Adventures 4 and 5: The planned….

There are adventures you plan for, and then there are adventures that find you.  Some are great, some are inspiring, some are permanent, some are tasty, and some you just learn from.  The past couple of weeks have been simple, fun, and interesting to say the least…

For adventure #4, I got inked:)  Tattoos say a lot about a person.  Each tattoo usually has a story attached to it.  Was it to rebel when you were 16?  Did you get it during a drunken debauchery?  Does it stand for something meaningful?  Spiritual? Or does it symbolize a moment in your life? My first tat was about 4 years ago.  I waited so long to get one for fear of the wrath I would receive from my parents.  I was considered a good boy who obeyed his parents….catholic guilt goes a loooong way.  When I finally grew some cahones, I said screw it.  Over the last two months, I have gotten 3 more, with the latter one being the focus of the fourth adventure.  All my tattoos are personal.  They are an extension of me…  This last tattoo is an adinkra symbol that comes from the Asante tribe found in the western African country Ghana.  This symbol is known as “the wisdom knot” that stands for wisdom, ingenuity, intelligence and patience.   This symbol represents the wisdom I give my students and in turn what they teach me on a daily basis, a reminder of the patience and understanding they deserve, and the intelligence and ingenuity that we all possess.  This tattoo ties in with the one on  my wrist that stands for the life-long quest for knowledge…to always remember that there is something to be learned on a daily basis.

This experience was different because we (jscribe) were filmed for a documentary on the famous Tattoo factory here on Chicago’s north side.   As the artist worked on my forearm and camera’s filmed us with a boom mic above, we discussed ideas for an adventure down the road- my sleeve tattoo.   I would now and again look over at Jean wincing in her chair while she was getting tatted.  I will let all of you fellow adventurers know where and when it airs. Good tats. Good times.

Adventure #5 was making rice.  Rice and I have never gotten along. 99% of the time I burn it with the 1% being oversalted or soupy.  My only luck has been the rice in a bag.   But this time I was determined.  I would not let it get the best of me.  It was like a good ol’ fashioned western movie standoff.  On one end you had a scruffy latino with a spoon in one hand and chicken bouillon in the other and at the other end you had a box of Riceland mocking his attempt at victory…and of course to prove myself, I chose brown rice to conquer; the hardest rice to cook.  I followed every single direction and the times suggested.  My victory was almost lost when my roommate came home and lifted up the lid to see what I was cooking. All that steam…lost!  I wanted to smack him in the middle of the forehead with my wooden spoon and beat him to bloody pulp, but I took the higher road and just gave him dirty looks.  I just added a bit more water and ten minutes later….TA DA!!!  Deliciousness!  I loved it and so did the roommate.  Mission accomplished!!!

adventures #6 and #7 coming soon….

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