I took this picture in 2013 in one of the many colorful neighborhoods of Seattle, Washington

I am very happy to say that I will be moving to Washington state in approximately 4-6 weeks.  When I was living in Georgia five years ago, it was always my ultimate goal to live in the pacific northwest, specifically to live close to Seattle.  And now after my three year stay in Colorado, that tiny part of my life that involves me doing doctor things will be taking me to the land of Pearl Jam and the resting ground for the Seattle Supersonics.

Even though I will move to just 30 miles north of Seattle in a few weeks, I won’t start my work there until the end of this year.  This will give me some time to settle in and do (even more!) traveling to visit family and friends.  I am indeed looking forward to this next chapter and hope that this will be the ultimate place for me to settle down.

With happy occasions like this, there are of course going to be a few letdowns, and I would be lying if I said this decision was easy and that I would not miss my life here in Colorado.  When I first came to Colorado Springs three and half years ago, I did not know a soul here. Moreover, I had never gone rock climbing or skiing before ever in my life.  And all this time later, I have a really big group of friends through my outdoor excursions, and I cannot imagine my life without skiing or rock climbing or hiking.

When I arrived in Colorado in 2015 I was not in the best state of mind.  Taking up activities like skiing and climbing and, moreover, forming life time bonds with the friends doing these activities with me made me discover a part of myself which I had no idea even existed.  This was almost like the time when I was 19 and I stuffed the German language in my head in a two year time span.  This was a very enriching experience I had here in Colorado

For all the reasons I listed above I can easily say that this was a very successful and enriching time of my life here in Colorado. With all of the things I have done here, there are still some places I have not yet seen.  I would love to visit Aspen and see the sand dunes of San Luis Valley.  It might be a bit difficult to squeeze that in with my packing and planning, but we’ll see.  I’m at least glad that I made it out to Telluride this past weekend to see Robert Plant and Ben Harper and Charlie Musselwhite play music in the background of Telluride’s beautiful fall colors.

And with that said, there is still a little bit of music for me to see here in Colorado as I will attend both Nine Inch Nails shows at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in the coming days.  Now, that is a music venue authentic to Colorado that I could talk about for days on end.

The most important thing for me during my time here in Colorado are the friends I made for a lifetime. Some of you even saved my life after a rock climbing fall I had, which makes the bonds I formed here even more special. This blog post would go on forever if I mentioned each and every one of you who impacted my life in such a meaningful way these past three years.  In the coming weeks I am sure we will all meet and hang out and do some outdoor excursion one last time before I set off to the pacific northwest.

My time in Colorado has me excited that new wonderful adventures await me in Washington state which will also enrich my life with great long lasting friendships.

Over the past weeks of having some quality time at home and traveling through airports and long car rides, I had the chance to FINALLY read Richard Blade’s autobiography to the very end.  Blade’s accounts are not only a first hand account of a historical period in music and culture but also an assurance that life needs to be lived to the fullest no matter how difficult one’s current circumstances are.

It is rather difficult to talk about how impactful reading this book was without going into spoilers, so I would certainly encourage anyone out there to get this book and please read it.  You don’t have to be a fan of 80s music or new wave alternative music to enjoy this book.  What makes this book unique to the average everyday reader is that a certain story(s) can be related to almost any experience anyone has every gone through.  Love.  Loss.  Sin.  Risk.  Travel.  Dreams. Hopes. Depression. Happiness.  This book encompasses any feeling or experience the average person has gone through.  And the fact that this is an authentic autobiography and not a fictional novel is astonishing.

I was born in 1980 so I obviously was oblivious to many of the musical backstage happenings of that era, but as I enjoyed playing with my Nintendo and Gobots and Transformers I have fond memories of hearing Michael Jackson, Wham!, Duran Duran and many others on the radio and on cassette, and Richard Blade’s accounts including the aforementioned artists and many, many more add a new perspective which is uplifting and, moreover, completes my recollection of a time that will never be recreated.

I must say that no one person is perfect, and Richard Blade certainly is not as he openly confesses of his sins including his various love affairs in his autobiography. In this day and age of social media where everyone is protected by virtual anonymity as judgements and condemnations can easily be laid down with a simple click on any mobile device without any fear of repercussion, it certainly takes a lot of courage to openly discuss one’s very sensitive personal issues while admitting a wrong doing and hurting others in the process. Richard Blade shows this courage, and he does it in a very sincere manner.  I think each and every one of us has sinned at one point in life which has left someone hurt and alone. This is a stark reminder that none of us have to right to judge anyone else until we look deep within ourselves.

As I am an avid listener of Sirius XM and First Wave, it is always fun to hear Richard Blade’s voice as I drive on the highway looking at Colorado’s mountains.  What I never knew about Richard Blade was that he is an accomplished traveler, and I am certain that we could both share many stories with each other as I myself have been to 27 different countries.  I have fond memories of hitchhiking in Peru and Czech Republic and sleeping in ferry boats and trains during my travels through Italy and Greece.  That really is just the tip of the iceberg.

I have lived in Germany and Czech Republic, but the one thing (had to put in an INXS reference there) that really struck me is that Richard Blade lived in Sint Maarten just like I did.  We were there at different times, so our paths had no way of crossing, but, nevertheless, his account of living on this Caribbean island was a reminder to me of just how small this world really is and how much one’s experience on that island can be so eerily similar to my own.  Sint Maarten was the place where I saw my mother for the final time before she passed away more than 11 years ago.  This island holds a special place in my heart, and I am certain Richard Blade feels the same way as well.  It is unfortunate that Sint Maarten was totally decimated in Hurricane Irma of last year. I still hope to return in some capacity to help out with the medical and relief efforts.

As I said before, Richard Blade’s “World In My Eyes” is really a book about life.  One of the most important things I will take away after reading this is to always strive and accomplish something and find joy in whatever I am doing in the face of extraordinary difficulty including loneliness and sadness. When my mother passed away during my medical studies, I took a week off for her funeral ceremony but was back at the books studying and working hard after that, persistently pushing forward in order to finish a mother’s dream.  I may never meet Richard Blade, and he may never read this review, but I must say that Richard has no idea how much he and I have in common with each other.  Well, I do have to admit he was better with the ladies that I could ever be, but all joking aside, Richard Blade’s recollections of his life and experiences in the music world show strong similarity to any one of our own individual life experiences.

Richard, thank you for sharing your story with me.  Now, it’s time for me to finish my own.

I had a very wonderful time traveling to India for the tenth time in my life but for the first time by myself.  I reconnected with family members I had not seen in ages and even in the process discovered a new independence in traveling across the country on my own volition.

Also, I must say it is humbling and inspiring to see so many people live life to the fullest with so few means.  Although I must say I am not going to miss the ever crowded roads full of rick shaws, pedestrians, cows, and various other vehicles.  I’m glad that I did not even come close to falling sick and am ready to tackle on some new challenges here stateside.  I just have to completely get over the jet lag thing which will probably take me another 1-2 days (I think.) .

Well, it has been long (and I mean LONG) overdue, but at long last I will indeed be traveling to India.  The picture above was taken of a temple in India when I visited in 2008.  My last visit was in 2010, and I am glad that my relatives abroad were very accomodating given that this trip was very spontaneously planned over the span of last week.

I will be away in various spots in India over the next few weeks.  I plan to be back in Colorado by middle of August to attend to my usual adventures and even see some cool shows at Red Rocks Amphitheatre and in Telluride.

I am looking forward to flying out to India this weekend.  I must say I have a new found admiration for my parents since they have always planned my trips in the past. This is the first time I am going to India by myself and arranging everything all by myself.  It was not too daunting given that I have been to India nine times, but when it comes to going over to Asia, I am just another dumb American traveler.

Should be a nice relaxing change from the pace of my life over these last few months.  I think it will be nice.

April may already be coming to a close but we have actually had some snow and winds providing a bit of a chill here in Colorado.  An injury to my right hand recently put my skiing season to an end 4 weeks ago but I expect a full recovery in about 2-3 more weeks before I spring into rock climbing mode.

For the doctor side of my life, I am doing independent contractor work through my own company and will be in Arizona through May and June of this year. I am looking to fill in work throughout the rest of the year and look forward to where this adventure of life will take me next. I already have a trip planned to Las Vegas to take in a couple of Nine Inch Nails concerts, and I hope to see the Grand Canyon as well.

In the meantime I am sure Spring will be in full effect, and Summer will come to Colorado as well and hope to get some camping and hiking and climbing in.  The first set of Red Rocks Amphitheatre concerts will start soon, and I am already looking forward to seeing Primus and Mastodon next month.

In the words of the great philospher Denzel Washington, “You gotta’ do what ya gotta’ do, so that you can do what ya wanna’ do.” Let’s do this.

The new year has gotten off to a start and it will keep going on.  I’m really proud of my Georgia Bulldogs for the phenomenal season they had after coming up just short of winning a national title this past Monday.  Winning an SEC title and a Rose Bowl title are fine accolades and I know this team will be back at this come next season.  I will always be grateful for being a part of the University of Georgia and the opportunities my university has provided for me.

This year 2018 will be filled with lots of new and exciting opportunities and life experiences for me. Of course just like any movie, I don’t know exactly what is to be in store until the very end, but this time next year, I am certain that I will look back and be like, “Wow! That was pretty cool what happened within these past 365 days.”

So, let’s go!

 

Well, you can go online anywhere to get a synapsis and highlights of this EPIC Rose Bowl, so no point of diving into the specifics of how in the world my Georgia Bulldogs overcame a 17 point deficit in the 2nd quarter and a 7 point deficit late in the 4th quarter to win this game.  I just remember the jubilation at the blocked field goal by Lorenzo Carter in the the double OT and Sony Michel running it in for the game winning touchdown.  While still in the stadium I called my old college buddy who lives in Marietta so that he could hear the cheering directly.  And I’ll never forget what he told me, “You just witnessed the greatest Rose Bowl game ever in its 100+ year history.”  I am still in awe.

But the job is not done. We have a tough matchup against an excellent Alabama team for the national title.  I am proud of this Georgia Bulldogs team for making it this far and hope they can win the national title next week.

 

 

It’s been a while since my beloved Georgia Bulldogs have been SEC Champs and I could not be prouder to be a UGA grad where Athens, Georgia has been so good to me and has meant so much to me as a person.  The Dawgs will be playing in the College Football semifinal in California on New Year’s Day, and I am happy to say that I will be attending the game and all of its surrounding festivities.

I have to admit, it was quite stressful planning all this out this morning and having to do this in a hurried manner.  However, a wise man once told me, “If you wanna’ be gangsta’, you gotta’ do gangsta’ shit.”  Regardless of the outcome it will be great to see Georgia play in such a hallowed venue as the Rose Bowl, and I am looking forward to my first trip to Pasadena.

Attack the Day!  Go Dawgs!

Since getting rid of all of my medical school debts, I have kinda’ been exploring some avenues for investment and I thought to myself, “Why not?! Let’s take a small chance with cryptocurrency.”  There are many links and pieces of info in various videos and articles to research bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies, and hence far too many to add in and tag in a tiny little blogpost such as mine.  But I must say that after some thinking, I decided to go with Ethereum.  This is the second most widely traded digital currency (right behind bitcoin) but is a bit more easier to use and exchange and recently gained value in the past few months.

Again, like with any long term investment, I do expect  the value to take a fall and vice versa. And of course there is the ever speculative “cryptocurrency bubble” which is ready to burst at any time.  Again, I have the capital to take a bit of a risk, so I thought, “Why not? You only live once.”

Again it was super easy to set up an account for buying/selling digital currency thanks to Coinbase.  It really was relatively painless and hassle free and easy to use and, moreover, very beginner friendly for cryptocurrency newbies such as myself.

Again, this is merely a small investment to see how this turns out MANY years from now.  Based on how my cryptocurrency portfolio turns out I may buy future “ethers” or I might cash out if I see a longterm downward trend.

I don’t really see how this is any different than the retirement and investment portfolios I currently have even if there is a risk to be had with an ever evolving form of currency and its accompanying volatility.  Furthermore, the relative “new” nature of cryptocurrency actually makes investing in it quite exciting.

I am actually looking forward to see how this turns out even if it is for a loss. After all, life is an experience, and every worthy experience comes with risk.

My excursion to see Die Toten Hosen in Argentina and tour around Buenos Aires came and went very quickly. I simply had a delightful time seeing one of my all time favorite bands and moreover making even more friends during this visit. Unfortunately, my cell phone was stolen at the beginning of the trip which was stressful but I made sure to inactivate it so that no data was stolen. Hence, I also do not have many pictures of my trip either.

Overall, my stay in Argentina was wonderful though and that is solely because of the people, who are so sweet and friendly and welcome you like family.  We even got to go the Argentina-Peru football match and see Lionel Messi play.  That match ended in a draw but Argentina won their next match against Ecuador and hence qualified for the World Cup.  More than I can say in comparison to our unfortunate USMNT here.

Overall Die Toten Hosen were just great and I even made a small appearance in one of their concert videos (2:35 mark).  Again I feel fortunate for the life I live and the travels I get to make. Next time, I need to stay longer to explore Patagonia and see the waterfalls at Iguazu.

Anyways, I am back in Colorado where the fall colors are just purely great to see.  We are ready for another ski season and I need to get my skis tuned up.  Of course we will be doing some rock climbing at lower elevations as well.  Great times are still ahead!