Just the beginning

Thanks for following along this past week with where I’ve been the last six years.

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I have more stories to share, and in a couple days, Hugo and I are headed to Europe for a month. I’m excited to share that and a lot more on my blog. 🪄

A man in a bright red shirt smiles while taking a selfie in a car, with a black standard poodle wearing a pink collar sitting behind him with its tongue out, looking forward through the vehicle’s open space.Two men smile while taking a selfie in a holiday-decorated plaza, surrounded by trees wrapped in golden lights, illuminated snowflake and reindeer sculptures, and wet pavement reflecting the colorful festive scene.A framed photograph features a young blond boy in a striped shirt and blue shorts holding a yellow plastic bat, standing in a backyard next to a black dog and preparing to hit a ball on a blue and white tee, surrounded by a floral-patterned frame.A man wearing a black shirt and black pants sits smiling in a bright red armchair during a video recording session, surrounded by microphones and cameras, with tall city buildings visible through large windows behind him.

Why now?

So, why come back to social media now?

After COVID started, like everyone else, I struggled with the sudden change and reshaping of our entire lives.

I also struggled with losing everything that I hoped for from traveling. Not just the sight seeing and new experiences… I wanted something deeper.

What I was really looking was a way to figure out my priorities. At the time, I journaled that I had no idea what I really wanted to do with my life. I didn’t have a clear professional direction. I didn’t know who I wanted to date. I didn’t know if I wanted to have kids. I didn’t know where I wanted to live.

I was hoping to find some of those answers in my experiences. In meeting new people, in challenging myself, in broadening my horizons.

That’s what the travel meant to me. It meant exploring and finding myself as a person. And with that taken away, I got stuck.

In the intervening years, I’ve realized that I left a part of me back in New Zealand. My momentum was arrested in 2020 and I’ve been stuck there, not moving, not making progress.

I realize that motivation doesn’t come from inspiration—it comes from action.

So this year, I’m working on taking action.

One piece of that is being more open about what’s going on in my life and reconnecting with people.

So to that end, I’ve decided to come back to social media, to grow by sharing more of myself and connecting with what’s going on in your life.

A parking space marked with the words P PATIENT and the number 327 in bold white stenciled lettering.

On August 27, 2020, I found a boy who would love me more than anyone ever did before.

At my weakest physically, he’s there to take care of me.

At my weakest mentally, he’s here to assure me.

He gives me hope when I feel there is none.

For more reasons than this, he is my one.

Two smiling men sit close together at a wooden table in an outdoor restaurant at night, with tropical plants, wooden benches, and soft lighting creating a warm, relaxed atmosphere behind them.Two smiling men take a selfie at an outdoor event during sunrise, with palm trees, tall buildings, people walking around, and event tents in the background, one man wearing a red LA hat and a brown jacket.Two men wearing sunglasses smile for a selfie on a boat ride, seated closely together with calm water and marina buildings in the background, enjoying a sunny day in striped and plaid shirts.A smiling man lies on a light couch with a striped blanket, while his partner lies behind him with their face resting on his shoulder, both wearing striped or dark clothing in a relaxed indoor setting.Two smiling men sit closely at an outdoor table, one holding a white frosted birthday cake with gold lettering that says Happy Birthday, surrounded by wrapped gifts, flowers, and drinks in a casual celebration setting.

Long Beach

I quarantined in an Airbnb for two weeks before finding an apartment in downtown Long Beach.

Along with COVID, the country felt in turmoil with the murder of George Floyd. White privilege is feeling it for just a period of time and knowing that the unrest will go away with time.

In the summer, I went on a great American roadtrip with a friend. We stopped in Vegas on the way home.

What a time.

A person wearing a face mask sits under a tree in a sunny park. Palm trees and tall buildings are visible in the background, with three people standing together in the distance.An empty but carpeted two-story apartment with an open kitchen, staircase leading to a loft, and several moving boxes stacked near the wall. A sliding glass door with vertical blinds opens to a small enclosed patio.A public safety sign on a city sidewalk at night provides five COVID-19 guidelines including handwashing, avoiding face touching, social distancing, covering coughs, and wearing face coverings. Lights and storefronts line the street in the background.A boarded-up downtown storefront with plywood-covered windows has George Floyd spray-painted on the black marble wall near the entrance. Two pedestrians walk by on the sidewalk.A phone screen displays an emergency alert from the City of Long Beach about a citywide curfew from 9 pm to 5 am, allowing exemptions for work, medical needs, and emergency responders.A mural painted on plywood reads “A Change Is Gonna Come” in large stylized letters. The piece is signed Shane Jessup 2020 and was created during social justice protests.A masked person stands in front of a steamy geothermal area with shallow pools of water. A tree-covered hill rises in the background under a sky filled with clouds.A marble statue resembling a Roman emperor stands outside at night wearing a gold-colored face mask. The statue is in front of a domed building with Caesars Palace lettering and nearby neon signs.

New Zealand

On March 17, 2020 (NZT), I was optimistic:

I’m currently in Auckland, New Zealand. I’m scheduled to leave for Wellington this weekend, where I plan on being for at least a few weeks. I currently have a flight back to California set for May 21st.

I’m cautiously optimistic about my chances here. I think New Zealand has done a great job of keeping the virus at bay. It feels, though, that this virus will inevitably infect every part of the world.

On March 20 (NZT), I was all alone in a hostel when I made the call:

NZ has 39 cases as of today. The US State Department has advised all citizens to return back to the states. They’ve advised that citizens “may face unpredictable circumstances, travel restrictions, and challenges in returning home or accessing health care while abroad.”

I debated for a few hours on what I should do.

On one hand, I feel like my chances in NZ are greater than that in the US, and traveling right now would only increase my risk of contracting the virus (and potentially spreading it to others).

On the other hand, I am of little use to my family in the US if the airlines choose to stop flights and I’m stuck in a foreign country and depending on their health care system if I get sick. Additionally, if the airlines stop flights, I have no idea when I would be able to return to the states.

I’ve decided to come back home.

“Home” is a good question though. I don’t have a place of my own to stay. I’m going to travel with the assumption that I will get infected, and thus I do not want to stay with any family or friends. I’ll hopefully find a place to stay which will require minimal human interaction.

On March 27 (NZT), I came back to the States:

New Zealand started lockdown a couple nights ago. The lockdown here includes shutting down all non-essential businesses (including takeaway service from restaurants). Grocery stores are still open. The one I’ve been going to was relatively calm when I went on Tuesday to get a few things.

I’m scheduled to leave Auckland at 10:55 PM tonight, landing in LA at 3:00 PM (Friday). That gives me 44 hours of Friday, March 27th. My longest day.

I reserved an Airbnb in Long Beach to stay in for the next couple weeks. My plan is to self-isolate as much as possible in case I get infected on my trip back.

After that, who knows. I suppose I’ll start apartment hunting? I think it’ll be a while before we get through this, so I can’t imagine traveling internationally for a while.

A couple weeks later (April 9), I reflected on my trip back:

The journey was eerie. I only came across a handful of people while I took two buses and a train to get to the airport.

I thought I had read something about Air New Zealand reducing the number of passengers on flights in order to spread people out more. That certainly wasn’t the case with my flight; it was full as far as I could tell.

I took a Lyft from the airport to my Airbnb. Again, it was eerie to see everything so empty.

Driving on the freeway was a different story. I was shocked to see so many people still out and about.

Two public health posters from the New Zealand Government advise COVID-19 safety. The left encourages coughing or sneezing into an elbow with a bullseye graphic on a forearm. The right shows a hand holding soap, promoting handwashing. Both include the phrase “Your health is in your hands.”A nighttime view of Auckland features the illuminated Sky Tower surrounded by high-rise buildings. Street signs, including a 15 kph hump warning, and several parked cars are visible in the foreground. A lone streetlamp lights the road.A cardboard sign reading “Use elbow to press the button” is taped above a pedestrian crossing button at a city intersection. The background includes cars and buildings. The sign suggests a hygienic, hands-free way to press the button during the COVID-19 pandemic.A grocery store aisle shows a few shoppers and many shelves partially empty, especially on the left side. The right side still has canned goods. A woman walks holding a list while another shopper crouches near her cart. The scene indicates high demand or stock issues during the pandemic.A phone screen displays an emergency alert from the New Zealand Government on March 25, 2020. The notice announces a nationwide shift to COVID-19 Alert Level 4, urging people to stay home, avoid contact, and prepare for weeks of lockdown.The entrance and interior corridor of Newmarket Metro Station are empty. The glass walkway stretches into the distance under geometric ceiling lights. A COVID-19 safety sign is visible on the door. The absence of people suggests lockdown conditions.A clean, empty train interior features patterned seats, white walls, and overhead handles. The central aisle leads to the far end with no passengers visible, suggesting reduced public transit use during COVID-19.Aerial view from an airplane shows SoFi stadium under construction surrounded by urban streets. The plane’s wing frames the top of the image. Residential and commercial buildings fill the landscape.The outdoor LAX-it shuttle area features long white tents over empty lanes divided by plastic barriers. A cart and a sign marked “Zone 5B” are visible. The space is orderly but completely deserted.

Southeast Asia

I absolutely loved Thailand. The food, the prices, the people—everything except the air quality. My three weeks went quickly as I worked and spent my weekends doing trails with new friends.

Exactly one year earlier (plus or minus 14 hours), I had made a wish to celebrate NYE outside the States—and there I was, at a huge outdoor party in Thailand, making friends with other foreigners. And getting a haircut for only 200 THB ($6 USD), because why not go into 2020 looking fresh?

Soon after, I left for Indonesia to meet up with two coworkers for a client project. We were there for three weeks and I got sick as many times.

I spent a couple weeks in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia before heading back to the States for a few weeks.

On February 4, 2020, my connecting flight through Xiamen, China was canceled:

we are sorry to inform you that your flight MF829 on FEB06,2020,from XIAMEN to LOS ANGELES has been cancelled due to public security.

I rebooked through Hong Kong and made it back to the States just fine.

In early March, when I left the States for New Zealand, there were 45 cases in California and 0 in Long Beach.

I felt like I was getting out of the country just in time to avoid COVID completely.

A man wearing a mask takes a selfie on a city street at night, with one hand partially blocking the camera. The dimly lit background shows tall buildings with lights, street traffic, and a lamp post above.A wooden table with two clay stoves heating a metal and a clay pot, surrounded by raw ingredients on plates including marinated meat, green noodles, garlic, baby corn, and okra, with a bottle of Chang Classic beer on the side.Runners follow a dirt trail through a grassy field and wooded hillside at sunset, with orange light casting a warm glow on the sky and the silhouettes of trees in the distance.A man smiles while getting a haircut under ultraviolet lighting, with a barber in a glowing wristband holding clippers. A neon sign above them reads “The UltraViolent Barber” with vivid colors and blacklight accents.Two men stand inside a high-rise lounge area looking out a large window with a view of a cloudy city skyline. A potted plant is centered between them, and armchairs are positioned along the wall.A peaceful backyard with a tiled pool, lounge chairs, a thatched gazebo, and lush greenery. The traditional-style house surrounds the pool, and the water reflects the sky and nearby trees.A man smiles at the camera with a flower tucked behind his ear, standing at a rocky beach with waves and a partly cloudy sky. In the distance, cliffs and scattered trees line the shoreline.A smiling man stands in front of a wide grassy field bordered by a red-roofed, half-timbered building. Behind it rises a modern white high-rise against a blue sky with scattered clouds.An airplane entertainment screen shows the flight path from Hong Kong to Los Angeles across the Pacific Ocean. A digital globe highlights continents and the plane’s position along the curved white route.

Leaving for Spain

I spent the summer of 2019 laying the groundwork to be away for years: I got rid of most of my belongings, packed up the rest, transferred my phone number, set up a PO Box, drafted my trust and will; you know, the usual “I’m not living in this country anymore” stuff. My goal was to be gone for years, with pit stops in the States between continents.

Every “see you later” made me feel more loved and appreciated than I had ever felt. The last ones with friends in NOLA really hit hard as I left the country.

My salt streams were replaced with jet streams as I made my way to Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain. I made local friends and we went for little adventures all around the island.

I frolicked in Germany at Oktoberfest with American friends.

I drank wine in Lanzarote, where the vines grow in pits on the ground.

I ran a half marathon in Havana… and then another one in Vegas.

And when I came back to Long Beach for a bit, my friends graciously put a roof over my head and welcomed me, even for Thanksgiving.

In December, I headed out for the next leg of my adventure: SE Asia.

A smiling man stands on a sandy beach with the ocean and sunbathers in the background.Red dresses hang from a line across a street lined with cars and colorful buildings.A view between buildings shows a palm-lined road stretching toward the sea.Beer hall setting with a man in Lederhosen holding a pretzel and people in the background.A volcanic landscape with rows of semicircular stone walls on dark soil, with grape vines peeking up in the pits.A man takes a selfie near the starting line of a race in front of a historic building.Smiling runner stands with arms full of refreshments in a lively night setting.Flight map showing route from Los Angeles to Qingdao crossing the Pacific Ocean.A KFC with Chinese branding shows people walking in and a drink ad near the door.

Shortly thereafter, my heart and mind were freed from obligations and I knew…

It was time to go.

On NYE 2019, I wrote on the party’s wish-board that I wouldn’t be in the US for the following NYE.

And I wasn’t. But that’s a story for a couple days from now.

I’m a Long Beach boy, through and through—a year later, I wrote:

I absolutely love my hometown. The food, the culture, the people, the weather… I could happily spend the rest of my life there.

And that’s exactly why I had to leave.

A person wearing a dark jacket and wireless earbuds smiles while taking a selfie on a sandy beach at sunset, with soft orange and pink clouds over the ocean.A smiling man dressed in a black vest, white shirt, and black hat holds a small sign reading Kiss Me in front of a gold sequin curtain backdrop.A younger and older man take a selfie outdoors in front of a green apartment building with a sign reading Forty Nieto.Close-up of a man in a light athletic shirt and earbuds, leaning against a brown wooden slat wall.Railroad tracks lead into the distance under a dramatic sunset with orange and blue clouds, flanked by industrial buildings.