Earlier this year, talks were in the works of my taking a month-long photographic adventure. I had made the decision last year to make a big change in my life, first by simplifying it, and second for me to dedicate more time to exploring my lifelong desire to be a full-time wildlife photographer. This trip would be a milestone for me, one that I could follow in planning my future.
A very dear friend and a client of my web development company Garlic D’zign had requested that I come to California and spend some time working on her website. She had a new venture pending and we needed to get things ready. This would require some work time but the payoff would be a dream come true for me.
The plan was for me to leave Florida on August 6th and fly into Long Beach, California. Gloria and I would work three or four days and then fly to Phoenix, Arizona. From there we would drive to Sedona for a week filled with hiking and climbing along the West Fork, one of the top ten trails listed in the United States. This would provide me with many photo opportunities.
On our return to Long Beach we would spend time aboard one of the daily boat cruises searching for signs of the Blue Whale. Then we would invest a couple of days at Catalina Island for me to face my fear of heights by zip lining.
Our next stop would be a drive from Long Beach into Yosemite National Park. There I would fulfill a lifelong desire of witnessing and photographing the same images that had created passion in the heart of one of my favorite writers, John Muir. A week in this spectacular environment would surely continue to condition me into a person with an overwhelming desire to see more of the natural world.
On May 9th, the wheels for my trip set into motion: the airline tickets were purchased and in my hands. It was now official. My adventure was going to happen. Yet there were a few obstacles for me to overcome before I would be able to handle such an excursion. For one, I needed to get into better shape.
My life as a mild-mannered web developer requires that I spend much of my time sitting in front of a computer screen. Sometimes I sit hours on end chiseling away at the perfect design or setup for someone else’s work. I had struggled mentally for ages with the detrimental effects of sitting too long, eating wrong, and never getting any exercise. Like most of us, I allowed time to pass and continued to follow the same bad habits. How many times had I promised myself to tackle this problem only to let that promise slip through my fingers?
Now, I had both a good reason and a time frame within to work on correcting my behavior and improving my life. Especially since accomplishing this important goal would amply reward me. Now all I needed to do was get my butt in gear. I wanted to resolve this problem so that my upcoming adventures would be exhilarating and not exhausting.
Then on June 15th I received a call came from my sister Patti…
[Part II]