Adventure Year

Adventure 34: Singing on the Street

Sun, 13 Sep 2009 04:23:25 GMT

This evening I completed one of the first original adventures, as seen in Adventure 1. I sang and played guitar on the street corner. There were a lot of people downtown, however I chose a block that not everyone was walking down. I didn't want too many people. A group of ladies stopped and asked me to sing a love song to their friend who was a bride-to-be. The only song I could think of was Into the Dark by Death Cab for Cutie. It is an amazing love song, however it is a little dark. Very romantic though.

Should you do this adventure?: Yes.

Adventure 33: 110-foot free fall

Wed, 09 Sep 2009 02:02:06 GMT

This marks the biggest "adventure" to date for me: a 110-foot free fall from a platform into a net.

Working up the courage to do this fall was extremely challenging and several times I felt like not going through with it (in fact, while at the ticket office, I had to take several breaks to the bathroom, outdoors, and paced back and forth before signing my waiver and forking over the money). I kept asking myself "if I was on the Amazing Race, would I complete this challenge?" The answer to that for me was a big yes, and I didn't want to regret not going through with it, knowing I would be able to do it if challenged enough.

For someone with a fear of heights and of falling, this has to be one of the most scary adventures. What you can't see in this video was my constant shaking before, during, and after the jump (which continued hours afterward and even returned slightly when making this video). Once I had made my mind up, I was so focused on getting it done there was no room for fear in my mind, which is why I seem so casual--believe me most of the fear and nervousness happened BEFORE trying to make my mind up. Staring up at a 160-foot tall structure, knowing you'd be dangled from it was pretty intimidating.

Working through this fear was very rewarding, and I'm incredibly proud to say I did this. Sky diving hear I come....someday.

Should you do this adventure?: not that exciting during the act of falling itself, but being able to say you've done it is priceless. Overcoming your fears can be extremely rewarding.

Adventure 32: San Francisco

Sun, 23 Aug 2009 13:56:00 GMT

It has been 8 months since my last solo-sight seeing trip in Annapolis. Last week I had a research trip to Monterey and Pebble Beach, with a full afternoon with nothing to do, I decided to explore San Francisco before I headed south to my research sites.

Alley off of Powell Street

Cable cars on Powell Street

Cable car on Powell Street

Lombard Street

Top of Lombard Street

Cable cars on Powell Street.

A baseball park on Lombard Street

The coin operated mechanical arcade museum.

I beat the arm wrestling machine several times and drew a small crowd watching me.

View of Alcatraz from Fisherman's Wharf

Should you do this adventure?: Yes. Not only did I walk and see a lot that I didn't take pictures of, but I also rode the BART.

Adventure 31: Rock Climbing

Tue, 21 Jul 2009 14:32:42 GMT

A few weeks ago, Jordan and I went to a local rock climbing wall. At about 60 feet tall it's the tallest outdoor climbing tower in Michigan.

Here's the result:

Of course, Jordan did much better than me, which I'm not afraid to admit. But this was my first time climbing, while Jordan had done it before.

Should you do this adventure?: Sure, but maybe practice technique before hand for a better result than Emily.

Adventure 30: Zip Line Fun

Sun, 21 Jun 2009 21:49:32 GMT

Should you do this adventure?: 100% YES!

Adventure 29: Holding a Beetle

Sat, 20 Jun 2009 19:04:02 GMT

As we were walking into our apartment building, Jordan found a large beetle sitting on the front step. Once Emily freaked out about it, he knew there was an Adventure Year post waiting to happen.

Should you do this adventure?: It was a harmless beetle, why not?

Adventure 28: The Largest Drive-In Theater in the World

Tue, 09 Jun 2009 02:44:49 GMT

Last Saturday, we went to the self-described largest drive-in theater in the world. Where is this drive-in? Where else, in Dearborn, MI, home of the Ford Motor Company. The Ford-Wyoming Drive-In Theater has 9 screens and is pretty big. We saw Land of the Lost (very funny) and Night at the Museum: Battle for the Smithsonian (not so funny).

The only weird thing is that there was no grass! Every other drive-in we have been to, the cars park on grass. Freshly mowed grass makes even a somewhat run-down drive-in look cleaner, nicer. The Ford-Wyoming Drive-In is gravel and pavement. So, as a somewhat run-down drive-in, it was a little creepy and looked even more run-down. The swing set in the right photo had a very eerie creak, squeek that was very horror movie-esque.

Should you do this adventure?: If you live near Dearborn, it is worth the trip. If you don't live near Dearborn, you should check out driveintheater.com and find a theater near you. There is something nostalgic about drive-in theaters.

Adventure 27: Donating Hair to Locks of Love

Thu, 28 May 2009 13:39:58 GMT

Ever since hearing about Locks of Love, I've wanted to donate my hair. I think it's great they make wigs to help children with illnesses that have caused their hair to fall out. I've never had my hair long enough to give...until now. So a few weeks ago after growing it out to donate, I had about 14 inches chopped off and sent them in.

::Cue stunning reveal::

The Before*:

and The After:

Here's me stunned the hair is gone:

* Okay, Jordan and I are obsessed with the infomercial show Pitchmen and I couldn't resist giving a dramatic before and after. A recent photo from 80s night proved valuable. Because trust me, I could not get that big-hair, big-bang style again if I tried. Unless I invested in some Aqua Net.

Should you do this adventure?: Absolutely!!!!! Not only do people actually notice your haircut and compliment it, but you get to feel good helping disadvantaged children. It's a win/win.

Adventure 26: Running a 5k

Tue, 21 Apr 2009 23:42:40 GMT

I have ran on and off for several years. I tried to use it as a way to get more fit, but it never really stuck. Lately, I have been running more and I now have goals to complete. One is to run a half-marathon. Working up to 13.1 miles, I am running 5k races. There are plenty of these locally, several each weekend. This past week, I ran one in town and finished with a respectable (for me) time: 28:17.8. I stand out in the bright orange in the photos.

I will have to say I was so tired at the end. That finishing picture is of me so focused on breathing and not dying.

Should you do this adventure?: Yes. Its fun running with that many people. Its exciting to finish and not be last!

Adventure 25: Fondue

Wed, 15 Apr 2009 18:23:02 GMT

A few days ago, we had a food adventure. We went with a couple of friends to a fondue restaurant. The real adventure was that it was a ~3 hour meal! The food was good. The cheese was great. The chocolate was great.

Adding to the excitement of the evening, the restaurant had a golden egg prize basket. Inside each egg was a prize of some kind. Our friends selected an egg with a $10 coupon for their next visit. Emily dug around in the basket, pulled out an egg, and inside was a free dinner coupon for two! When the full course meals for two are around $100, we were very excited to be able to return for free!

Should you do this adventure?: The place we went to was a little expensive, but it was a great experience. Plus, you cannot go wrong with cheese and chocolate.

Adventure 24: Playing Blackjack

Fri, 27 Mar 2009 13:21:16 GMT

I'm not a really big gambler, but I do enjoy an occasional trip to the casino. Up until last weekend, however, I've never done anything besides playing the slot machines.

I've always wanted to try a hand at Blackjack, but have been to chicken. But seriously, watching dealers flip over cards at record speed and people placing bets faster than I can tell what's going on is quite intimidating. Doing these adventures gave me the perfect opportunity to give it a try. It also didn't hurt that this particular casino had $3 minimum Blackjack tables, which price-wise I felt I could handle.

So with some help, I played three hands. Lost the first one. Won the second (barely--thanks to the dealer busting), and then on the third hand I got a two cards that added up to 10 (or something like that--see I was still completely lost even while playing), which apparently you can "double up" on money-wise. I went for it and won that hand (barely again).

So all in all I walked away with a whole $6 win. Not too bad for my first time. But I booked it out of there fast, because I was afraid I might bet again and lose it all.

Due to fear of taking pictures within the casino--we didn't want to be placed in casino jail for supposed cheating--the only picture I got was of my winnings.

Should you do this adventure?: Why not! But make sure to do it in moderation, this has a strong possibility of being addictive.

Adventure 23: Screen Printing

Fri, 20 Mar 2009 00:13:10 GMT

Triple-Dog Dare Thursday - This week we are doing a "dare" suggested by diermuid. We decided to make some screen printed t-shirts. What else could we put on the shirts, but our Adventure Year avatars? We picked up some supplies at Michaels and Joanne Fabrics. It was a "simple" project. We stretched some fine mesh over an embroidery hoop and painted the voids with regular white glue. Once that dried, we painted the avatars onto the t-shirts.

Should you do this adventure:? Yes. We used regular white glue, but Mod Podge would work better. Also, we used fabric paint, so screen printing ink would probably work better.

Adventure 22: Attending the symphony

Sun, 08 Mar 2009 19:41:24 GMT

Neither Jordan or I are big classical music fans. Our tastes tend to lean towards contemporary, alternative, or punk music. But when one of Jordan's co-workers--whom happens to be a member of a local symphony orchestra--invited us to attend one of her performances, we decided to give it a try.

We're glad we did, and both were pleasantly surprised with how much we enjoyed it. After arriving we learned the theme for the night was: Postcards from Europe. That pretty much sealed the deal for Emily, since she loves anything to do with Europe.

Not only did we get to be entertained with music from Prague, Vienna, Italy, France, and Finland, but we also got to watch a slideshow of each of the countries during the performance and even revisit some places we've had the pleasure to see in person. And Jordan got to finally wear his purple suit coat :) Very fun!

Should you do this adventure:? Why not! It's always good to give new music a try :)

Adventure 21: Eating ice cream outside at 13° F.

Tue, 03 Mar 2009 13:37:20 GMT

After a movie the other night, Emily and I stopped for some ice cream. Then we noticed that it was very cold outside. Often times, when you have lived in a barren northern wasteland, the tropics of southern Michigan do not feel too cold. So, we decided to eat our ice cream outside (briefly) in front of a snow pile. Since it was late and my phone does not have a flash, we had to use the car headlights.

Some ask why, and we simply respond: DANGER NEVER TAKES A VACATION!

Should you do this adventure?: Yes, there is never a time that ice cream isn't a great treat!

Adventure 20: Grasshoppers and Ants

Mon, 02 Mar 2009 04:58:01 GMT

We received a small package from Thailand the other day. Those of you who have read all our posts might remember Emily's post several weeks ago that has now come to fruition. We received prepared, farm raised grasshoppers and weaver ants. The grasshoppers are a "delicacy in the northeast of Thailand, they are normally fried and served with soy sauce and pepper" even though we were not going to eat them with soy sauce. The ants have a "bitter taste [that] improves the flavour of dishes such as 'dancing prawn salad' (live baby prawns) and are also eaten fresh or cooked with a little seasoning."

In the video, listen for the crunch.

Should you do this adventure?: Emily says no. I think that it was a fun experience that wasn't as gross as it sounds.

Adventure 19: Fencing

Sat, 28 Feb 2009 16:08:27 GMT

Yesterday, we went fencing at the Liberty Lakes Fencing Club. It was a Fencing for Fun class that provided basic instruction and basic rules of fencing. It is definitely an aerobic workout. My legs are very sore from the lunges.

Should you do this adventure?: Yes (seems to be the standard answer!). Be prepared for a workout though.

Adventure 18: Movie extras

Wed, 18 Feb 2009 14:58:32 GMT

We were part of a short film yesterday. Emily and I both agreed that the auditioning part of the movie process is much more exciting and fun than the actual filming part. Although it was quite disappointing that my lead role was changed to a principle extra (no lines), it was still somewhat fun. The director told me that I was this close (pinched fingers) to being cast as the DJ, who probably had the most lines. Emily and I also agreed that I could have been the DJ. He also said I had "chops" and that I had good "on camera presence". While I am not intending a career change, I think it would be fun to continue auditioning and try to get a speaking role sometime. I did gain a skill yesterday: I learned to tie a bow tie.

The day was long, longer than it needed to be since I was relegated to a principle extra. If I had been cast as the DJ, being on "set" at 8 am would have been necessary. Since I wasn't in a shot until 11 am and Emily wasn't in a shot until the afternoon, that is some time we could have slept in.



With a zoomed in view of the camera display from the image below-left, you can see that I am in the shot as the bride and groom enter. Just barely.



The short film was just a single scene the producers were going to use as part of their prospectus in order to entice investors into funding the entire movie. This was an interesting day. Lots of hurry up and wait. Lots of sitting around while they moved cameras and lights. Lots of re-takes. Unfortunately we were not able to get any pictures of Emily extraing because when she was in the shot, so was I.



Should you do this adventure?: I think this is a yes. While the auditioning part was much more exciting, this was still interesting and fun.

Audition follow up

Sat, 14 Feb 2009 17:58:16 GMT

So everyone knows, Emily and Beth received emails invitations to be extras in the short film we auditioned for. Even more exciting, I (Jordan) got a call this morning for a lead role. The one of the three who wasn't intending to go or audition got a lead role! We will post more as an adventure next week.

Adventure 17: Auditioning for a Movie

Thu, 12 Feb 2009 15:32:31 GMT

Jordan and I are HUGE movie fans. Given the influx of movies being filmed in Michigan because of tax breaks film companies receive we knew one of our adventures needed to deal with film/movies.

Luckily, we've been on the lookout and found they were casting extras for a wedding scene not too far from where we live. The Web site didn't list much information about the casting event, and the limited knowledge we know of these things comes from watching behind-the-scenes clips in movies and TV shows.

I tried to call and talk to someone when RSVPing, but only received an answering machine. So this became a true adventure in that we had NO IDEA what to expect, how to dress, what would happen, or anything.

We were thinking we might just get our picture taken, fill out a form, and then they'd contact us about being an extra. Little did we know this was going to be much more involved than that.

When we arrived we filled out our forms, got numbers, and got to sit in a waiting room. On the form you checked if you wanted to audition for a "lead role" or "extra role." We thought we'd go for the gusto and check "lead."

As we waited for our number to be called all these professional looking actors started coming in. They had head shots, acting resumes, managers, etc.

"Um...okay," we thought. "Not entirely what we were expecting."

But we just went with the flow, and as a result Jordan, our friend Beth, and I had the time of our lives.

We actually got to be put in front of a green screen and read a scene from the movie. Everyone auditioned for the same role, so each of us got to pretend to be a 54 year old wedding photographer Barbara (Barry for Jordan) and had about eight or so lines of script to read. At the end of the audition we also did a PSA for green energy.

Jordan and Beth were true professionals, while I on the other hand probably shouldn't quit my day job.

By far the coolest adventure we've completed this year. As proof of our budding acting career here are pictures:

At sign-in:

Reading Scripts:

Auditions:

Should you do this adventure?: 100% yes. Especially if you are movie fanatics like us. Now we get to sit on pins and needles and hope they will pick us as extras (at the very least).

Adventure 16: 30th Birthday

Sat, 07 Feb 2009 21:10:36 GMT

Today Jordan turned 30.

Should you do this adventure?: Its unavoidable. If you haven't yet, you will.

Adventure 15: Roller Derby

Tue, 03 Feb 2009 01:03:53 GMT

This past Saturday, we went to the Detroit Derby Girls roller derby. I've seen a lot of things in my day, but that...was...awesome! If you haven't seen a flat track roller derby bout, you must go (WFTDA lists member derbys). It's too bad that they prohibit cameras. We couldn't take any pictures inside the bout.

I think I got into it a little bit more than Emily, but she had fun too. She did enjoy it enough to start thinking about joining roller derby in the future. We first got interested in flat track roller derby watching Rollergirls on A&E.

The Detroit Derby Girls defeated the Arch Rival Roller Girls from St. Louis 153-91 at the Masonic Temple in Detroit.

Should you do this adventure?: Yes, most absolutely-definitely. Be sure to punk it up, or you will stick out like a sore thumb.

Adventure 14: Falls of the Ohio State Park

Fri, 30 Jan 2009 04:12:47 GMT

The Falls of the Ohio historically were navigational obsticales on the Ohio River. Because of the falls, the cities of New Albany, Clarksville, Jeffersonville, and Louisville boomed through the late 1700s and early 1800s as shipping traffic was forced to stop in order to navigate the 26-foot drop over two miles. There are a wide range of Devonian Period coral fossils in the exposed limestone shelves.

Emily and I visited there a few weeks ago, and the shelves were not to exposed due to heavy snow melts up stream. The picture from Adventure 6 was taken there. I think it was more exciting for me than for Emily. In fact, I know it was. This map shows how much more of the fossil beds are usually exposed. On the map, I marked the tree that is on the left of the picture below. We didn't actually go through the visitor's center, but I did get a few photos that I stitched into a panorama.

The visit did spark a memory for me from high school. We noticed a flood marker for 1997 on the side of the wall at the visitors center. On March 6, 1997, I was a senior at New Albany High School. The seniors were excused from three high schools to fill sand bags at the flood wall and the fine journalists at The Blotter (the New Albany High School newspaper) captured my hard work on film.

Should you do this adventure?: Yes. Its not too adventurous, unless you are afraid of coral fossils.

Adventure 13: Wet Willy

Mon, 26 Jan 2009 04:00:36 GMT

Should you do this adventure: Only if triple-dog dared!

Thank you

Fri, 23 Jan 2009 16:38:43 GMT

We want to thank everyone for their Triple Dog Dare Thursday suggestions. Keep them coming! We'll be posting reminders on several Thursdays throughout the year, but we'll take the dares at any time.

We want to give a special thank you to our nephew, Nic, who dared us via video.

Adventure 12: Triple-Dog Dare Thursday

Thu, 22 Jan 2009 20:04:55 GMT

Today we are launching a new series for Adventure Year entitled Triple-Dog Dare Thursdays. Our goal is to complete dares supplied by our readers. We can only come up with so many adventures and we need help with new ideas. This idea was suggested by reader tinaya .

While it does violate typical dare structure (i.e. initial dare, double-dog dare, etc), we felt that jumping straight to the triple-dog dare would be appropriate in enticing us to complete that adventure. Also, while it is typical that the daree cannot back down from a triple-dog dare, we are reserving the right to decline a suggested dare if it is not logistically possible to complete or exceeds an appropriate moral threshold. So, keep them realistic and G to PG rated.

Please make your triple-dog dares in the comment section here at livejournal, on our youtube channel, or via email at jordan@adventureyear.com

We look forward to some wild and crazy ideas.
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