Hi Everyone! It’s 70 degrees and sunny out and my window is open here and that alone has really picked up my spirits. It’s been a long and dreary winter and I’m very happy that it’s finally coming to an end (although somehow snow is in the forecast for next week). I’ve gotten myself on the vaccination wait-list here in Washington, so now I’m just waiting to hear back from them which will hopefully be sooner rather than later. I’ve been doubling my walks this week, trying to start losing some of this weight and bring my blood sugar back down to a reasonable level and the improved weather has really helped motivate me for that. My mom’s hip is improving every day since last week’s surgery and Mason and I are both happy to have our feet back in the water. It hasn’t been the most productive week in the world, but it’s been pretty good.
Mason and I have been spending longer and longer outside every day and it’s much easier on both of us to not have to get geared up in the morning. Yesterday I brought a pair of shorts and his water shoes for him to change into, and even though the water was still pretty chilly we both got out into it – me up to my ankles and Mason to his knees. Standing in the creek, pulling rocks out and throwing them – he looked like the happiest kid on the planet. We’re watching signs of spring emerge all around us as the buds are coming out, the geese are flying north and the robins are everywhere. Mason’s cousins taught him that the early flowers blooming now are crocuses, and he happily points them out in all of their beautiful colors. We’ve seen deer in the park on two separate occasions this week, which is a real treat for a city kid, and we keep our ears tilted skyward to listen for woodpeckers. Mason is pretty awesome at identifying birds for a two year-old. We also saw a mounted park police officer this week which was pretty sweet as horses are also not a part of our daily experience here. The list of things Mason has randomly told me he loves has grown to include: blueberries, napkins, pandas, the moon, crocuses, raccoons, jellyfish and airplanes. His vocabulary continues to grow and his sentences are more complete every day. Tomorrow I am off to meet him at his new house for the first time which I think we’re both looking forward to. I went and scouted out the woods nearby over the weekend and have found plenty of places for us to get our feet wet, touch mushrooms and explore.
Last Friday, my folks and I had to move our weekly celebration up to the second floor because my mom was still in a lot of pain from her hip surgery on Tuesday. I was hoping she could come down to the first floor and we could enjoy some Swiss culture in front of the fireplace, but she wasn’t up to it so we came to her instead. I made us some delicious traditional fondue and we listened to some Swiss folk and alpenhorn music. I have spent a fair bit of time in Switzerland in my life, and it was nice to think of some of the beautiful places I’ve been there. I hope to see more of it sooner rather than later.
Saturday was a really wonderful day outside and I spent a lot of time in my van. A lot of the things I’ve been working on are small things, but it was nice to get a bunch of them accomplished and cross them off my to-do list. I’m going to spend some time showing y’all the inside of my van soon and will try and explain what everything is and how it all works when I’m on the road. It really is an interesting process and lifestyle and I’m eager to invite you all over for a virtual look in the months to come. While I’ve been working, I’ve been enjoying the podcast My Solo Road, Sydney Ferbrache’s take on van life, solo travel and the ups and downs of a life on the road. While her style and perspective are very different from mine, I’ve enjoyed her podcast quite a bit and would definitely recommend it. In the evening I broke out my new mini propane grill, which I bought for my van, to test it out. It’s a Coleman product and, to be honest, it’s a little shoddy in the build and doesn’t fit together the way it should, but it cooked really well and its size was the biggest determining factor as my old one was just too big to be lugging around. It’s a shame that companies like Coleman, which have long-standing reputations for quality, have decided to save a few dollars here and there and build inferior products. It will suit my purposes, but it’s still a shame it’s not what it could be. The burgers were good though.
Sunday I went on an adventure to Little Bennet Regional Park in Maryland to try and run their permanent orienteering course. Orienteering (using a map and compass to travel between specific checkpoints) is something I really enjoyed when I was a teenager, but haven’t done in many years and decided I wanted to see if I could still do it. It’s a great way to get some exercise and fresh air and do something different from just hiking. The course at Little Bennett is the most recently renovated permanent course in the area and also probably the most advanced (though still only an intermediate course at best). I made a few mistakes while I was out there, but mostly I did really well and had a really good time doing it. It was nice to be off-trail and out by myself and it was a beautiful day to boot. It’s definitely something I can see doing more of in the future. I planned on a productive afternoon, but decided on a relaxing one instead. I watched the second season of Ricky Gervais’ After Life on Netflix which I really enjoyed. If you haven’t seen it, it takes a pretty deep dive into depression which I imagine would be a real downer if that’s something you’ve never experienced. If you’ve struggled with depression though, you might give it a watch as it’s quite well done.
The rest of this week has been spent making sure my mom is recovering quickly, working on my podcast, going for evening walks and trying to start looking towards and planning for the future. I’m definitely excited to be moving in that direction and hope to get this project back on the road as soon as possible. I also forgot to mention that the young man I have been tutoring in math got into his high school of choice which was a wonderful thing for everyone involved. I’m really proud of the work he’s put in towards improving his math skills and know he’s going to do really well in high school.
The rest of this week will be busy as I try and work to get this episode of my podcast done (though it won’t be released for a while – probably not until I’m actually back on the road). I know I’ve been saying it for a while now, but I hope to get some more National Park photo collections up as well. There’s still plenty of work to do on my van and hopefully the weather will cooperate for that. I need to keep getting plenty of exercise and that will improve my physical and mental health – I’m already starting to see some small but noticeable results. Other than that, I’m going to be waiting for the call to get my vaccine and hopefully be enjoying the weather outside as much as possible. Daylight Savings Time is coming this weekend which will mean my morning walks will be darker, but the afternoons will be lighter, longer, and I’ll probably get more done in the long run. I hope y’all are doing well out there, wherever you are and I hope you have a wonderful week. I’m looking forward to seeing you right back here, same time next week. Thanks for reading.
-Mike
Looking Forward to Summer (This is Downtown Dothan, Alabama)