The Beginning

From one tour to the next. My life is awash in instability. For the past two weeks, as many of you probably know, I was travelling around the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic in a beat-down Toyota Sienna minivan, touring with The Delphines. In fact, it's been so long since I've posted on this blog that I'm pretty sure I've never talked or written about how The Delphines came into fruition. And honestly, I'm not going to do that right now. All you need to know is that it started on a back porch in the Riverwest neighborhood of Milwaukee. I was asked by a few friends to join a musical project as the drummer. I informed them that I didn't know how to play drums. They retorted by telling me that I would only need to play two. It sounded easy enough, so I agreed. From then on, we've been able to play in over eleven states from Minnesota to New York and from Tennessee to Iowa. We've had the wonderful experience of opening for the band Deerhoof in Chicago's famous Lincoln Hall and have had numerous articles written about (positively) our group. "The Delphines" as a personal experience has been one of the most unexpectedly enriching chapters of my life. I've been able to engage with and cultivate a previously unknown talent. All of this, though, will be on hold for the next three months of, as Jamie and I are set to embark on a cross-country trip that will (hopefully) enrich our marriage and bring forth beauty of both a natural and emotional kind.

Our bike trip has been in the works for nearly two years. Upon arriving in Milwaukee, I was informed by the Trinity Fellows program that I would receive a free TREK bike upon the completion of my Masters Degree. Immediately my thoughts went to a cross-country trip. Jamie and I both agreed that the trip would serve as a celebration of my graduation. There was never a question of whether it would actually happen or not, for I knew that once we had our minds set, the planning and the trip would happen. We rejected job offers and planned our future around the excursion. We both committed to saving our funds and relieving ourselves of work and school responsibilities. It is difficult to find three to four months of free-time in our society, where all of us are pressured to work and focus on a career path, but we somehow managed. There was no way we would be denied this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. To traverse the Rocky Mountains and glide across the great Northern Plains, to camp under the canopy of the Eastern Woodlands and heave up switch-backs through Glacier National Park, were potential experiences too strong to ignore. 

Naturally, there is trepidation in embarking upon a trip of this size. Numerous dangers--falling hard on the road, bears, seedy characters, bugs, semi-trucks--are real. However, if we stick to our course, follow the maps, take it easy, and walk when we're tired and drink when we're thirsty, we should make it out of this experience in one piece. I reassure all of you--friends and family alike--that we will do everything in our power to ensure the safety of our continental crossing. Yet, there is too much beautiful landscape to behold, too many wonderful villages to visit, and too many beers to sample to focus solely on the gloom of a few potential dangers.

Each American, whether he/she realizes it or not, is called to explore, to place themselves at the mercy of North American nature--to feel the blistering sun crackle on exposed skin, to fight against the relentless wind of the Great Plains, to sweat through the oppressive humidity of the South, and to battle against the stubborn hills of the Eastern Woodlands. It's in our heritage to get out, to leave that which is comfortable and pursue that which is unknown. So "Go West" young man/woman! And be sure to instagram as you go...