Okay. I've gone through the rest of my NM Bucket list and broken it down into several different categories. Here's what they are:
Things to do with the family:
-Have Lunch and a "Lava-Lamp" on the patio at the Coyote Cafe
-Cook dinner with my dad at their home in Santa Fe
Weekend Activities:
-Take a cooking class at Annapurna
-Old Town Ghost Tour
Weekend Trips:
-Hike/Camp in Chaco Canyon
-Camp in the Jemez
-Warm Springs in Jemez at night
-Spend some time in Taos and eat at the Guadalajara Grill
-Bandelier National Monument
NM Road Trip
-See the NRAO Very Large Array
-Carlsbad Caverns, See the bats leave at night
-White Sands
-Roswell Alien Museum
So here's the break down, I need activity buddies! The trip around NM is gonna be a shorter trip than I had originally thought, but I'll need to find people to join me on the weekend trips too! A few can be bunched together, such as Taos and the Bandelier National Monument, but I need people to come along! If any of these weekend activities or weekend trips sound fun to you let me know! I'd love the company. If I do it right I should be able to get them all done in about 4 weekends. And of course anyone who is interested in the NM Road Trip is welcome to join too!
Saturday, April 6, 2013
Jaguar Pride! HAH!
As of now. Finished this goal while on spring break, but 2 shows led to little time for blogging.
On the Monday of my spring break I went up to Santa Fe to visit my High School theatre. Not too much to write about with this one, but it was pretty cool to visit the place I spent so much of my time over those four years. Unfortunately my picture had been taken down from the lobby when they painted it, but there were still some cool things to see.
One big changed I noticed was that the school felt like even more of a prison than it had before! Now there is a huge metal fence around the entire property, and there is a giant gate with a security guard standing by in the hallway that leads to the band room and cafeteria... Really is a ghetto school. LOL! But now on to the photos!
On the Monday of my spring break I went up to Santa Fe to visit my High School theatre. Not too much to write about with this one, but it was pretty cool to visit the place I spent so much of my time over those four years. Unfortunately my picture had been taken down from the lobby when they painted it, but there were still some cool things to see.
One big changed I noticed was that the school felt like even more of a prison than it had before! Now there is a huge metal fence around the entire property, and there is a giant gate with a security guard standing by in the hallway that leads to the band room and cafeteria... Really is a ghetto school. LOL! But now on to the photos!
The front of the school and the trophy we won at state my senior year!
The first stage I ever acted on, and the house I looked out at.
My senior mural that Amy helped me paint... which I never finished.
A couple of my friend's murals! Unfortunately I couldn't find Aaron, Antoinette, or Lydia's.
The converted updated band room.
A couple of mementos from our band days. Sad how small that group was.
Now for some business. According to the countdown clock I have on my phone I have 2 months, 15 days and 15 hours left before I step onto the flight that will take me to Chicago, and there's a lot still left on my list! Sweet Charity opens on Friday and after that I'll have a lot of time to finish some of this stuff. I'm planning a NM road trip to knock out several of my goals. I've already invited Christy and Bobby along for the ride, but if anyone else is interested in joining me to see The Bandelier National Monument, White Sands, Carlsbad Caverns, the warm springs in Jemez, Chaco Canyon, the NRAO Very Large Array, and the Roswell Alien Museum let me know! The plan is to camp most of the nights so we don't have to pay for hotels. Time to make some headway on these goals!
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Ya know what sucks?
Okay, I'm prefacing this by saying I'm in a great place right now. I haven't updated this in a while because I've been so busy with theatre, and having a blast with it. It's made me realize how much I've missed performing the past few years... but now to the point of this blog.
Ya know what sucks?
As anyone who knows me knows, I don't open up... to anyone... Friends that I have been close to for years know that there are always walls up, things I won't talk about. I'm just extremely rarely willing to let people in. I'm sure that has held me back from having some really strong friendships, but I try to make up for it by being willing to bend over backwards for the people I care about at a moment's notice.
While Gilbert and I were together I finally let my guard down for someone... It felt amazing. The end result of that, though, was a bigger fall when I learned of the degree to which he stabbed that trust in the back. I'm not mad at him. I'm not still clinging onto the relationship I lost. In fact I'm doing pretty darn well being single! I'm having fun doing things for myself for the first time in several years. Gilbert is nothing to me now but a piece of my history. But tonight I really got thinking about how frustrating it is that I can't bring myself to trust people entirely...
I don't know where this thought process is headed, but I want to apologize to all the INCREDIBLE people that I have been fortunate enough to get to know. You all mean so much to me, even if I won't tell you that to your face, or if I seem untrusting... I really do value the friendships we have! I just may not express it the way most people do.
I'll post an update soon! I only have a few months left in NM and have a lot to get done in that time!
Ya know what sucks?
As anyone who knows me knows, I don't open up... to anyone... Friends that I have been close to for years know that there are always walls up, things I won't talk about. I'm just extremely rarely willing to let people in. I'm sure that has held me back from having some really strong friendships, but I try to make up for it by being willing to bend over backwards for the people I care about at a moment's notice.
While Gilbert and I were together I finally let my guard down for someone... It felt amazing. The end result of that, though, was a bigger fall when I learned of the degree to which he stabbed that trust in the back. I'm not mad at him. I'm not still clinging onto the relationship I lost. In fact I'm doing pretty darn well being single! I'm having fun doing things for myself for the first time in several years. Gilbert is nothing to me now but a piece of my history. But tonight I really got thinking about how frustrating it is that I can't bring myself to trust people entirely...
I don't know where this thought process is headed, but I want to apologize to all the INCREDIBLE people that I have been fortunate enough to get to know. You all mean so much to me, even if I won't tell you that to your face, or if I seem untrusting... I really do value the friendships we have! I just may not express it the way most people do.
I'll post an update soon! I only have a few months left in NM and have a lot to get done in that time!
Wednesday, February 6, 2013
HN-88 and Sunsets
Updated yet again. Quick update on my list. I went to an HN-88 show a few weeks ago! It has been a few years since I've seen them perform, and these days they really know how to put on a show. I was told by Bobby to see one of their bar shows, but since I wasn't sure what my schedule would look like in the coming months I figured I should see the show I know I can make it to. Here are a few pics from the concert. I am going to do my best to see another one of their gigs before I go, especially as Bobby could barely even talk when I saw them!
I've also started trying to get pictures of the on going things I do on the list, such as watching the sunsets. Here are a few I've recently enjoyed!
Both of these were taken when Christy took me up to the Crest. I can't believe I've lived in Abq for almost 8 years and never new about this place to see sunsets!
This was taken up near the foothills during a date I recently went on.
This from the top of a cliff he let me up. I'll post more about this date if things progress.
I'll be posting an update soon about what's going on in life. It seems like there's quite a bit currently unrecorded here. :-)
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Hitting the ground running.
2 weeks into 2013 and I'm already loaded up with projects for the coming months!
We'll start with fitness. After finishing P90X I took a few weeks off to go on vacation. When I can back I started Insanity, and let me tell you the program definitely lives up to the name. After the first week was finished my weight was sitting stable at 141lbs... Way lighter than I want to be. Given this fact I've decided a cardio intense program isn't what's best for me right now. So I've decided to make the insanity workouts a 3 times a week occurrence. Supplemented by muscle building days in between. So far I'm really digging it. I'm happy with where my body is right now, I love all the definition, but I'm hoping to add some real bulk in the next few months! I'll keep you all posted on that.
Next we come to theatre. Last year was the second year in a row that I did very little theatre, while I hate that fact, it was more intentional than the year before. At the end of last year I auditioned for Tick, Tick...Boom!, I did an amazing job in the callbacks, but didn't get the part. I'm totally cool with that for several reasons. The next day I ran into the assistant director of La Cage Aux Folles, I wasn't able to make the auditions for that show, but she asked me to come to callbacks... which I also wasn't able to make. The following week was littered with several calls back and forth between the director and myself trying to find a time I could come in and read for the role of Jean-Michel. I had told him that given my limited time left in ABQ I was being very choosey about what roles I would take. He understood, but also informed me that they had a guy they wanted for that part. I didn't want him to feel like I was demanding something I didn't even audition for, so I told him I understood if they just wanted to go with the guy who auditioned for the part. With that the door was closed. Until Two weeks ago when I was contacted again and told that the other guy had dropped, and just like that I was in the show!
I've also started putting in some major work on my Cabaret. Hal has agreed to be the director, Paul has agreed to be the accompanist, and Christy, A-Mo, and Jon have all agreed to be in it as well! This evening I printed out most of the music I'll be singing, and began typing up my patter. I'm super excited for the potential in this show!
Lastly, I've decided to take the GRE before leaving NM. No direct plans to return to school yet, but if I take the test I can head up to Chicago, get residency, and then decide if there's a program I want to jump into. It's stupid, but I got giddy at the prospect of heading back to school! I miss learning!
Because of all of this I have decided to leave my second job. I'm sad to be leaving this job as it's obvious I'm appreciated there by my co-workers and managers, but it'll be too much to keep up with both jobs. I'm going to miss the awesome people I have come to know at Tomato Cafe.
So there we go... A long update on what my life is right now, and what it'll be in the months to come! I'm looking forward to how busy I'm going to be, especially with everyone moving away.
We'll start with fitness. After finishing P90X I took a few weeks off to go on vacation. When I can back I started Insanity, and let me tell you the program definitely lives up to the name. After the first week was finished my weight was sitting stable at 141lbs... Way lighter than I want to be. Given this fact I've decided a cardio intense program isn't what's best for me right now. So I've decided to make the insanity workouts a 3 times a week occurrence. Supplemented by muscle building days in between. So far I'm really digging it. I'm happy with where my body is right now, I love all the definition, but I'm hoping to add some real bulk in the next few months! I'll keep you all posted on that.
Next we come to theatre. Last year was the second year in a row that I did very little theatre, while I hate that fact, it was more intentional than the year before. At the end of last year I auditioned for Tick, Tick...Boom!, I did an amazing job in the callbacks, but didn't get the part. I'm totally cool with that for several reasons. The next day I ran into the assistant director of La Cage Aux Folles, I wasn't able to make the auditions for that show, but she asked me to come to callbacks... which I also wasn't able to make. The following week was littered with several calls back and forth between the director and myself trying to find a time I could come in and read for the role of Jean-Michel. I had told him that given my limited time left in ABQ I was being very choosey about what roles I would take. He understood, but also informed me that they had a guy they wanted for that part. I didn't want him to feel like I was demanding something I didn't even audition for, so I told him I understood if they just wanted to go with the guy who auditioned for the part. With that the door was closed. Until Two weeks ago when I was contacted again and told that the other guy had dropped, and just like that I was in the show!
I've also started putting in some major work on my Cabaret. Hal has agreed to be the director, Paul has agreed to be the accompanist, and Christy, A-Mo, and Jon have all agreed to be in it as well! This evening I printed out most of the music I'll be singing, and began typing up my patter. I'm super excited for the potential in this show!
Lastly, I've decided to take the GRE before leaving NM. No direct plans to return to school yet, but if I take the test I can head up to Chicago, get residency, and then decide if there's a program I want to jump into. It's stupid, but I got giddy at the prospect of heading back to school! I miss learning!
Because of all of this I have decided to leave my second job. I'm sad to be leaving this job as it's obvious I'm appreciated there by my co-workers and managers, but it'll be too much to keep up with both jobs. I'm going to miss the awesome people I have come to know at Tomato Cafe.
So there we go... A long update on what my life is right now, and what it'll be in the months to come! I'm looking forward to how busy I'm going to be, especially with everyone moving away.
Madrid at Christmas + HS Reunion of sorts
This is still a goal by the way. I realize I haven't posted about my NM bucket list in a while, but I'm still planning on getting these things done.
Over the past month I have accomplished two of these goals. The first was my drive through Madrid at Christmas time. The town is nothing special, even at christmas time, but one of my favorite Christmas memories as a kid is driving home from my grandparents house and seeing the lights in Madrid. It was like a little Christmas Village in the middle of nowhere. One Sunday evening after working a double I met up with Christy, we picked up Starbucks, and started our evening trip to Madrid.
The drive was nice, Christy is one of the few people who is consistently there, so the conversation was fun. When we came into Madrid it was almost exactly as I remembered it. Again, the town isn't anything amazing, but the memories it brought up were worth the trip.
Over the past month I have accomplished two of these goals. The first was my drive through Madrid at Christmas time. The town is nothing special, even at christmas time, but one of my favorite Christmas memories as a kid is driving home from my grandparents house and seeing the lights in Madrid. It was like a little Christmas Village in the middle of nowhere. One Sunday evening after working a double I met up with Christy, we picked up Starbucks, and started our evening trip to Madrid.
The drive was nice, Christy is one of the few people who is consistently there, so the conversation was fun. When we came into Madrid it was almost exactly as I remembered it. Again, the town isn't anything amazing, but the memories it brought up were worth the trip.
It was difficult to get photos that captured the bulk of the street, but those are my best attempt. They don't show off how illuminated the street was unfortunately.
This past weekend I accomplished another one of the items on my list. Antoinette came back in town and wanted to plan a get together of our old group of friends. Amazingly everything worked out! Bobby, Lydia, Aaron, Antoinette, and Amy were all able to be there. It was exactly what I had hoped for, seeing all of them again reminded me of how great HS was. I was am so lucky to still be in touch with them, but I'm sad that it may be a very long time before we're all together again.
I love Antoinette's face in this one.
Eventually Adam showed up too!
While seeing everyone was amazing, it was especially great to see Bobby. He and I have definitely grown apart since our freshman year of College, but when we get together it's obvious there's still a strong connection there. Definitely going to try to see him more often before I leave.
So there we go! Two more items done! I have a lot more to go, but I'm confident I'll be able to get them done.
Monday, December 31, 2012
Fuck Off 2012!
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
I’m writing this while sitting on the top bunk of a sleeper car room on a Chicago bound Amtrak train. It’s Christmas. The first Christmas I’ve spent as a single man in 4 years. While I could be spending this time being reminiscent of the love that I had and lost, my mind is elsewhere.
2012 has been an interesting year. I had come to view this year as the year that everything ended. The world did not end as predicted (surprise) but it seems like it’s been a year for many people to say goodbye to important parts of their lives and learn to deal with what those endings mean. Change was a major theme this year, and I certainly wasn’t spared from that.
While I look back and remember the year of endings, I also have to remember the other huge changes that have occurred. I am officially a P90X grad! I know I am supposed to post a blog dedicated to my completion of that goal, but time got in the way. For the first time in my life I am happy with my body! It’s not “perfect” but I feel damn good about myself. I’m starting Insanity on January 1st and can’t wait to see the progress I make over those 60 days!
I also found a new level of independence this past year. Obviously I was forced to find independence following the break up, but I was amazed at how easily that came. I learned to limit myself a little better regarding who I trust. I had a major struggle, but came out the other end a more confident and more guarded person. I am so excited to start exploring new parts of myself in the months to come and following my move.
So here we go... saying goodbye to another year. A year that started out with great promise, but led to more struggle than I’ve faced in a very long time. So fuck off 2012! Bring on 2013, a year of new beginnings, of new cities and new adventures with new friends, of a renewed and recharged me.
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