First, and most importantly, that picture of a burger happens to be THE BEST burger I have ever eaten. EVER. IN my LIFE. It even beats the exotic "wild boar meat" burger that I had in a rustic pub in a remote town in England.  After taking a bite I could do nothing more than repeat the word  "dang", repeatedly for a full 20 seconds. It was like I had just tasted a nugget of golden ambrosia from the Greek Gods. Eating this burger was like waking up on a tropical beach after toiling for 35 years in the coal mines of North Dakota. It was like drinking plain water laced with a few trace tablespoons of LSD.
It was wonderful. 

   Anyway. I went to Portland. 

   I had spring break this week, which gave me a chance to quench my insatiable wanderlust. I convinced my brother to come with me to Portland, Oregon to see a concert. 
Here's what happened:

Part 1- Arrival

1. We flew to Portland. 
2. Instead of going to Multnomah Falls with a friend of mine, we visited the Rose Garden.
3. There weren't any roses because it's March.
4. We walked around, ate chips(fries), bought a book, ate the burger.
5. We walked to the concert.

Here's where things get fun. 

Part 2- The Concert

1. I was told to put away my camera because DSLR's aren't allowed
2. We took our seats which were literally the worst seats possible (balcony, back row, off center).
3. After the first opener, Saint Motel, I suggested we move and find better seats.
4. We snuck past the guard and ended up on the lower level, much closer to the stage
5. I started taking pictures, hoping no one would see.
6. They did.

   The Guard dude who was overseeing our section started approaching us, causing me to panic a bit and feebly attempt to hid my camera. BUT THEN <plot twist> it turns out the guy was also a photographer, so he said I could take pictures, but only if I sent them to him! SO I TOOK LOTS OF PICTURES AFTER THAT. It was pretty good timing too, because that's when Brendon Urie (Panic! at the Disco) started playing a song on the piano right in front of us!

   After taking lots of pictures, and right before the concert ended, my good friend Tyson (the guard guy) indicated that I should bring my camera and follow him. I was a bit worried, hoping he didn't decide he was actually going to confiscate my camera. BUT NO. He actually escorted me up to the front of the concert right next to the stage! I took about 100 pictures in the 80 seconds that I was down on the floor. :D The last picture in the above slideshow was when the dumped a ton of confetti on the crowd, making it really hard to get a good picture. 

​   It was such a great experience, and I'm super glad that I happened to move to the same section as Tyson! It's funny how often weird things like this seem to happen. 

Finishing up the trip:

Part 3- That Night

1. We grabbed some Thai food
2. We tried to catch the metro back to the airport, but realized that we missed the last one, and would have to wait until 4 am for the next train.
3. We decided to catch an Lyft instead
4. We walked/ran ~2 miles to a nearby highway because it would be cheaper from there.
5. We made it to the airport, and played piano at 2:30 in the morning.
6. We slept on the Portland airport floor. 

Part 4- Getting Home

1. Some facts: a) Standby travel is unpredictable b) Portland airport is hard to escape.
​2. We didn't get on our first flight.
3. None of the other flights back to SLC looked any better.
4. So I caught a flight with Alaska airlines to Burbank.
5. I later figured out that I was not actually going to Alaska, and Burbank is actually in California (I was surprised by how green "Alaska" looked).
6. My brother caught a flight to Boise, Idaho and made it home from there.
7. Someone missed their connection, so I made it on a flight back home from Burbank.

So there you go! 
One adventure down, many more to come. 

   Last week, I decided to quit being responsible and travel the world. 
   While I was exaggerating a little (I still want to finish school and have a career and a mortgage and life insurance etc.), I really am going to take a break and experience life a bit more. 

   I now present a list of my concerns and ambitions (but not in that order):

Ambitions:

• I want to visit (at least) one "exotic" location a month (basically, one bigger trip)
• I want to learn to surf
• I want to meet new people and collect their stories (and pracitce my storytelling)
• I want to film my adventures and make bombtastic travel videos/guides
• I want to make memories, cultivate meaningful relationships, gain a more accurate world view, and learn more about myself

Concerns:​

• Isn't this the time of my life where I'm supposed to be responsible and laying the foundation for the rest of my life?
• If I'm going to be taking a break from school, shouldn't I be working more and saving up? 
• What if I start going and decide I'm not cut out for this kind of adventuring? What if my anxiety resurfaces and I end up being unable to enjoy my travels?
• How am I going to pay for all of this?
• What if I loose friends because of jealousy? 
• What if I actually become "successful" as a travel videographer?
• What will I be missing by spending less time with my family and friends?
• What if I become a different person?

   I'd imagine that these concerns area actually pretty common among people my age. There is a lot of uncertainty, and us mere mortals usually fear change. I think this is where my faith helps me. I truly believe that I have a Heavenly Father who knows and loves me. This means that He wants me to enjoy life and improve myself. I guess I just need to trust that the changes that I'll experience will be positive!

​

I'm done. 

I. Am. Finished. 

Today, I decided to drop out of school and travel the world. 

...Ok, I guess I've been considering this for a while, so it's not like I decided this spontaneously. Naw man, I've actually got plans. 

See now, my lovely mother works for Skywest Airlines, which gives me a fairly unique chance to fly (pretty much) for free anywhere within the western hemisphere. SO GUESS WHAT I'M GONNA DO?? 
I'm gonna take the semester off and finally take advantage of my flight benefits. 

I just spent the last two hours networking with other travel aficionados, plotting my rise to the top of the travel videography social circle. 

This. Is. Happening.