It's Gonna Be Alright

Welp, about 12 hrs after i made my last post my health took a turn towards improvement and i was on the road to recovery! As of now, my fever has been gone for almost 24 hrs and it looks like all is well. Thanks for all the well wishing everyone!

Worth mentioning, when i told my parents i was feeling under the weather, they urged me to go see a doctor. Now, i am not really one to seek out medical advice when i have a been suffereing a fever and body aches for a mere two or three days. If symptoms get more serious or last longer than a week i will seek medical attention, but otherwise i just let my body handle it and do its thing. So ANYWAYS. My parents are both urging me to go see a doctor. My mother mentions that i could have contacted bacterial meningitis from drinking unfiltered water during my most recent outing into the woods. I am thankful to say i do not have meningitis and would like thank my mother for scaring the shit out of me.

Hope everyone has a good day!

In My Time of Dying

Welp, it was only a matter of time before all my hard livin' caught up with me. I am sick abroad. And what a terrible time to be sick! The race is less than a week away, the office is a mess of people rushing around frantically to get everything ready, and i am lying on the couch, wearing my slippers and PJs, with a thermometer stuck in my mouth.

So far my recipe for recovery is as follows: Lots of rest, lots of fluids, lots of B12, vitamin C & D, ibuprofen, and grapefruit/strawberry/bananer smoothies.

Wish me well, blog followers!

Language Lesson of the Day: My symptoms include a mild fever, body aches, headaches, joint pain, night sweats, and general weakness. Say it with me now! Mis síntomas incluyen fiebre leve, dolores cuerpo, dolores de cabeza, dolor en las articulaciones, sudoración nocturna, y debilidad general.

A Token Of My Extreme

Welp, it has been nearly a week since i've returned from the wilderness, and i have been consciously and actively recovering the entire time. What this means: i have been sleeping a lot, eating a lot, not running or working out, and (worth mentioning twice) eating a lot. i think i lost something like ten pounds on my last adventure and it feels like i have gained most of it back at this point in time. i don't really know if these kinds of fluctuations in weight are really very healthy, but it goes with the job i guess. At least that's what i am telling myself right now...

The start of the race is less than two weeks away and we are super busy at the office! Thankfully the majority of remaining work in the cartography office is exporting and printing maps. I can't wait to share my work with everyone!

I still haven't been able to get all of the photos from the last trip, but here's a taste of what we experienced. Describing this trip as wet would be an understatement. I think drenched might be a more accurate description.

In From the Storm

Welp, i got back from a 17 night 18 day 250 km+ route exploration in Southern Chile this past Saturday night around 2:20 a.m. I walked into my house only to be greeted by 4 new roomates, a huge party, reggaetone beats, and bottles of pisco and beer everywhere. It wasn't exactly what i was looking for, but talk about a way to reenter civilization!

The trip itself was amazing. I destroyed my boots, gaiters, and pants, drank muddy water, and slept in hollowed logs (just kidding- there was only a little bit of particulate matter floating around in the water and we slept in puddles, not logs). It rained every day and we ran out of food twice. I can't ever imagine having the opportunity to go hiking for 18 straight days again. Let alone across such a tremendous landscape. I am 100% glad i undertook this adventure and 110% glad to be sleeping in a bed again.

While i remembered to pack my camera, i forgot to pack my battery. But fear not for all is not lost! Nothing i see can be taken from me. And my boss took something like 1700 photos. I will try to post some choice nuggets in the future.

Good Times Bad Times

Welp, i spent the holidays in the Patagonian wilderness exploring the race route and field truthing map data. Christmas night was spent in a hotel waiting for a boat to take us to the start of our reconnaissance mission, and New Years Eve was celebrated at a restobar on the side of the road on the way back to Punta Arenas. I wish i could disclose more information about what we saw and how things went, but such information is classified and top secret. I would probably loose my volunteer position if i let any info leak and none of us would want that, would we? You will simply have to settle for some photos. Happy 2011 everyone!

Language Lesson of the Day: A bad day in the moutains is better than any day in the office! Say it with me now! Un día malo en las montañas es mejor que cualquier día en la oficina!

Keep Me in Your Heart

Welp, the past five months have been a whirlwind of change for me my loved ones. The expected grief and heartache we have all suffered and the unanticipated trials and tribulations in our day to day lives have been enough to last us the next five years. Wanting to provide my sister with emotional support (and actual help taking care of the little one!) has been a plight i have been struggling with living abroad. The best i can do so far from home is email often and think of her daily. I thank all of you who do the same. Continue to keep her, my parents, little Charlotte, myself, the Hongs, and everyone else who was fortunate enough to know Ryan close to your heart.

Much like my family, i won't be celebrating Christmas in the traditional sense this year. No lights, no tree, no presents, no Christmas eve movie. I will be working instead. Kind of. I'm leaving to explore this year's WPER race route Christmas Day. I will return New Years Eve, spend four days at "home" preparing, and leave for another 10 days of explorations beginnning on my Sister's birthday. A unique experience indeed and a welcomed distraction from the holidays. I feel fortunate to be able to be part of such a tremendous undertaking.

A self proclaimed resolute and contemplative man, i have stayed true to my demeanor and spent serious time throughout my travels thinking of my friends, family, and focusing on all the positive going-ons in my life. Through these reflective periods, i have learned the majority of good in my life can be attributed to my family and friends. I am incredibly grateful for all of you. Your emails and messages on my blog can brighten even the darkest days. Thank you all so much. Give your family, friend, and loved ones a hug his holiday season. Let them know how you feel. Merry Christmas, everyone!

Christmas is Coming

Welp, we (debatable - much more accurate in the collective sense of the word rather than the literal interpretation) made loads of holiday treats for our secret Santa party at the office today. I contributed by trying to make my Mothers peanut butter kiss cookies. They weren't a complete failure, but they just weren't the same as the one she makes... Good times nonetheless. Kudos to confectionist and WPER logistics expert Chelsea Ams for slaving over the oven all day and sacrificing a whole day of work to bake us delicious treats! If she had a blog i would link to it, but alas...

p.s. Bonus points to anyone who can name the band who inspired this posts title. Good luck and happy holidays!

p.p.s. There is a huge stray animal problem in Chile. We are working on resolving that problem one animal at a time. Current house demographics are as followed: Four women, three men, two bed rooms, one bathroom, one puppy, and a small backyard.