Employed in L.A. (at least until tomorrow)

A quick update from the bustling city of Los Angeles. I'm on my lunch break at "work". These last two days I've been helping my college roommate, Stacey, work for her father's company. He is liquidating a large Japanese animation company and Stacey and I have been working on organizing and cleaning cubicles as well as animation artwork, etc. It has been an interesting job indeed. Anyhow, it will be nice to put some fresh cash in my pocket for our return trip back across the country.

This short stint in L.A. is thankfully that - short. While I love Stacey and am grateful to her family for showing me such hospitality, I will be that much more thankful to escape the chaotic, mentally noisy nature of this city. There is so much to look at and so much more to understand. L.A. folk certainly are different from New England folk. The people have been very friendly but I find myself lost in their conversations sometimes. I think truly that my mind is just geared to view life through a lens so different from theirs its as if I need translation.

The weather has been sunny mostly with patches of rainy weather but it feels balmy and friendly to me. As such, its been comical to watch L.A. residents bustle by with scarves and pea coats.

The city itself is quite impressive to me. Each district offers something new to look at - interesting billboards, the rolling waves of the Pacific, amazing and various cuisine (we enjoyed a new Sushi restaurant last night) and the scarily fast and twisty roads of the canyons. It is somewhat scary to me that they literally build houses on stilts into the sides of the steepest canyon walls. It is lucky that I am viewing the city after the practically two straight weeks of rain because the street sides, lawns and hill sides seem to be exploding with green, neon green, pink blossoms, mammoth ferns and flowering trees. It's like driving, disturbingly fast, through some jungle on an alien planet. It is not surprising to me that James Cameron thought up the splendor in Avatar given that he has lived in and experienced the exploding green beauty of L.A.

I'm having a blast in this oddly real video game life but am thrilled to be headed back to the desert for some rock crawling entertainment!

Greetings From Apache Junction, Arizona

Blogging about something like a road trip is difficult. I guess the reason you go on a road trip is to experience the world and see things first hand. So, its next to impossible to put into words and retell things which must be experienced for one's self. Nonetheless, I greatly enjoy trying. . .

Since my last update, we haven't put on as many miles but have taken the more scenic roads. The west truly is a sight to see. Right now, in the reflection of my laptop screen is a gigantic Saguaro Cactus - which also happens to be the Arizona State plant. No picture describes their massive and unique nature. Upon leaving Texas we roamed though Ft Davis and stopped at the McDonald Observatory. They have a large sun clock and we had fun estimating the exact time and watching the shadow line move. We took back roads, crossed several cattle grates and hooked back up with I10 headed toward New Mexico.

Night fell as we looked for a place to sleep and El Paso lit up the western sky like nothing I have ever seen. Apart from the homeless man sleeping on the bathroom and the massacre in Cuidad Juarez like 5 miles south of us, it was an uneventful evening at the New Mexico Welcome Center parking lot. Of course we narrowly escaped crisis of our own as Adam stuck a match (allow with his arm) into the propane oven to produce heat in order to bake my brownies. In my case, the prospect of brownies clearly outweighs the concern of a scorched limb. One must have priorities.

The first fun fact I learned about New Mexico is that it has a town called Truth or Consequences but that fun fact was far surpassed by the sight of the City of Rocks. The "city" is an impressive conglomeration of rock structures that sit entirely out of place in the desert plain. A massive volcanic eruption spit mile long rocks into the sky 34.9 million years ago and the current sight is the result of erosion and precipitation.

From the City of Rocks we drove north, missed our road and kept driving only to discover the most back woods, incredible scenery ever. The road stretched before us in a surreal view of rolling desert plains, snow capped mountains and endless blue sky. Adam said upon driving through one "town", "you know a town is small when the cows perk their ears and watch you drive by."

We climbed into the mountains of the Apache National Forest, higher and higher, winding around each switchback, obeying the 15 mile per hour limit and viewing some of the most breath taking scenes. It was in this forest that we crossed into Arizona and descended into a somewhat different looking desert. The plains are dotted by Saguaro Cacti scattered throughout, the rocks become more jagged and mean looking and the roads go on forever.

Then we drove through a long stretch of San Carlos Indian Reservation which was disturbingly poor and littered with trash, waste and debris. Obviously there is a disconnect from the money made at the casino which we later passed and the economy of the local towns.

From the reservation we drove into Tonto National Forest, a large land mass that reaches nearly to Phoenix. There is a certain risk in believing signs on highways announcing campsites with restrooms. We discovered this after turning onto an ancient, poorly maintained gravel road which wound slowly along a washed out river bed. There is an even bigger risk in believing such signs when you are towing a 24 foot trailer requiring more than a river bed of space to turn around. Directly before I became very concerned that we would never, in fact, find a campsite or a place to turn around, we did and I sighed.

The highway brought us closer to Phoenix and we watched the sky turn every shade of fuchsia, yellow and orange as the sun continued its journey around the earth. Somewhat lost on a dirt road, a mostly drunk man gave us directions and we happily arrive at Lost Dutchman State Park. This morning I enjoyed a hot shower at this same park and we ate pancakes on a picnic table while looking at the amazing desert scene shadowed by looming mountains.
There is so much to see in the world and in this country. The scenery and sensory input feels like a blur of amazement and perspective broadening. Truly, if I did not keep track of the locations and events each day, I could not tell you what state I went to sleep in last night. For now, I will return to my current reality of mountains, desert, sun and cacti. California is literally on the horizon and we will drive toward tomorrow.

A Much Needed Update!

I guess it didn't exactly occur to me that I might not have the option of updating my blog based on limited wireless access. At last though, here I am, sitting at Davis Mountain State Park in Fort Davis, TX in a cozy lodge with free WiFi so I will report.

Thus far, everything has been smooth and reliable! All equipment and vehicle related items are working wonderfully, which is excellent. First, we drove for two full days only stopping to sleep in Virginia and then in West Memphis, AR. Throughout TN and AR we enjoyed an array of culturally different billboards and truck decorations. One bill board asserted, "Thou shalt not commit adultery- You'll be ashamed and so will He." Another cautioned, "WARNING: Prepare to meet God!" One man's truck displayed the mission statement Faster Horses, Younger Women, Older Whiskey, More Money. If there is not an amusing message, there are always sets of three crosses to be seen. Coming from New England, it is all a wonder to me!

After Arkansas, we drove on into TX, through Dallas and stopped west of Fort Worth to sleep for the night. The thermometer read 23 degrees when we went to sleep that night. Silly us thinking we would drive south and find warmer weather! Thank goodness for a camper with a reliable furnace. That night we slept in a Walmart parking lot and, upon entering to use the bathroom, I was greeted by the Walmart security guard, armed and all.

The next day we drove south through what seemed like hundreds and hundreds of oil fields with small oil rigs slowly drawing oil from the earth. That is a sight to see - a vast sea of slow moving oil rig arms on seemingly infinite perfectly flat land. Texas is a land of its own. Truly, they seem to be a different country altogether. The greeting sign reads, "Don't Mess with Texas" and there are Texas flags all over. I've never seen a Connecticut resident with a CT flag on their porch. I continued to be awed at the mainly impoverished towns with gigantic professional sized football fields. It is amazing the role that football plays in Texas.

Details that remain a constant basically from Pennsylvania to Texas are the inordinate number of Cracker Barrel restaurants (I truly wish that I had started counting sooner). It has become sort of a running joke that we had better stop to eat at one in case its the last one for more than a mile. Southerners like their C. Barrel - no question there. Also, one does not need to travel far to find a gun store or rather a gun warehouse.

At last, after a long time of driving across Texas, we came to the entrance for the Big Bend National Park. This is a 865,000 arce park which borders Mexico for 118 miles and is separated only by the Rio Grande River. Big Bend is unique and incredible because 1) it is like three amazing climates/parks in one with mountain, desert and river environments near each other and 2) it is virtually empty because it is pretty out of the way so only hard core travelers make it there. When we pulled into our campsite in Rio Grande Village, which is situated right on the river, we hiked up a small mountain and looked over the river at the small Mexican village, Boquillas. The amazing part is, it was sunny, 65, with the most incredible view of the Sierra Del Carmen mountain range (~9000 feet) and we were the only two people standing there. I then proceeded to play with and get totally beaten by a cactus. It had these little itty bitty fibers that embedded themselves into your skin but you didn't realize it until after it was too late.

That day and the next we continued to be amazed at the beauty of each wonder we explored and how few people were their enjoying it all. The first place we went was Boquillas Canyon where Mexican's pedal their homemade goods and sing into the echoing Canyon. After climbing on the rocks and sand slopes of the Canyon and petting the rugged looking Mexican ponies which wander, still fully tacked, to nibble on the burned desert grass, we drove to the hot springs. Year round, water bubbles from the earth adjacent to the Rio Grande at a lovely constant temperature of 104 degrees. A concrete hot tub like box has been poured around it and the water flows over the edge into the River. I waded into the Rio Grande to make my illegal exit to Mexico only to find that the stones were too rough for my bare feet which haven't seen earth in months. Finally, before driving north out of the park, we unhitched the trailer and drove up the Chisos Mountain and into the basin. An amazing view but at least 10 degrees colder.

All in all, it has been a wonderful trip thus far full of views that my eyes have never seen. We are dragging our feet here at the lovely Davis Mountain Lodge enjoying the soft couches, sun filled room and free WiFi. Soon we will head northwest to another campsite in an effort to move towards California.

Reflections on Sharon Center School! I shall miss thee.

"The law of love could be best understood and learned through little children."
- Mahatma Gandi

In 2007, after moving back from Boston, I began a year long internship program through the University of Bridgeport to get my Master's in Education. My good friend, Karen Manning, principal of Sharon Center School, warmly invited me to be the in house substitute for that school year as part of the program. I had the pleasure of subbing in almost every classroom in the school. I witnessed incredible teachers change lives with love, wisdom, and kindness.

The following year, I had the great opportunity to complete my student teaching with the school's science teacher, JoEllen Neideck. I taught the most pleasant, smart and creative seventh graders and was guided by JoEllen's kind and constructive support.

In the past few months, I have been helping in the second grade and have loved every minute of it! Allison, the teacher, is amazing - smart, efficient, and compassionate. I also had the pleasure of working with two wonderful aids!

Sharon Center School is a wonderful place that fosters independent thinking, sound character and kindness. It has been a great pleasure spending time with children there.

From the first day that I worked in a school to this very day, I continue to be amused and amazed at the wit, curiosity, creativity, and brilliance of children. If I had written down every adorable and hilarious thing that was said, I'd have a best selling book. Here are a few that I can remember now. If you are a teacher or work with children, please add some.

Walking in the hall, a kindergartener stops me to say, "this morning, my dog ate my toast. And it was the good peanut butter too." He then runs off without explanation.

Second grader says to me, "Ms. Hewitt! Over the weekend, I got a new cousin! It has a weird name though." I respond, "Is your new cousin a boy or a girl?" Child responds, "Oh, I can't remember but it has a weird name."

A kindergartener waiting for the bus says, "Ms. Hewitt . . . are you married?" I respond, "No, why are your curious?" She responds, "Oh, well, me either. I guess we have that in common." I respond, "Well, at five, I guess that's a good thing."

A child on the playground says, "Ben, am I dying of old age?!" Ben replies, "I think so."

Kindergartener on the playground who comes up for help with zipping jacket has unbuttoned pants so I say, "Um, Alden, it looks like your pants are unbuttoned. Can you button those?" Alden says, "Oh well, see, I got bigger from last year. They buttoned last year."

A child attempting to roll snow balls begins to wail (literally wail) because "the snow won't roll."

Same child proclaims with great concern, "I don't want to grow! I don't want to get big!"

Why road trip?

"There is a time for departure even when there's no certain place to go."

~Tennessee Williams (Thomas Lanier)

Why I should go on a road trip (the consolidated version):

1. I'm soon to be unemployed. I will always love all the wonderful teachers and students at Sharon Center School and I will miss them all very much! (http://crisseyh.blogspot.com/2010/01/ode-to-sharon-center-school-and-second.html)
   
2. The question, "What am I doing with my life?" is playing like a broken record in my brain. No series of thoughts seem to be able to correct the record and make it continue playing smoothly. Therefore, I will leave the room so I don't have to hear the silly thing keep skipping. My hope is that when I get back from vacating my own thoughts, the record will have miraculously stopped skipping. And, if nothing else, I might have the patience to deal with it after taking a break.
   
3. Shouldn't everyone see the country before they are tied down with all sorts of adult responsibilities?

That's enough reasons for me. So, when Adam said he was going to California for a jeep rock crawling event (http://www.kingofthehammers.com/), I asked to tag along. I'm lucky to have such a great friend!