August 2001

10 August

I recently received an e-mail asking what I was doing in Scottsdale, and wasn't it going to get too cold in Alaska to travel?  It also asked why there hadn't been any log entries for some time.

Although earlier log entries addressed why I was in Arizona for the summer, I will summarize the last few months here.  

On December 24th, while crossing a mountain into Sedona, Arizona, I developed a stress fracture in my right foot.  This put me on crutches for almost two months (and even now my foot lets me know that it is still not fully healed).

For several reasons that I will outline in subsequent entries, I must get into the Arctic in the fall.  So I decided to postpone the continuation of my trip till this winter, when my foot is healed and I can get back on my schedule to reach Barrow by early November 2002.

I stayed in Colorado Springs for several months after I injured my foot.  Some job possibilities didn't pan out.  And since I had given up all of my corporate video clients to another company, there wasn't much reason for me to hang around. 

I had been threatening to come room with a friend of mine in Scottsdale (the town east of Phoenix), so I moved down in early May.

In mid February, a couple of days after I got off crutches (I should have stayed on them for another month), I flew down to Cabo San Lucas, at the tip of Baja California, to film a corporate video.  On my way back I met Kevin, a fellow video producer from Phoenix.  He gave me his card.  I contacted him when I got into town and we started hanging out together.

My resume wasn't designed to get a job in the regular work force, so I went seven weeks without finding work.  Kevin tried to get me in with several corporate production companies he knew, but business is typically slow in the summer for them.  Other companies didn't want to hire someone who was only going to work for them for six months, then leave to walk to Alaska.

Just as I was about to resign myself to day-labor in 115 degree Arizona heat, I got a job at Exxon, pumping gas, doing "curb" service and washing car windows.  Still the heat, but better pay and not quite as hard.

About the same time, Kevin decided to invest in an advanced non-linear editing system that would help take his company to the next level of clients.

As I have had considerable experience with such systems, he asked me to get familiar with it with the understanding that he would pass editing jobs along to me when they came in.  (I suppose my drooling over it and my comments that went something like "I can fly that thing to the Moon and back" and "You get that sucker, and I will make you a ton of money with it" had something to do with his decision to buy it.)

About five weeks later, the editing jobs had lined up so quickly that I didn't have time to keep working at Exxon.  Besides, I could make in one week what it took me over two months to make pumping gas.

So for the last few weeks I have been working in air conditioning, editing videos, and recovering financially from not working for so long. 

I was also able to get access again to my site through a friend's PC;  hence this entry. 

I hope to be making more entries soon.  I have several written, I just have to edit them a bit and I post them.

In the meantime, if you haven't signed up to receive notification of new entries, please click on the e-mail link and let me know.  I will put you on my list.

Cheers!

Robert