October 6- Full post

It's currently 5:22 a.m. I am sitting at my dining room table with a tissue in each nostril. I am tired and need a shave. I will blame it on dust in my room, but only because the alternative would make for a shitty start to what has become a mighty interesting journey....

My month of September started out in a hot tub in the Outerbanks in North Carolina. I spent a week in the good company of some old friends and some friends of friends, and have concluded that it was one of the most relaxing weeks I can remember. We were treated to warm weather, good eats, and a lot of laughs, all on a very manageable budget. If it weren't such an inconvenient hour, I would be more than inclined to ask my buddy Fish where he went online for such a deal. Basically a 4-floor house with room to sleep 20 cost 9 of us about $125 a piece for the week. For my money, and the comfort of my own room, that was a no-brainer. Search for it online, and give it some thought, as the ocean and relative isolation make for great companions on a getaway.
I had a wonderful time and have been raving about what a great time it was...what about it was so special, you ask? Here are 5 things that I loved about OBX:
1) Access to water: the thin strip of land that is the Outerbanks just about guarantees that there is at any point less than a half mile's walk to find water. The Ocean and (where we were anyway) the Pamlico Sound surrounded us, offering calmer waters for wading in the Sound- which, by the way, was the most gradual descent into deeper waters than I can remember- and the Atlantic offering waves and some great fishing opportunities. Certainly something for everyone (as long as everyone likes sand and water)...
2) Fishing: I'm not a fishing kind of guy. I don't have the patience for activities that I have for people...that said, it's hard to not get excited when you see a rod bend and the line get taut with a catch struggling to break free on the other end of the line. I think there's a lot to be said for the fishing culture, or one that focuses its energy on a daily (or more frequently) struggle between man and nature. Information cannot be merely read and taught in theory; its nature demands that it be experienced first-hand. I'm sure Hemingway wrote about this along the way...I'm just glad I got to experience it. After all, life is all about experience, right?
3) Small community: Vacationing in cities doesn't exactly thrill me. I cannot think of a less-relaxing place than New York City. Even on my leisure trips there, I always feel like I have to BE somewhere or DO something...a vacation this does not make. The Outerbanks offered distance from a lot of hustle and bustle that would serve- intentionally or not- to burst my bubble of enchantment with the notion of going away. Maybe it was the time of year (JUST after kids in NC go back to school, effectively off-season, though still before Labor Day), maybe it was just the desire to get away from it all...whatever the reason, I loved the small town feel of OBX, and was happy to get wrapped up in my own drive to escape the usual mix of nostalgia, pangs of lovelorn angst, and the dreaded unemployment.
4) Tranquility: I will go out on a limb and fabricate the notion that everyone on their ride down said "you know what? I am just not going to worry about anything this week". Whatever conversations people had out loud or with themselves, it worked. I don't recall encountering one conversation about how crappy this is or how unfortunate that is or anything of that ilk. Goodness knows we've all got things to consider and battle in our lives; it was nice to be on the same page of putting those worries on the back burner for most of the week.
5) Country music: Not a typo. While I would not have chosen such music to be the soundtrack of the week in the south, I found myself tapping along (as I often do) to beats and getting wrapped up in the laid-back attitude of the playlists provided by my co-travelers. It was a nice background sound to the escape from the reality of the real world (and its unwillingness to find me a job....well....). I find myself very appreciative of something new to associate with a fun, care-free attitude and an overall sense of well-being during my trip.

The month rolled along with a trip to Charlotte on my way back, the Kings of Leon show, Colorado, U2, and ended with a most unexpected message rolling my way...long story short: I got a job! Teaching first grade! In Chile! ::record scratches:: what? Chile? Like, South America?
Yes. A friend of a friend works down there and something came up, affording me the opportunity to teach FOR A LIVING (I know...who'd have thought such a thing was possible?) for a little while in South America. Details to follow, as this blog will soon be taking on a different and perhaps more purpose-driven identity in the coming days (Yep, days).

Anyway, before I get too carried away (and take a break for a shower and some early-morning errands), I should just say that my most recent trip to Charlotte has made me love NC even more than I had upon my first trip there. I stayed with my buddy Alan, who was moving into his new place the day I rolled up. I felt a tremendous sense of accomplishment after we constructed a dresser for him (after another completely hetero trip to Ikea), and proceded to celebrate once again at the Epicenter in downtown Charlotte. I am proud of Alan for picking up and relocating because it suited him; those sorts of risks are less and less common, and I'm happy to see him in a better position for it.

Will update later. Talk to each other.