Updates from April, 2010 Toggle Comment Threads | Keyboard Shortcuts

  • Unknown's avatar

    wip78 8:29 pm on April 19, 2010 Permalink | Reply
    Tags:   

    8/52: A Beast of a Sandwich… 

    Ahhh….  my fellow adventurers.  I apologize to all of you for not blogging about my adventures.  Life took over for awhile, so, I have a little reading and adventuring to catch up on…

    For my 8th adventure.  I decided to do something with food.   I decided to take on a “Man vs. Food” challenge  over at Lucky’s.  The challenge-  to eat 3 of these….

    ….. in 45 minutes.

    Do you see the fries in this sandwich?  Do you see the deliciousness?!  I asked the waitress what the host from the T.V. show ordered and I ordered the first one: Pastrami.  I took it down in 6 minutes (HOLLA!).  I ordered the second sandwich half way through the first which was filled with Roast Beef yumminess.  As i ordered the second one, the waitress said, “Wait. Are you doing the challenge?  You need to have all 3 sandwiches  in front of you before you start the clock!”.  Ummm thanks, Toby.  No picture of me on the wall. No free meal. Oh well.  Let’s keep it going!   The second one came and I took the first half down in 4 minutes.  I was slowing down.  I could feel the oil coating my mouth and throat and the taste of the Roast Beef made me feel like I was going to hurl all over my poor friends that came to support me.  I started on the second half and couldn’t finish it.  I stopped at 17 minutes. I was doing AMAZING on time, but I just hit that wall where my stomach was like, “mmmmmno more”.   I felt disappointed a bit and extremely round.  BUT, I got to feel like a kid again and eat a sandwich stuffed with fries:)  I am planning on doing this again…all in the name of adventure!

     
  • Unknown's avatar

    jeindeer 7:46 pm on April 19, 2010 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , indian food, won   

    #11: Naan tasting party 

    Sometimes adventures lead to more adventures. I think I’m much more likely to see opportunities now that I’ve trained myself to keep an eye out for them. 

    Sometimes the opportunities are delicious.

    A series of emails after I won the Boston Conservatory RENT tickets led to an invitation to a Naan-making lesson for contributors to CitySearch Boston, which had run the contest.  As meeting new people is always an adventure for me–and as I have no natural resistance to the promise of Indian food–I dutifully arrivde Mantra (warning: music autoplays through the restaurant web site) impressed by its swankiness but otherwise not sure what to expect.

    The event was not Naan-making so much as sipping sweet cocktails while witnessing the birth of Naan, but it was still a wondrous thing.  I didn’t know that Green Chili and Mozzarella Naan existed.  I’m not sure whether it exists elsewhere–but it should exist everywhere, as far as I’m concerned, because it was just delicious.  The workings of Tandoori ovens were illustrated for us, and we were invited to taste the spoils: delicious shrimp and succulent cubes of Tandoori chicken.  After writing this, there’s just no way my lunch tomorrow is going to stack up.

    The best part is that I met a handful of patently fantastic Bostonians–food bloggers and lovers of finding things to do.  They were a delight to meet and have added some local flavor to my twitter feed. One of them shared an apple cider foccacia recipe that’ll probably find its way into an adventure, one of these weeks. I’m looking forward to it!

     
  • Unknown's avatar

    AG 9:24 am on April 18, 2010 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , ,   

    Adventures #9, #10, and #11: Island Biking, Mountain Hiking, and Shellfish Eating 

    PhotobucketI just got back from a bike trip on Seonyudo Island. There are 3 small islands connected by bridges and you can ride to and through all 3, so I did. I went with a tour group and some friends. We got to the island via Ferry and biked for about 4 hours hitting up all the islands. I had not been on a bike in at least 10 years and possibly even longer. So I was a little shaky at first but once I got my groove going it was enjoyable.

    On day 2 of the trip, I opted to go on a morning hike. I assumed this would be a leisurely hike that would be short and sweet. I was wrong. We ended up hiking a mountain! I have never ever hiked up a mountain before. Number one, I am afraid of heights. And second, I probably would not have joined the hiking group had I known what I was in for. This so called hike turn into mountain climbing! I made it really far up and ended up far behind the group. Photobucket I started to get dizzy and almost euphoric because I was standing alone on a mountain! I’ve never experienced a feeling like this before in my life! It was a true test. I passed it though because I was able to make it back down alone and followed the same trail. At times, I got really freaked and thought I heard hissing in the bushes. I’ve heard that there are many snakes in the mountains in Korea. I began talking to myself out loud as a way to block the sounds around me. And I actually said to myself, “If you can do this you can do anything.” I felt quite empowered when I reached the bottom.

    Following this unexpected and very very scary adventure, I walked to the beach where people were digging for shellfish. They were using shovels and poking holes in the sand. Then they poured salt into the holes and the shellfish came through. It was very cool. After gathering a bucket full, we headed back to the hotel and boiled them. See pictures below. I ate one! It was quite delicious! (More …)

     
  • Unknown's avatar

    jeindeer 7:51 pm on April 16, 2010 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , south boston, theater   

    #10: We’re Not Gonna Pay 

    I’m long belated and a little out of order, but I think that’s alright, because adventure #10 was all about breaking the rules and sticking it to the man.

    Musical theatrically, that is.

    As part of adventure #7: Win Week (which I’m still working on), I boldly retweeted for a chance to win two tickets to the Boston Conservatory production of RENT.  A few hours later, the seats were mine.  I polled the adventuring masses; that night, Rebecca and I headed to South Boston for the show.

    I’d never seen a production of RENT, although I was very familiar.  I tend to like theater lovers, and theater lovers tend to like belting choice ballads at the top of their lungs several times a road trip.  I love my friends unconditionally, but I had no such standing agreement with the songs: they were cows and seasons of love and restaurants in Santa Fe that I couldn’t quite parse.  Without any real RENT experience of my own, I only knew the images which were iconic to the point of parody.

    I did see those images in the Boston Conservatory production, but I also know enough about the show to know that they made it their own.  I wasn’t just impressed–I finally got why my friends always turned those songs up when they came on shuffle.  The acting was great, the casting different enough to keep me on my toes, and because the venue was such a huge, open industrial space the whole shebang seemed organic there.  I also don’t think I would have discovered that theater if not for winning the tickets.  It was all kinds of a learning experience.

     
    • adventurechaser's avatar

      adventurechaser 8:28 am on April 19, 2010 Permalink

      Thanks for taking me along. It was my first RENTal experience as well. Well played jeindeer.

  • Unknown's avatar

    Berton 5:58 pm on April 16, 2010 Permalink | Reply
    Tags:   

    Week 13 – Target Field 

    I. Love. Baseball.  Too much.  My fiance Becky gets fed up with all of my Minnesota Twins talk.  So this year, she is especially in for it because the Twins are opening a brand new ballpark this year.  A professional outdoor baseball stadium; the first time the Twins have played a home game outside since 1981 (so the first time in my lifetime)!!! Needless to say, I am WAY pumped!  So what did I do?  I spent around $130 on a ticket to go to the opening day game.  And I was able to go with one of my best friends who I get to see like three times a year, Trevor Maine.

    It is a gorgeous ballpark.  The concourse is VERY wide so the traffic jams of people are kept to a minimum.  Along with a wide concourse, it has a constant, open view of the stadium so you can watch the action when you are waiting in line for your goods.  It has a LONG list of great foods (polish sausage, regular hot dogs, MASSIVE nachos, tacos, walleye on a stick, pork chop on a stick, asian wok, juicy lucys, Cuban sandwiches, etc).  The foul territory is very small, and smart construction make every seat feel pretty close with GREAT views.  Add all of the splendor of a new park to the fact that the twins started out the season 7-3, and you make for a very happy Daniel!  The Twins have been kicking ass, and I am not ashamed to say that a few tears were creeping into my eyes during the National Anthem on that opening day.  Sadly, ever so sadly, my camera has been having battery problems, so here are a few pictures I took with my cell phone.  I hope you enjoy. (More …)

     
  • Unknown's avatar

    Berton 5:27 pm on April 16, 2010 Permalink | Reply
    Tags:   

    Week 12 – Wax on, wax off 

    I am the missing link.  I am a man-ape.  A grizzly mother fucker.  A lumberjack wannabe.  A fur coat walking.  Manbearpig.  Fuzzy-wuzzy.  Human Velcro pad.  (insert other name for a hairy male here).

    Now, I am not the hairiest person in the world.  But I do have more body hair than most of my friends, and it is dark and course, so very noticeable.  A very attractive quality to talk about, right ladies?  Women pine for a chest covered in dark matter and a back that scratches you when you are trying to give your man a back rub…right?

    Well, my fiance seems to be an odd person out in that regard.  She seems to think that it would be funny to wax off some of my body hair, a la 40 Year Old Virgin.  And to be honest…that did sound kinda hilarious.  Painful, but hilarious.  And I mean, this is a triple win for me.  I get to make an ass of myself (which I love doing); my fiance gets to cause me physical pain which makes her happy (just kidding…I think); and I get to be slightly more attractive, if only for a day or few.

    Warning…sort of…the following pictures are (obviously) of me topless (though I am a dude, so no big deal).  But me being the self conscious person I am, I figure I should let you know that they are of some of my more unattractive qualities.  You are so warned.

    • Back pre-waxing.

    (More …)

     
    • Kimberly Hula's avatar

      yearof52adventures 9:29 pm on April 16, 2010 Permalink

      I’m proud of you kid. You earn extra adventure points for this!

    • Unknown's avatar

      lisa 7:08 am on April 19, 2010 Permalink

      way to funny! you have the gutts of the missing link. you should really tryout for the show, “jackass” and give some more hurtful yet funny things a try. wish you and becky all the best in life, she is in for a funny life with you. (i married a funny man and am lovin every minute of it) Peace OUT!

    • faolan01's avatar

      faolan01 11:02 am on April 22, 2010 Permalink

      as someone who also bears close family resemblance to a wookie all I can say is YIPE! congrats on having the courage to do do that!

  • Unknown's avatar

    Berton 5:01 pm on April 16, 2010 Permalink | Reply  

    Getting back on track… 

    My ambition goes in and out of existence.  It has it’s own tides, it’s own work schedule.  I can’t control when I will have it, or when I won’t.  Sure, I said I would start posting EVERY Thursday night.  Yeah, that happened.

    But luckily, my tide is turning.  Last night I saw the movie “Kick-Ass,” and it was, well, kick ass!  Yes, I know, very punny.  I am original.  And big surprise here, a comic book movie has helped churn my inner desires to start living life more.  When I saw the main protagonists give a speech in the heat of battle about how people in the world stand by while others get shit on, I realized it is true.  We all “wish” we could do more, but how many of us actually do?  This isn’t a new thought to the world; it isn’t a new epiphany for mankind by any means.  But it hit home for me.  And I want to keep it around for as long as I can (we will see how long this stretch of ambition lasts).

    Now, I am not the type to do big, world-turning events.  But I am a very personal kind of guy.  That is why I want to be a teacher.  I want to help bring about positive change in my environment, but with a sort of one person at a time approach.  I am realistic; it is what I do best.  And so I have a mission to start making my friends happier people.  This goal is directed at one individual in particular (you know who you are), but why not aim to help every one of them?  Happiness is something that, generally speaking, comes easy for me.  I am lucky in that I can let shit slide, I don’t get frustrated easily, I have a bad memory so I probably forgot why I was mad about something in the first place.  So I want to take this bundle of happiness and try to live a more constructive life with the people around me.  It can be through simple things.  Complaining less, going with the flow more, offering a helping hand without a heavy sigh.  I don’t have it figured all out yet, I never do, but I think starting with an idea, and speaking it aloud, that it will help me define a new reality for myself.  I am hopeful that it will, at least.

    But this personal anagnorisis has nothing to do with the 52 adventures of this year.  Well, not necessarily.  But the newly kindled passion and drive that I am currently feeling makes me want to start posting again.  I have still been going on adventures, I just haven’t been writing about them.  Time to change that.

     
  • Unknown's avatar

    Kimberly Hula 12:23 pm on April 16, 2010 Permalink | Reply  

    How about a drop of lemon to sweeten the pot? 

    The lovely Maressa Brown wrote up this post on our initiative.

    Adventure on darlings!

    Full URL: http://www.lemondrop.com/2010/04/16/kim-hula-the-52-weeks-of-adventure-club/

     
    • eatveggiesdrinkwine's avatar

      eatveggiesdrinkwine 4:41 am on April 17, 2010 Permalink

      Great article — you are clearly inspiring so many people!

    • faolan01's avatar

      faolan01 12:53 pm on April 20, 2010 Permalink

      That’s the article that brought me here and made me decide to start making a list of the adventures I want to have this year!

  • Unknown's avatar

    jenitz 6:32 pm on April 15, 2010 Permalink | Reply  

    Last week’s adventure was probably one of the biggest and hardest so far. Even though I was a musical theatre major in college, it’s been over 5 years since I’ve sung in public. I get so nervous now that my knees literally knock. Instead of doing karaoke, which I still have on my list and am totally dreading, I signed up for a class called Singing for Actors. At the second level, our final was a public performance of a well-known pop song. One caveat, it had to be a gender-bender, a song sung by the opposite sex, about the opposite sex. This way the actor had to find a way to identify with the words even though it’s not written the way that gender would speak. I sang Pink Floyd’s “Mother.” (for example- “Mother do you think they’ll try to break my balls?”). Then after the song, which was backed up by acoustic guitar, we had to give a monologue that we wrote about something in our life that we have never said publically. That fed into the final component which was an acoustic version of a popular song that flowed from the last line of our monologue.

    My Pink Floyd rendition was definitely full of nervous energy but I made it through. My monologue was more relaxed and even got a few laughs. My acapella song made everyone, including me (just a little) cry. It was such an amazing adventure. One that I wish more of my friends would have shared with me (only 3 of the people I invited came). But more importantly it was a transformational experience that makes me stronger as a singer and an actor.

    This week it’s off to the pottery studio. (More …)

     
    • renea's avatar

      renea 7:58 pm on April 15, 2010 Permalink

      How inspirationally courageous!

    • Kimberly Hula's avatar

      yearof52adventures 4:06 pm on April 16, 2010 Permalink

      Everytime I read of your latest adventure I am reminded of why I’m doing this.
      You are simply amazing.

  • Unknown's avatar

    Kimberly Hula 10:14 pm on April 12, 2010 Permalink | Reply  

    What we see when we talk about we… 

    I just want to take a moment to highlight some of the adventures listed below that run the gamut but inspire me and I’m certain others in ways unexpected and sincerely celebrated.  Here, in our adventuring community we’ve heard tale of slowing down, pushing up, forgiveness, anger, solitude, memory, music and love.

    Each contribution is unique and telling and the product of a good-great-best year.  So thank you.  Thank you for making each and every one of us a little more humble, a lot more anticipatory and instilling in us a sense of darling adventure.

    So don’t lose sight of what Plato once said, “The good is the beautiful” and remember that YOU are the good.

     
    • Julie's avatar

      Julie 9:39 am on April 19, 2010 Permalink

      Wow! So inspirational! I linked here through the AOL Maressa Brown story, and you and your fabulous cohorts have definitely lit a fire within me. A few weeks ago I lost a high school friend to a heart attack and he was only 40. Needless to say, really living life has been in the forefront of my thoughts as of late. Thank you for sharing your spirit and your adventures!

    • Dane's avatar

      Dane 10:09 am on April 19, 2010 Permalink

      WOW! You are so amazing! I am 13yrs old and this summer you’ve inspired me to start my own”14 WEEKS OF SUMMER ADVENTURE” i am homeschooled and proud of it but it means i have more or less days of homework than public kids. but good luck in your adventures ( i will pray for you)

    • G.'s avatar

      G. 11:16 am on April 19, 2010 Permalink

      Sounds amazing!

    • FlyGirl's avatar

      FlyGirl 11:20 am on April 19, 2010 Permalink

      Wow, I absolutely LOVE this idea of adventures! I am truly an adventurer thru-n-thru. My latest undertaking has been skydiving, and I suggest you try to add this to your list of musts, maybe squeeze it in as a bonus adventure. I made my first tandem jump, was immediately hooked, and a year later earned my license to jump solo. It is the most incredibly liberating experience I have ever had the pleasure to participate in. Not many people have the courage to make that jump, but I promise you that it is worth every single second. It opened up my mind and heart and now I really do live one minute at a time (one minute is your freefall time, with 5 minutes under canopy). Really, please try this!

    • Sherri Cox's avatar

      Sherri Cox 12:13 pm on April 19, 2010 Permalink

      This is sooo cool! We travel constantly for work (my husband is a construction consultant)…No exaggeration we filed 350 days away from home on our 2009 taxes…Any way life gets pretty boring & we inevitabley become “mall rats” in every city we come to. We do some geocaching, but this has rekindeled our love of adventure…We are 14 weeks behind ya’ll, but this weekend we’re starting our adventures by going on a jet skiing/snorkeling trip in the FL, Keys…YAHOO!…Thanks for the inspiration

    • wip78's avatar

      wip78 7:39 pm on April 20, 2010 Permalink

      AWESOME!!!

← Older posts

Newer posts →

c
Compose new post
j
Next post/Next comment
k
Previous post/Previous comment
r
Reply
e
Edit
o
Show/Hide comments
t
Go to top
l
Go to login
h
Show/Hide help
shift + esc
Cancel