“May today there be peace within.

May you trust the Universe that you are exactly where you are meant to be.

May you use those gifts that you have received, and pass on the love that has been given to you.

May you be content knowing you are a child of the Universe.

Let this presence settle into your bones, and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, and love.

It is there for each and every one of us.”

The next few weeks consisted of looking for places to go to be warm. At one point we were at the Grand Canyon on an extremely cold and windy day. Lots of time was spent in the visitor center trying to be warm.

Eventually we drove down to southern Arizona, going as far south as Organ Pipe National Monument, on the border of Mexico. It was blissfully warm but not much going on down there. Tuscon, AZ involved visiting Saguaro National Park and some rock climbing at Mt. Lemmon.

We were invited to Thanksgiving at our friend Michelle’s parents house in Sedona, Arizona. That was a lovely stay. No longer cold, being treated like family. We spent several days there, exploring the area with Michelle and her awesome parents. My first time in Sedona. It is a gorgeous area filled with new-agey people and red cliffs.

A few days in Sedona and Maggie and I drove back to Moab. We spent one last evening up at Dead Horse Point State Park. She had plans to check out the Sierra Nevadas and my plan was to drive back to Asheville, NC.

Given the existence as uttered forth in the public works of Puncher and Wattmann of a personal God quaquaquaqua with white beard quaquaquaqua outside time without extension who from the heights of divine apathia divine athambia divine aphasia loves us dearly with some exceptions for reasons unknown but time will tell and suffers like the divine Miranda with those who for reasons unknown but time will tell are plunged in torment plunged in fire whose fire flames if that continues and who can doubt it will fire the firmament that is to say blast hell to heaven so blue still and calm so calm with a calm which even though intermittent is better than nothing but not so fast and considering what is more that as a result of the labors left unfinished crowned by the Acacacacademy of Anthropopopometry of Essy-in-Possy of Testew and Cunard it is established beyond all doubt all other doubt than that which clings to the labors of men that as a result of the labors unfinished of Testew and Cunard it is established as hereinafter but not so fast for reasons unknown that as a result of the public works of Puncher and Wattmann it is established beyond all doubt that in view of the labors of Fartov and Belcher left unfinished for reasons unknown of Testew and Cunard left unfinished it is established what many deny that man in Possy of Testew and Cunard that man in Essy that man in short that man in brief in spite of the strides of alimentation and defecation wastes and pines wastes and pines and concurrently simultaneously what is more for reasons unknown in spite of the strides of physical culture the practice of sports such as tennis football running cycling swimming flying floating riding gliding conating camogie skating tennis of all kinds dying flying sports of all sorts autumn summer winter winter tennis of all kinds hockey of all sorts penicilline and succedanea in a word I resume flying gliding golf over nine and eighteen holes tennis of all sorts in a word for reasons unknown in Feckham Peckham Fulham Clapham namely concurrently simultaneously what is more for reasons unknown but time will tell fades away I resume Fulham Clapham in a word the dead loss per head since the death of Bishop Berkeley being to the tune of one inch four ounces per head approximately by and large more or less to the nearest decimal good measure round figures stark naked in the stockinged feet in Connemara in a word for reasons unknown no matter what matter the facts are there and considering what is more much more grave that in the light of the labors lost of Steinweg and Peterman it appears what is more much more grave that in the light the light the light of the labors lost of Steinweg and Peterman that in the plains in the mountains by the seas by the rivers running water running fire the air is the same and then the earth namely the air and then the earth in the great cold the great dark the air and the earth abode of stones in the great cold alas alas in the year of their Lord six hundred and something the air the earth the sea the earth abode of stones in the great deeps the great cold on sea on land and in the air I resume for reasons unknown in spite of the tennis the facts are there but time will tell I resume alas alas on on in short in fine on on abode of stones who can doubt it I resume but not so fast I resume the skull fading fading fading and concurrently simultaneously what is more for reasons unknown in spite of the tennis on on the beard the flames the tears the stones so blue so calm alas alas on on the skull the skull the skull the skull in Connemara in spite of the tennis the labors abandoned left unfinished graver still abode of stones in a word I resume alas alas abandoned unfinished the skull the skull in Connemara in spite of the tennis the skull alas the stones Cunard (mêlée, final vociferations) tennis..the stones…so calm…Cunard…unfinished…

samuel beckett
waiting for godot

This post is a small homage to the 24 hours round trip we NC Sulock’s spend in a car each Christmas driving from Asheville to New Jersey. To ignore it would be to ignore a significant part of my heritage.

We made a brief trip over the mountain to Helen, Georgia. Having undergone a comically slow tubing run on a creek with not quite enough water in it two years ago, the Sulock’s returned to give tubing in Helen another look. Next time we will likely require more than two years before our memories are sufficiently faded to consider a return trip.

From the town’s website:

This Northeast Georgia village has a rich history linked to the Cherokee Indians and Indian burial mounds as well as early settlers who arrived to mine for gold and cut virgin timber for a thriving lumber industry in the early 1900’s. Now celebrating its thirty-fifth year as a mountain community with a touch of Bavaria.

Nothing like celebrating your rich Cherokee history by turning your town into a giant gingerbread house. Regardless of my opinion of the current state of Helen, the roaming masses on the occasionally cobble-stoned streets seemed to indicate that their alpine strategy for attracting visitors was a successful one.

Click on the picture for a gallery from an Ultimate tournament last weekend in Coeur d’Alene Idaho.

In a little house. in a little village, not far away from Thunderbolt City, lived a whistle fixer named Lunchbox Louie. He had a wife named Bigfoot the Chipmunk and a little son named King Waffle. Every day Lunchbox Louie would kiss Bigfoot the Chimpmunk and King Waffle, and walk to his shop in Thunderbolt City…

As far as I can tell this is what my right shoulder resembles now ( type 3 AC separation) after landing on it trying to catch a disc on Wednesday. It hurt like hell Wed. night but thanks to ice, ibuprofen, and Oxycodone it feels much better now.

Two days ago marked the one year anniversary of the death of Bozeman native Emily Gentholts.

[ also here , here , and here (starting w/ the 8th paragraph) ]

She was 20 years old and she died in a car accident coming home from an Ultimate Frisbee tournament.

Cars are dangerous, drive slow (You’ll save gas too).

Try and let the important people in your life know what they mean to you. (Certainly easier said than done)

Take care of yourself.

(*steps off of soapbox*)

I am currently in San Jose, California. To get here, first I flew from Bozeman to Oklahoma City and met Davy. On our first real day of driving we took Interstate 40 across western Oklahoma, the Texas panhandle, and part of New Mexico.

I had never been in this area of the country before. Oklahoma was very green and reminded me of North Carolina.

It snowed about 6 inches today, so in another attempt to imagine better weather here are some pictures from the school team traveling down to sectionals in Pocatello from a couple weeks back.

I have discovered that when you’re taking pictures of Ultimate you are not playing Ultimate. Hence I didn’t take that many pictures.

Allow me to share one of the best things I’ve found on ye olde interweb in a long time. The following Garfield comic strips without Garfield are shamelessly stolen from This website

Described as

Who would have guessed that when you remove Garfield from the Garfield comic strips, the result is an even better comic about schizophrenia, bipolor disorder, and the empty desperation of modern life?

I just learned how to do this tonight. These aren’t perfect by any means but I think they are fun.

Another weekend almost finished and another Monday looming. It has been warm here and is supposedly going to be in the 50’s all this week. I guess ski season will have to wait a little while longer. There is still some snow up high but its fading in the warm weather.

I’ve included a couple pictures from the round of folf (frisbee+golf)) Kez, Luke, and I played today.

School is going well. It is a little to believe the semester is more than half over with. That will mark the halfway point of the degree I’m trying to get. Goes by crazy fast dawg, crazy fast.

Lastly, I miss everyone on the East Coast. As much as I love everything out here it can be hard at times to be so far away from my family and friends. Not being a huge phone talker means I get fairly behind on the news. I hope anyone who actually reads this is doing well and I’m looking forward to being back in the Tar Heel State, however briefly, in December.

Hope it is a good one!