Thursday, May 27, 2010

Working Toward My Escape

I am currently in the process of looking for the cheapest method of getting myself to Chile.  I have decided that I will be moving there (if all goes according to plan) as early as this July.

 
 (with any luck this will be my plane)

Of course I have been to Chile before.... that is how I got to make the flight to Easter Island to see these guys.
 

Right now it appears that the best (most fun and cheap combo) is for me to fly from Washington DC to Lima Peru, Where my friend Bob will be for the next 2 months and staying with him for a while and ultimately renting and apartment in Vina Del Mar, Chile starting in August.

Where am I getting the money for this trip you might ask?  OK so I still haven't got that ironed out yet, but I am working on it.  I have taken up 4 jobs or so that have been going on for over a month now and with another month or so to go I figure I will at least have a start.  I am also certified to teach English as a Foreign language so maybe that will pan out down there.  If not the plan is live cheap and try to make ends meet.  Wish me luck.

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

I fell into a Red Ring of Death

Click here to access the BLOG

After 4 or 5 years of faithful service my Xbox finally flashed me the infamous Red Ring of Death... this is odd because my brother's unit and one of my friends system just crashed in the last month (conspiracy theories to follow)

Apparently you can send it back to XBOX and they will pay to fix it, but with my urge to leave the country in a hurry I have sought out a short term fix with the "Towel Trick". This involves wrapping the Xbox in 3 towels, setting it upside down, and turning it on for 25 minutes. This overheats the system and somehow gives the user about a week of gameplay before the process has to be repeated.
Surprisingly the first attempt to do this actually worked and it allowed for me to play FIFA 10 for another week. I will probably send it back to Xbox right before I leave the country so it is finished by the time I return (if I return that is).

It should also be noted that with the lack of time spent on the XBOX it should be easy to notice that my blogging increases steadily in the near future.

My summer

OK, so I realize it is still a little early to actually talk about my summer thus far, but the weather jumped from a foot of snow to hot conditions. Granted, the last week of straight rain and humidity has not been the greatest but to me it is only summer and winter which is sad because I like the cooler air of the spring and fall.


I really haven't documented as much as I should have, but here is a quick summary of what I have been doing (excluding the work aspect of the whole thing).

I have been trying to spend some time outdoors

I did spend some time in my vacation house...


and relaxed in my backyard...


I have been hanging out with some friends...


and focusing my efforts on getting back in shape.... (just note the arm workout and balance training)


So far this summer is a flying by, but not like the last couple I have enjoyed in South America and Europe respectively. I have been working, which "work" is still my least favorite four-letter-word, but I hope to have enough funds pooled here shortly to head back out again on the travel. Wish me luck.

Adsense takeover

I have finally decided to put a few ads on my site. I realize that with the small amount of traffic that I generate this will not actually pay me anything, but I figure if a few clicks on the ads here and there actually net my 15 cents over the next three years or so I will consider it a great sucess.

So if you aren't feeling to busy feel free to click on a few ads to hopefully get me up and traveling again. With any luck I could be back on the travel as early as July of this year.

Thursday, May 20, 2010

Joining the Workforce - Update

So I have officially joined the workforce and I am already seeking my escape. I have just wrapped up my acting gig (OK so I realize that pretending to be sick so that medical students can practice is not really a big hollywood deal, but I can always just take the moral highroad and say that I am helping prepare the doctors of the future... that is if I really cared about appearances). Two weeks of pretending to be a character known as Jon Sickly (I know, the joke is hysterical) has now passed and I will be focusing on the US Census, my job at GNC, and my new-found passion for mowing grass.

As for my escape, I have been submitting applications to teach English abroad once again. Hopefully I can put away enough money to help back out traveling again even if I do have to work while doing it this time.