Today I enjoyed the day and helped out family with some unexpected tasks that needed to be taken care of, along with things on my personal to do list that I had been avoiding. I still got a few important things done pertaining to sabbatical.

• Read, Organized, and Responded to emails
• Safe social distance In-Person Meeting (hike) with colleague overseeing Work Study Student
• Revised production schedule, adding more details

I bounced around a lot today trying to get the timely things done during "normal" business hours. The production schedule creation made it to the end of the list, but it got done. Being all over the place (thought process and action items) proved that some order needed to be implemented. Given the nature of just about everyone being online at this time, it is easy to lose track of time and also expect that people should be available when "I" need them. Boundaries need to be respected. In order to do this, I need to set my own boundaries. Anyone who doesn't have boundaries set right now, I encourage you to do so. Just because we are home, doesn't mean we aren't busy doing a million things. I'd venture to guess that working from home, most of us are busier than we have ever been. I think the switch is somewhat like people in retirement I hear say, "I don't know where the time goes. I just can't seem to get everything done."

• Read, Organized, and Responded to emails
• Worked on old and new time sensitive staffing changes
• Connected with ESCU's IR person who supplied me with a spreadsheet and an offer to help more as needed
• Phone Meeting/Interview with Video Industry contact
• Phone meeting with LABSS Dean
• Phone Meeting/Interview with soon to be grad/already newly employed in the field (Video Production)
• Coordinated interaction between and supplied materials to the individuals (SMEs) who are working on audio courses
• Created working copy of a viable production schedule

After such a long day yesterday, I took it a bit easier today. I still accomplished a lot, but I took a big break in the middle of the day to get some yardwork/exercise in. It also let me reflect on things. I know what I have to do, but I think I need to take some time to really flesh out a schedule to work from. Not HAVING to go to a physical workplace has me falling into some bad habits and kept me from following a routine. I have somewhat a routine, but I get distracted and head off into another direction. I think I need to put my money where my mouth is and develop a production schedule like I require of my DAT 290 students. I know I shouldn't take shortcuts, so I have to devote the time now so I can work more effeciently later. That is the task I challenge myself to complete tomorrow. As for today, a few very important things were accomplished.

• Read, Organized, and Responded to too many emails
• Followed up/submitted paperwork on time sensitive material
• Phone Meeting with Media Chair at WCSU
• Phone Meeting/Interview with former grad (Graphic Design/Animation)
• Set up meeting with LABSS Dean

Today was a long day. I started up around 10 AM and I ended up calling it a day just shy of midnight. I did take a few breaks to eat and got outside for a short while to enjoy some sun. Mostly it was doing a little of this and that. I fell down another rabbit hole today when I went into the appointment scheduler and started putting the "Time Off" setting on so people wouldn't be able to schedule appointments when no one is on contract. I still have to figure out how people will be advised after next week, as there really is only myself and my EA who have a clear picture of how to advise (the pre-reqs are there for a reason, but they can be moved around in some circumstances . . . the lay person wouldn't know the exceptions).

Turns out, although it wasn't what I set out to do for the day, it will be a good resource for following up with students who have graduated as this might contain their current contact information. It jogged my memory of the many people I should follow up with as well. It definately wasn't a waste of time, just a lot more time doing something I hadn't expected.

• Read, Organized, and Responded to emails
• Despite not being something I should be doing on sabbatical, answered survey regarding fall classes
  • Formulated my answers
  • Shared with DAT adjuncts/staff
• Took care of some time sensitive staffing changes
• Set up a few more phone "interviews"
• Organized appointment scheduler, removing duplicate "customers"

I took advantage of the beautiful weather this weekend and opted to do yardwork both days. I didn't do anything school related. In doing so, I opened up a can of worms with more yardwork and projects that need to be completed. I guess I will keep busy and get my exercise for a while.

Since my two week self-quarantine (by choice since I had been traveling so much) was up, it was time to restock the groceries and resume my place in the family as the go to shopper. I knew it would take a few hours, but a little over six hours later I was done. I got a few "visits" in with the family, which extended the time out. And visiting two drive through banks with the line of cars further out than I have ever seen, didn't help cut down my time out. Thankfully I was very productive in the morning and in three hours or so I was able to get a few things accomplished.

• Read, Organized, and Responded to emails
• Phone Meeting Dean of Academic Affairs
• Compiled list of 96 courses of interest at SCSU (link provided by a registrar from there)
• Began list of courses at WCSU (Arts/DIMA faculty chair provided)
• Got frustrated with ESCU's search tool, tried emailing for a better way
• Waiting on a info that CCSU's Design Dept chair will be sending me

I went down the rabbit hole after checking into my LinkedIn account. I noticed a few former students who I had not connected with in the past and added them to my list. I heard back from a few. This is a great way to find out what students are up to post NVCC. I really enjoy connecting with them, but even just getting a peak at what they are doing is rewarding.

While stumbling around the app, I looked into connections I had made in the past. I took the initiative to either send out a message or an email. I am amazed at where these former students are today and look forward to having anecdotal data to support the great things the DAT program has to offer. Also adding, if they are willing, info from what they let me know the program did well and what the program could have offered to make it better.

• Read, Organized, and Responded to emails
• Phone Meeting Colleague regarding GenEd
• Made contact with former DAT students

Not as much sabbatical centered work got done today as I did have to work on some time sensitive program coordinator duties. The semester is wrapping up and I wanted to make sure that the DAT faculty were well posisitioned to help students successfully complete this odd semester while making sure the team will be able to adjust future course content accordingly. The effect of moving online still provides a solid foundation to build from, there will just need to be modifications to subsequent courses to ensure students will get the necessary education to carry on, whether that be transfer or direct employment.

• Read, Organized, and Responded to emails
• Phone Meeting Colleague regarding GenEd
• Made contact with former DAT students

I received some troubling news today. One of my former DAT student passed away late last week. Janice Bielawa was an incredible human being, talented artist, and someone who had a huge impact on NVCC as the Creative Director of our school's award winning newspaper. She will be greatly missed on so many levels.

Earlier this year in mid-March we lost another DAT alumni and I feel it important to mention him here. Josue Cruz was a remarkable young man who was talented in the field and a caring indvidual. He will not be forgotten. He would stop by the DAT lab occassionally throughout the years since graduating (when picking up one of his siblings), the first time seeing me after a few years introducing himself, like I could have forgotten him.

Just for any DAT student (or person who happens to read this). If you are in doubt if you matter, you do. Anyone who has been in my program, I remember you. If you are someone who takes advantage of advising with me, have been in a class or two that I taught, your existance had an impact on me and I know who you are. If it has been a while, I might need a reminder of which class or something you did (good or not so good) to spark the memory, but I guarantee I have not forgotten who you are.

Being true to my word, even during these somber times, here is the list I promised to produce so I could stay on track and accountable.

• Phone Meeting with Audio Faculty
• Read, Organized, and Responded to emails
• Phone Meeting/Interview with former grad (Animation)

I have been putting in about 8 hour days this week and part of the week last week. This seems to be propelling me forward, allowing me to reflect on important things while gathering more information that I need to be successful. There is a lot more that I need to do, so being "grounded" at home really lends things to getting done. Had I been on the road right now, perhaps I would be in a worse situation.

• Meeting/Interview with former grad (Video Production)
• Responded to some emails
• Researched and created email list (relevant CSU programs)
• Set up an additional meeting
• Crafted email to the CSUs
• Sent an email to each CSU (54 recipients total)
• Researched information learned from college visits
• Did a miniscule bit of yardwork

• Saturday -
  • Yardwork (good workout/mind-clearing)
  • Cooked (therapeutic)
• Sunday -
  • SGA Budget Revision (converted document to editable pdf)
  • DAT Purchase Req to Assistant
• Monday - Fruitful exchange with Registrar
  • Responded to some emails
  • Downloaded CEAC forms
  • Read over forms
  • Emailed
    • CEAC Chair
    • LABSS Dean
    • IT Director (Computer Authentification Issue - MS Office)
    • Various others
  • Converted one form into editable pdf

• Responded to some emails
• Compiled prior email correspondences into one document
• Set up outline that will contain transcribed handwritten notes
• Got creative establishing a mood board (no white or blackboard around)
• Sent requests to set-up appointments (to obtain answers for things I need to know to proceed)
• Registrar
• Dean(s)
• Audio Instructor
• Organized Related Course offerings within CC system (1,135 – ART, COM, DAT, DGA, GRA, MUS)

It has been well over a month since I blogged . . . but I have a feeling that the change in life these days makes it a little more acceptable/understandable. Warning: This may turn out to be a long one! I have spoken to a few colleagues over the past month plus and get some pity of having earned my sabbatical during this time in history. I need to preface the following with none of this should be taken as a woe is me or what not, it is just my perception of things if you removed the utter tragedy that this COVID-19 has caused on so many levels. I will do my best to leave politics out of it, but if somehow they creep in, my sincere apologies and I hope that doesn’t detract from the good things that I have accomplished. So here goes.

The plan was to take two separate two-month cross country trips so I could meet with mostly educational institutions, but some businesses as well, to shape the changes to the DAT program. When I first made the proposal, I had things sectioned out a bit differently as it was the way I thought it would be. Once I sat down post the Fall 2019 semester, I noticed the many changes that needed to be made. I had successfully managed to get the trips organized, stayed with my goals to an extent, and visited 11 out of the 14 schools on my list for the leg. I had another 6 or so set (in my mind) for the second leg.

For some reason I thought I had met with close to ¾ of my goal minimum number of 20 school visits, but alas it was just a bit over half. Actually, the reason for the delusion was because I got a lot more quality, in-depth information from those meetings than I could have imagined. Thankfully now I have plenty of information to move forward with the programmatic changes; an unexpected win for me. The fact I was concentrating on schools mainly on the east coast helped. Had weather not played the ultimate deciding factor on choosing the southern half of the US first, I can’t say I would be as well off as I am. That is some divine intervention!

I won’t say that I am not disappointed that I couldn’t take the second trip, but I think maybe this was for the best. Now I would be forced to get the paperwork done, right? Well, not so much. This is one of my personality flaws and my ability to really understand student’s ability to procrastinate. I don’t particularly care for paperwork so I will find ways to put it off. On the flipside, if there is something more pressing in front of me that I know about, especially when it involves family, I will drop anything to do what I can. This is to the point that I must set boundaries on communicating with me. I have a real problem not being there for the people I care about, which include my DAT family and students.

So, without details I would like to share that I had a laundry list of important family issues to deal with in the last few months. Thankfully everyone is fine but being the savviest tech person in the family, I get called on to do anything related to this. Also, the enjoyable visit with my parents turned a bit into taking care of things with enjoyment sprinkled in. I went silent on the blog and social media as the COVID situation got worse as there was no real information to share.

My mom was slated to fly home to Connecticut at the end of March. She is in her 70s and there was no way my siblings and I wanted her to take the risk. Since the national parks and many public places were closing or closed at that time, I forwent the last five days of my visits (schools, capitols, and parks) to go to Florida to drive her home. I stayed there a few days, set my dad up with what he needed for two weeks without us, and drove home to CT with my mom (she had appointments that ultimately were cancelled). It was some great quality time. About a week later, after taking care of some things for my siblings and aunt and uncle, we headed back to Florida where I spent another five days.

I took four days to come home, avoiding the highway so I could take the scenic route home. That was an adventure that I will remember. A good portion of the Blue Ridge Parkway was closed (I took a bunch of pictures where I could – to be posted at some point) and I didn’t get to do Skyline Drive through Shenandoah National Park since it to was closed, but the other scenic roads didn’t disappoint.

I might have mentioned this before, but during the tail end of my first leg going to get my parents, I developed some great techniques to avoid touching surfaces and also made sure to use hand sanitizer whenever I couldn’t wash my hands. This ramped up when I got to my parent’s house. I wouldn’t call myself a hoarder, but I do keep disposable items if they were gently used and still had life. I had taken a mask one day at a doctor’s visit and happened to have it in the side pocket of my car. I had also prepared by having some disposable gloves in my first aid kit. On this final leg of my journey home, mom and I prepared four to five days’ worth of food for me to keep in my coolers. I managed to head home basically quarantining in the car. I have been home for about five days and have not left the house for three. My fourteen-day quarantine started Monday at 5 PM.

So, while I should put this in the next blog, I think I will put it here. Told you, long one! From the image on this blog I think you might guess being home isn’t quite going smoothly. This was the time I was to buckle down as I lost so much time to the abrupt change in my itinerary. I took Sunday to acclimate a bit and get some family things done. I took Monday to do the big shopping for myself (I have a unique diet) and pick up/deliver things for my aunt and uncle, my siblings, and my neighbor. Monday night was time to get organized. Well on my way!

Tuesday my computer had no sound . . . a windows update failed and corrupted the driver. I did my research and tried some things to no avail. So I contacted my computer guy Matt (https://cmcomps.com/) who took some time to remote in and tell me the best bet is to do a reset (I didn’t have a restore point . . . now I do; lesson learned.) Excellent! A fairly short time later I had sound but still needed to reinstall some apps. NO INTERNET! I did all the “normal” things one should do to troubleshoot it to no avail, so I get on a chat through my cell phone for my internet provider to help me fix it. A good half hour later he tells me I have to call the maker of my computer and asked if I need the number. I laughed and asked number for what, I have a custom built PC. So another call to Matt. Somehow waiting for him to get back to me I “fixed” it. Well I was connected to the internet although the icon at the bottom of the screen still says I am not connected. I am not going to worry about it since I really am connected.

So this brings me to today and this long blog. It has taken me this long to get my home office up and running, help my parents remotely with another issue (that was Wednesday’s diversion), and get Adobe CC as well as Microsoft Office installed. Adobe is working well as far as I can tell, Office is giving me problems. I have until Sunday to fix it otherwise I guess I may be relegated to the cloud version which I cannot stand due to its formatting issues. Seriously though, while these problems are frustrating and annoying, it is nothing in the grand scheme of things.

These following lines are particularly intended for any student that has taken the time to read through this long-winded novel, although anyone might relate. I just can’t seem find a groove. I feel overwhelmed and don’t know where to start. I am having trouble organizing my thoughts. I feel guilty I am not getting work things done. I don’t know if this is me or the circumstances. I don’t want to make excuses.  So I have decided I need to be accountable. I will blog each day a bulleted list of what I accomplished - nothing too detailed and nothing very exciting for the average reader. (The point to this was that even if it seems like things come easy to a professor, the challenges are there and we can relate.)

Just so anyone who thinks a sabbatical is a vacation and a person on sabbatical has all the time in the world to do whatever, that is far from true. My sabbatical was meant to do research the most interesting way I knew how (experiential) and then put that information into the required forms to get the results of the research into effect. The fun part for me is over, even though it was a lot of work, now the less enjoyable but very necessary work begins. So, the next month or two will be hard as 21 courses and a revision of an entire program will need to be presented in the fall as part of what I promised my sabbatical would deliver. Not only that, the DAT students and faculty need this change. I won’t disappoint. Thank you everyone who has and will continue to support me with this.

Today was mostly interstate which doesn’t thrill me. Not too much to see except vehicles, billboards, and exit signs. I did stop for a short bike ride at the Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park. The visitor center was closed so I just enjoyed nature for a while. That and I cooked some lunch which was divine. It didn’t take long for the 85 degree temperature to get to me so I was happy to get back on the road into the air conditioning in my car. This part of the journey is mostly rest area stops to stretch and an occasional stop at a gas station.

At this point I have less than 300 miles to go until I get to my parents. I am not enjoying being trapped in the car so much, but I will have a couple days to stretch out and get things done before heading home to quarantine myself for a bit. I will rethink what my next steps are during that time and also work diligently to get the remaining courses outlined so I can begin more detailed content creation.

When looking about my progress for the day I didn’t realize how far I traveled. I put about 500 miles behind me today. Half the day was rainy and the other was just right. I still managed to fit in a few diversions along the way.

I went through Kentucky and Tennessee and even touched into Alabama before ending up in Georgia for the evening. The route I took was the scenic one a majority of the time and I did travel well into nightfall. I spent a couple hours combined driving though the Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area visiting both the Elk & Bison Prairie and the Golden Pond Visitor Center.

The first was a drive through where I should have seen, you guessed it, elk and bison. Well, I saw two turkey and spied a herd of elk bedding down in the trees due to the pouring rain. I was exiting the park and saw evidence of the bison (which I photographed thinking that was exactly what I got out of the entrance fee) and then there to my left were over a dozen of them grazing away. The woman that sold me the access to the loop was right, they aren’t bothered by the rain. Tricky buggers though . . . left me in suspense both loops around the park.

When I went to the visitor center I decided to check out the planetarium show. I hadn’t seen one since I was a kid and was different to see one in the middle of a recreation area. It was a very helpful review of things about space I already knew, but it also enlightened me on many things I had no idea about. At the end of the movie (by the way they have a few and since I was the only one there I got to pick . . . I chose the ranger’s favorite – making it easier on myself) there was a demo on the constellations of the area I would see had I been there at night and a laser light show. Nice way to spend the afternoon.

Back on the road I decided to keep moving. I stopped where I thought I was going to camp for the night, but it was too early and I was too antsy. I did have a nice time talking with some Tennessee locals, Mike and Somalia (he goes by that, I know his name but I will keep it to myself). They cracked me up as they are very silly, but even more so is that I had a hard time following their dialect. They teased me about that and a few other things, but I felt it was all in good fun. I said my goodbyes and headed out.

I took the extreme back way to Russell Cave National Monument, which was closed due to the time of the day, and I am glad I did that while it was still light out. It was a beautiful yet steering wheel gripping ride down a steep and windy one lane road. Thank goodness no one was coming the opposite way, as it really was a two way road. With no signal and it getting dark I had to keep going to a main highway. I got there just as it got dark and managed to get to a good place to stop a few hours later . . . thus the 500 miles. I will plan on less miles tomorrow.

The weather seemed to improve and I managed to hit things at just the right time. I was able to take a self-guided tour through the Missouri Capitol building in Jefferson City. The outside of the building is under construction, as was some of the interior, but I got to see a majority of it. I will be sure to go back to get a guided tour as there was so much to take in and I felt a little lost navigating it myself. One of the docents pointed out how the crescent paintings on the second floor “move” due to the 3-point perspective. They were cool and creepy at the same time. One or two examples will live in the gallery section for reference.

I then went down the way to watch a video about the history of the area at the Lohman Building, something that was suggested I do by the same docent I mentioned earlier. It was helpful information, although the movie could use some updating as it pales in comparison to the interactive museum that is housed in the same building. I opted not to interact, I think for obvious reasons, said thank you to the gentleman (I think it may have been John) for his time and got on the road to try to catch the Gateway Arch while it was still open.

I decided the time difference between the highway and the state roads wouldn’t be that much so I chose the latter. The route was relaxing and visually stimulating. It really didn’t add much time to my trip and I got to the arch with about an hour to spare. Parking was a breeze and by the time I took the outdoor pictures I was able to spend about 45 minutes in the museum. I still have to go back again, as I didn’t get the in depth look I would have liked. It is an excellent museum. I also lucked out on two points; there was no admission charge and they weren’t going to be open the following day. Sucky reason to have “good fortune.”

I got back on the road and headed the place I was going to call home for the night. Busy day today and I would imagine another busy one tomorrow. I am putting more miles behind me at this point as I would like to get to my parents sooner so we can get organized so I can get my mom back to CT in time for an appointment.

The fog did not let up. So I just kept driving . . . all the way to Missouri. I did make a few stops at some rest areas and a gas station ($1.849/gal). I also spotted early on in the state a winery with a cool name: Prairie Fire Winery, so I stopped there.

I am not a wine drinker, but I owed a friend a bottle as a thank you for some help a while back. I hit the jackpot there, walking away with some farm fresh cheese from a local Mennonite farm, some farm summer sausage (which I was gambling on, as I never had it before), and some locally made salsa. All that in addition to the bottle of wine that I hope is good. I didn’t do the wine tasting as I have no idea what good wine is. I took the proprietor’s word on what would be closest to a Cabernet Sauvignon.

I missed taking the Welcome to Missouri sign as it came upon me quite quickly and there were too many cars on the road to safely pull over. I am sure I while have another opportunity at some point and I know I have gotten it in the past. I stopped at the visitor information center in Kansas City (the Missouri side) just before closing. There is an interesting museum inside that has information regarding the three trails westward that diverged from that point: California, Oregon, and Santa Fe Trails. The Lewis and Clark Trail also passed that point. Perhaps I will get back there to check it out in more detail sometime in the not too distant future.

I have made some changes to my travel plans and will be heading back to Florida to see my parents. My mom was supposed to fly home this coming week for a short stay, but instead I will be going to get her and will return her home a few weeks later. My flexibility has been an asset. Reducing the places I am visiting has left a little more time for me to do some program related work. That is a positive effect. Hopefully my college visits will be able to resume during the second leg of my sabbatical journey. For now I have a lot of great information to work with.

In case you are wondering, I started the trip with disinfectant wipes and hand sanitizer (you never know when you need some), I have many tricks to avoiding touching public surfaces (not all of course), and I am very diligent about washing my hands. Most of the time I am outdoors or in my car, so being close to people isn’t the norm. When I do go into stores and other places where I am bound to interact with people, I tend to keep a healthy distance.

While I didn’t freeze, the precipitation on the car did. Boy was that a cold night, but I only felt it when I got out of the car.

I arrived in Denver on a Sunday so no government buildings were open. I did get a few decent shots of the Colorado State Capitol Building though and a nice short walk in the immediate area. A few red squirrels caught my attention too.

In case you were wondering, I did get my doughnuts from the Colfax Avenue Voodoo Doughnut shop. That bunch would have to hold me over until I can get to another shop, who knows how many months from now. I bought enough to last me four days. Anything over that the doughnuts just don’t taste right. I made sure to leave enough room in the cooler to keep them as fresh as possible and had some containers ready for them.

The drive out of Colorado and the first part of Kansas was less than ideal; not unsafe, just pretty much like driving at night due to all the fog. It is also too cold to do much of anything since there aren’t major attractions that are open along the way. I have decided since the weather forecast says this will last a good part of the week that I will just drive at a leisurely pace, rest when I feel like it, and put more miles on during these days than originally planned. I can hope the forecast is wrong, but for some reason I don’t think so.

Another great decision staying in Pagosa Springs. It wouldn’t have been possible without the advice of Brandon (and the manager on shift that night) at the McDonalds on where to stay for the night. The advice saved me five miles of dirt road and uncertain road conditions in the national forest. Mind you, anyone who knows me knows there is really nothing on the McDonalds menu I would eat, but I do like myself a Coca-Cola, so I bought that to feel less guilty about spending three hours there occupying space and using some electricity.

I grabbed some oatmeal at the restaurant I parked near for the night; a courtesy for using the restroom and staying on what I think was there property. Also, one of the rare safe items I can choose off of the menu. I wanted to get going, so I wasn’t going to take the time to prepare breakfast anyway. Oatmeal is better than the snacks I had in the car.

With a bit of nervousness on what laid ahead I got on the road to make my way through Wolf Creek Pass. The first 10 miles were no real problem, a lot like driving in the hilly parts of CT, only at 8,000 ft plus. The next 20 miles where what had me ultra-focused and hoping I did not make a wrong move. The temperature dropped to about 23 degrees Fahrenheit and the road had a layer of snow across it. I took my time and made sure not to step on the brakes with any force going downhill. I was relieved to get to the valley and it was smooth sailing from there.

On my way to the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve I stopped to take pictures a few times. If you stand and turn 360 degrees the chance you won’t see a mountain peak in the distance is pretty slim. Little did I know a certain peak that I continually was drawn to photograph were those that met the dunes.

I got to the visitor center and you guessed it, watched the movie to familiarize myself with the area history. Very enlightening; the spinning wind that causes this pile up reminds me of the area by my basement door and garage doors. Left alone leaves would form many different configurations, just like the dunes. I built up the courage to head out to the dunes.

The two mile out and back hike was not easy to say the least. I am not a fan of walking in loose sand on the beach, so imagine how much fun this was. While walking on the ridge most of the sand was packed a good deal. There were places though that it was like that part at the beach you have to traverse to get to the water. Also, it was quite windy so the 40 degree temperature was colder to me than many other places I visited that had even cooler temperatures.

Once I took in the major parts of the park I went on my way. I wanted to get closer to my next destination as I knew I would have access to electricity and a strong cell signal. This way I could catch up on uploading photos that I just was too tired to do the night before, plus the most recent blog and photos. Tomorrow hopefully holds doughnuts for me. Stay tuned!

I woke up to rain and sleet, not wanting to move for three reasons. One, I still wanted to sleep. Two, I didn’t want to drive in the dark in that kind of weather. Three, I did not want to get out of the car to bring in two water containers I put out in hopes would freeze overnight. They didn’t :-(

I got up again a while later and the weather started to clear up a bit so it made driving a bit nicer. In no time at all I was at Mesa Verde National Park, with plenty of gas to get to the next big town. Until I found out it was about 40 miles round trip to the top of the park. I did have my two gallon emergency gas jug with me (with gas in it), don’t you worry. The drive up was not as nice as the drive down, and that was only because of the overcast sky and the wind. Seemed like the sun came out just as I got to the top, perfect timing.

I watched the 25 minute movie to understand the history of the park, then I did a quick-ish tour of the museum as a lot of it was covered in the movie. I moved onto choosing a few places in the park to check out. The ranger at the visitor center at the bottom let me know a lot of things were closed due to icy conditions, but he pointed out some highlights he thought I should not miss . . . so I didn’t.

As I was leaving the park I was getting a little nervous about having to tap into the emergency gas. The Prius lies a little. It says you need to fill up when the light starts blinking. By my calculations, I still have three gallons. The light never went out and I made it to the gas station no problem. And my suspicion was close to correct. I filled up a little over 9 gallons and I have a little over 11 gallon tank.

I headed to Pagosa Springs and hit some snow on the way there. Nothing serious, but I was cautious. As soon as it started it seemed to end. I was pleasantly surprised that I had cell signal and a park right next to the closed for the day welcome center. Since it was daylight I thought I would go check out my camp spot. I returned to the park across from the visitor center to check out the hot springs. The water was nice and warm and only smelled mildly of sulpher.

While in signal range I decided to check the weather. Good thing I did as there was a winter storm watch in elevations 8,500 feet and above (I was at 7,500 feet) which would bring 8 – 15 inches of snow and blizzard like conditions. It firmed up the fact that I would be staying here for the night. I hope it will be clear to pass tomorrow, otherwise I will need to find an alternate route.

Well it seems that Nader, Sarah, and I are on a similar schedule. We got up, shared breakfast (each contributing this or that), cleaned up, and then headed up closer to Mexican Hat Rock. It was great having climbing buddies, as some of the rock climbing was a little suspect. Had it not been for them I probably would have missed out on some magnificent views. After I mile or so hike we said our good-byes and carried on our separate ways. I am sure we will connect again after they return home to Quebec.

The rest of the day was dedicated to getting as close to my next destination, skipping seeing the Four Corners Monument that marks where Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah meet. As I looked at the map, Hovenweep National Monument was on the route so I decided to stop there first to break up the long distance. Before getting there I passed a lot of free range animals, which of course I needed to stop to photograph. Once there I decided to make a short time of it, only watching the movie then taking the one mile round trip hike to a few of the ruins. I intend to return one day, hopefully not too far in the future.

Upon the advice of the ranger, I made sure to leave with enough time to catch the next visitor center while it was open. I was told the route I chose wouldn’t be too exciting as it was in the tree line and I wouldn’t see much of the canyon. What I saw instead made me extremely happy. Shortly after getting on the road I saw some open range cattle. Then open fields of grass with mountains in the distance. Cattle were speckled along the countryside. It was a great ride.

I will need to go back to the Canyon of the Ancients National Monument Visitor Center, as I only had time to watch the movie and quickly take a look at some of the museum exhibits. I left right about the time it was closing and was told I could stay to take a hike that was near the visitor center. It was a nice vista; peaceful. I believe an off duty museum official named Jim, don’t know why I am uncertain of his name, gave me perfect directions to a free dispersed camping site. High up in the mountains with a near 360 degree view of peaks and valleys made my night. The road in was well packed so I didn’t fear bad traveling should it rain as predicted.

After doing some research while in Las Vegas I had determined that my original route wasn’t going to work out due to weather related closings. I will just push it to sabbatical part two. So while I was in Vegas I loosely reformatted a portion of the trip, leaving space for WHATEVER. That worked out pretty well.

I ended up revisiting Pipe Spring National Monument. The visit this past summer was nice, but this time I got a personalized tour of the fort. It was the perfect distance to take a break from driving too. I took a quick refresher round in the museum, then headed on my way.

I made a few stops along the route when there was some remarkable scenery (sometimes every mile or so) or a point of interest. I did have to put some limitation on myself when I was stopping more than I was moving. Since I had over a hundred miles to travel, I set a 5 mile minimum interval. That is unless I HAD to stop, but it had to be compelling. I arrived at Lake Powell and walked the bridge to get some photos of the dam and the river that flows below. This is part of the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. I made sure to go into the visitor center to watch the dam film. It answered the question I had; “How’d they do it?”

I continued on my way to the night’s sleeping spot, which was supposed to be Monument Valley. I couldn’t find the camping spot so I had to keep it moving and find another place to go. About 20 miles later I found the perfect spot for the night. Mexican Hat Rock BLM was great, despite the overcast sky that didn’t allow me night photography practice. I also met Nader and Sarah, as they pulled in shortly after I did. Perhaps we’ll hike to the top together in the morning.

Checkout from the hotel was at noon so I pushed it to the last moment so I could get all my odds and ends taken care of before my trek home. There have been 7,500 miles traveled thus far and there are about 4,000 miles and just shy of three weeks to go for the first leg of this journey. With the time being consumed by the everyday necessities, enjoying what this great country has to offer, writing and uploading the blogs, and selecting, editing, captioning, and uploading the photos, I am left little time to work on the program redesign. Mentally I have it all laid out; pen to paper is not as set. I may sacrifice some blogging and photo uploads so I can use the couple of hours (my estimate on the time it was going to take to do things was a bit off) to get some more course redesigns fleshed out on paper. Please bear with me if I continue to only update every few days.

Just in case one is wondering, it usually takes me about an hour to get everything set up to upload, then depending on how many photos and links I have to put into the blog it could take another two hours to complete the task. I HAVE to be connected to the internet to upload of course, but I also need the connection to validate the Adobe subscription to edit the photos and utilize Dreamweaver to format the blog with links. Then depending on my connection speed using LTE a majority of the time, it can take between a few seconds to over 30 seconds to upload each photo to the gallery.

Editing the photos is a multi-step process. I have to sort through and pick out the better/best photos of the day. I must downsize them to a web appropriate resolution for the blog, another size for the gallery, and one more size for the thumbnail. If it is a portrait picture there is one additional step when making a thumbnail; I have to select a portion of the photo and make it appear that the photo is in a landscape by cropping it as such. So just in case anyone was unclear of what goes on in this field, this is a taste of it. It is time consuming if done correctly. Just because it is done digitally doesn’t make it instantly perfect.

I didn’t mention this earlier, but I think I get a better night’s sleep in the car at this point. I didn’t notice the hotel I chose was right near the train tracks. At about 1:15 AM and again at 6:15 AM I was startled awake to the sound of a train horn and passing cars. I am not mentioning the hotel as while it was clean and spacious I wasn’t impressed with the value for the price nor the helpfulness at check-in. I will not stay here again based on the lack of customer service going beyond the minimum required. That and the train!

I decided not to take the interstate to my next destination. I went by the way of Lake Mead National Recreation Area. That was 100% a brilliant decision. The drive was relaxing and enjoyable. I took a few short hikes to snap some awesome shots. My words cannot give any justice to the sights that were seen.

I made it to St. George, Utah well before sunset and since the welcome center was closed I found a park not too far away. The trail system (bike and walking) is well established and had I gotten there earlier I might have explored a little more than visual distance from the car. I talked for a short while with a guy named Jake and then headed to my destination for the night.

So I made it to Las Vegas before I had to fill up for gas and while there I finally took a look at this little bubble I was told about 700 plus miles ago by the oil change person. I don’t know why it took me so long to remember about it, but it did. Once I saw it I was surprised I wasn’t on the side of the road with a blowout. I immediately looked up a Firestone (where I take care of all stuff tire related) and found one less than two miles away, on Durango Drive.

I knew they couldn’t fix the tire so I prepared myself mentally for the two new tire purchase ahead of me. I got some less than exciting news when I found out I was almost at the mandated replacement tread all the way around. I thought they were looking a bit close to the end of life, but I thought I could at least get this sabbatical out of them. I had them entertain me with the least expensive option to replace all four and also had them run a pro-rate on the same tires I had now. Turns out that replacing all four was only about 30 percent more expensive with the lower mileage tire than two tires at the higher mileage equivalent. So it decided that safety, efficiency, and overall savings won.

I headed into the city to figure out my next move. I needed a little break from the road in order to reorganize. I am choosing to basically live out of my car for this adventure and overall I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I can go so many places, although I haven’t found a parking garage in Old Vegas where my car would clear the maximum height requirement with the luggage topper on it. I would say the car is averaging around 35 miles to the gallon, maybe more overall. I am getting a good deal of sleep and a great amount of exercise most days. I am not starving by any means. There have been some downsides though.

Sometimes it is difficult to find a spot to call “home” for the night. This could be lack of available places along the route I chose to travel, poor planning on how long I would be visiting an area which puts me in after dark, or the info I gathered about the spot was just plain wrong. Also, nights are colder than I anticipated so staying outside the car to type up a blog or work on the gallery at that appointed time is nearly impossible, especially if I am at a spot with not electricity available. I can only charge my devices while the car is moving as I don’t want to be left without juice in the morning when it is time to go. I haven’t tried to charge the laptop outside of rest areas and the like as I am not sure the invertor will handle it. I will look into that. I have managed work-arounds, but that is very time consuming.

Since I lost a good portion of my day to the tire change, although they were surprisingly quick as I was out in about 3 hours as a walk-in, I decided to get a hotel room so I could reevaluate my route. I had begun some research earlier in the day and found out where I was headed had quite a few road closures so I needed to find a more southern route with places to stay along the way. I needed to be able to work for a good deal of time without worrying about running out of battery, daylight, or the cold setting in. I was able to get a lot done at this point and got out to do some donating, so I say that was a good move.

The last point I would like to make is that while I am doing this voluntarily, many people in the world are living out of their cars as necessity. While I have no data, I have heard of more than one NVCC student completing their degrees under such conditions. The everyday things do take longer, finding a place to park your car to get solid rest to be able to perform the next day is a job in itself, and having a warm meal that is healthy and a decent price is difficult to say the least and having one daily is just not a reality. There has to be a better way to advertise to those in this situation ways to get help or services available to them.

I woke up early and noticed my watch and my cell phone did not match times. I had forgotten about springing ahead. Lucky me, I got to sleep so early I didn’t notice losing the hour. I was on my way to Death Valley National Park at a reasonably early time. I would need it as that park is huge.

In total I hiked over 8 miles the entire day. I also drove over 140 miles from my camping spot to get to Badwater Basin, the lowest part of Death Valley. The first hike was a good 40 miles into the park. It was only about 3.5 miles total there and back, but there was some rock climbing required. Not so fun when you are carrying a very valuable camera, a 40 oz. water bottle, a borrowed hiking GPS, and have your cell phone in your pocket. I am not a rock climber, but I became one for the hike. The only casualty was my cell phone screen protector that cracked when I butt-slide through a tight spot. I thought I heard a crack. Glad it was that and not the borrowed GPS. The camera made it unscathed and the water bottle seems good too.

I had to forego quite a few hikes in order to get through the park before dark. I hit one I thought I tried the previous summer but couldn’t get far due to the 120 degree heat. This time I made it the mile in and got some really nice shots. Camera battery almost dead, I still managed to get a number of great shots. I decided I would like to see the close to full moon that night, so I made my way up to Dante’s View just as civil twilight was turning into night. I got to the top and attempted to take photos of the moon, but they really seem to be coming out all wrong. I think I may need lessons on night photography. The moon was so bright, clouds were strewn about the sky, and everything else was pure black. I do know a little about imaging, so this does prove that it does take practice to be good/specialize in something.

I took it slow down Dantes View Road as the grades and curves mandated this. Also, I didn’t know what types of critters might jump out in front of me, so I erred on the side of caution. It was a wonderful day, but I was ready for sleep and couldn’t wait to get to my sleeping spot. A little blessing that I didn’t have signal and the battery was only half full on the laptop from other photo updates over the past couple days. Tomorrow is another day.

While I was in San Diego I was going to meet with someone from the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising (FIDM). When I stopped in to see if there was someone to talk to, security called up for me and had let me know that I should call, as they wouldn’t be in for another hour or so. I did a little research online and found out they won’t be keeping this campus open after the summer. So I called the Los Angeles main campus and made an appoint there.

Thankfully this was the Saturday that David Pavone from admissions works and I was able to grab a 10 AM appointment. I arrived slightly early and we connected almost immediately. He patiently explained to me how their unit system translated from the credit system we use as well as some other logistic type information. I got a tour of the school and was impressed with the setup and the services offered.

Students who transfer there after obtaining their associates degree from NVCC (or any other accredited school) can complete the bachelor’s degree in less than two years. They also have an alternative path that puts them into the field after just under a year. It is an incredible opportunity for many students. Especially those interested in Fashion or Set Design. I could speak in detail about this now, but I will save that for the program redesign and students that might be a perfect fit for this.

I didn’t spend too much time in LA, as I have been there multiple times and cities aren’t my top priority. I headed out mid-afternoon and took my sweet time getting to my next destination. I got in relatively early, but I had no service to upload. It was chillier than I would have liked, so I couldn’t sit outside to write my blog. Being in the car is too cramped. Oddly enough I was tired enough that I don’t think I would have made it past 9 PM.