my summer travel plans are getting checked by reality: 5.88 days of vacation accrued and precious little money. i could carp about how asinine it all is; about how dreadfully i want a true break and how i haven't had one in three years...but to what avail? i just need to change my reality. because this one ain't working for me. this bird needs time and space to fly far and free...

alas, i'll have a miniature freedom flight this summer. i've got a one way ticket to vegas, maps of zion, arches and rocky mountain national parks, my tent, my backpacking stove, my camera, my journal, and will have the company of a dear friend...