30 Hours, 2 States, 1 Car, 0 Hospital Visits. Part 1

Who likes planned trips? But really. Who does? Who really enjoys making an itinerary? And if you read this and say, "I do," then close this tab because I don't like you and you're ruining the entire premise behind this blog post.

Now, for those that are still reading. (hey ma, hey dad), what makes a spontaneous trip that much better? I'll tell you what. The fact that nothing can go wrong. Whatever happens, happens. Nothing that occurs for the duration of that adventure was planned, so in theory, nothing can happen the way it should or shouldn't have happened. It gives you the opportunity to think on your feet.

For example, "Oh, we ran out of gas in the middle of the desert? Well, that's okay because we had no set plans. We will just hitchhike. Perfect. I'm so glad we didn't make a strict itinerary."

Now, I know what you're thinking. Who doesn't pick up gas before they go into the desert and who is that calm? Well, it's a good thing it's just an example. But you catch my drift.

Let's set the scene, shall we?

Wednesday Night: (Conversation between me and my friend Justin)

Me: Hey! What are you doing tonight through Friday! I don't work!
Justin: Hey! I have a job interview tomorrow at 9 :( But I'm free after!
Me: I was going to say lets go to Utah tonight but I understand! Lets plan to hike Mt. Lincoln (a 14er in CO for those who don't know) and do something else!
Justin: Perfect! I'm so down. Lets figure out all the details once you pick me up.

(Yes, there were that many exclamation marks were used. No exaggeration for the purpose of this post)

Thursday:
When I went to pick up Justin, the weather was dreadful. The overcast was pretty much saying, "Go home Emily. Go have some hot chocolate in that Snuggie that you never use and watch movies" But I proceeded to get him and when we met, we discussed the horrendous weather and decided to go to his apartment to figure out another plan of action. After 2 hours of discussing travel plans, listening to Florence and the Machine, and casually watching YouTube videos of Amy Winehouse performing "Valerie," we noticed that the weather was not supposed to clear up until a after the trip was going to be over. Which sucked. The only place that looked nice was southern Colorado and Utah. Both anywhere from 5-7 hours away. At this point it was already 11:30 on Thursday and I had to be home by Friday night around 9.

In comes conversation number 2. (in person)

Me: So, what's our plan now? Mt. Lincoln?
Justin: I don't know, the weather looks pretty bad.
Me: Yeah, Utah and Glenwood Springs look to have the best weather. But I thought we decided not to go to Utah?
Justin: I know haha, but should we just do it?
Me: Drive all the way to Utah to see the Arches!? In a day!?
Justin: Yeah....? Should we? Is that crazy?
Me: It is. But why not?
Justin: Lets shoot for trying to see Maroon Bells at sunset, maybe hike it in the morning and if it looks bad, we will just head to Utah?
Me: Lets just get in the car before we end up staying in Denver haha. Regardless, we have to go West. We will figure it out as we go, but for now, lets make Utah our ultimate destination.
Justin: Sounds good! I love that you're down for an adventure like this. We will be great friends.
Me: Me too! This is the beginning to a beautiful friendship.

Okay, so I don't really remember how that conversation ended, but we definitely said those words at some point during the trip. So it counts.

I remember exactly, my dashboard in my car said it was 12:12 (really 11:46am, my clock is REALLY fast),

Next thing you know, we are on Route 70 West.

Cue the adventure.

Escaping Reality for a New Adventure

….Close your eyes.                     

Take a deep breath.

Clear your mind.

Open your eyes again….

For a split second, the corners of your mouth start to rise without you even noticing. Your eyes are slightly squinting, and you feel like there is no weight on your shoulders. That’s how you know you’re at a peaceful state of mind.

Now, I like to think that there is something everyone can do that brings you back to that peaceful state time and time again. For some, it’s writing, others, it’s working out, cooking, reading, knitting, or even the simple act of petting your cat or dog. But me? I’ve been doing a lot of self-examining lately and trying to really comprehend what exactly it is that puts me in that state. That mindset of pure happiness and allowing myself to let go of everything that’s starting to become a burden on me.

And I’ve come across a couple of observations:

1.       If I’m in a room with another person and I have to be quiet, my breathing becomes heavy and rapid.

2.       I thoroughly enjoy conversations with anyone that does not live in this country.

3.       I love to write, in every form.

4.       Exploring is one of my favorite activities. It doesn’t have to be somewhere extravagant. And I usually prefer doing it alone or with someone who is truly interested.

5.       My love for cooking and blogging has slowly been deteriorating and I’m letting people’s opinions affect me and my life choices.

For once, I truly believe I have figure out where I need to be right now and five years from now. I started to think about when in life I was the most content; feeling blessed, captivated; like, I was flying high above the clouds. Almost surreal.

And then I remembered: Florence. When I lived in Italy for 5 months for school, it was pure magic. It was like living inside of a dream. Being able to wake up, explore he city, grab fresh pasta or a glass of wine, and talking to the locals. The multitude of opportunities to hop on a bus, train, boat, or plane and go explore another area of the country or even continent. It was such an experience that, to this day, doesn’t even seem like it happened at all. The fact that I rode ATVs all over Greece, that I drank beer at Oktoberfest with the locals, that I made chocolate with one of the most looked up to chocolatiers in Italy. Those opportunities are not given to everybody. They’re extremely rare and I got to be a part of every single one of them.

That’s when I knew.

Travel.

Anywhere.

Now.

Tomorrow.

Yesterday?

Write.

About everything.

Every experience.

Every moment.

That’s You.

Now Go.

 

I’ve figured it out. I’ve finally discovered what exactly it is I like to do. I love to write, about everything, but mainly travel. The thought that I am sucking somebody into my story as if bringing them there with me is just as good as actually being there. I get to share my story and experiences with those that don’t have the chance to do so themselves. I think that’s beautiful. The ability to share your life with people all around the world and bring them with you along for the journey. It’s as if you’re never alone.

Which is what brings me back to my list. Everything lines up exactly. I love to be alone. To do things the way I intended without anyone interrupting. But I also like to share those times with people after I’ve actually done them. I thoroughly enjoy talking to people from all over because they give me ideas for when I ever choose to travel. I love to write about anything and everything, especially when I was abroad because it was something different with an adventure every day. And that’s when everything finally clicked.

I need to travel. I need to somewhere. Anywhere. I can’t sit still. I’m a nomad. And that’s why I’m going on this trip. I finally decided to stop making excuses, stop listening to people that weren’t myself, and book a flight to Europe for 5 weeks. I know, that this is the beginning. To know that I’m upset over the fact I can only see 7 countries during this trip helps me even more realize that traveling is what I’m meant to do. I understand that traveling in itself isn’t really a profession, but you can make anything you are passionate about into a profession and that’s what I intend to do. It may mean me working in a restaurant or a cubicle for the next 10 years while I figure it out, but it’s going to happen, and I refuse to ever believe that my passion won’t become a reality.

So this is the beginning to another adventure, to my future, and the rest of my life.

Cheers.

I walked into a museum, but it took me to a whole other decade.

The Kirkland Museum of Fine and Decorative Art: Pure Genius

I have been to a lot of museums in my life. I lived 20 minutes from New York City for god's sake. The Met, the MOMA, the Museum of Sex (I actually highly recommend that one), the Louvre, the Musee D'Orsay in France. The list goes on but I could never compare any museum to this petite house on the corner of Pearl Street in Denver. My expectations were extremely low. Denver isn't a huge city and the zoo isn't that great and I went to another museum early that year that wasn't impressive so I had no doubt in my mind that this one would match up to those.

When you walk up to the door, you have to ring the doorbell to enter which I thought was very clever and personal and made you feel like a special guest. As soon as I walked in, they noticed I was by myself and that I'd never been there before so they let me in free of charge and a smile and thoughtful "Merry Christmas" to go with it.

There was a cute little old woman in the center of the museum who personally told you the story of the building and Vance Kirkland himself. She was absolutely adorable and you could see her love for the collection and the artist.

Now it's  time to go back in history:

1929: Vance Kirkland founded the School of Arts at the University of Denver
1932: He left the school because he found out that they weren't giving full academic credit for art courses toward a degree which was the original agreement he made first coming into the University. Vance leased the property on Pearl Street and opened up the Kirkland School of Art so that his students could continue to learn and be taught by him. In 1933, the University of Colorado gave full academic credit to those who partook in the school. He utilized that space as his studio until his death in 1981.
1996: The Kirkland Foundation was founded to preserve his legacy.

Throughout his 54 years of painting, he art went through five different periods:
     Designed Realism (1927-1944) - mostly watercolor

Surrealist (1939-1954) - mostly watercolor

Hard Edge Abstraction (1947-1957) - 50% watercolor, 50% oil

Abstract Expressionism/Floating Abstractions (1951-1964)
- oils

"The Dot Paintings"/Energy in Space Abstractions (1963-1981)

 

As time went on, Hugh Grant (the new owner of the property and Colorado resident) began collecting artwork from other Colorado artists. He believed that people from Colorado saw the state from a different perspective than others. These paintings represent the history of Colorado art from traditional to modern.   Not only are there paintings, but pottery, art deco furniture, flatware, and dishware were all displayed at the museum. But what made the Kirkland Museum so unique is the way in which the exhibitions were presented. It was as if you were walking into a real room, not a museum. The furniture was set up as if you were stepping into a living room; you felt like you were a part of the art. But the most incredibly part of the entire museum was his studio which hasn't been touched since the day he died. You walk in and see his last dot painting that was in the works of being finished, his paints are lying all over the table, a huge canvas lying on the table with these straps laying above it, which you learn, was for him to lay on. He was 5'3" and for him to be able to put these dots on the canvas, he had to lay across these straps, 3 feet above the painting and place the dots onto the canvas one at a time lying directly above it. To see how much work goes into these paintings really shows how dedicated and in love he was with art and exhibiting it to others.

This museum may be small, but it's full of magic. Even if you aren't an art buff (Which I will happily say I am not), this is just a place to go, open your mind, and reflect. The entire building is art. Inside and out.

New Years: A New Beginning or a Continuation of Reality

Every Girl:
"My New Years Resolution is that I'm going to go to the gym every single day and look like a model, and be tan, find a boyfriend, and most importantly be happy with myself."

Every Guy:
"This year, I want to gain a ton of muscle so that all the girls will come running after me. I also want to make hundreds of thousands of dollars. I also need to get my act together and figure out what I want in life and get a job that is right for me and stop all the partying and part-time jobs"

BLAH, BLAH, BLABBITY BLAH!

Let's be realistic here. Honestly (and I mean honestly) How many times do you make a New Year's resolution and it actually comes true? I'll be dead serious when I say NEVER. Why? Because who wants to make a to-do list for your life? Was what you had prior to this year just not acceptable in your opinion? Was the job you had or friends you made not enough to make your life feel complete? Because I don't know about you, but I met some amazing people this year and had the time of my life. I made life changing decisions that may have not been very effective at the time but now, I realize that my life could be completely different if it wasn't for that one day I couldn't make up my mind and decided to do something outside my comfort zone.

I love this holiday. I thoroughly enjoy the hundreds of Facebook statuses, tweets, and IG posts about how this year is going to be the best year yet. It's as if this year is when all of your dreams and aspirations are going to come true. But let me ask you this:

What have you been doing with the last 22 years of your life!? Just sitting on your ass watching the sun rise and set? NO you blubbering idiot! You've been living out your life's dreams...but slowly.

OH MY GOOD GRACIOUS, I HAVE!? How did I not know that? And I'll tell you why. It's because you don't have patience. I certainly don't and I'll happily admit it. But I know that your dreams don't get handed to you on a fucking silver platter. That you can't be lucky all the time. That is reality. I'm sorry if you didn't get that job you wanted or didn't lose those 10 horrific pounds that form that lovely bloated section around your midline we all like to call your "muffin top." But what about those incredible relationships you were once a part of or those family vacations where dad fell off a horse while pretending he was Prince Ali from Aladdin? People are so focused on the negative aspects on their life that they always forget the good.

And THAT is why I love this holiday so much. Every year, people use the new year as a way to fix the bad: Lose weight, make friends, make memories, travel more, eat better, love myself. Has anyone ever considered maybe, just maybe, that you should use the new year to commemorate the good that has occurred over the years? To acknowledge those time that once made you smile.

Stop degrading yourself and for once, just once, love what you have. Take 2014 to reflect on memories of  the previous years that made your dimples appear and ask yourself, "How can I enjoy what I already have but make it even better?"

Sure it's a new year, but there's nothing new about it. It's your old life with new memories. You can't make memories disappear, you can only add to them.


With Love,
Emily