the most wonderful time of the year

when taking pictures under a waterfall is probably not the best idea,

but the pictures from on top of the falls are just as sweet!

when the fridge is stocked with plenty of nourishing delights,

and smiling faces greet you in the morning light!

happy new year to you and yours

enjoy the tune!

my world...current

inspiration
rigid soul
feel the good
the SS will always set you free!

smart shopper

in this day and age when people are losing their careers and the students in our elementary schools can not recognize why the United States celebrates the 4th of July, we have man. adapting to this downfall of society, utilizing the ways and means to continue to put food on the table of his family.

until next...

...summertime

let's go dancing...

...came across the ipod as i cruised on my mountain bike for one of the first times in the past week. it feels good to be back in the woods! i have spend the last six weeks pounding the pavement on the road bike, cyclocross riding (not in the euro sense, but in the nepa sense), and riding my retro schwinn to and fro various parties, destinations, and work. yay! work. it is here for now as i finish my dreams of graduate school to become an educator and to have summers off. i have solidified the fact that teaching comes natural to me and when you discover your talents, you should embrace and scurry away to enjoy life. besides, who wants to work all-year-round anyway. life is for living, not working. let's go dancing is a drivin' n cryin' song, but in this case it was a solo acoustic performance by kevin kinney. until next time...

healing, breathing, searching

after a disheartening start to the summer, losing my job, i have been relegated to deciphering my future career options. continue on my current path of education or start something new. i am still working through this. looking forward to more positive aspects of my current situation, i was totally stoked for some racing this season, until i broke/fractured/cracked some of my ribs while cruising around the marsh creek trails one afternoon. i new i had done some damage that day, but tried to race the fair hill endurance race anyway in a somewhat compromised position. feeling good and pushing the pace i rounded a corner and twisted my bod a little funny. that was all it took to roll out to the road and search out i much needed ice pack, chair and beer, and come to the conclusion that my racing season is now on a major break if not ended for the season.

that was a few weeks back and now i am at the point where i can breathe deep without pain, and i can sleep through the night without a mandatory mid-afternoon nap to catch up on some z's. my summer has manifested into something that i had not expected, but as always, i keep a positive outlook on the future, and continue to focus on the present in order to enjoy what i love. living and experiencing the world around me. with mountian biking out of the picture for a while, i have brought some of my other hobbies to the forefront of my days: road riding, guitars and concert going. hopefully some folks have checked out some of the road loops i have mapped out on probably one of the smoothest running websites in the world, map my ride, just kidding. that website takes forever to map a ride, but it gets the job done. i have several other rides mapped. most are more than 50 miles in length and rock out on some of the best roads, climbs and descents in the region. if anyone wants hook up for a road loop, feel free to get in touch.

in between tornados!

map my fun!

down, not out

things to do with busted ribs in the pennsylvania hills:
le tour, saddle time,
pickin' and grinnin', live music, yummy

a day without a buzz...is a day that never was

open your eyes and see!

warrior

just when you think all is good in your universe, situations present themselves that are so unexpected, they will force you to new beginnings. this is my present. breathe...

enjoy today!

spring baby

as i get ready to celebrate another chapter in the book of my life i just consider the greatness in being a child of the spring. the birth, growth, and regeneration of the natural world unfolds before our eyes during the spring. the sweet smells of nature return to the air and the songs of the birds give a melody only heard if you so shall desire. for this i am thankful.

help out a starving artist

check out local jt photographer and help support his artistic endeavours by checking out his website and voting for him in the name your dream assignment. his theme is "the world in a bubble." you can find the contest information to cast a vote at the bottom of his website. the contest ends tomorrow and your votes are more than appreciated. click here and enjoy!

love your mother

it's only one month away, but should be celebrated everyday. the jim thorpe earth day celebration is in its 12th year featuring all kinds of heady treats throughout the town of jim thorpe. free music, arts & crafts, and good vibes in the town square on both saturday and sunday, with a drum circle hosted by yours truly to welcome folks to an evening of music at the mauch chunk opera house. i'm looking for a few good rythym makers to join in on the circle. so bring a drum, cowbell, or maraca and contribute in the healing power of music to thank mother earth for all she has provided for us.

the roots of creation

in case you have been locked in a block of ice, high above some miscellaneous skyscraper, eastern woods research is back! this spring they will unleash a band of enthusiastic cyclists upon the mountain bike scene. filled with vigor and an unbridled passion for the soul of the mountain trail i introduce the ewr bikes/bilenky cycle works factory team and the ewr bikes/acg opthamology grassroots team.










missing from the photo is the rancor beast!

what is and what should never be

as i approach the summit i knew the earth was far beyond repair. what once was a serene landscape was now the last place to dispose of waste created by a society of over consumption and poor decisions.

what ever happened to the slogan "going green" or "reduce, reuse, recycle?" all i could think of as i sat atop the mountain of trash was that maybe "going green" really meant going, going, gone green or reduce the amount of beautiful countryside, and reuse it to store our waste.

the days of digging your toes into the earth are long gone. no more flourishing green fields filled with wildflowers or white sand beaches for a king to romance his queen at an afternoon picnic. shoes are mandatory in this new, forsaken land.

people in the past talked about other people having bad tastes in fashion. well what about the tasteless food that no longer grows from the ground, but comes from that big factory down the street. maybe if i moved a patch of this trash i can grow a few veggies! even though they might taste like petroleum, it might still be worth it. maybe i could clear an even bigger patch and give the animals a suitable habitat as opposed to boxes and cans, cars and refrigerators.

as i stepped back to get a good lay-of-the-land to make my ideas a reality, i tripped and started to stumble. all of a sudden the ground broke loose under my feet and i began to fall uncontrollably into a pit that must have been covered by trash. i couldn't see the bottom, and why should i, it took me what seemed like hours to get to where i was. what if my idea could have helped just a little bit?! what's that?!

ahhhhh! suddenly i spring up! i look around at the view in front of me. i am sitting in a green meadow filled with wildflowers, barefoot and next to my queen. it must have all been a dream! then i thought to myself, what if my ideas could help just a little bit?!

i had my students write hypothetical stories about what would happen if there was no more land to store the waste produced by humans. this was mine. enjoy!

in these parts

the weather has been braking just enough to get the wheels turning a little more than usual during the month of febuary. cabin fever is beginning to subside, to speak the truth, i usually spend most of my free time outside no matter what the temps are, just not so much on a bike. anyway, over the winter the cabin fever has been consisting of friday night bluegrass jams at the place that i call home. we have had some epic nights this winter just diggin' on a simple groove.

another great aspect of the ending of winter is the harvest of that good ole nectar from mother nature, maple syrup! over the weekend, i grabbed the axe (guitar) and headed up the road to a good friends farm to party down for his birthday, play some tunes, and tap some maple trees. it is a long process that takes about a month to a month and a half when you tap trees in the old way, but well worth it when you have a huge stack of flapjacks in front of a fire with syrup from your local trees. the best thing about using the land is sharing it with the younger generations to pass on the love and knowledge of the earth. after the trees were tapped we celebrated pickin' some righteous tunes till the wee hours of the morning. in these parts, that's how it's done!