In the Summer of Our Discontentment

New York, NY


Fine.  I get it.  I'm a lousy blogger.  (Though I've been doing a lot of writing at the Desonesto Doctrine lately)  But my lack of writing isn't an indication of a lack of doing stuff.  I've been doing quite a lot of stuff lately.  And with Summer on its way out (or already gone depending on who you ask), I thought I'd share some videos I made this summer.  Most are short and were me testing out the video capabilities of my iPhone.  But hell... it's content.


 
My parents always told me that having a driver's license was a privilege, not a right.  And, I suppose, the same goes for having a jet ski license as well.  But that sure as shit didn't stop me (us) from doing stupid things with them.



This was my first test with the new iPhone, and what better way to take it for a spin than with fireworks over the Mall in Washington, DC?



The Metropolitan Museum of Art had an exhibit on their roof called "Big Bambu" which is exactly as it sounds.  We decided to check it out, not so much for the culture, but for the cocktails. (And the view)



I arrived in Bethany Beach, DE just after Hurricane Earl passed through (without doing too much damage.)  And I thought it'd be fun to capture some of the waves - though quickly realizing they didn't look that impressive without a sense of scale.

Because it's There

Fairfield, CT

We didn't need a reason.  We didn't do it for bragging rights.  We did it simply to do it.  

A few weeks ago, as Adam Benditsky and I were halfway through a 40 mile bike ride, we began talking about how great it would be to attempt a bike ride to our home town of Fairfield, CT ... some 60 miles away from New York City.  Much like the original Kayak for a Cause or our kayaking down the Mill River, I thought it would be another thing that would be fun to say we endeavored.  

So with minimal planning (I wrote directions through the Bronx on my forearm), we headed off toward the Nutmeg State.  With subways rumbling overhead, we slalomed the pilings of Westchester Ave through the Bronx and finally made it to Pelham Bay Park.  A quick ride through some heavily wooded areas dumped us out into the gorgeous Pelham Bay neighborhood.  We took a wrong turn in Mamaroneck, but quickly corrected our mistake.  And by the time we arrived in Greenwich, we were feeling incredibly confident.  

Then my back tire blew out.  We were lucky enough to get assistance from a very strange and talkative twelve year-old boy named Andrew who lead us to a bike shop.  Once fixed, and with an invitation from Andrew to meet his parents - which we turned down - we were back on the road.  Passing by the shoreline towns of Connecticut, we stopped every few hours to eat granola bars or call parents and significant others to alert them of our progress.  And finally, once we made it to Fairfield, it was only a few short minutes until we finished.

Then my back tire blew out ... again.  Realizing we were too far from a bike shop to walk, we sadly called my father to pick us up.  Sore, tired, and hungry, we looked back on the day with a sense of accomplishment, excitement, and the curiosity as to whether or not we'd do it again.

Here's a map of our quest.