Fall 2020: 24 Hour Road Trip, Back to Baltimore, New EP, Unique Marketing
Fall 2020
24 hour road trip:
Visiting Four Corners this summer was an incredible journey. However, my appetite constantly needs to be replenished for adventure. I often find myself seeking out to fellow adrenaline junkies to conquer this endless hunger. Sometimes these people are strangers or people I met once through a mutual friend that I barely had a sustainable interaction with that's worth noting. That was the case for this 24 hour road trip. Amos, a guy I hardly got to know through a 60 second interaction that our friend James unintentionally curated. This shaped a future friendship that delivered a special bond over camping, hiking, music, and road tripping.
Occasionally scrolling through miles of content on Instagram, sometimes I see something special that catches my eye. An orange Subaru with a pop-up tent connected to the top of the vehicle is what captured my attention. I checked the page and noticed endless photos of this car immersed into beautiful scenery all across Colorado. However, I didn't see pictures of the owner nor understood what made me follow this inanimate object. I messaged the owner, complimenting him on the photos. We decided to meet up and do a camping trip together the following week at Sheeprock Mountain. As we were conversing on the ride there, we discovered how we met was through that brief interaction mentioned earlier. I was surprised though because I remember him being more of a skater punk. He told me he did a complete 180 and found a passion in the outdoors and a love for a cool car that could get him there.
It was an fantastic trip of camping, hiking, star gazing, and a fire to cook veggie burgers over. I suggested we plan a bigger trip. Both having busy schedules we mapped out something that would accommodate the two of us. The itinerary was set in stone and we planned it for a few weeks later. The day of the trip we left Denver after work around 6pm and drove about two hours west to Stillwater Campground on Lake Granby. It was dark and chilly while we were setting up our tents. Amos just bought lights to hang around his Subaru and it made the experience much more magical. We downed drinks, shared stories, and laid-back in our chairs taking in the moment. The next morning, we drove to Grand Lake. This lake is absolutely stunning and a true gem to visit when in Colorado. Walking along the boardwalk, eating breakfast on the pier, and dipping our feet into the cool water was the perfect start to our morning.
Hot Sulpher Springs Resort was next on our agenda. Melting in the springs for two hours (max due to COVID) was amazing. The place has an incredible steamy waterfall that I drenched my head in for a solid minute. Our time was up and we continued our adventure to one of my favorite places I've ever been, Rocky Mountain National Park. Unfortunately, due to the pandemic it caused very limited restrictions in the park. However, Amos discovered a link that allowed us in for only a $2 fee. Somehow this worked in our favor and it felt like magic being back in this astonishing NPS. We saw clouds of fire along the park which caused it to be very smokey along most of our drive. I snapped polaroids of the magnificent views and cloud formations from the fire. We pulled up to a visitor center west of the park and walked up a very steep set of stairs that was crowded with the limited capacity of tourists that were there. Honestly, it looked like we were walking into another world. These clouds were very intense, a few people appeared to turn around before making it to the top, perhaps due to the smoke clogging their ability to breathe. We made it and dang those views were wild. Over towering the trees, mountains, dark clouds, and more was part of the view. Coming back down, we stopped in the visitor center and were informed by a park ranger that the fires were growing rapidly to a rate Colorado hasn't seen in a longtime.
During the rest of our trek, we made several of stops. Snapping more photos, observing the nature, and stopping for wildlife (mainly deer). Once again, it was time to depart as for I had obligations to a very good friend's going-away gathering which I arrived a little past 6pm. Making it a full 24 hour road trip. The following day, the smoke in Denver was too thick to breathe. Amos and I briefly chatted and agreed to leave the city for another camping trip. We made our way south as a blurry orange sun followed us till dark. We weren't even sure where we were going, but it felt right continuing the journey. I checked my old goto camping site Campendium and found our destination for the night, Twin Cone Peak. We pulled up, set up our tents again, and were secluded from the rest of the world in the wild. It was yet again another amazing trip and it reminded me to always give strangers a chance. You never know, who you'll adventure with next.
Back to Baltimore:
I have literally move back and forth from Baltimore to Denver in 2012, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2020. My love for Charm City is like no other and sometimes I need a brief sabbatical in my element to feel refreshed. Hopefully that is a justifiable enough response to my frequent nomadic moves. I decided to sublet my room in Denver and move back home to Baltimore for a little while. I packed my bags and flew back to Bmore with a layover in Wichita and St. Louis. This was my first time coming back since July 2019, the month my aunt passed away. It was challenging at first being here with that reality, but I knew it would strengthen me as a person. Since being back, I already dove deep into building new and reconnecting with old friendships like biking to Fort McHenry and doing a socially distant bonfire gathering with old friends Participating in community activities such running groups (A Tribe Called Run, Faster Bastards), Baltimore Bike Party Halloween jousting, Charles Village porch concert series. As well as starting new projects for example The Hive Baltimore compilation album.
Notably, I went to DC/Alexandria for a day trip, visiting many of the historic landmarks. Hiked Patapsco State Park with a friend which was an amazing adventure. Possibly my favorite note was releasing my new spoken word EP and performing it live while my good friend Ben Bass played psychedelic guitar riffs. This was done in an alleyway in Station North and can be watched on The Depot livestream. Future plans include releasing The Hive album, recording my new solo album, and piecing together a mini podcast series on everyday people with very unique stories within Baltimore, and more.
A unique approach to market:
Years ago, I saw a video on social media of an ordinary man hanging up flyers to promote a service for people to hangout with him for a fee. I found the coconut humorous, but was more blown away by the notion of someone advertising themself by physical marketing in the digital age. This inspired me to make my own flyers to promote my brand. I typed up my skills, passions, and goals. I printed them out with an anonymous email I created specifically for this project. Shortly afterwards this lead me to a long list of some of the most amazing opportunities in my life. My flyer was noticed by a director at a college radio station in Denver. I was interviewed and earned an on-air role a couple of weeks later. I started interviewing guests at the station and grew into the community through journalism. I was guest listed to cover concerts, music festivals, got into exclusive parties, met famous people, given expensive gifts for recognition, the list goes on and on.
I put together a portfolio of my best content and submitted it to stations in Denver. I was offered an on-air role at an NPR affiliate, KUVO radio on their local channel. Since then, I have continued to interview fascinating guests, covered fun events, and shined spotlight on parts of the community that haven't received as much praise as it should. I continue to promote my archived episodes by putting up flyers within the towns that I'm in. All thanks to the flyers I make...
A few quickies:
RIP to my ex girlfriend's dog Bailey (11.1.20). I spent years with him, developing a bond that I never felt towards anything else before. We visited over 30 states together, lots of National Parks, and were always preparing for our next adventure. I'm very grateful for the joy he brought in out life while he was alive.
My 14 year anniversary of being vegetarian was October 1st. I started in 2006 when I was 16 years old and had a diet of processed and fast-food. Growing up impoverished severally tarnished my diet. Although, over many years of learning new recipes and a variety of veggies to eat I improved my diet significantly. My exercises have improved as well from the continuous growth. I'm proud to announce that this year I have officially ran the most miles I have ever tracked in my life. 2016 was my previous record, running a total of 531 miles in 100 runs. 2020 has exceeded that number to 550 miles in 100 run and there's still two more months left in the year. I honestly believe this wouldn't have been possible without the diet change and small improvements each year since 2006.
The Hive Pt 2 will be a Baltimore compilation album that I am curating to showcase the diversity within sound of Charm City. The album will feature a diverse group of artists with a solid foundation of music rooted within the community. A portion of the proceeds will be going to the Living Classroom Foundation and we will be partnering with Linkedin Local to promote the release. Check out the original below:
WBAL TV recently interviewed me on a segment about a recent on-going adversity within my neighborhood. Watch the interview here to find out what it is:
Issues Magazine reviewed my band The Shaky Experience new album "More Famous Than Food" in their most recent release (#42). Comedic sensation, Joey Calabrese Q&A is featured in this addition as well.
Tune into Tameron Hall show featuring Matthew McConaughey as the guest Thursday, November 5th. I'll be a guest in the virtual audience that day, see if you can spot me!
My adoptive mother, Lisa Stone was the most important person to ever exist in my life. I certainly wouldn't be the person I am today without her influence. Just to put that into perspective, she adopted me from a foster home meaning I wouldn't have had the freedom I have without her making that sacrifice. I honored what would have been her 57th birthday by going on a hike at Red Rocks Canyon Open Space. We both had a very big admiration to the outdoors and nature. The hike was incredible and I celebrated the life of a person that meant the world to me by doing something we both loved. I miss her everyday and try to be my best self in honor of her life.
Interviews:
92.9FM / 89.3HD3 KUVO radio is where my interviews can be listened to on live radio. However, if unable to access those frequencies. Check out my two most recent interviews below:
Last Night Tales/Night Time Stories owner Paul Glancy
Late Night Tales has collaborated with Arctic Monkeys, The Flaming Lips, MGMT, Snow Patrol, and many more.
Thomie is on the same label (Terrible Records) that has released music with Solange, Blood Orange, Grizzly Bear, The Voidz, and many more.
Music Reviews:
Hookup Culture 2020 Pt 2 by Pelvis Presley is out NOW!
Features: me - vocals/Garage Band samples
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