-eating reptiles! Well, it's not quite that bad, but after getting my hair cut the other day and speaking to some of my fellow city-dwellers, the snake and lizard that have been on the loose might as well have been man-eating:

Lizard compounds neighbors' reptile fears
By David Castellon
Staff writer

Residents in a south Visalia neighborhood who have spent the past week nervously looking out for a venomous snake that may be slithering through homes and gardens have a new reptile to worry about.

On Thursday, city officials announced that they had confirmed that a two-foot monitor lizard had escaped from its cage in the same neighborhood where last week it was reported that a dog might have been bitten by a venomous snake.

"The owners of the reptile confirmed that the lizard had been missing a couple of weeks ago and had been captured and returned to its cage, but has now been missing again for several days," said Leslie Caviglia, Visalia's assistant city manager, in a statement.

It goes on to say that the lizard, seen by a police officer, had a "snake-like head and a long, narrowing tail" and that city officials have been told that the lizard's bite could contain bacteria that can cause septic shock and death if untreated.

While none of this foolishness is happening in my neighborhood, I'm just a few blocks away, but I'm not scared. I mean, the lizard and the snake would have to cross a lot of streets to even get close to me, and I'm sure they would be road kill if they even tried.

I tell you what, though, this snake is not something you want to mess with:

[Brendon Mitchell, owner of the Venomous Snake Research Center in Tehachapi], was in Visalia earlier this week helping city Animal Control officers search for the snake.

"They asked if we needed any help in finding the snake, and they said they were experts in doing that, and they said they would help if we let them," said Jerry Herrmann, executive director of the Valley Oak Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, which provides animal control services for Visalia. "I said, 'Y'all come. We need all the help we can get.' "

But Mitchell said the search was unsuccessful.

"We didn't come across much of anything. We came across some tracks that could have been a snake, but we weren't sure," because somebody had stepped on them, he said.

Meanwhile, rumors have spread fast and furious about the snake, including that it is a black mamba, one of the world's deadliest snakes.

I think it's positively thrilling that a black mamba would be on the loose in Visalia. Of course we've all seen Kill Bill and know just how deadly a black mamba can be.

Elle Driver: "In Africa, the saying goes 'In the bush, an elephant can kill you, a leopard can kill you, and a black mamba can kill you. But only with the mamba is death sure.' Hence its handle, 'Death Incarnate.'" Pretty cool, huh?

I don't know where they got the idea that a black mamba would be on the loose, but our newspaper has been pretty hush-hush on any references to Beatrix Kiddo, the deadly assasin from the film with the nickname "black mamba," as she is considered the deadliest woman in the world.

It's one of my favorite movies, but considering the venom of an actual black mamba can kill you in a matter of hours (or minutes, if bitten on the face), I don't think I'm going to be reaching into any bushes around Caldwell Avenue and County Center Street. You know, just to be safe.

But no worries, at least one of the reptiles has been found!

Lizard caught; snake still loosed
By Jed Chernabaeff
Staff writer

Tension in a south Visalia neighborhood was relieved temporarily Friday afternoon when a 2-foot monitor lizard reported missing just a day before was captured by a gardener.

But nerves are still on edge in the neighborhood, as a venomous snake, who animal control officials say may be linked to the killing of a dog after biting it weeks ago, could still be on the loose.

Visalia gardener Ken Peterson said the Savannah monitor lizard, named Steve-O, was crawling on sun-baked pavement while he was driving east in the 2700 block of James Street, near where it was reported to have escaped.
Ken Peterson said a neighborhood resident first spotted the lizard and flagged Peterson down.

"The neighbor spotted the lizard and called 911," Peterson said. "I drove up, and the lizard ran toward the curb toward a tube."

The tube, a drain pipe along the base of a 2-foot wooden fence between two homes, served as the device to trap the lizard, Peterson said.

"I stuck two sticks on each side of the pipe and trapped it," Peterson said. "Then we waited for police and animal control."

I would have probably left the lizard alone. I mean, he's going to find the black mamba eventually and then the two would have it out, and the victor would become legendary nightmare reptile of southwest Visalia.

That, or they should loose some mongoose to look out for the snake. I'm sure Rikki-Tikki-Tavi would down Beatrix in no time!

Posted by Nick at 09:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

It's absolutely crazy to think that a week ago I was still on Whitney. I've had a week to think about the experience (and produce a special Flash presentation of it for the Visalia Times-Delta which you can view here).

Several months ago, I was asked by Laura at work if I wanted to join her and others on a hike up Mt. Whitney, which she had surmounted less than a year prior at the time with another copy editor from the paper. I enthusiastically agreed, seeing it as an opportunity to do something truly unique in Tulare County. Mt. Whitney it just at the corner of the county in Sequoia National Park between the county and Inyo County and Inyo National Forest. Since I was in the midst of training for a marathon, the thought of topping a 22-mile hike up a 14,505 foot mountain seemed like a piece of cake. I was so wrong.

Hiking Mt. Whitney is not picnic. Aside from the head-pounding altitude, there are 96 relentless switchbacks that are seemingly never ending and so very discouraging. It took 16 hours to get off that freaking mountain, and in just a scant few paragraphs, I will attempt to boil down the experience for you.

We left for the hike on Saturday morning at 4 a.m. We didn't start the hike until 24 hours after this point, but it was important that we arrive to receive our hiking permit first thing in the morning and have a day of camping to acclimate ourselves to the vicious altitude (which, by nominal standards, isn't that bad. I mean, it's no Everest). You would think since Mt. Whitney is in the county, it would be a short drive away. Also, since it's the tallest mountain in the state and the whole 48 contiguous United States, you might think you would see it from my living room window. All not true. Mt. Whitney is on the far eastern side of the Sierra Nevada and Visalia is nestled on the Western side of the range. We had to drive south to Bakersfield to go around the whole freaking range an into Owens Valley, a graben.

Once we made it to Lone Pine, a small town ness led at the base of Mt Whitney (which was in plain view at this point), we went to get our permit. Interesting note about Lone Pine, it is where most of the Westerns during the Golden Age of Hollywood were filmed.

With permit in hand, Laura, myself and Tiffani (my boss at the paper) made our way up to the Whitney Portal where we were to camp. It was a short drive and my car handled it well (though it nearly overheated). The trail begins at 8,000 feet (Owens Valley, a high desert, is 4,000 feet). I wasn't being hammered by the elevation at this point and I spent most of Saturday relaxing, taking in the scenery and preparing my hiking pack.

We started out at 3 in the morning, waking up and having breakfast. The sky was absolutely breathtaking. I have never in my whole life seen such a complete view of the sky. Looking up at that moment made me wish we had reached the summit at midnight. It was truly amazing.

Starting the hike was pretty easy. The first three hours breezed by, and soon the sun was up and we were approaching Trail Camp. Most hikers will hike from the portal to Trail Camp before making the final ascent up the mountain. Oh, but not us...we had to do it on one day!

Once I reached the Whitney zone (which required the permit) and Trail Camp, the switchbacks were pretty difficult. They weren't too frequent until beyond Trail Camp, where an endless parade of switchbacks eventually made me a very unhappy camper. At this point, my head was throbbing from the elevation, we were much higher than we were at Alta Peak (nearly 12,000 feet in elevation). I would have to stop at several points just to take a breather until the pounding subsided (which quickly reached its fevered pitch whenever I started the ascent again). I was pretty far ahead of the others (Laura quit early on but Tiffani and her boyfriend Ethan were still with me), but as the elevation had more of an effect on me, I had to slow down and hike with the group.

We reached Trail Crest, a feat in of itself, and we entered Sequoia National Park on the western side of the mountain. I thought we were nearly done, but the trail continued for another two grueling hours (but minus the switchbacks, thankfully. Just a steady steep grade, oh joy!) At times during this point, Tiffani and Ethan were far ahead of me, as the elevation wreaked havoc on my head. I caught up though.

After what seemed like forever, we finally reached the summit and I plopped myself on a rock and enjoyed some lunch. Some fearless birds came along and shared some of my lunch with me, it was pretty cool. But, as is all too true with hikes like this, reaching the top is only half of the story. The hike down was just brutal.

I reached the trail head at just after 8 p.m. (we reached the summit at 1 p.m. but didn't leave until 2 p.m.) The hike down was by far the worst part. I relied heavily on my filter water bottle since I had run completely out of bottled water. By the time I reached Trail Camp, I had so many blisters on my feet, but I knew resting every few hundred feet would only mean my blistered would get worse having to endure longer on the mountain, so I tore it up on the way down. I didn't care how much my feet hurt, I wanted to be off that mountain as quickly as possible. I was so relieved when I reached my car, I felt like bursting into tears, that's how significant the moment was.

So, having reflected on the hike, I feel confident in saying the hike was so much worse than running a marathon. Granted, it was only 22 miles, but you have no idea how long a hiking mile is until you've actually tried it. It's no picnic. Also, at least the marathon was over in 5 hours. If I have to spend 16 hours on a mountain more than 2 miles from a comfortable tent and sleeping bag ever again in my life, it will be too soon.

But, who am I kidding? I said I'd never run a marathon again, and just this week I resolved to run the inaugural Georgia Marathon with Marilia on March 25, 2007. Who knows, I may be taking a trip up Whitney next year.

If you feel up to it, do let me know.

See all my photos posted at my Flickr page by clicking here.

Posted by Nick at 09:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

As you sit in your cool, air-conditioned home, likely far from the sunny state of California, you might wonder how things are going here in the Golden State. It's beautiful, as always, but unfortunatly our golden sunsets (as I captured gloriously just the other day) are accompanied by miserable days of high heat and near-daily brownouts.

Since moving to Visalia, I have gotten several cautious words about the seasons here in California. For one, it only rains in the late fall to early winter, and just a little rain goes a long way (ever heard the emergency broadcast signal for a shower? I have). Also, winters in the Central Valley bring in notorious fog. Just this year, one pernicious day of fog resulted in a 40-car pileup on Highway 99.

The few words of warning I shrugged off concerned the summer. As I and so many other people have learned, summers in the Central Valley send temperatures up into the triple digits. Fortunately, it's not humid often and the discomfort usually lasts just a week in the summer. Unfortunately for me, this summer seems to be the exception:

California residents sink to new lows as heat reaches new highs
The Associated Press

LOS ANGELES — In a land of sun worshippers, the heat has become the enemy.

Weeks of record-setting, triple-digit temperatures have turned California into a surreal tapestry of heat-induced torture: goldfish cook in their bowls, milk curdles as it's poured and sweat-soaked civilians stand in line for public "cooling stations" as if they were the latest trendy clubs.

In a region where 119-degree days are very recent memories, nothing is off-limits. One woman shaved her overheated cat; another man fried the proverbial egg on a Burbank sidewalk; a third advocated sliding between the sheets with stacks of frozen gel packs.

I'm currently still using my stovetop to cook eggs and my milk is safe in the refrigerator, as far as I know. I had such a pleasant time on the coast this weekend, it's amazing what a difference some marine air has on this awful heat. Maybe if that "big quake" happens in a couple of days, shaving off a few hundred miles off the state leaving Visalia a beachfront city, I might be able to enjoy some of that relief on a daily basis.

For now, I guess I'm just going to have to bake.

Posted by Nick at 07:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Sorry I've been so scarce. I had a positively dreadful week last week. After my hike up Alta Peak and the excruciating sunburn I received because of it, work was such a drag. Monday and Tuesday was just unbearable, I somehow made it through to the end of the week. I had to work on Friday night, which is always a bore, but this weekend I had the distinct pleasure of seeing my good friend Padmini in Southern California.

Padmini is involved with Teach for America and she is teaching a class of bright kids in a Compton middle school, and from the way she tells it, these kids are very lucky. Granted, they struggle in an unequal education system where they have been neglected for years, but thanks to the dedication and hard work of Teach for America teachers like Padmini, they have a fighting chance.

I had the lucky opportunity to whisk her away from this god-saving work for a superficial day out on the town. We went to this delicious Indian Food restaurant on Sunset Boulevard. I hadn't eaten anything all morning, and though I was not sure what I was eating exactly, I had every bite. It was fantastic.

Afterward, we parked down by the Kodak Theatre and took a stroll down Hollywood Boulevard. We sorted around through American Apparel and took a stroll down the Walk of Fame. I am sad to say I did not find Humphrey Bogart on the walk, but I did see Marilyn Monroe! She's in front of McDonald's, but as Padmini said, it's was probably not always there.

The weather this weekend in California was positively scorching so after some water and a milk shake (and another trip to American Apparel) we headed back to Long Beach, where she is staying. We hooked up with B.J., another friend of mine from college, and we ventured to yet another vegetarian restaurant. Au Lac. We all shared vegan lobster, salmon and sweet and sour chicken. Afterwards, we went to a great tea shop and played some games. I must point out that I dominated every game of Connect Four and there was significant cackling involved with a sinister game of Uno (which I also won, at least once).

I stayed over the night and after a delightful drive through gay Long Beach, we had some bagels and I headed home. It was the most fun I've had in Los Angeles by far. I'm looking forward to seeing Padmini at her new digs in Las Vegas. Maybe some day, after she's made it as a successful teacher and performer at the legendary Cheetah gentleman's club, I'll let her take me on in Connect Four again :-)

But I'll still win...

I'll be sure to update more this week. I'm planning some stuff on this persistant heat wave, maybe the Bush veto, the violence in the middle east, but sadly, no more InuYasha. I'll only beat that dead horse if it comes back from the dead...again.

Posted by Nick at 10:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Of all the things I could have done Sunday, the last thing on my list was climbing an 11,240 foot mountain. I could have slept in, partied it up into the wee hours of the morning in Fresno Saturday night or even talked to my long-lost expatriate friend who lives in France (who actually called when I was on the hike!) I guess, having lived so close to Sequoia National Park for so long and still not having the pleasure of visiting, my curiosity got the better of me.

I have hiked a few mountains in my day. Compared to the peaks I see just outside my window every morning, you could more accurately describe my past experience as mounting glorified hills. California mountains are no joke. I was a big fearful the altitude and terrain would be a challenge for me, but I can honestly say I did quite excellent. It was quite a ride though.

In preparation of my Mt. Whitney hike on August 6th, I went with a friend from work to tackle Alta Peak, a 6-mile hike. We started out from Visalia at 6:30 a.m. and didn't make it to the trail head until 8:30. The drive up was fantastic. You take 198 through the foothills and finally along side the Kaweah River into Three Rivers. From there, it's up until you get to Sequoia Park and then up several windy roads. You could see Moro Rock as we drove higher up into the park. Finally we got to the Giant Forest and I got my first glimpse of the world's largest trees.

We started at Wolverton and the first hour and a half just flew by. We hiked through about 2 miles of woods and it was fairly easy. We saw a deer right on the onset of the hike and I got a nice picture of its butt. Once we made it to Panther Gap, you could see out into the mountain range, it was pretty spectacular. We passed this rock that's supposed to look like a bear, but it looked like a big rock to me. The hike sort of dragged at this point and I got pretty annoyed at the steadily sharper grades as we approached Alta Meadow. I told my fellow hiker who had only talked me into the trek a day earlier that I had several four letter words saved for her once we finished this hike.

"Oh, you mean 'fun' with two N's?" she retorted. Yeah. Right.

After Alta Meadow, a mere two miles from the peak, it started to suck. The grades became as severe as 19% and it became very difficult to keep a steady pace without taking frequent breathers. The altitude never gave me more than some sinus trouble and some shortness of breath, but I gave myself the benefit of a doubt if I felt too strained. Better to take it easy the first time.

We finally got to the point where the tree started to disappear and the peak finally seemed to be in sight. Even this late in the summer there remained pockets of snow all around the peak. It was a relief to put a pile of that on my head. As I ascended, there would always be a pile of rocks blocking my view of the top and it would always seem to be just beyond them. I'd push it to get up to the rocks but there always seemed to be another outcropping, which quickly became very annoying. Finally, with the site of a fellow hiker triumphantly perched at the peak, I bee lined it straight to the summit.

It was quite a view. There were a lot of flies, that was annoying, but you've got to give it up for the view. I even saw Mt. Whitney in the distance. It's amazing to think I will be at the top of the Sierra Nevada range in just a couple weeks.

Long story short, the descent was easier than the climb, but descending the steep grades was very bothersome for my knees. I almost slipped several times. I tore it up through most of the trail and we made it out a whole hour earlier than planned.

I wish I had more adventurous friends and family that would be willing to share an experience like this with me. I too often hear people complain about how they could never accomplish such a feat. It really isn't that bad, you never know you can accomplish something as daring as a mountain hike. I remember thinking Kennesaw Mountain back in Georgia was so incredible, but this was 10 times the difficulty as that. It's an incredible feeling surmounting a height like Alta Peak. I can't imagine what Whitney is going to do for me.

In the aftermath: I have a nasty sunburn, my legs were surprisingly filthy (I wore long jeans!) and I am thinking I might do it again next weekend to further train myself for Whitney. We'll see how that goes, I'd like to see a friend of mine in Long Beach, so maybe it will be a SoCal weekend instead of another day touching the sky.

God I love California.

Posted by Nick at 11:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I haven't gone many places since my marathon last month, so I figured I would venture out this weekend. Some very good college friends were visiting San Francisco and I couldn't miss the opportunity to see them. I jumped into my car (after forgetting like 3 essential items before leaving) and finally I was off.

I've been to San Francisco twice before, and as a non-California native, I think I finally got it right this time. The first time I visited I came with a friend who matriculates at Stanford University in Palo Alto. We took the Caltrain up and ventured to Fisherman's Warf, Pier 39 and Ghirardelli Square. We had a fabulous, long day, but we hit most of the tourist traps that offered little lasting satisfaction. Bummer.

For New Year's, I went with a friend from Sacramento to party it up in the city. I thought for sure we would see the better parts of the city, seeing as alcohol would be involved. It was very rainy on New Year's Eve, but I made it to San Francisco in plenty of time. My friend, however, was rerouted several times because of landslides on the interstate, so she was 4 hours late! I was stuck in the city, all by myself, on New Year's Eve! I ventured around where I had landed (which was, oddly enough, the one place I wanted to see on my first visit, the Castro district) and spent copious amounts of time perusing Safeway and plugging away on my computer at Starbucks. When my friend finally did show up, we had a fabulous time, but I feel like I could have done more.

This time around, my friends and I poked around the Haight Ashbury and it was very much worthwhile (enough for me to shrug off parking illegally and incurring a $60 parking ticket). For any of you who aren't away, the Haight Ashbury is this area in San Francisco where all the hippies went to die. I saw so many old hippies! Also, lots of dogs strapped to parking meters on the street, psychedelic painted vans and all sorts of beatnik-themed shops (and a few too many corporate sellouts, sadly).

We ate at this very cool sandwich place and I got this delicious lettuce, fried green tomato and eggplant parmesan sandwich. We looked at some of the shops, I got a comfy shirt from American Apparel. We went to Amoeba Music where I feel like we spent a whole hour looking and listening to music. I finally picked up the new Snow Patrol album as well as Republic, an older New Order album that was on clearance for only $3 used. I also noticed the Flaming Lips had released a special album entitled The Fearless Freaks, which according to the album's intro was released on a limited basis at SXSW. It contained a haunting live version of "The Observer," one of my favorite Lips songs, as well as a rare track titled "Enthusiasm for Life Defeats Existential Fear."

After this, I drove my friends back to their hotel and I took on the arduous task of leaving the city. It was hard enough getting to Union Square when I arrived. You might find this hard to believe, but for a left-leaning city like San Francisco, you can't make any left turns. It makes it very hard for a newbie like myself to find his way out of the Labyrinth by instead of making a left turn, having to make three right turns.

It was great visiting, I wish I didn't have to leave so soon. It would be nice spending the night again. I did venture to my favorite Safeway to buy some Soy Crisps. It's a shame I ate them so quickly...

Posted by Nick at 06:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I live in Visalia, Calif, and it's not like any place I've lived before. Visalia is like a suburb without a city, a fruit without the vine. It is often boring and uninteresting, but at the same time it is beautiful and serene. The landscape is breathtaking, the mountains are just awesome. Agriculture is abounds and there is always an excellent farmer's market going on someplace. It's a nice place to live, for the most part. At least I've managed to get by.

It's hard to believe that I've been here for 9 months already. I remember thinking a year living here was going to mean so much, but it still feels like the day I pulled up in my car, looking for a place to live. I can't believe so much time has flown by. I don't want to live here forever, but for the next year or so, it's not such a bad idea. I have kept myself busy, but I feel like I still need to commit to this place some more.

Training for the marathon was a great way to keep my feet on the ground in Visalia. I had a team that I ran with and I got to see some great running spots close to town. My favorite place to run is Yokohl Valley, this area down Highway 198 off of Yokohl Drive that takes you into the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. It's very pretty and ranchers keep a lot of cattle out there. It was entertaining to trot down the road mooing at the cows staring at me as I ran by.

Running has been the one thing I have done most in Visalia. It's not as challenging as the roads back in Georgia, but I do love Visalia for it's safe streets and plentiful running space. Restaurants are lacking, though, in my opinion. Being a vegetarian makes it kind of difficult to find food for my selective palate. Most of the places I enjoy most are too expensive for casual dining or just too far away.

A lot of people around here go to Fresno to party or go out, but I have not jumped on that band wagon yet. It's difficult when you don't have an established network of friends like I had back home. It's not that I don't have any friends, but the friends I do have here are not Fresno-party friends. They are mostly easygoing-Visalia friends. And while they may not take me to the more exciting places in the Central Valley, it is nice to know I have someone to get a drink with in boring ol' Visalia.

When I moved here, I figured I would travel to San Francisco or Los Angeles more often to escape the void that is Visalia, but steep gas prices have mostly snuffed that idea. I am going to go to San Francisco in two weeks to see some friends from college, I can't wait. There's nothing like seeing a familiar face out here where I know so few people.

A friend of mine asked me this weekend if I regret coming here to Visalia. It's been 9 months, and while things aren't always as exciting as they were back when I was in college, I can say that I don't regret it. I wonder how I would feel if I had stayed in Georgia, and I know I would have regretted not taking the chance to go someplace different. I'm glad that I found the courage to take a chance.

But I should have to courage to embrace Visalia. I feel like I still reach out to home and am stuck someplace in between. That's probably the worst part of living here — really living here. Meeting people, making friends and building relationships that start to become more relevant than the relationships you left behind. I think, having been here 9 months already, I should establish those ties. It's difficult, but I probably won't be happy here until I do.

It's sad to watch the past drift away, but if you don't have anything to do besides watch it pass, it can be really depressing. I'm glad that I have such a vibrant, intriguing place like Visalia to make my present worth holding onto.

Posted by Nick at 10:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Since I have moved out to California, I have to admit a lot of things are different than back east. Many of these are subtle, though.

It took a few months to realize I hadn't seen a Waffle House in a while. IHOP is the trashy breakfast restaurant here. A whole new fast food restaurant, In-N-Out Burger, serves a position on the dining spectrum I had never considered (Kind of a casual Varsity, if you're curious). And Edy's ice cream, a dessert favorite to many, is mysteriously named Dreyer's. Same box, same flavor, it just says Dreyer's instead of Edy's. Weird...

Gone are supermarkets Publix, Kroger and even the Wal-Mart Supercenter (though that scorge is sure to come). I have to deal with stranger psuedonyms like Vons, Save Mart and Foods Co. It takes some getting used to, but at least I'm not shopping at the Piggly Wiggly.

But of all differences from back home, the most distressing would have to be the absense of some of my favorite foods. The most prominant at the moment is absense of Soy Crisps at my supermarket.

Since finally caving into vegetarianism a year and a half ago, I have adopted some peculiar tastes. I have adopted an array of new foods to keep me satisfied. Soy Crisps were first introduced to me by the sweet cashier-lady at 'Tween the Pages at the UGA library. I have been hooked on them every since, especially when my grandmother bought a bag for me each and every week during my short stint in Dayton, Ohio. Thankfully, most of my meat substitutes are served here in the Valley (minus one multi-purpose vegetarian restarant and Athens-staple), but I am down one bag of Soy Crisps.

I have searched high and low for Soy Crisps in California. After wandering around the Castro for four hours on New Year's waiting for a friend to arrive, I stumbled across some at a Safeway. It's nice to know they are in the state, but I'd rather not drive 3 hours just to silence my hunger.

Also missing is my beloved Pepperidge Farm Cinnamon Bread. I have been able to get by on just wheat, but sometimes I wonder what kick PB could deliver if it were smashed between two of my expensive little cinnamon buddies.

Above all, my search for Soy Crisps is paramount. I have been getting by on Veggie Crisps (which Vons does stock), but it hasn't been easy. I just ask, if you are lucky enough to find yourself in an area pleniful in Soy Crisps, don't take them for granted. Buy a bag, maybe even two (or three, send one ot me). Enjoy them while you can. You never know when you'll be begging your local grocery manager for more.

Posted by Nick at 06:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)