Destination Unknown

Searching for love, stimulation, happiness, color, truth, enlightenment, and expansion. This is a collection of photos and words I find meaningful.

[timomitchel]

The nights spent beneath the gaze of the stars procure a sense of wonder that will continually resonate without restraint. #ZNP #UT #milkywaychasers #nightphotography #nightscape #nightscaper #findyourpark (at Zion National Park)

[timomitchel]

Waves of space and time. #AZ #slotcanyon #wildwest #timoontour (at Antelope Canyon)

[timomitchel]

Nights so bright. #Zion #ZNP #milkywaychasers #nightshooterz #UT #timoontour (at Zion Lodge, Utah)

[timomitchel]

Looking for Arnold and The Maze. #AZ #timoontour #MonumentValley #Westworld #HBO photo: @lobalz8 (at Monument Valley)

[timomitchel]

Hairpin turns for the Colorado River. #AZ #Baecation #COriver (at Horseshoe Bend)

[timomitchel]

Grim Peeper

6:30 P.M. came abruptly in Denver, CO and the darkness had already wrestled the sun out of view for the day. I was concerned with my usual Monday routine at my girlfriend’s apartment. Dinner, wine, and Monday Night Football. Like alternating current my attention was constantly shifting from the conversation in the kitchen, to the game, to my fantasy football team, and back to Lauren. The lack of daylight in the winter months has a way of inflicting its fatigue upon one’s production levels early and often. I stared out the window cursing daylight savings and contemplating parts of my daily life that were affected by the late bureaucracy of past generations. Oh how easy it is to slip into a bath of self-pity even in the most fortunate country on Earth. 

Flashing lights at Grant and 11th caught my attention from my post at the kitchen table. I peered at them with contempt as my attention level was already pushing carrying capacity. “What now fuzz? Whose night are you ruining tonight?” I thought to myself. A few vehicles had pulled off to the outside lanes of Grant and turned their flashers on. Grant is a one way with three lanes and parallel parking on both sides of the street, so it’s a bit of a mess during rush hour. Boom! twenty-four yard catch for Odell Beckham; two point nine points for Timo. Traffic was down to one lane and cars were trickling through. “And now the fire truck and the ambulance annoyingly come screaming down the street,” I thought. “All of this for what?” Lauren asked me. “It must have been a car accident, but it’s hard for me to see what’s going on because it’s already pitch black,” I responded. Poor me. Experiencing darkness earlier than I preferred. The siren was finally muted. Dark figures were hustling out of the emergency vehicles. The fire truck had parked in the middle of the intersection effectively blocking all lanes of traffic from proceeding. Smart. My attention now had to make some sacrifices and unfortunately the conversation in the kitchen was now similar to the flow of traffic on Grant; one-way. Sorry Lauren. Sensing my distraction, she was now intrigued enough to put cooking on hold and come crinkle the blinds with me. The shadows had all gathered around the near side of a parked vehicle on Grant. Oh No! A touchdown for Sterling Shepard. Not OBJ. The receiving corps of the New York Giants view one another as brothers, but I view all but Beckham Jr. with enmity. Fantasy football has truly ruined me as an NFL fan. My loyalties shift weekly depending on my team’s matchup. The ability to enjoy this fantasy game with friends renders passion, joy, and distress, which Matthew Berry and I are almost equally grateful for. 

“Babe, why are they all gathering around that spot on the ground?” Lauren pondered. I mused, “I imagine they might be attempting to get someone out of that car. Try and follow their flashlights. Babe the water is about to boil over.” “Oh shit!” Lauren exclaimed as she scurried to the overflowing pot. We made eye contact and smiled subtly at the situation as distraction is a power we both succumb to daily. “Ugh, if it were only light out I’d know exactly what was happening. This time of year is brutal,” I said with disdain. Suddenly, clarity and fear shook me out of my own haze of complaints and self-pity.  “Oh my god; they are doing compressions,” I stated with the first hint of concern during the ten minute ordeal. Lauren scrambled back to her vantage point. We could clearly see rapid but intent compressions being administered to a body lying motionless on the pavement. The light from the flashlight was inconsistently illuminating the scene. It moved from the compressions to the bystanders with no sense of control, and it emulated the panic that was dissipating from the moment. A girl in the apartment building directly across from us was doing yoga on the third floor. A labrador retriever was searching for attention between two men that were enjoying drinks and conversation in their living room on the fourth floor. I was suddenly very aware of all of the motion happening outside of Lauren’s apartment. The lack of awareness from the numerous surrounding parties within my field of view fostered a sense of awe within me as I witnessed such conflicting scenes. 

The shot from my adrenal glands had provided a sense of shameful introspection coupled with the ability to focus intently on my surroundings. The paramedics switched positions. A new shadow was administering compressions. The mood in Lauren’s apartment had turned incredibly somber as we stared outward in a hopeless silence. A police car raced frantically down 11th to block off any incoming traffic from Logan, which was one block East. I put my arm around Lauren to help console her AKA consoling myself. I told myself that I was comforting her, but I was reaching out for affection and love to soothe my own aching soul. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight... I counted. CPR was now approaching the five minute mark. “I know CPR,” I thought. If I had been out there at the time of the incident would I have been able to make a difference in the outcome? Time represents the determining factor in many life or death events. Lauren couldn’t watch anymore. I wondered who the person on the ground was. Where was his or her family? How had he or she ended up in this vulnerable position on the ground? Seventeen, eighteen, nineteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two... darkness. The lack of light had become a welcomed relief, because it allowed my concentration to break from the trance like state that overwhelmed me as I counted compressions. A few officers were taping off the scene with about a two hundred foot radius. I accepted that I was likely witnessing a death only fifty yards from the spot where I was enveloped in love, laughter, and the joy of my own human experience. Many people within my field of view showed not even a hint of stress from the life or death situation unfolding within ear-shot of their apartments. I envied them. 

This moment inspired a line of thought within me about human civilization and specifically the transition from villages to cities. In a village every person within the community would have known this lifeless body and attempted to help the person in need. But, maybe none of them would have known CPR. I turned my gaze to pedestrians casually walking by the scene. A woman emerged from our building with her dog and walked towards the end of the building opposite the unfolding trauma scene. She didn’t even seem to notice the lights. On the other hand, if this person was hit by a vehicle then this accident could not have occurred in a village, because they never had motorized vehicles capable of the speeds needed to kill someone. The paramedics switched positions once again. Fifteen minutes of compressions and counting.  These villages did have very fast horses though. And, none of them had the training nor the resources to employ a team of medical professionals standing by for emergencies. So, which type of society is better? Why was i torturing myself with this reasoning?  I concluded that I was trapped in this self-deprecating mind fuck, because I wanted to asses blame for the accident. I half-heartedly blamed myself, because I hadn’t reacted sooner. I certainly wanted to free myself from that guilt, so I used some classic deductive reasoning. The person driving a car had hit this person. The driver deserves a majority share of the blame. Still, it was now pitch black during rush hour. In my eyes this is a public safety issue in bustling cities. So, elected representatives allowing daylight savings to exist in the modern era absorb some of the blame. And, city officials design the traffic patterns. If there was a mistake in the flow of traffic then they deserve some of the blame. Some people lobby against autonomous vehicles. An autonomous vehicle would likely have recognized the obstruction ahead and stopped prior to the collision, I speculated. Therefore, lobbyists against a safer means of transportation deserve some of the blame. Ah, I’m starting to feel better now.

Allow me to switch to gratitude. The first responders deserve the majority share of the gratitude. They were on the scene within seven minutes of me noticing the flashing lights and were attempting to save the life of someone they had and will never know. That’s their job; keep people safe and attempt to save lives at the scenes of accidents that will never resemble any experience that they’ve incurred previously. These people represent the defining empathetic component of our civilization. Touchdown Beckham. Great. Six points for Timo. Idiot. I will never respect any role in society more than that of firefighters and paramedics. The police were first on the scene, but sadly in this case the officer did not attempt to save the injured person. However, they did their part to secure the surrounding area and prevent further injury to bystanders and medical professionals, so they deserve some credit. Each person has a role. Compressions halted. Blanket placed over body. Action over. A life, ended.

I encourage everyone to think deeply about death from time to time. Our lives represent fragile gifts. Blips of existence on this planet. I’m so grateful for this gift, and for the other humans that choose to experience it with me. Tomorrow will never be guaranteed. But, today is. The present is the only true reality. We have more comfort and pleasures than any time in human history. Enjoy these gifts, but more importantly enjoy the other humans that create a life worth living today. Death is an inevitable truth. But, love, happiness, gratitude, and empathy are daily choices. Consider the choices available and the timetable of one’s own life. Choose life. Choose love. Choose human connection. 

[timomitchel]

Humble Trump Pie

Is anyone else searching for a morning after pill today? If only elections had a plan b. With regards to the contraceptive I suggest buying them in bulk and stashing them away, because times they are a changing. I’ve read some of my peer’s reactions, and I understand the anger, the fear, and the disbelief. But, what no one understood; not the media, not the democratic party, not the republican party, not the urbanites, not the talking heads, not the comedians, not you, not me, and most importantly, not our own echo chambers understood is what that same anger and fear could manifest for the Trump supporters. The emotion involved in the Trump campaign clearly outweighed the logical support of Hillary Clinton in the areas that mattered most. See: Ohio, Florida, and Michigan. 

The Takeaways from This Election

1. The “experts” within the media live in their own false echo chambers.

For over a year we heard from everyone in the media that Trump’s chances of winning anything from the primaries to the election were very slim. Well, he’s the next president of the U.S. His name will now be spoken in the same breath as Lincoln, Washington, FDR, Eisenhower, and Obama. That’s the reality. No moaning about him losing the popular vote will change that fact. No more than it did in 2000.  In September of 2015 Vegas was giving people 7-2 odds on Trump winning the Republican primary.  In September of 2016 Vegas was giving Trump just a 28% chance of winning the election. Almost every poll in America had Hillary Clinton leading the race up to election night. The conventional wisdom of the people living in urban areas was that Clinton would win, because although she wasn’t the most popular, the same country that elected Obama twice would not elect a man like Trump. Conventional wisdom is for low frequency humans. One historian, Allan Lichtman, predicted trump would win using thirteen true/false variables and then analyzing the historical data on those variables. He has written a book called “Predicting the Next President.” Why weren’t more people reporting this man’s research? That is because; reporting has become focused on a profit-based ratings model. Trump was fantastic for ratings, and this model has given us a reality TV star for president. Scientific and logical analysis, not polling, seem to hold serve in predicting elections, but it will be interesting to see how much confidence our newest president elect places in these entities.

2. Democrats are incredibly sore losers.

This won’t win me many friends in my own echo chamber, but Democrats can’t claim, “When they go low, we go high” and then spew out hate filled messages on social media the day after you lose the election. Hillary Clinton did not connect with a majority of voters on an emotional level. Donald Trump did. Period. Protesting that he is not your president, and suggesting ways for a non-peaceful transition are the exact same stances you were criticizing Trump for a week ago. This is how democracy works. We have winners and losers each cycle, but the republic moves forward regardless of the results. I suggest that the democrats reject cynicism and sulking and instead look forward to protecting the issues that matter most to them. Spreading fear and anger without suggesting any real solutions does nothing but undermine our democratic process. The Republicans have written a blueprint on how to impede presidential progress the last eight years. Time to play ball.

3. Wikileaks and the global public is the real winner of the election.

Wikileaks has become a household name, and their reporting has seemingly flipped the election in Trump’s favor. While this fact makes most liberals angry, it should instead be reflected upon with an open mind. The mission statement of Wikileaks has not changed since their inception. They are a not-for-profit media organization that provides journalists, officials, and insiders a safe outlet to leak information in order to improve government transparency and increase the public good. They are charging officials what they call a “secrecy tax” that is paid in the form of public humiliation via leaks when said public officials fail to uphold their integrity and their duty. This is not limited to the U.S. or their elections. The entire world elite is now aware that their actions are being scrutinized, and corruption will be incredibly difficult to keep private. After the leaks with regards to the record-keeping the NSA had and probably still has been keeping on its own citizens, it’s comforting to know that the global public has a powerful group of journalists in its corner. Trump will find out how unfriendly Wikileaks can be to heads of state that do not fulfill their duties with a high level of moral fiber.

4. Facts matter less than emotional issues.

Politifact currently states that Donald Trump says something false or mostly false 70% of the time. But, I digress. Trump ran on some very emotional issues such as illegal immigration, American trade deals, and the fear of Islamic terrorism. Unskilled laborers are tired of watching their jobs move overseas. Islamic terrorism has proven itself a real threat. And, as South Park so eloquently put it referring to immigrants, “They took our jobs, dey took our ders,  ey tuk er ers.” Many people have had their minds made up on these issues for years. Neither statistical data nor new information will do anything to change their stance. Trump spoke to these people brilliantly. He knew what they believed, he encouraged them, and he gave them a voice in the mainstream. The marketing of these few emotional issues made every other strike against the man seem insignificant. The media painting him as a caricature and a clown only fueled the passion of his supporters. And, Trump labeling Hillary Clinton a criminal and a liar with her lies actually coming to fruition sealed the deal. This is the real danger revealed by the campaign trail this cycle. As long as you constantly attack the other side and fuel your supporter’s misplaced anger, you can win without disclosing much factual information and blatantly lying.  Step aside scientific data, emotions decide elections in this country. 5. Sexual assault is the norm in America. 

My favorite joke of this election cycle was when Bill Maher said, “GOP now stands for grab our pussies.” I’m no longer laughing. Women had the most to lose in this election, and I’m frightened at their prospects with Trump running the show. It’s clear that he does not and has not ever respected women, and apparently that issue was not meaningful enough to stop him. The sexual assault charges remain unproven at this point, but the character issue, and America’s concern or rather lack of concern for women’s rights and the threat of sexual assault has never been more apparent. This is the most shameful result of this election; women’s safety taking a back seat to nearly every other issue. I’m appalled at women who found a reason to vote for a man that has stated that he does not respect women and can do whatever he wants with them.

6. Race is still a major issue. 

It’s clear that Trump gained the support of white supremacists and white nationalists during his campaign. Obama being elected has caused a backlash most of us never imagined. I’m not saying a majority of Trump’s supporters are racist, but clearly the majority has no problem being members of the same country club as these people. Electing the first black president has turned out to be a two-step forward and three steps back decision. It’s clear that improving race relations also took a back seat to other issues in this election. The repercussions are yet to be known, but one is naïve to think that the embers of discrimination and hate will become anything less than an inferno moving forward.

7. The church and the state are far from separate.

Christianity has been the dominant religion in the U.S. since it’s inception. That’s around three hundred and forty years without any significant change. That majority controls this country as lawmakers, and it’s becoming more and more exclusive.  The idea that most Muslims hate America is not only wrong, but also completely ignorant. Generalizing about such a large population in the world will never yield any progress. Halting the drone war, halting the for-profit war games in the Middle East, and electing a president who does not demonize the largest religion on Earth might have yielded some progress, but now America is as big of a target as we’ve ever been. The amount of propaganda Trump will provide for terrorist recruitment is unfathomable. According to a Pew Research Study the amount of Islamic extremists in the world is about 106,000. To put that in perspective, there are around 1.6 billion Muslims in the world. That means that .006625% of the world’s Muslims have interests in terrorism. The U.S. population is around 325 million. The majority of us are extremely concerned about a group of 106,000 people scattered sparsely about North Africa and the Middle East. Well, expect your concerns to become even more validated after electing the poster child for extremist recruiting efforts. Hate, violence, and exclusion from one religion or region of the world will foster the exact same attitudes and actions within the other. 

8. Communication with the other side is key.

It’s clear how divided this country is. I encourage people to engage the people that voted differently than them. Only then can one expect to gain any insight about why someone voted a certain way or what values the other side holds. Writing half of the country off as insane or misinformed is ignorant, inhuman and completely unfair. Most people from both sides want to see their lives improve, but they may have different ideas about how to reach those goals. If one doesn’t communicate with one’s rivals, then this sharpens the divide. In order to be heard one must first listen.

[timomitchel]

#bffs (at Southampton, New York)

[timomitchel]

Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park. True wonders of the Earth. 

[timomitchel]

Endless #wheat fields. #farm #argentina #campo #bonita #gladiator

[timomitchel]

Shout out to all the #gritterbugs. #Love is in the air... #Dontsmoke #graffiti #BA #art #color

[timomitchel]

All about the #graffiti #art in this city. #BA #timoontour #artstagram #thedeepsouth

[timomitchel]

#WHPnotquitea #followmeto #BuenosAires #plazamitre #recoleta #blublockers @muradosmann (at Plaza Mitre)

[timomitchel]

But everyone was like .... #eatsleepraverepeat and I was like.... I'm too old for this shit. #mananamundo #itdoesntsuck #timoontour #turnips #atliens (at TomorrowWorld 2013)

[timomitchel]

Heyyyyy #Nola #Art #avenuepub #nomercy

[timomitchel]

Paying #respect to those who have preserved our way of life. #USA #history #realityofwar (at Arlington National Cemetery)

[timomitchel]

#smooth #sailing #DC #sunset #headwind #popeye #timoontour (at Washington Sailing Marina)