Road Trip!

Hi friends, 

I'm going on a journey! One that I've dreamt of for years and years now.  A cross country solo expedition! Like I said in my last post I really like to explore - so this time I'm going to jam across the country and back and see what's what in this land of ours. 

Here's the deal-y-o.  This trip is a month long, beginning November 21st and concluding December 22nd. I will be driving across the country with SanFran as my destination. This trip is neatly planned to pass through where I have friends or where there are parks that I'd like to see/camp in. When I'm not staying with friends or in my tent (Dan's tent) I'll be treating myself to a shower and laundry at a local hotel.  Here are the stops in order, what I'll be doing and why:

Denver, PA - eh, as a kid growing up between DC and RI I've explored all the tourist attractions in this area - but I can't drive more than eight hours a day so this is where I'll pitch my tent and stay a spell in Amish Country. Suggestions are welcome! 

Hardy, VA - similar to the above but I'll stop by the Booker T. Washington National Monument and the wildlife refuge.

Asheville, NC - Hi Eli! A good friend lives here who I hope to meet up with - I say hope because he is awesome and has been on the AT  - making him hard to get in touch with. Are you BACK YET?! Either way I'll be tenting here for two nights enjoying hikes and views as well as the very cool downtown.

Nashville, TN - Asheville to Nashville, yes I know. I'll be driving through here for lunch on Thanksgiving Day - I might make a stop at the Grand Ole Opry.

Memphis, TN - Sun Studio and Graceland! I'm here for two nights and the second night happens to be the last Friday of the month which means it's gallery night. An old time trolley brings people around to the galleries! 

Wichita, KS - PJ LIVES HERE! A friend of mine since highschool is going to show me the sights - if KS has any. 

Dodge City, KS - This is a pass through just so I can say "I got outta Dodge"

Denver, CO - Jen and Bre are kind enough to let me stay with them a few days - maybe they'll even want to hang out.

Boulder, CO - Remember Chase? After Hambidge he went on to University of Colorado at Boulder to get his MFA in ceramics - I'm going to go see what this is all about. 

Moab, UT - Two days camping and hiking at Arches National Park.

Page, AZ - A half a day stop at Lower Antelope Canyon - my brother just visited this area and said it's beautiful and somewhat overlooked by tourists.

Grand Canyon, AZ - Nothing cool here - just a place to rest my head. LIE. Grand Canyon for two nights!

Death Valley, CA - Two nights camping in Death Valley - it's got a great history.

Tulare, CA - Staying in a hotel next to Sequoia National Forest - I think I might appreciate a bed after six days of camping.

Big Sur, CA - Camping in the Julia Pfeiffer State Park right on the coast. Apparently in winter months you can watch whales migrate off the shore!

San Francisco, CA - I'm going to drive up beautiful Route 1 and stay in SanFran with my friend Nate for a few days. A walk over the Golden Gate is the most solid plan I've made. After SanFran comes the reason I am taking this journey:

The California Zephyr! 


The god of all North American train trips - I saw this and said "I need to figure out a way to get on that high speed locomotive." Remember the hint I gave? Go ahead - check it out. 

So the return trip is not really set in stone (I guess the trip out isn't really either but it's pretty close) but I know that on December 13th I will be getting on the Zephyr and arriving in Chicago fifty-six hours later where I get to see my long lost friend Samantha. From there I think I'm going to Ohio and then definitely on to Niagara Falls for some winter festivities and hopefully meeting up with some family to take the train back down south to Rhode Island for the holidays. The whole way back will be bus and train - I'm sure it's going to be really nice not having to drive after three straight weeks of it. So there you have it friends! I can't wait! For those of you visual people out there who just skipped this mega long post:

(the long O - P stretch is when I'm on the zephyr)

I will be updating along my journey and will have a map tracking my progress as well in the side bar. Two other big pieces of unrelated news on the way.

I'm off to NYC tomorrow for the Graduate Portfolio Day at Parson's. We'll see!


Thanks for reading friends - you da' bomb! 

I've got Georgia on my mind!

The state, not the country.

Today, March 7th, means that I will officially be an artist in residence at the Hambidge Center in EXACTLY ONE MONTH! I applied to the Hambidge Center at the end of last year in hopes that the residency decision making gods would shine in my favor. Since finding out that my application was accepted I have been excited...but now that it is so darn close I am not excited anymore...I am SO excited. Got that? SO excited. I will be taking a leave of absence from my job and hugging my friends goodbye on March 31st. The residency doesn't begin until April 6th but I have a few stops planned along the way and want to give myself a good amount of time to get down there.

First stop, New York City my friends! I love my brother, but I love him most when he moves somewhere cool and I get to go visit. He is currently living in the village and I will be making the trip down to stay with him in his wonderful, cozy (small) studio apartment and eating lots and lots of Vietnamese sandwiches. I'd like to see the Whitney Biennial, but if the weather is really nice a stroll through Chinatown is in my future. I won't be in the NYC for too long because I will be scooping Michael into the Subaru and driving down to my birth city of Washington, DC.** I can't wait to visit with my sister Katharine (currently a med student) and my dear friend who left Massachusetts behind for a wonderful internshipturnedfulltimejob opportunity. As always, a walk past my childhood home and a visit to Eastern Market are the two mandatory stops on this leg of the trip.

After a few days in DC I will say "so long" to my siblings and begin my journey to Charlotte, North Carolina. I made a wonderful friend while at the Vermont Studio Center, and when I knew I was going to Georgia, I pretty much knew I would be visiting her in Charlotte too! After Charlotte I will swing through Asheville, NC to visit another friend and check out the galleries. From there I will make the one and a half hour ride to my cabin/studio in the woods! I will be posting regularly while in Georgia, despite the lack of Internet connection in any of the studios (available in the main building.) So please follow and stay updated!

Thanks for listening, and be sure to click that first link, it's a gem.

** A few people have asked me if they could join me on this adventure, and I have told all of them (even Dad...sorry!) that this is a solo expedition. When I am in the car for long periods of time, I pretty much go all "Jung" on myself and access my life situation. I figure travelling alone will be a really good way to reflect on how I will be spending my time in Georgia. HOWEVER, when Michael asked if he could hop on board for the trip to DC I said yes, it is rare that all three of us (Michael, Katherine and I ) are together and I really love the bizarre conversations that happen when we are.