“But surely this has a far more literal meaning for these vagabonds: they are doing nothing. Why? Because nothing we do needs to be done. That devastating existential fact still haunts us, as we bury ourselves in perceived necessities, entangle our minds in novel distractions, like social media. Life is absurd. For we can ascribe to life whatever meaning we want. As Sartre succinctly noted: man makes himself; he is not born ready-made. And perhaps the clochard can stare at this stark truth more readily than us.”
Inspired by this post by Miki Johnson, ‘What did you do this year?’
Biked in 16 states.
Visited 12 cities in 14 days.
In all I traveled from Kentucky to New Mexico via bus and bike.
I quit my day job.
Went to an NBA game (OKCity Thunder)
Gave away my Single Speed road bike.
Bought a Brompton folding bike.
Worked in a bike shop.
Led a few bike tours in NYC.
Sold tacos.
Made this video of how I packed my bike.
Published a zine of my robot drawings.
Published ‘Seven Months,’ about my first seven months on the road.
Published an ebook of my Florida to Maine adventures.
Went on a week-long hiking adventure in GA.
Saw the ‘Continental’ screening when in Austin, TX.
Shaved my head.
Met a nice lady.
Did merch for a friends band at a huge Folly show in NJ.
Got fake-arrested in Atlanta, GA.
Interviewed some metal heads.
Used a film camera again.
Sold my Brompton.
Started the Conduit, a metal email newsletter.
Started Skull Toaster - started as trivia for metal heads, but turning into something much bigger.
This is the second time I’ve written about this video (here’s the first), but it’s worth revisiting.
If I only scrape a living, at least it’s a living worth scraping. If there’s no future in, at least it’s a present worth remembering.
As Seth Godin wrote recently, “Until we’re honest with ourselves about what we’re going to master, there’s no chance we’ll accomplish it.”
Right now I’m trying my best to master simple living. I’m “scraping a living,” but I’m doing my best to make every day count. Trying my best to learn something new with each passing hour. I’ve given up book shelves and a bed of my own so I can travel the world and meet amazing people.
