Off to see the Whistler, the wonderful Whistler of Oz!

Well, I'm off! It's about noon on Monday September 29th, and my car is loaded with everything I think I might need for a winter of ski-bumming in Canada: 1 pair alpine skis, 1 pair telemark skis, avalanche gear, 1 snowboard, 1 bike, 1 guitar, 2 bags of clothes (this is all the clothes I own anyway), 1 fishing pole, 1 tent, 1 pillow, 1 sleeping pad, and a cooler of food. Also an atlas. Hopefully my oxen don't die while fording the river.

I'll be heading north up through Montana and then west through Idaho and Washington. I plan to reach the Canadian border south of Vancouver on Wednesday. My work permit will be issued at the border (a little nerve racking) and then I'll be on my merry way.

Best wishes to all, and remember you've got a friend in one of the most beautiful spots in the world! Feel free to drop by anytime, and expect to sleep on the couch.

I'll try and post another entry about the trip as soon as possible, so check back!

Rocky Mountain High

On Wednesday, Kelsey and I hiked up Signal Mountain, an 11,190 ft peak just west of Fort Collins. It was a beautiful crisp fall day, and the aspens were just beginning to change into their Halloween colors. From the summit we had gorgeous views of Rocky Mountain National Park to the south (Longs Peak can be seen clearly from the summit), and the Mummy Range to the north. If you can visit the mountains in the next couple weeks, it is well worth the trip. If you just can't get away, these photos will have to suffice.

Shrubbery.

Northern exposure of Longs peak - looking south from the summit of Signal Mountain.

Me at the summit, looking SW.

This is Monkey Rock, an anomalous rock formation that can be seen from miles away. If you look closely you will see me standing on the left-hand side of the rock to give perspective on how huge it is.

Monkey Rock from the summit of Signal.

Quaking Aspen, Lodgepole pine, and the blue Colorado Sky.

Songwriters

For anyone who missed it, I've started playing guitar. Let me paint a picture; It's fall semester senior year, and our new roommate has brought with him the most addictive game of all time: Guitar Hero. I loved guitar hero, and I got really upsettingly good at it. One fine winter's day, I found myself sitting in front of the TV practicing a particularly difficult song when I had an epiphany. If I'm gonna practice, I may as well learn to play a real guitar. So I picked up a guitar and I haven't played guitar hero since. (Well, maybe once.)

As I've been learning various songs I've found new respect for several musicians in particular. Youtube being the fantastic resource that it is, here's a trip back in time. Enjoy.

John Denver "Rocky Mountain High"



This clip is an interview with John Denver and it's definitely worth watching. He explains his inspiration for writing "Rocky Mountain High" and talks about his youth a bit. Very cool.



James Taylor "Carolina in my Mind"



This one speaks for itself.

About that Title....

Welcome to the Rattlin' Blog! I know some people (at least my mother) enjoyed reading the Chile or Bust blog (www.chileorbust.blogspot.com), so I've decided to take it up again. Like my Chile blog, this blog will chronicle my adventures (when and if they happen), and so much more. When adventures are scarce, and my life has slipped into the doldrums of work or tax forms or scholarship applications or I am living in my parents house; I may write about any number of obscure, random and off-the-wall topics. This said, I vow to avoid hackneyed political commentary as if it smells of putrid camel-carcass, although I do reserve the right to take the occasional shot at authority figures and bigoted TV personalities (we won't mention any names but for you "V for Vendetta" fans it's Lewis Prothero, and if the Colbert Report is your poison, it's "Papa Bear.")

So...about the title.

Somewhere in the archives of the basement there is an old family video. This film contains footage of me as a young whippersnapper dancing like I'm about to beat the final level on "Dance, Dance Revolution." Put another way, it looked like someone fed me three shots of espresso and put a bee in my knickers.

Anyway, my dancing was inspired by a song entitled "The Rattlin' Bog," which, it turns out, is an Irish drinking song. But, in the innocence of my youth, I just thought it was a kickin' groove. Recently, the song was unearthed when it was played at the Mark and Meg's wedding reception. I'm not sure why they decided to throw that song on the playlist (although my promise to re-enact the dance may have influenced their choice) but we're bringing it back, baby.

Yo Ho the Rattlin' Blog
The blog down in the valley-o
Yo ho the Rattlin' Blog
The blog down in the valley-o

Well on this blog there was a tree a rare tree a rattlin' tree
And the tree in the blog and the blog down in the valley-o

And on this tree there was a branch
A rare branch a rattlin' branch
And the branch on the tree
And the tree in the blog
And the blog down in the valley-o

Etc.

You can listen to the tune on the sidebar of the blog anytime you want!. Yee-haw!

Sorry Pete.