supertramp

There is a pleasure in the pathless woods;
There is a rapture on the lonely shore;
There is society, where none intrudes,
By the deep sea, and music in its roar;
I love not man the less, but Nature more...
- Lord Byron

I took my last midterm ever this week, and have emerged...alive. The quarter is still far from over and there are papers and projects waiting for me, but I've been taking little breaks to keep my sanity. Last weekend I watched "Into the Wild". It's been on my list for awhile now, and I can't believe I didn't see it earlier.

It was one of the most wonderful movies I've ever seen. Absolutely beautiful. Heartbreaking. Inspiring is too cliche of a word to describe it, but since my brain is mush it'll have to do. It's a different perspective on life after college that I never really took seriously. While I'm not going to drop everything to become homeless for 2 years or move to the Alaskan wilderness, it reignited my desire to explore, to travel, to see as much of the world as I can. Emile Hirsch is absolutely perfect. Christopher McCandless's joy and enthusiasm is contagious. It was one of those rare movies that left me speechless (or rather incoherent and bumbling like an idiot as I tried to process everything).

McCandless was all over the west coast for awhile. He even made it all the way to Mexico while waiting out the winter season before heading to Alaska. A couple places that I'd love to check out: salton sea, slab city and salvation mountain (which super awesome Bex recently visited and posted about).

Some of my favorite quotes:
"Happiness only real when shared."
"When you want something in life, you just gotta reach out and grab it."
"The core of mans' spirit comes from new experiences."
"I read somewhere... how important it is in life not necessarily to be strong... but to feel strong."