Traveling Man Joe: March 2015

Mar 30, 2015

Connection Unavailable

Connection Unavailable is a comedy series created by a long time friend of mine. Its about a group of Internet addicts and their ever-confounding therapist, David Pounds. The story is told directly through the characters across more than 20 live social media accounts, blogs, and websites—including Vimeo, YouTube, Vine, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Tumblr, and others. Start watching here: http://connectionunavailable.com/episodes/

Dystopian Tropics V

Guam, USA

Mar 24, 2015

Dystopian Tropics: DRZ 400 IV

Around and About, Guam

Mar 22, 2015

Deeper Than Before

Alone in the ocean again on Sunday. Off the edge I go; this time we’re going to push it. Here comes the blue shift. The deeper you go the bluer its gets.

Yes I am pushing for that depth reading on my camera. The one that tells says I am deeper than its ever said we were before.

42 feet, lets go to 50. At this point equalizing is working, but there is this great pressure on my head. Funny the camera is staying at 42 feet. Really wonder how deep we are.

Kicking strong and knowing it’s going to take some time to return to the air, I ascend.

At the surface looking down. Coral into blue. Hmm this is how sharks like to hunt. Deep down in the blue where no one can see them.

Time to go down again.

Close your eyes, just swim down. If you look at the bottom it seems to never come. Ugh 30 feet again, push it, lets hit 50 today. Funny the camera gets stuck at 42 again. So deep, but there’s deeper to swim.

My legs ach. Something about pushing the body that deep over and over again. Then again maybe its just me being out of shape

The shape of a turtle. It’s deep, but reachable.

30 feet down we look one another in the eye. There is a certain kind of peace in there. There is a certain level of intelligence in there.

Again I rise to the surface. Guess it’s time to go to work. I’ll be there in 10 mins. Another Sunday before work at my kind of church.

Gab Gab Beach, Guam

Mar 15, 2015

Tropical Storm Bavi PM

Santa Rita to Piti in Guam, USA

Mar 14, 2015

Tropical Storm Bavi

Tumon Beach, Guam

Tropical Storm Bavi AM

Tumon Beach to Nimitz Hill on Guam, USA

Mar 13, 2015

Ivy Gourd

While walking through the jungle to inspect an overhang off the side of the road, I found this little fella. Was growing on a small vine and looked edible, so home it went. After asking a local Chamorro friend what it was and she not knowing, we went to the internet. Using this picture and after much searching we decided on it being an Ivy Gourd.

That evening, slicing it open revealed it to definitely appeared to be a Ivy Gourd. So, into the pan it went.

Dinner had never been so exciting! Was I going to die? We no, no that was not going to happen as people in India eat it as a curry everyday. However it was fun to eat something you pulled out of the jungle a day before.

Guam, USA

Mar 12, 2015

Dystopian Tropics: DRZ400 III

Mar 10, 2015

Royal Orchid Hotel

Tamuning, Guam

Mar 7, 2015

Bacon Shot

What else to say, tasted like breakfast at Village Inn. Jameson Whiskey, Butterscotch Schnapps and of course bacon.

Dystopian Tropics: Abandoned Dish Array

Yona, Guam

Mar 4, 2015

Gab Gab III

How many times have I slipped into the ocean alone. Nothing but landlocked childhood swimming pool lessons, a mask, snorkel, and fins keep me afloat. Well, that and a healthy understanding of her personality from years ocean of swimming in her.

A healthy reef is the only place where wild things are so easily seen. Go into the jungle. You will see some insects, plants, reptiles, and if you are luck a few vertebrates. Now stick your face in a healthy reef. Nearly instantaneously you see more than your mind can take in.

Then comes the different depths. Scuba is great. I wish everyone had their license because it would keep trash, chemicals and junk out of the ocean. However the real fun comes from free diving.

There is little to no equipment, no license. and for the adrenaline junkie a constant promise of death.

Take yourself off the edge of a reef. The first unnerving feeling will come from seeing new animals popping up as the light finally catches them. Next will come your body asking for air. Finally will be the trip back to the surface. Looking up a 30-40 feet of water above you is truly humbling. For you can see the surface, but for crucial seconds it will be so far away.

Mar 3, 2015

Chichen Itza

Seemed I had flown halfway around the world only to be denied this place. First the tour company wouldn't honer the voucher. Then they didn't provide tours on Sunday. After that I had left my freshly renewed international drivers license at home.

However since it typically takes answering three objections to make a sale, after that last no I knew things were going to work out.

Turns out the rent a car company just handed out cars in this end of the world to anyone with a US license. And although the tour company does not offer tours on Sunday, Chichen Itza is indeed open on the lords day. So, into the car I piled myself and eager parents.

Then the GPS on my phone decided to check out.

There I was in Mexico, parents in tow, on a random road heading up the coast. Had I not been in this situation countless times on the motorcycle (sans the parents) this fourth "no" may have tempted me back to the hotel.

However after years of ridding around Asia with signs written in anything but Latin based characters, this was easy. Hence after some excitement and throwing of the mobile phone, road signs pointed the way to the highway that took everyone to the intended destination.

What was the reward? It was a place I had been told about since I was a child. Here I was. While today the road was better and since people had had a habit of falling off of the pyramids and dying you were no longer allowed to climb anything, it was worth it.