My Time in North Carolina!

This is my aunt's house.

The repetition of my alarm wakes me up. It's 12:30pm on a Sunday in Marshall, North Carolina. But instead of getting up I stay where I am, laying in a bed in the midst of musical ring tones. It's noisy and a bit uncomfortable but I can still sleep. "Christopher it's 1:00pm"calls my uncle from the top of the stairway. He is calling me to wake me up for a 2 o'clock appointment. I'm still tired but he's right, I need to get up. I make my bed, put on clean clothes and walk upstairs. Aunt Maya is busy in the kitchen cleaning and preparing our day. "Good morning Christopher" she says as she greets me with breakfast. She always manages to make me feel at home. North Carolina is a beautiful state . . . that it is.

After finishing breakfast I take a seat with Aunt Maya on one of her couches. I'm always delighted to help her with computer related tasks since she is a beginner with this kind of stuff and I kind of know my way around. I taught her how to edit her blog posts and change her web pages, now she just needs to practice. I remember not believing that I'd ever type as fast as "grown ups" and now I type as fast as I can think. Aunt Maya's experience with her Macintosh is no different. I believe in her and she'll be a pro in no time.

I've managed to discuss a few computer related topics with Uncle Ramesh but my time with him has been limited, so Zen has been helping him out instead. Zen, my cousin, has always contributed to our family, be it Radha, Ayvee, Aunt Maya, Uncle Ramesh or even me. He and Uncle Ramesh are working on a website to sell relaxation music CD's. I did some work on the site in the past but Zen wants to upgrade it a bit.

Well that concludes this blog. I hope you enjoyed it. Here are some of the pictures I took:

Picture of a "round house" (one of their neighbors).

A sidewalk in Asheville, North Carolina.

Organic cucumber from my Aunt Maya's garden.

A sunflower from Aunt Maya's garden.

A flower from Aunt Maya's garden.

A mailbox located down the road from their house.

Here are some more pictures that I took but with a disposable camera instead:

Picture of Aunt Maya directing her dog, Shakti.

Another picture of the "round house" (one of their neighbors).

Picture of a stream, located down the road from their house.

Picture of one of the roads leading to their house.

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Muir Woods in San Francisco, California

This is a picture of me in front of the bridge.

I went on a decent hike today at Muir Woods in San Francisco, CA. I've been meaning to go for quite some time but I didn't get around to it until now. I've visited the park before but I wanted to add the location to my recent travels. I went with one of my long-time friends from High School. The first thing we noticed as we approached the National Monument was the fresh air. The air was clean and full of oxygen. Before making it there we had to cross the Golden Gate Bridge. So we made a pit stop at a resting point near the end of the bridge.

We lucked out with a decent parking space once we got there but on another note, the park wasn't very secure. Nothing was stopping anyone from just walking in without having to pay. Lets just hope that everone paid, I think they did but you never know. It seems like the park has some sort of honor code policy.

The hike went pretty well. We ended up finding a steep almost hidden path leading off the main trail. I think it was a little dangerous and if either of us tripped or fell, it would have been a long ways down. After an hour or so of hiking, we took some time off and sat on a wooden bench while examining the view. It's always nice to enjoy moments of calmness and I think it's healthy to relax in quietness. It helps me settle my mind.

After walking down from our steep climb and almost falling more than once, I wasn't ready to take another risk, but Ben was. I wonder if I'm afraid of heights? The one regret that I do have is the fact that I didn't balance on the stick. Keep in mind, someone attempting this could easily fall and trip while landing and tumble off the cliff on the right hand side of the picture. I don't think that's paranoia . . . is it?

I'm standing in the very back.

Some of the trees.

I am climbing between two of the trees. It's hard to make out but my feet are supporting me on one tree while my arms are holding me up against the the other. 

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Floating in Foster City!

NOTE: I'm writing this blog a little late partly due to the flu. I just now recently recovered. I'm now treasuring my health more then before and it feels so good to be able to drive, talk, eat and walk. While I was ill, I wasn't able to do much but sleep. 

The reason why I am writing this blog is to document my first time kayaking. I was driving through Foster City with my cousin when I spotted kayaks lined up on the shore of the lagoon. I instantly felt excitement. I was so adamant about going that I was able to convince Kristal (my cousin) to get in the boat with me. Sometimes I really love adventure. Unfortunately my excitement proceeded my judgement and in all of my haste, I chose to get into the front seat thinking that I would be leading the way. But while Kristal and I were afloat, I noticed a few odd stares and I think I heard someone make a comment. She said something about me or us being backwards. It took me an additional 20 - 25 minutes to realize that something was indeed off. In all the other kayaks around us the women were in front with the men in the back. Is that embarrasing or what? The front seat was at least half the size as the back seat. While Kristal was lounging with an abundance of space in the back, I was cramped in the itty bitty seat in the front. It got to the point where my legs and feet felt numb.

Well, after floating around for about an hour I gave in and we headed back towards the shore. Even with the numbness and slight embarrassment it was definitely a good experience. I'm glad we went and it only cost $10 each!

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My Stay in Puerto Rico

I took this photo while touring the Fort.

For those of you that don't know, today is my last night in Puerto Rico and I'm completing my trip with immense satisfaction. I enjoyed my time swimming in the ocean, walking on the beach and site seeing in some of the best places in the country. The first night we arrived, I ended up swimming in the ocean for over an hour at 1:00 am in the morning. It was a great experience. The water was warm, the waves constant and the scenery was unforgettable. I think some of the pictures we took are pretty cool. Each one was taken by either me or my friend Kenito.

As you can see, its pretty cloudy outside since the the weather wasn't very good while we were there. The sun was hidden and it rained a few times. But that didn't stop us from having a great experience. On the second day of our stay, we visited Old San Juan. Once there, we toured The National Historic Site in Puerto Rico. 

The construction of the fort started in 1539 AD and it was designed to guard the entrance of San Juan bay, and to defend the city of San Juan from seaborne enemies.

While I was riding through the mud with a group of people a wheel fell off of our tour leader's ATV. Had the circumstances been different he could have fallen off the mountain and into a creek, into barbwire or to his demise! Well, I'm not quite sure if he would have died, but it wouldn't have been pleasant. Their equipment seemed in need of an upgrade.

Kenito had a problem with his ATV and opted out of risking his life!

After touring the fort I flew a kite for the first time in my life. Kite strings are the worst things to get tangled. Many people give up and leave their kites behind but after excruciating concentration (it was excruciating) I finally managed to untie the knots over 45 minutes later.

We visited another waterfall and it happened to fall into a natural pool of water. It was freezing cold but I jumped inside to experience what it was like to be underneath a waterfall. Unfortunately though, the pictures we took didn't turn out so well.

 View from Fort San Felipe del Morro (a fort located in Old San Juan).

Our hotel was a block away from the beach.

Me in the El Yunkue Rainforest at La Coca Falls.

A cave we visited with our tour guide, it was on the way to El Yunkue.

I was able to ride an ATV up a muddy mountain at Hacienda Carabali in Lucuillo two days after we visited El Yunkue.

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I'm Happy With the Car I Bought!

Getting my first car was most definitely long over due. I waited so many years for this and I think it stressed me out. It may have even hurt me. Driving by myself for the first time was a healing experience and it will be healing over the next 6 months.

For years I felt trapped and lower then the common person who could drive and have their own car. I wasn't able to go where I needed and I don't think many people understood how big of a barrier it was for me.

Life is good... thank you God, Buddha, Higher Power, No Power, This Power, That Power or what ever it was that granted me one of my deepest wishes.

I owe a lot to my friend Ben who helped me find the right car for the right price. He spent 2 days helping me and this was the fourth car that he checked. He valued each car by checking their breaks, exterior, interior, engines and transmissions. Had he not been there, I would have never been able to negotiate for a lower price and I may have even bought the first car I looked at. I'm clueless when it comes to cars. Thanks Ben! I'm happy with the car I bought. 

I love it!!!!!! 2001 Crown Victoria with 90,000 miles in good condition for $3,000!!

'

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