Andy, Ryan, and i completed our fourth annual "Awareness Walk" from Montevallo to Birmingham yesterday. I think we figured it is about 45 miles in all. Today i feel every one of those miles in my legs. I must admit we started out slow and apprehensive; getting up at 4:30 is a challenge but as the day progressed we gathered momentum. We even ran the last few miles (paying for that one though). In total it took us somewhere in the neighborhood of 16 hours.
This is the first trip we were intentional about doccumenting. We took turns with the video and pictures, but andy for sure carried the lions share of the work.
This trip was probably the best so far. We spent a good bit of time speaking to people. One thing we did was to ask people random questions, nothing serious, just random questions. We got some great answers!! We drank beer under bridges, we invented stories about people we saw on political signs (April Weaver), we went to three differnt Publix to get food and wine, we swam naked in a lake by the mall, we all got blisters, we got drunk under Vulcan, we found some cool trash (panties, cd's, swim goggles, gloves). We got hollared at several times. Someone called us "hippy fags" others said "you guys are soooooo cool". We all hit a wall of pain and kept pushing till the end. We encouraged one another. We lived a full day doing exactly what we wanted!!!!! We lived a full day!!! We lived!!!
We forget how simple life can be, how beautiful the details are, and how there is no pressure on us except what we create! I look back on this trip and i feel a sense of accomplishment. I can see how the power of intention (not expectation) can bring about the amazing things we each desire. I think i am going to go rest my blisters now!!!
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Saturday, May 8, 2010
These last two dollars...i'm not gonna lose!!
Well I am writting this blury eyed having just got back from an all night casino trip in mississippi at Silver Star Resort. Woah!! It was a surreal experience from the moment i stepped on to the bus in piggly wiggly parking lot. Our bus driver was Curtis...a thick black man with a gold front tooth that liked to let the ash on his cigarette get 4 inches long before flicking it...i kept thinking it was gonna land in his coffee. I was sitting in the back of the bus with my pops and soon we began to have a reverse Rosa Parks moment. As we started picking people up i noticed a certian trend happening...it was all black women between 50-60 getting on. I started imagening myself in a Tyler Perry movie. We killed the 3 hour ride by getting drunk off New Castle and Tangueray gin. This heavy set black lady just handed me the bottle and said " Get u sum baby"! I was buzzing hard core when we got there.
The Choctaw Indian reservation in Philidelphia mississippi changed my life (I guess anything can change your life if you are paying attention to how it affects you). We got there and started playing our 45 dollars of "free money". Pretty much lost it in about thirty minutes. I never understood what the machine was doing. Pops hits the roulette table and Tom and I head to the black jack table. I wiggled in between a black dude that looked like he was on meth and an italian dude making some big bets. I handed the lady a fifty and she handed me the equivilent in $5 chips. I was on my way. Things were going well... at one point my stack was about 8 inches tall but i dont know how much money that was cause Tom said dont count your money at the table....you'll get apprehensive. Well things shifted quickly....the dealer began taking my money...i almost suggested that she start taking bites out of my arm instead of the $10 minimum i was tossing out each time. Seems like that would have hurt less. The rest of the night continued in that pattern for me. I made it home with no loss of blood but my bank account is gonna need a transfusion.
Observations:
over half the staff was indian (and over weight)
the majority of the people there looked desperate
the majority of the people were over 50
i associate myself with my money...it really felt like i lost value as i lost money
dont get drunk then gamble--gamble....win....then get drunk
dont bring a debit card
leave expectation at home
The Choctaw Indian reservation in Philidelphia mississippi changed my life (I guess anything can change your life if you are paying attention to how it affects you). We got there and started playing our 45 dollars of "free money". Pretty much lost it in about thirty minutes. I never understood what the machine was doing. Pops hits the roulette table and Tom and I head to the black jack table. I wiggled in between a black dude that looked like he was on meth and an italian dude making some big bets. I handed the lady a fifty and she handed me the equivilent in $5 chips. I was on my way. Things were going well... at one point my stack was about 8 inches tall but i dont know how much money that was cause Tom said dont count your money at the table....you'll get apprehensive. Well things shifted quickly....the dealer began taking my money...i almost suggested that she start taking bites out of my arm instead of the $10 minimum i was tossing out each time. Seems like that would have hurt less. The rest of the night continued in that pattern for me. I made it home with no loss of blood but my bank account is gonna need a transfusion.
Observations:
over half the staff was indian (and over weight)
the majority of the people there looked desperate
the majority of the people were over 50
i associate myself with my money...it really felt like i lost value as i lost money
dont get drunk then gamble--gamble....win....then get drunk
dont bring a debit card
leave expectation at home
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