imisstony.com

World travel videos, photos, and blog.


Ouch, Tendonitis


I've been hanging out at my brother's house this week. We went for a hike today. Even physical activity wasn't enough to push the gloom out of my chest. On the bright side, I've started 'the Project'. I've got a long way to go.

As my brother and I entered a local grocery store yesterday...
"A study came out last year saying there's fecal bacteria on two-thirds of shopping carts."
"Whatever, there was feces on two-thirds of the countries I visited last year."


I'm fortunate to have a lot of fantastic friends. The funny thing is, I can't seem to shake the idea that I'm in this alone.

Epilogue: Time Lapse


One year ago today, I boarded a flight from San Francisco to Paris, beginning my trip around the globe. Thanks to President Bush's bonus check in the mail, I'm going to begin my "Economic Stimulus Tour" across the country to commemorate my journey. Some possible destinations may include North Carolina, New York, Florida, and Texas.

I've continued to have a really rough time back here in America. I had looked forward to certain things upon my return that haven't panned out. My mood has been a roller coaster ride of ups and downs, leaving me sick to the stomach. Speaking of belly troubles, I've watched my weight quickly return to what it was when I left. And somehow, the fat has decided to congregate in the most unattractive places on my body. I've been paying closer attention to the kinds of processed and fatty foods Americans shovel into their mouths. But I haven't made the effort to stop eating the junk food myself. Eating healthy just plain costs more in this country.

I've also struggled with my identity. Everyone wants to know what's next, where am I working, where am I living? Without a job, it's hard to present yourself as someone with purpose. Even I grow uneasy when it feels like I'm just bumming around the house. But I'm building momentum. Gaining support. I'm in the business of fulfilling dreams, starting with my own.

There will be more to come.

The End

There's an awful moment in life when you hold onto hope so tightly that when you ultimately let go, there's a deep red imprint of it left inside of your hands. Sometimes that imprint even hurts a little... a bloodless cut in your palm that hasn't broken the skin. Your rub it with your thumb, trying to massage it away. Soon it fades.

I made the journey of a lifetime. Thank you for coming along for the ride.

This is the end of the road for now.

Cat Power- "The Greatest" (mp3)

Sunshine State

I arrived in West Palm Beach the other evening. I've been hanging out with my friend out here, not doing a whole lot. I'm preparing to teach her middle school kids how to edit video on the Mac next week. So I've been installing software and testing different workflows out. We discovered today that the most basic MacBook doesn't have a SuperDrive installed. How lame is that, Apple? Why include iMovie and iDVD with no way of burning videos? Argh.

Anyway, none of this is interesting to you I know. But I just wanted to report in and tell you that the weather is warm, the skies sunny, and the bed comfy.

ID Please


I'm in Tampa Airport. The plane I was on had to go in for maintenance so I'm delayed here for a bit. But they've got wifi. Lucky you.

I've been thinking about identity today. On the road, I was a TRAVELER or more appropriately, a TOURIST. Since my return, I feel like I've lost my identity. My role in life has become unclear. Traveling through different countries, I'd meet people from all over the place. It didn't really matter what they did. Foremost, they were just plain and simply people. CITIZENS of EARTH. What we did for work was secondary.

Back in the States, being unemployed has left me feeling like I have no label. I didn't realize how much that can mess with your brain until people I've been meeting started to ask me what I do. I had no real answer. I'd say, "I was a PRODUCTION ASSISTANT for the past five years". But now, I'm just a consumer I guess. Without some sort of label to impress people, you don't feel like you have a lot of self-worth. While traveling and sharing the adventures on the blog, I was someone interesting and admired. People would tell their friends about me. It starts to feed the ego maybe. When it all abruptly comes to an end, you quickly lose this sensation. What am I now?

[since I never really finished this blog at the airport, it's been a few days since this topic swished around my brain...] I've come to believe that I'm in transition. I was this. I did that. And soon, I'll be doing something new and different. For the moment, I'm still on holiday. Taking a break. Most people think I've been gone for more than a year when I'd only been out there for about ten months. So you know what, I'm going to take the full year off.

There's No Place Called Home

Where have I been, what am I doing? Well, it's seems as if I'm still traveling, mostly catching up with friends and family while learning a little more about myself and how the world trip's affected me.

First of all, I feel unattached. This means freedom but it also means too many options. And that has resulted in this annoying disorientation with life. There's something slightly comforting about having obligations and responsibilities that limit you. Limitations mean you have a path you're supposed to follow.

For the last couple of weeks, the debt seemed to be my number one limitation. My stomach was twisted up, my shoulders heavy with stress, my brain spinning in a panic... all over this thought that I'd have to start paying off the plastic. I'd be a minion of some credit card company, working to make a minimum payment. Ultimately, the debt is manageable and I'm not going to let it steer me into further unhappiness.

Patience. I'm doing my best to be patient with my transition back into the United States. The place looks the same at first glance but if I stand still and gaze at it with my 'new eyes', I notice changes in the landscape of people's lives. Something's different. Everyone claims it's not them and I claim it's not me. I think I'm currently in the process of working that out.

My mood dips frequently. There are many days where I feel alone in a crowded room. I know my journey isn't over. So I'm going to keep on going for a few more weeks.

I caught the new Wong Kar Wai film, My Blueberry Nights, the other day. I loved it. One of the issues that I've been struggling with since I started traveling is my movement away from my passion for filmmaking. It's a scary thing to decide that you have this desire to pursue something, then to find yourself putting it on the back burner just a few months later. Filmmaking had become part of my identity but I'm just discovering other parts of myself. I'm not sure how filmmaking will play a role in my life yet. I just want people to know it. I've taken the pressure off myself to tackle those parts of my dreams. I'm confident it'll happen but it's not something I've put a time frame around right now.

I watched this film about a journey, about love, and I was swept in so deeply. My eyes welled as it ended. I remembered the power a film and a filmmaker can have over someone. If you find yourself catching this one in the theaters, be patient through the first 15 minutes and maybe you'll grow as the characters grow on screen.


Next stop, Florida. See you there.



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filmgen@yahoo.com A 29 yr old filmmaker from California traveled through Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia/NZ over ten months from April 2007 to March 2008.



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    TRAVEL ITINERARY

    2007
    April 6:
    Cuba
    April 30:
    France
    England
    Scotland
    Ireland
    Netherlands
    Poland
    Czech Republic
    June 3:
    Spain
    June 20:
    Switzerland
    June 22:
    Russia
    June 27:
    Germany
    June 30:
    Italy
    July 22:
    Greece
    Egypt
    August 9:
    India
    August 27:
    Japan
    September 10:
    China
    October 3:
    Thailand
    October 30:
    Vietnam/Cambodia
    December 3:
    Australia

    2008
    January 23:
    New Zealand
    February 26:
    Hawaii
    March 1:
    California
    Spring:
    Florida, North Carolina,
    New York, England, Spain

    2009
    December 29:
    Iceland
    January 9:
    New York City
    January 17:
    Washington D.C.
    February 18:
    California
    March 18-23:
    New Orleans


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