“One of the things I learned the hard way was that it doesn't pay to get discouraged. Keeping busy and making optimism a way of life can restore your faith in yourself.”
--Lucille Ball

"I see my path, but I don't know where it leads. Not knowing where I'm going is what inspires me to travel it."
--Rosalia de Castro

My best friend Sarah and I recently embarked on a pedal to the metal road trip from California to Minnesota. The experience was especially epic because it marked our last big adventure together before she leaves to do year-long missions work in Lithuania. We both agreed that it would be a good way to get sick of one another in order to make the approaching separation easier. We did have our tense moments - the most memorable being a livid "discussion" about where to sleep. I argued the car, she pleaded a hotel. I broke and we settled into an Econolodge at 2am on our second night of the trip. Looking back, I'm glad that I got to shower, but will still argue that the Econolodge's continental breakfast left something to be desired.

Road tripping has become such a big part of my life over the past year. Even so, as I sit in my room back on the East coast reflecting on all of the amazing traveling I have been blessed to do and writing this blog post, I still feel the passion and freedom of the open road surging through my veins and an itch to get out there again and explore. I love having a friend like Sarah to talk travel with. She's going to do amazing things in Lithuania and I can't wait to hear about everything that God is teaching her there.

I'm going to miss that girl...

"We have a powerful potential in our youth, and we must have the courage to change old ideas and practices so that we may direct their power toward good ends."
--Mary McLeod Bethune

“This is a time for bold measures. This is the country, and you are the generation.”
--Bono

"The young do not know enough to be prudent, and therefore they attempt the impossible, and achieve it, generation after generation."
--Pearl S. Buck

$5 Fisheye

I just spent a week and a half in Minnesota with my best friend, Sarah. My goals while there included relaxing by the lake, reading something other than a magazine or blog, journaling, and spending time with Sarah before she leaves for her next adventure - missions work in Lithuania. An unexpected addition to my list was taking photos. These days, taking photos has become one of my favorite hobbies, so why was the notion of taking photos so unexpected? The answer - because I don't have a camera at the moment. BUT as soon as I realized that Sarah had a digital camera that she was willing to let me use I got to work.

I learned about the fisheye lens from my cousin a few years ago, but always thought that they were a bit too rich for my blood (some of them can be expensive!) so I never invested in one. Then, while en route to Minnesota from California, Sarah and I stopped at an Apple store to get her phone fixed. While she chatted with a nice Australian saleswoman, I started googling whatever was on my mind. "How to make a fisheye lens" came up along with driving directions to the nearest Michael's and some other randrom thoughts. Within seconds I was flooded with page upon page of fisheye instructions. The most economical solution I came across called for a peephole for a door.

Borrowed digital camera + $5 peephole = the photos below.