Goodbye WNC and NOC!

I am currently in Oxford, MS visiting my mother before heading to Jackson to spend a few days gathering my things and sorting out the final details of my trip.

I left NC on Saturday morning after an amazing week. I biked Burningtown with Elvis and then proceeded to run Tsali with Elvis, Sean, and Liz a few days later - both of which kicked my butt as I was pushing myself harder than usual, but left me beaming afterwards. Have I mentioned how much I love biking and running there?! Friday was one of those days that I hope to look back on for awhile to remind myself that it is possible to have more fun than one could ever imagine at work and STILL get paid. Now, mind you, I do not see myself being a professional dishwasher/salad spinner for life, but for now, it suits me just fine, and if I can feel this happy at the end of the day, then what's the harm in it? It was a dreary, cold, rainy, dark day and NO ONE was getting off the train, not to mention going down the river. So there were no customers, but plenty of prep work to be done. I elected to bake cookies. And then chose to eat many of them (this was AFTER eating a homemade apple tart Becki made for me and BEFORE consuming a few frozen brownies meant for Becki's kids). And then was experiencing a severe sugar high. This led to a rousing game of apron stickball (until Lauren politely reminded me that this was very much unacceptable - ok, fine, Ill try to behave, but not for long...). Next was cookie hockey. This was purely incidental as Ben THREW a cookie at me and it got stuck under the refrigerator. Thus, our ONLY option was to use a broom stick to swat the thing back and forth until it finally flew out. Clearly. But the fun didnt end there...

After work, I convinced Elvis, Sean, and Israel (thanks again and again for driving!) that we MUST go to the Fun Factory in Franklin for one last hurrah before I skipped town. And what fun we had! Between Laser Tag (I am quite possibly the world's WORST at this game, by the way; Im not sure you could get a lower score than I got, and I began to feel like I was going into epileptic shock with how much my vest was vibrating each time I was hit), Mini Golf, the all-you-can-eat pizza buffet, Dance Dance Revolution, Skee Ball, incredibly intense nascar races, and a raging river rapids game that literally left me sweating, we had some serious fun. And we shut the place down. Literally. They turned the lights out on us and all of the employees left. Luckily, the manager was still in her office so we were able to rouse her to get out prizes. We werent about to leave there without our foam ball guns, back scratchers and a bag full of candy.

So, needless to say again, my last days in NC were great. And thanks to some strange circumstances, I ended up running into a few family friends that were passing through the gorge en route to Iuka, MS and was able to follow them almost all of the way to Oxford. This was a huge relief as I wasnt exactly sure what route to take to get home and definitely wasnt thrilled about having to pull over every so often just to check the map and make sure I was on the right road. Northern Alabama and Mississippi are quite rural, so it's not always clear where you are or where you are going. At one point, my dad called and asked where I was, and I, honestly, had NO idea. There were no signs for miles. Just open road and the occasional gas station. But this is the kind of driving I love. So having someone else to follow so that I could drift off into lalaland and enjoy wide open spaces was a delight:)!

And now Im hanging out with my mom trying to make the most of the time I have here with her. She's blown me away with picking up and moving her life to a place where she really knows no one. She found herself a job, a church, has made some great friends, and - here is where I know Im my mother's daughter - has scouted out all the bakeries within a 10 mile radius - YUM! She even went to a yoga class with me this morning. I must say, Oxford is quite a hip place!

Eight days and counting...so I best be off:).

The transient life...

Two months ago, I packed everything I own (once again) into my car, said goodbye to my friends, apartment, and job in Chicago, and headed South. I LOVED Chicago. I have never felt more social and connected and needed in my life. But I cant stay anywhere for too long. This always surprises me about myself. I always shock myself as I can become so comfortable and happy in a place, but refuse to settle for too long as I know there are far too many places out there in the world to explore and see for me to allow myself to stay in any one place for too long.

So I left.

And headed to Western North Carolina for a third stint of working at the Nantahala Outdoor Center. I have been fortunate enough to work for a woman who has gladly taken me back for odd periods of time - 2 months last summer and 6 weeks this time around. And even though I am freezing my butt off at the moment, I love it here. I so badly missed the mountains during my year in Chicago, and have been taking full advantage of the hiking, running, and road biking trails at my disposal.

And in typical Cameron-doesnt-tend-to-plan-too-much fashion, I got here with no place to live. So in my first two weeks, my housing included a family friend's house, a co-workers loft in staff housing, my boss' living room floor, 10 incredible days in what may be the most gorgeous cabin within 50 miles of the gorge - thanks to Matt and the Dennis'!, and, finally, a quaint farmhouse where I lived last summer. I have left everything in my car except for a small backpack with three outfits which I have worn over and over again for the last 5 weeks -thankfully, I dont have to look nice for work and people dont tend to judge. Plus, when the smells around you include steaming pots of hot dog water, I really have to worry too much;). Oh, I know my parents must be so proud! But I just look at it as preparation for the months of travel to come.

I plan to return to Mississippi at the end of this week. I will spend a few days with my mom in Oxford and then head to Jackson to get everything together, vote, and then get the hell out of dodge!

For now, I am trying to take advantage of my flexible schedule to do as much biking and running as possible before I bid WNC adieu once again. So off I go!

Welcome!

OK, so after having "start blog" on my to-do list for a few months now, I am FINALLY getting around to creating one - woohoo! So now all my lovely family and friends can stay abreast of the many adventures sure to come my way in the coming days, weeks, and months.

And an update so everyone knows what is going on:

Ever since returning from my year abroad in Ecuador, I have wanted to return to South America to travel. And now, after a few years of working and saving dinero, I have both the time and funds to embark on this journey. And thanks to a wonderful gift from my grandmother, I will have the amazing opportunity to begin my grand adventure with a two week trip to Northern Patagonia with my father. And let me tell you, I could not be more excited to be sharing this experience with him! My dad is an amazing person, and I look forward to exploring places both big and small in Argentina and Chile with him. We leave on Nov 5 - just 15 days from now!

For now, I have been spending far too much time haggling over details of where we should stay in Buenos Aires and Santiago, and much less time thinking about what the heck I am going to do with myself once I say goodbye to my dad in Santiago on Nov 20th. But thanks to all the people who have been wonderfully informative and helpful with advice, suggestions, and recommendations!

I look forward to what is to come, and I am excited to have the opportunity to share my adventures with my family and friends!