Time can fly by...

It really does seem like only a few weeks ago I was teaching all day out in Bang Na, and commuting back and forth everyday. It really doesn't feel real that I taught for  But in one week I'll be back home and this journey to Asia will be behind me. Only turning towards better things, and looking straight ahead. I don't think I've ever been so aware of time as this past year, because I knew I was only here for a fixed amount of time. So there was sort of a ticking clock the whole time, that is now about to ring. I am about to come home to see everyone after being away for a year, I'm a little nervous but I think I'll fit right back into the swing of things.

But time does seem to fly by. The older you do get, the shorter a year feels. The more time blends together and days turn to weeks before you can realize what happened. The only thing you can do is really try to put what's important, close to you and cherish the times together. And a year can come and go so quickly, so what is a risk of a job somewhere for a bit, or doing something you really want to do? Time moves pretty quickly so always think of doing something that you really want to do. Life is limitless.

I just cant wait to get back to a little normalcy. I have been preparing for life at home now for basically a year. Can't wait to see how things turn out.

Notes from the mind of J

I just returned to Bangkok after a great month long trip in Laos. From riding a slowboat down the Mekong river, to celebrating the Lao New Year with water fights in Luang Prabang, to working on an organic mulberry farm, it was certainly a great trip. It has been so long since I spoke to Bri, which is pretty crazy, even though I haven't seen her in almost 11 months. I had a lot of time to myself and some humbling work really helped me to put things in perspective. Living life with not much stimulation after being constantly charged at Loyola is a pretty wild transition. And my year in Bangkok is coming to an end but I have learned a lot while being here.

Sorry I sometimes seem crazy. Sorry I often times seem lonely. Sorry I sometimes lead seemingly antiamerican rants. Sorry I have an ugly beard. Sorry I am a little too polar. Sorry I seem like I have no fun. Life can be a little tough when you spend too much time alone. But I really only want to be with the one girl who has ever made me truely happy. You are my shining b, my love that can transcend distance. Everything is going to be ok when I get back to Baltimore. You know me, sometimes you just have to slap me across the face and say... "J....come on.." but thats who I am, and I cant picture a scenario in life where someone would bring you the energy, love, affection..and little surprises that I give you. Maybe not during this year, but we have many years (hopefully) left on our journey through life together. I wouldnt want to ride on the roller coaster of life with anyone else. You are B, I'm J, and we know how to push eachothers buttons, make eachother feel like we are the luckiest people alive, and make each other feel at peace. What else could you want? If life was so easy, why would you want to go through with it? It is the bumps in the road, and the months of not talking, that make it all worth it in the end. And I can promise you babe, that it will be worth it. Just have to trust the process.

This video is only 9 minutes and incredibly beautiful. 9/7/11

Life moves slow in Laos.....

So I'm currently working on an organic mulberry farm in Laos. Life starts and ends early here. My kind of life. There isn't any internet on the farm so I had to hitchhike into town just to get to a computer.

But It is under a month until I get home which I could not be more pumped for. I'm not really sure what the plans going to be when I get back to the US, but I know I cant wait to see Brianna and my family and everyone else I haven't seen for a year!

There are some farrr out people here on the farm. Mostly people from France and Europe, who seemingly are "rejects" or "drifters" but honestly have graced me with more wisdom that most adults I know back home. All I know is I want to continue to live a fulfilled life, whatever that means. No selling out, no settling for things. Just me and Bri and the open road.

Staying here in Laos for probably another 2-3 weeks....

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I'm currently in the Colombo airport in Sri Lanka about to head back to Bangkok. What an amazing vacation of surfing, good food, and cultural exchanges. Defiantly the vacation I was looking for. I'm about head back to Bangkok with a little less than 2 months until I come back to the US, with literally nothing to do. It is almost a little daunting, but i'm sure I can occupy my time with working out, basketball, reading and what not. While the whole time wanting to get back home, so I can unpack all my things, enjoy some Stella's pizza, say hello to everyone in Belmont, and then head straight down to Baltimore to see Bri. Until these past 2 weeks or so, it almost seemed as a distant memory that I would actually be heading to Bmore soon. But now that it is happening, I cant stop thinking about it. To have a beautiful women waiting for you to come home is one of the most comforting feelings a man can have. We have both been waiting for this for way to long. A year didn't seem like a huge thing to undertake, but holy heck, it is a really long time.

Some people have asked me if I am scared or nervous to see Bri again, and I never really know how to answer the question. Like I don't think so, but then again, not seeing someone for a year and then jumping into a full fledged relationship is a huge change of events. We have both changed a lot over the year, for better or worse, and probably in completely different ways. So I am really looking forward to seeing how our new personalities mesh and what great things result from that.

The beach.....

There really isn't anything like the beach. A place where the mind can free itself and the body can relax. And if you can get a $10 hotel across the street from the water, it makes it even better. I still remember the day when Bri and I went up to New Hampshire to Hampton Beach back in August of 2011. We weren't even dating but I had one of the best days I had in a long time. Great food, sunny skies and sprinting into the ocean to get cool are my tenets of a great time. The beach does something to you. It symbolizes the start of summer, and in that, happiness.




All I want to do now is plan a vacation with Bri somewhere with open roads, blue skies and cold beers.



5 more beach days in Sri Lanka!

Life in Sri Lanka....

Today we are departing the beautiful mountain town of Nuaraleyah. It is a 19th century tea plantation town set up in the mountains of central Sri Lanka.  Absolutely beautiful. I have never been to a place like this so it is a little hard to describe.

Life out of a backpack is awesome, it has been so long since I've been travelling that I forgot how freeing the feeling of the open road is.

Sri Lanka is certainly the most off the beaten track place that I have been too... It is like nothing in SE Asia.

This trip just makes me more and more excited for our summer adventures. I can't stop picturing life in Tenn with B.


I had been getting a little stressed in Bangkok, not sure why, maybe a little homesick, maybe a little bored since our work ended, but life here has given me a fresh perspective and a fresh set of energy that I need to carry for the next....60 something days, until our hearts are no longer apart and life will try to return to normalcy.

Until then, trust the process.

J