I started today at the Steinbeck Center in Salinas. Salinas itself is the hub of the Salinas Valley. John Steinbeck wrote novels based on the lives of migrant workers in the valley, and became famous. Like most high school students, I had to read the Grapes of Wrath, which I hated. Later in life I discovered his non-fiction work like Travels With Charlie. I enjoyed this book a great deal, and it partly inspired my own road trip. John Steinbeck The center exhibits describe each of Steinbeck’s most important novels. They way h... read more

Silicon Valley For those who like technology, Silicon Valley is a place of myth, the modern equivalent of the western Sierra in 1849. This cluster of cities between Palo Alto and San Jose has an amazing concentration of incredibly smart engineers, along with adventurous investors. Their constant interactions and competition create ideas, products, and companies that revolutionize how people use computers, the internet, and modern life. People here create things that change the world. Local boosters like to claim that this environment only exists in this one small area. In reality, it also exists in other parts of the country (Boston MA, Seattle WA, Austin TX) but no... read more

Today for me is a very important day. With Burning Man over, I now have space to process that I have just passed an important milestone. My age once again has a zero at the end. Within the Burner community, oddly enough, most people prescribe little meaning to this. The rest of the world cares quite a bit. Reno Hotels Post Burn Burning Man also marks the symbolic halfway point of this journey. I planned on it being the biggest high point (which it is, so far). Until now, the trip has been an ever expanding journey into points unknown. From now on, it will feel like a slow approach to the end as the amount of the United States that I’ve never seen steadily shrinks. All veteran Burners I talked to warned about the need ... read more

COPYRIGHT REMINDER All material on this web page, including photographs, is under copyright. Do not reuse without permission. To protect the non-commercial nature of the festival, the Burning Man organization does not allow commercial use of material from the festival without prior authorization (see the Burning Man website for details). COPYRIGHT REMINDER Today is the last day of Burning Man. I woke up pretty melancholy, because this amazing festival will soon be over. Looking down the street and seeing the absence of the man, the anchor point of Black Rock City, makes that plain enough. Center Camp For part of my last day, I wandered through the last major part of Black Rock City I haven’t seen, Center Camp. This camp ... read more

COPYRIGHT REMINDER All material on this web page, including photographs, is under copyright. Do not reuse without permission. To protect the non-commercial nature of the festival, the Burning Man organization does not allow commercial use of material from the festival without prior authorization (see the Burning Man website for details). COPYRIGHT REMINDER Today is my birthday. For better or worse, my age now has a zero on the end again. Ironically, Burning Man is one of the few places on earth where such a thing has little meaning. Most of the rest of the United States treats it as a major rite of passage. People consider birthdays like this as a time to reflect, and then get really depressed when reality doesn’t match up with dreams set a decade or two ago. Burners, by contrast, believe ... read more