Begin the Birthday Week

So... here we go.

40.
Fucking 40 man.  And I think its going to be a good week actually.

You know, nothing that I could have ever imagined, and with the return of all my journals, finally resting on one shelf together, there are readily accessible reminders of all the grandiose plans I have conjured up over the years for this big birthday... there was a Coastal California Bike Ride with my Favorite Dudes Idea, the Wedding in Italy Idea, the Lose a Knife Fight in Mexico Idea, the Spend the Year Fucking Off Idea, there was the Mountain of Cocaine and a Giant Party Idea... Ive fantasized about this week so much over the last few years, and yet never imagined I would be in a place like this.

Today I started the week with a nice breakfast alone - bacon.  Cause thats what real men eat for breakfast.  Then I sought out a local hike and abandoned the idea of staying warm or dry and slipped my way to the top of a local peak, Elk Knob, at 5500 feet for views of where I am calling home for now.  I laughed my ass off sliding down the service road in record time, came home to cook some food and I got myself a date with dollar-off beers all set for this evening.  Not a bad start. Not bad at all..

Of course there are other birthdays to celebrate this week.  My Man Brian Bogan is getting RAD in Cali right now and I wish him well.  My roomie Sarah (not Jessica) Parker is getting spoiled with a fancy cocktail and dinner at a local Hott Date Nite spot tomorrow for her b-day with flat mates. There is Alyssa Cookie Monster Koziol who rumor has it will be in Boone this weekend for the big night.

And I couldn't be happier!  I wish you all could be here with me, I wish I could be there with you all - but that is how this life of transient travel has unfolded, much to my surprise, and much to my pleasure.

This week I carry you all in my heart, for the journey you have shared with me to this point, for the beers we have spilled and the late night talks we have shared, and the ride we have been on together even though sometimes not in the same place.  A new friend of mine here in Boone has recently suffered the loss of someone close to her by their own hand.  It was a sharp reminder of how far I have come, and the empathy I can provide has not been squandered.  I dedicated my hike to her today as she grapples with all the feelings of loss.  And somewhere along the way my own personal loss has become my blessing, but more importantly, this journey is no longer about what I have lost, or left behind, but the immeasurable weight of all the love and kindness and goodness that I carry with me as I go.  That came from all of you, and I carry it with me, a smile hidden, to reach into my pocket of memory and enjoy when I need it.

Be well everybody,
I will be thinking of you,
pics to follow...

Olde Scotty del Norte