Year End Hiking Wrap-Up

It's all done. All I needed to hit my goal of six hundred and fifty miles for the year was a mere four miles and they fell easily this afternoon. It was a fine, clear day and there was enough beach for me to walk down to the Lessner Bridge and then come around back down Shore Dr and through Bayville Park, then the final push home. It's a six mile loop and my favorite backyard hike because of the contrast between the beach and road. I needed four and picked up six, so on the gravy train and will add a few more before the ball drops on 2009.

It's been a good hiking year for me. Made three trips to the mountains of Virginia.
Added some great memories including clinging in forty mph winds to the top of Spy Rock; hiking the Jones Run/Doyle River loop off of Skyline Drive with my wife Janet on my birthday; conquering The Priest mountain in the fog, wind and rain with Jeff Maisey. All good miles and righteous mud on the boot and happy sore muscles at the end of the day.

Six Hundred and Fifty miles is a good number for me and will be the same number I'll shoot for next year. I'm looking forward to even bigger adventures in 2010 and hope to find my boots back in Ireland and Scotland.

Happy New Years,

OK HW

Happy Christmas 2009

Hope any and all who read this find themselves safe, warm and peaceful this day in December. I've had much more holiday spirit this year and I'm enjoying it. Decorating the tree is always my favorite part of Xmas, but this year I am enjoying the whole ride. 2009 was a full year, more so it seems then some other years with some high-highs (Janet's art show at the Portlock Galleries and our trip to Toronto) and some low-lows (losing four friends this year, three of which were in their forties including my childhood amigo John Verhulst who's 46th birthday would have been tomorrow). Here's wishing 2010 is a kinder, easier year for us all. A year when we try to work together and hate a little less (or a whole lot less). As always, the best days are yet to come. Zahdah.

OK HW

peace

Fare Thee Well Jack, You Are Missed

Forty years ago today we lost Jack Kerouac. If you have never read "On the Road" or "Dharma Bums" or any of Jack's other works, do yourself a favor a give him a try. I stumbled on him in my late teens as so many young searchers do and his words threw gasoline on the fire of my soul to live, to travel, to make art, to love. As I grew older and read more of Jack's works and biographies on him, I was torn between the largeness of his words and the chaos of his life. I longed for the adventure of the open road and kicks with friends, but cringed at reading of his desperate calls to his Mother for bus fare home. It was his life to live and live it he did and we're all still dazzled by what he left behind. I did this little sketch of Jack to try and get closer to him. To honor the kinship that I feel to him. To keep him alive. I strive to be that "angel-headed hipster" laying out kind and generous acts onto a world that increasingly works against the silly and the weird. The open road is medicine to my spirit and I seek it out as often as I can. In fact, will be embarking on a new adventure tomorrow morning, packing of to the mountains of Virginia for a well-deserved stomp, then onto Cleveland, Ohio to take in a competition between the Browns and the Packers. Never been to Cleveland, but I'm sure I know people there. People who have read Jack and know time. Yes, yes.

Sleep well Ti'jean...

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I am the Zombie Master

I have been helping my friend Jeff Maisey with his monthly broadside VEER magazine, mostly on the net side of things (built and help him maintain the site), but recently contributed an article. Jeff has been gently nudging me to write something since Veer reappeared on the scene in April, but a full schedule and my own negative inertia has kept me at bay. Finally, the perfect project appeared in the shape of Norfolk's Generic Theater and the Foppish Dandies putting on a production of "Evil Dead: The Musical". Jeff knows of my love for horror films, particularly the zombie genre and threw the task to me and I got it done. Check it out: Evil Dead: Zombies Come Alive at Generic Theatre. I've also produced one video for Veer as well, but that's a story for another post...

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note- Photo by Jeff Maisey, courtesy of Veer

New Kerouac Documentary

Hiking Report - The Big Catch Up

Yeah, so, fall is here and that's hiking weather to me. Brothers and sisters, I'm here to tell you that I kicked the holy crap out of September hiking-wise. 78 miles, yes indeed. Not my record, which was set also in September of 03 in Ireland and, was I do believe, 110 miles, but 78 is not bad and I am happy. Puts me up to 511 for the year and 650 is looking easy. I just might go for 700. Don't dare me...

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I was a Reluctant Sadist

Way back in the 20th Century, in the eighth decade, I used to publish an underground comic called "Reluctant Sadist". It ran from 1986-1989 and was "digest-size" which is a regular piece of paper folded in half, so you get four pages per sheet. I did everything, write it, draw it, occasionally invited other artist to contribute. I had a blast. Recently, an old friend from that scene, Ralk Schulze of Aardvark Farms, hipped me to a "social network" devoted to the underground/self-publishing/micro-comix realm called The Poopsheet Foundation. I was amazed to see so many artists from back in the day, still doing their thing. I had recently begun to scan all he original artwork from RS, to be used for a future, to-be-disclosed-at-a-later-date project, so have been tripping down memory lane and enjoying seeing my old art. Poopsheet is the perfect venue to share that stuff, so I uploaded the covers of the first five issues. Check it out:

Here's the link to the gallery. Find more photos like this on Poopsheet

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Mystery Music from the Mind of Neil Spencer Bruce

My good friend Neil Spencer Bruce, composing maestro behind the ZANK soundtrack, has posted a curious Promo video for his next music CD called "11:53". Check it out:

Very intriguing stuff. Can't wait to hear it Neil.

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Before you know it...

It's been too long since the last post. I'll spare you the usual groveling. There has been plenty to write about, lots to catch up on.

Found this poor fellow (Pelicans always look like males to me) on the beach last week while I was hiking one particularly blustery day. I love the sad, curving shape of this bird; like a ballet move frozen in time. I didn't have the camera with me when I found him and had to backtrack to the house to get it. Looking at this image again makes me glad that I made the effort.

I upped my hiking goal this year by 50 miles to 650. So far, I'm running a few miles behind, but I'm on track this month to catch up. Fall is my favorite time of year to hike. The weather is cooling down and the beach clears out. The first splash of orange blaze starts to show in the trees and Sunday's are football days again (Go Packers!).

2008 Wrap-up

2008 was a weird, tough year for a lot of folks. Not for me. Despite all the universal craziness going on, things on Planet Weaver were pretty decent. Got my good health and sweet wife and solid job and safe, cool home. All these gifts make me humble.

Onward.

My hiking goal for 2008 was 600 miles. Not quite 2 miles a day. Did I make it? You bet. 604 was the final total. 604 miles on the beach and on the roads and on the trails. The high point (literally) of the hiking year was reaching the top of Mt Rogers in western Virginia with my good friends Jeff Maisey and Mike Wingfield. Mt. Rogers is 5,729 feet above sea level, little over a mile and is the highest place in Virginia. The weather was perfect the day of the hike. The trail is a spur off of the Appalachian Trail and we were fortunate to meet some wonderful thru hikers that day.

Our adventure ended with a few well-earned beers at our secret mountain liar.

That was a good day it was.

Onto to 2009.

OK HW