Short on time... Big on stories

Thank you Ron LeValley!

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/281880_rowing19.html

Seriously incredible. I've never been more exhausted in my life. I've been on a boat for 4 days straight following the rowers for the past 50 miles. The weather was unreal! Seeing the men after so many days of rowing was absolutely the most amazing experience! Of course I got so sick on the boat that the other 3 thought I was going to die. I'll never think about trying to keep up with how many pints a British man can consume in one evening... NO, I won't even share how many I had. The second day was fine however.

I have so much to say... just not enough time at the moment because I have so many photographs to process. You can see some of them by going to the OAR Northwest website: http://www.oarnorthwest.com and click on Gallery and then the first album you'll see. The most recent- from two days ago- are the first images in the album. Let me know what you think!

My face is a bit worn and sunburned, but I feel completely satiated knowing the guys are finally home with their families and that everything, absolutely everything (except for my stolen bag of course!) worked out in my favor... in all of our favors really. There are absolutely incredible people that helped me get to this point. I'll be sure to dedicate an entry for them.

Thank you Thank you Thank you!!!

Love,
Erinn

adventures at sea

i'm off to ride the rib out to the fellows on the water. the weather is crap and the rowers will probably cross the finish line in the middle of the night. i'm looking forward to the adventure, but a bit nervous. what other opportunity would i have to do something so crazy? i'll have images up soon... i should be back in a couple of days.

thank you for your support!

erinn

photos in cornwall

these are photos of the hash house harrier run... new friends... old harriers... old church with scary gravesites. one of the stones that's supposed to cover the hole has been moved aside... yikes!

Stress... Work... Chomping at the bit... Laundry...

whoa... it's difficult to put into words how i'm feeling right now. i've experienced such elation, such frustration, such stress, and such enthusiasm. one would say this is providing balance, but i'd say it's making me an absolute screwball. i notice myself talking a little too fast as a result of all of the thing that seem to be processing through my mind. usually when things are being processed in every other avenue in life, there's a conclusion, a result, a decision, a finished product... i'm in perpetual processing mode with no way of knowing when my mind will finally feel satisfied that i've reached a moment when all has been decided.

i'm having a wonderful time despite the search for a boat and transportation out to the finish line where the rowers will be crossing... of course it's about 80 quid (bucks) for a roundtrip ticket out to the island via boat. it's a two hour ride that's been described as quite unpleasant. the wind is fighting the rowers. they're so close and only able to go about 1 knot. they're delay provides me with more time to find a proper mode of transportation, but it also adds to the cost of this venture. i'm down to my final 180 pounds. i've been working at a spanish restaurant, washing dishes, which earns me about 30 pounds per night. this covers two nights at the falmouth lodge backpackers. not having a credit card is rough... "charge it!" i did receive a call today that my passport is in... i just need to see about having it sent out here. it'll be nice to be "identifiable" again.

so, allow me to diverge from the stress of finding a way to the rowers (which should never ever be met with the stress the men are facing just trying to make it into land)... i had an amazing day yesterday. i found out that charlotte, the lovely woman who runs the falmouth lodge backpackers where i'm staying, is a hash house harrier. she informed me of a run that the group was doing on sunday and i asked her to wake me up in time to meet up with them. a friend of hers picked us up and took us out to a lovely little down full of brick and rock cottages with slate fences and lush green trees. we had to take a ferry over called the king harry ferry. i thought it was kind of funny. the cars load on to the smallish ferry and about 20 vehicles are transported by way of a thick, long chain to the other side of the river a mere 200 meters away. i was absolutely mesmorized by the tunnels of trees we headed through. the colors knocked me out! after about an hour of travel, we arrived at our destination to meet up with the rest of the harriers. it had been raining, but the clouds began to break up and big, beautiful cumulous clouds formed. the bluest sky i'd ever seen shown through highlighting the golden fields of hay and the green rows of this season's crop. meeting up with the rowers was quite the experience. because i had newish shoes on, the head hasher made me give him one, poured a pint of beer into it, and made me drink it all right there... all before we even bagan to run! i understand the concept behind hazing... i felt closer to the group and immediately connected to the thousands of hash house harrier groups around the world. we began our search of the path and those who felt like it, ran ahead to find the direction to lead the rest of the group with calls of "on! on!" we ran down village roads, and through public footpaths that took us across lush farmland. there was a point when i was so overwhelmed by the beauty of the scenery that i paused my legs to take it in... i got a little emotional and began to tear up. the ocean, the sky, the trees, the fields, the feeling that i've had since i arrived in cornwall. i felt absolute elation and thought about what i'd need to do to move here. the running continued and i ran along with "edith". all of the harriers are given nicknames by their fellow runners. i'm not sure the history behind this particular one... he was quite nice, works for sharp's... not the non-alcoholic beverage company in the states, but the quality brewery here in england. he has a home near the area of our run and offered me a room with a car that i could borrow. i was overwhelmed by the offer and will probably take him up on it after the race is complete.

we stopped for a brief break of tangerines, "crisps" (aka potato chips), and milk chocolate digestive bars. someone pulled out the water and cider. i opted for the more hydrating option. this group is so wonderful. I'm looking forward to finding more of these like-minded folks around the world. after the break, we had about a mile to go and finished up back at the pub where i enjoyed a find cornish pasty. i'm quite shocked by the amount of veggie options here. we all drink a pint or two together and told stories of dogging and other crass details... i love this group! it was a sleepy ride back to falmouth, but i felt quite refreshed. i had forgotten that i had to work that night as well, so a nap was quite welcomed.

i have to head off to do laundry before someone else does it! i hope everyone's well and enjoying following my journey. please leave comments if you have the moment.

love,
erinn

Finally... In Falmouth

I've had a bit of an adventure in getting to Falmouth. It's come to represent a sort of finish line not just for the rowers but for me as well. Not only is this the place where the final job of this project takes place, it's the location where all I have to do is wait, relax, and get my mind in order before I head off for the rest of my trip. All things relax after the rowers come in and the media pressures have been satisfied, but just being here has put my mind at ease as well. I found a backpackers hostel in town that was first available on Sunday due to the events and business of the town centre this weekend. Fortunately, a bed became available this evening and for tomorrow, well, the owner of the place has offered to let me stay in the lounge. I've been met with such kindness since I arrived. A kind gentleman helped me first find the road on which the home was located, Carmen, the house employee/permanent guest, offered me a ride into town after helping me to get situated in my room, Charlotte, the owner of the home, gave us a ride to town where Carmen then headed to work... The owner of the place where she works just happened to be outside where Charlotte waved him down for a hello. He looked straight at me after greeting her and asked if I wanted a job "washing up"... Of course! An opportunity to make a bit of money to off-set the cost of my hostel is certainly a relief! My hostel is 15 pounds per night... a huge deal considering the other costs I've seen in town. I feel as though I completely lucked out or have paid my dues for whatever wrong I committed to having deserved a stolen bag... not that anyone but the thieves themselves deserve such a fine.

I'm now sitting at The Cinnamon Girl in the town centre where the streets are lined with cobblestones and supposedly this is situated in the oldest building in all of Falmouth. Just walking down the street I got the most wonderful feeling... This is exactly the type of town Yaya would have loved. She'd be so happy knowing that I was here and within the first hour was familiar with the locals. I'm so happy to be here, really. London is wonderful, but so busy and so expensive. Ivan is so wonderful and was so kind to show me around. I really am indebted to him. He became my bank with no credit card with which to withdraw money and no i.d. with which to receive wire transfers. Thank goodness for Ivan and Paypal! I will see him again, but will first enjoy my time in Falmouth... and really don't have a choice as the rowers aren't due to arrive for anywhere from 4-14 days. Hopefully I can secure myself with a job while I'm here to make my costs minimal. I could really live here for a while. If the airport situation continues with the "absolutely no carry-on luggage" including my camera... I just might stay.

This town reminds me of Morro Bay, CA a bit... of course this is older and quite a bit bigger. There's a similar feeling of mixed tourists, locals, and students. Currently, there's a festival going on and Charlotte and I walked past dancers that would have received my "proper" praise had they smiled or danced so lazily. I admit they were dancing to a pretty lengthy Missy Elliott song, but they should have practiced a bit more to prepare themselves for public showing. Haha, listen to me getting critical over free entertainment. Seriously, the coffee that Jonathan, the owner of the Cinnamon Girl and the most sarcastic fellow I've met so far, was the strongest I've had in weeks. I admit this is definitely a tea country and love a "proper" pot of tea... but just need that "crack" sometimes. There's free internet and this will be wonderful when I require uploading time for all of the photos of the rowers. I've already been getting media requests from such places as Fresno. Keep your eye out... I'll try to list more places where you may find my work. I know that the new issue of Synthesis Magazine will have the work I did of TV On The Radio, but think it may be in the Sept/Oct issue. It'll be a nice welcome home.

Yes, I'm jazzed up on caffeine... feeling a bit high and my stomach is feeling a bit empty. I need to prepare myself for work and figure out whether or not I can wear my flipflops while doing the dishes. Hahahaha! I'm going to do dishes for money! I suppose it's no different than doing dishes for a free place to stay for the past 10 days. I've been very fortunate and am very grateful to all of the people that have looked after me and have helped me in some way since my bag was taken. Okay, I just got caught by Jonathan for "touch-typing"... one of the two rules he laid down as I sat down with my computer. ("Touch-typing": typing away as your eyes and your head drift away from the computer to stare at other things... obviously a bizarre, personal pet-peeve). He's quite funny.

I miss you my dear friends and family. I will get some photos up soon... somethings funny with the site, but I'll figure it out and show you photos of the train ride from Plymouth.

Love,
erinn!!

Safe and Sound In London

Below you'll see a few photographs that represent one day in London:

1. Ivan took me to a bar called "Below Zero" where the Swedish Icebar is located. Everything is carved out of ice and the cups in which the drinks are served are made of ice as well. The room is freezing and they give you a stylish cape with gloves and a hoodie to wear, but it only satisfies the need for warmth when you're not wearing a skirt... and of course I was.

2. This guy cracked me up! Here is this rocker looking guy, quite different looking from the other British types during the middle of the work week. In his hands is a toy guitar with the words "Kiss your air guitar goodbye!" on the box. I couldn't help myself and asked him to pose for me... perfect timing with the arrival of the train. I also loved that he gave me the famous family "I love you" hand signal... if only he knew this would be my family tribute photo.

3 & 4. This is the Tower of London Bridge. It's absolutely beautiful and the mechanical engineering behind the structure is quite impressive. There are two pedestrian pathways parallel to each other. Inside both was a display of Victorian children's games. I was quite amused by all of the little ones running about, enjoying themselves with marbles, chalkboards, hopscotch and jumprope.

Mind The... Hooligans

This is the view from the center of Green Park where there are beautiful birds that rest upon the ponds. Apparently, the swan is a protected bird. Should anyone be found guilty of harassing or harming a swan, the accused could be punishable by death.

It's been a bit of time since I last posted anything. Having your bag stolen presents a whole world of issues that you'd never hope to have to deal with thousands of miles from home. I'm trusting to a fault. I believe in Karma. Who would do something so horrible as rape me of my national identification, credit card, money, cellphone, and irreplaceable personal items. Well, obviously the desperate. I seem to be heading down that path. No, I'd never take anything from anyone, but this city is definitely expensive and due to the job misfirings this summer, I lost a large amount that I had intended to save for this trip. Although I seem to find solutions and work well under pressure, this won't be easy, but it will most definitely teach me about myself.

The weather has been really bizarre. When I first arrived, the weather was swelteringly hot and now it's chilly, but more comfortable. It's even rained a few nights. This is Big Ben with the light reflected off the rain. I really love this photo because I know that I hand held it at a 15th of a second and it seemd to be pretty nice despite the potential risk of motion blur.













On our way back to my host's flat one night, we were surprised to find a load of "hooligans" that reminded me of friends from high school that would "borrow" lawn ornaments from their neighbors homes to use as unofficial mascots at basketball games. These chairs were taken from restaurants and pubs around the area where these crazy and drunk 20-somethings were spending their post-work time. It seemed as though chairs kept appearing out of the woodwork. My favorite was watching the guy atop the child's seat float around the train as it moved. They made me laugh and they really seemed to appreciate that someone was there with their camera... their accomplishments will be remembered as long as I keep their photos alive.