Novels and Sunshine

I've been in Arizona this last week, trying to relax a little before I hit the road. My stepfather has a house in Bisbee, a tiny little town that used to be a big mining town but is now more of haven for artists and old hippies. They sell bumper stickers that declare Bisbee "a liberal oasis in a desert of conservatism." I like it.

The first day I arrived here (Monday) was probably one of the best days I've had since leaving Juneau. There isn't television or an internet connection at the house, which leaves music and books and the outdoors as my only company. Given that the places where I was staying in San Diego and Portland both had cable television, one with HBO on demand, this is quite refreshing. I've decided to never live anywhere with cable because I absolutely cannot turn it off, perhaps because I didn't have access to it growing up. Now before you know it I've watched six hours in a row of a show about vampires living in the modern day.

No, from now on it's the simple life for me. My first night here I sat in the garden for a half an hour and just studied the leaves and the bugs. Then I listened to all of the CDs that we have lying around, which are all throwbacks to earlier generations: Neil Young, Bonnie Raitt, The Eagles, Billie Holiday, etc. I've been reading nonstop since I arrived and have easily fallen back into my childhood habit of walking around with a book in my hand, completely absorbed while skillfully avoiding running into things or people.

Today I bought a copy of Tuesdays with Morrie and read the whole thing in a few hours while sitting outside in the sun. It was the perfect book to read before I leave, what with its reflections on what is truly important in life versus what our culture emphasizes. My most recent fears about my trip, like that I would bring the wrong kind of shoes or that my new water bottle would still taste like plastic, were quickly erased as I realized none of that really mattered. I'm making this journey and everything will fall into place regardless of what I do or do not plan for.

That being said, I'm finally feeling like I've got everything ready. I've packed well - my bag is 50L and weighs about 25lbs. when fully loaded. I bought enough dramamine to knock out a bull and finally settled on an anti-malaria pill that doesn't cost $1,000 or induce psychosis as a side effect. I've brought along a harmonica and a journal and just picked up a copy of one of my favorite books, In the House of the Spirits by Isabelle Allende. I know where I'm staying Monday night and have a ticket to Cusco on Wednesday, from which I'll book a hiking trip up Machu Picchu. I've been fretting about the little details for the last few days now, but after reading in the sun for a few hours I've let it all go.

There is the fact that I'm not feeling very confident about my Spanish which I, well, majored in, but I suppose one of the points of this trip is to get it back. I found an awesome book in the used bookstore from 1960 called A Practical Spanish Grammar, which pretty much contains all the notes I ever took about verb tenses. The funny thing is that it's adapted from A Practical Spanish Grammar for Border Patrol Officers. But in this day and age I can't imagine minutemen studying to improve their Spanish in the hopes that they might better communicate with Mexican immigrants. I guess we've advanced in some ways and regressed in others.

Anyway, that's about it for now. Sorry for such a long post; I've had a lot on my mind. Thanks for taking the time to read this - I hope to post at least once a week. Oh man, wrapping this up it's really starting to hit me - by Monday night, I will be in Lima. No job, no cell phone and no return ticket.

But you know what? I can't wait.