Posts tagged Learning
What to Expect If You Throw Your Keys Away in a National Park
What to Expect If You Throw Your Keys Away in a National Park

And what the hey, if I was going to be stuck in the parking lot until Monday, apparently hallucinating trail information, and things literally falling apart around me, I figured I would just pop open a cold one and watch Disney movies.

Read More
On The Road 2020Carson CostaTravel, Mishaps, Problems, Dumb Move, Grand Teton National Park, Mystery of the Vanishing Trail List, Planning, Plans Change, Losing my mind, Key, National Parks, National Parks Passport, Lessons, Comedy of Errors, Learning, Movies, Overcoming problems, Panic, This Happened to Me, Things Breaking, United States, Vanlife Comment
Wrapping Up Great Basin National Park
Wrapping Up Great Basin National Park

The Bristlecone Pines are worth a visit to the park all on their own. It’s difficult to capture the brutal elegance of their gnarled branches, the rich color of their weathered trunks.

Read More
On The Road 2020Carson CostaVanlife, Travel, Hikes, Hiking, Hike, Wheeler Peak, Great Basin National Park, United States, Juniper, Bristlecone, Bristlecone Pine, Glacier, Nevada, Rocks, Rock Glacier, Altitude, Alone, Blogging, Morraine, Dirt Road, Lessons, Learning, Driving, National Parks, Nice Drive, Scenic Drives, Mishaps, Nature, Self, Tiny Living Comments
The Problem with Jumping in the Deep End
The Problem with Jumping in the Deep End

I’m not writing this post to complain. I realized that this — everything being a total mess — is part of the whole experience.

I’m not failing at it, I’m doing it.

Read More
Trial RunCarson CostaSelf-doubt, Self, Self Improvement, Reflections, Problems, Mess, Mishaps, Advice, Crater Lake National Park, Overcoming problems, Solutions, Corvettes, Driving, Nice Drive, Smoke, Seward, Alaska, Learning, Library, Gordon, New Friends, Friends, Fairbanks, State Fair, United States, Experience, Changes, Ways of Doing Things, Writing, Catching Up, Rogue River Gorge, Casey State Recreation Site, Ocean, Travel, A Peek Inside My Weird Brain, Blogging, Cooking, Dirty, Exhaustion, Excitement, Goals, Giving Up in the Best Way, intervention, I'm late again, Inner Thoughts, Sink, Late, Losing my mind, National Parks, Oregon, Panic, Snow, Stress, Trial Run, Time Crunch, Tiny Living, Vanlife, Adventure, Zach, Amazing People, Blockbuster, Dream Come True, Dreams Comments
Spontaneous Side-Trips in Ashland, OR
Spontaneous Side-Trips in Ashland, OR

The road took us past a large lake, then sloped up into the mountains, winding tightly along the cliff’s edge, bouncing up and down as the terrain demanded, tilting in places.

Read More
Trial RunCarson CostaTravel, Trial Run, This Happened to Me, Ashland, Oregon, Park, Lithia Park, Bars, Street Fairs, Driving, Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument, National Parks Passport, Games, Shuffleboard, Shake Dice, Cooking, Learning, Adventure, Catching Up, I'm late again, Range Oven, Rotary Youth Exchange, RYE, United States, Vanlife, Zach Comment
The Final Days Before The Pacific Northwest
The Final Days Before The Pacific Northwest

Everything that I’ve been thinking about just to keep myself going for the last year and a half. The life I’ve been dreaming about is eight hours away.

Read More
Pre-TripCarson CostaAppliances, Blogging, Breaking Things, Comedy of Errors, Carpentry, Challenges, Charge Controller, Cabinets, Excitement, DIY, Electrical, Exhaustion, Self, Heat, Learning, Family, Frustration, Fan Install, Inner Thoughts, Sink, Business, Customer Service, Catching Up, Adventure, Full Speed Ahead, Fridge, Fuse Box, National Parks, Late Night Musings, Late, Danica, Drawer, Slides, MDF, Guests, Friends, Zach, Battery, Brackets, Kitchen, Thanks to, Planning, Mishaps, Neighbors, United States, Possible Formatting Errors, Range Oven, Fan, eTrailer, Solar, Panic, RYE, Rotary Youth Exchange, Travel, Trial Run, Stress, Time Crunch, Self-doubt, Wiring, Vanlife, Van Build, Wood Working Comment
A Few Thoughts on Americanism
A Few Thoughts on Americanism

Forth of July was the one day every year that I always felt unstoppable. It made me feel empowered, one person supported and held up by millions of people, like every dream I’d every dared to entertain was as close as those fireworks, falling down upon me from the stars.

Read More
Pre-TripCarson CostaPolitics, Americanism, United States, America, Reflections, Rotary Youth Exchange, RYE, Germany, Venezuela, Inner Thoughts, Pride, Nationality, A Peek Inside My Weird Brain, Blogging, Self, Why?, Learning, Self-doubt, TravelComment
I Destroyed Part of My Build
I Destroyed Part of My Build

I was dead set on pretending I had no van, and that I’d never been crazy enough to start this insane project, for the rest of the day.

Read More
Pre-TripCarson CostaVan Build, Vanlife, Ceiling, Tongue-and-groove, nemesis, Exhaustion, Self, Self-doubt, Panic, Challenges, Problems, Difficult, DIY, A Peek Inside My Weird Brain, Comedy of Errors, Frustration, Learning, Cursing, Anger, Breaking Things, Things Breaking, Worried, This Happened to Me, Inner Thoughts, Planning, Mishaps, Boards, Wainscotting, Stress Comments
Construction 101: My Journey From Clueless to Clued-In
Construction 101: My Journey From Clueless to Clued-In

I don’t think I’d ever so much as touched a saw of any kind, I had no idea that 2x4 really meant 1.5 inches by 3.5 inches, and the descriptions of some of these screws sounded like gibberish to me (how can a screw be both a Phillip’s and flat? Why is it a #8 but it’s 2 inches long?).

Read More
Pre-TripCarson CostaCarpentry, Wood Working, Drills, Things Breaking, Progress, Problems, Walls, Flowers, Vanlife, Van Build, Furring, Framing, Learning, Sealant, Subfloor, Self-doubt, Inner Thoughts, Planning, Mishaps, Time Crunch, Tools, Layout, Trial Run Comments