Riding The Rails

No sir, I absolutely did not just flip you off.

It’s a piece of true American nostalgia, riding the railroad all across America –seeing the other sides of towns. 70 miles per hour of blurring trees, countryside – a whiz of the blues, greens, browns, oranges and reds that make an Alabama fall. It’s breathtaking. But then again, so are some of people on this train. Not to mention it’s a balmy 85 degrees or so on in here.

One of the beauties of riding public transportation is getting to ride with your fellow citizens. Meeting the people that make up this unique and diverse country – and a diverse group of folks they are. Italians, Mexicans, Asians – there might be more diversity in this one train car than there is in the whole of the state of Alabama.

It makes me feel so homogenized. I long for the days when I traveled the world – meeting new people, experiencing things for the first time. Finding the differences and unique similarities between all of us – like the fact foreign food gives everyone the runs. In case you have ever considered it here is some advice: never give a Moroccan a bowl of your best recipe chili – something in it doesn’t agree with them.

This just makes me think of a simpler time in the World. A time my grandparents lived in – a time when people talked, showed each other respect – a world that was slower, safer and slightly more moral. A time when people knew their neighbors – where children built forts in the woods,played pickup games of baseball and rode their bikes around together without having to worry about being snatched up. The world today – it can be so mind-blowing. So many of the things we read about are just incomprehensible – the crimes, the wars, the corruption, the economy. It’s enough to make you want to douse yourself in some overpriced Diesel and send yourself up in flames.

But here I am – living and riding just like my long-gone relatives did. My grandfather rode a train from Fairbanks, Alaska to Akron, Alabama just to get off and propose to my grandmother. She said yes and he hopped right back on the train to Alaska. I guess the Army didn’t allow much furlough for proposals. I always found that to in be an amazing story. He knew what he wanted and did whatever it took to get it. If it wasn’t for the train, I guess I wouldn’t be here.

Traveling the scenic routes of Alabama and Georgia – with a little country music playing and a pretty cool traveling companion next to me – is fantastic. Darius Rucker’s new album is the perfect soundtrack for my trip. It’s got my mind right where it needs to be – focusing on the beauty of life and love and friendships. I have been a little juvenile at moments. My new friend and I have been watching the annoyed people at railroad crossings and flipping them off because, after all, they can never catch up with us. Take that air travel. Plus its cheaper than a tank of gas.

If I accidentally flip you off, accept my apologies. It’s all in good fun. Seriously, this is something you should try if you’ve never done it before. I can’t speak for the food – but I’m pretty sure Paula Dean’s not back there. Now if we could just get some air conditioning and some deoderizer this would be the perfect experience.

Happy Feet

One of my best friends zipped me a copy of a video today that has just blown my mind. This video is simply called Dancing – and it follows a guy named Matt Harding as he travels the globe and does just that – dances. Matt dances with everyone, everywhere – from Zulu Warriors to folks in New York and from the Red Light Districts of Vietnam to zero gravity. My friend, who is a film editor, sent it to me to point out the beauty in the simplicity. While that’s true there is just so much more to this video than the technical aspects. This is one of the most moving and beautiful things I’ve ever see. I’m not a super emotional man, but I was moved to tears of joy while I watched this. And not just the first time I saw it.

This video is really all about the shared experiences that we (human beings) have. It’s about the commonalities that make us people. Despite language, location and the myriad differences we have – there are more basic and inherent feelings and experiences shared between us. From now on if I get down about terrorists in the news, or wars, or any of the day-to-day crap that we are fed by our news outlets, all I have to do is turn on this video to remember that people are basically all the same.

And I’m really jealous. I have done a good bit of traveling in my day – more than 30 countries. But this just relight my fire – it’s time for me to get back out there. If you’ve never left the U.S., just go and do it! I know I will. Asia and Australia are still on my to-do list.

Thanks so much to my good friend Nathan for showing me this. If you want to follow Matt Harding – he’s a really interesting guy with some cool looking future projects – check him out here.

Just an Old Sweet Song

So I’m in Atlanta for the next few days working on a new web project that I think has a ton of potential. I’ve been on camera tonight making a huge fool of myself, which I’m sure everyone (except me) will laught at one day soon. I’d tell you more about it, but I’m not allowed to disclose much about what we’re up too until it launches. Also they haven’t told me everything about it….so I don’t even know all the ins and outs. I guess it’s one of those ‘need to know basis’ things – and I don’t need to know.

Anyway, I hope it all plays out like I want it to, and maybe I’ll end up here in Atlanta for good. I could use the change. It’s always good to shake things up a little bit and get reinvigorated about life. That sounds like what I need. That or a chuckabowkoo – def. a swift spiritual kick to the head that alters one’s reality forever. (Courtesy of John Cusak in Gross Pointe Blank.)

So that’s where it stands at this moment. I’ll be filming more in the morning, so I’ll see if I can get a clip or a screenshot or something to send across for everyone to check out. Until then, take it easy!