A Positive New York Blog

Since Freshman year, when i got a myspace account, i've documented every trip to the state of New York that my family has taken.
This consists of mostly the sad ramblings of a teenager stuck on Long Island in the confines of his grandmother's lonely-old-lady house.
This generally entails much talk of the latest unreasonable work that must be done during the already painful "vacation".

However, with my brother going to college in Rochester, NY, there is a new kind of New York Trip to document&183;
Though still family road trips, which are amongst the least favored of all activities, Rochester happens to be on the "good side" of the Empire State.

Long Island, where my grandma lives, is a veritable snob-fest.
We read a book in English class last year called The Great Gatsby, which fictionally documents a middle-class young man's experiences with the Rich and Famous in the vicinity.
The Island is only a few miles from Manhattan, and as such has a rather dense population.
Trees are few and far in between; the landscape is more-or-less grey from everything being paved.

Rochester, on the other hand, is in Upstate New York, only a couple-hour-drive from Buffalo, and a day trip's distance from Niagra.
Up and Downstate new york couldn't really be much different.
The swelter of Long Island gives way to the picturesque landscape of New England autumn, with gorgeous trees and temperate climate.
People are courteous on the streets unless you venture into the slums of the city.

But New York is still New York.
Not being at my Grandma's doesn't make up for the fact that i'm currently typing whilst crammed on the larger side of the 60/40 seats in my dad's Extended Cab F-150.
I'm leaning on two pillows to cover up the harsh protrusions of the door handle and windowframes, and in order to change my position I have to pull myself up from a hook on the seat.

Lack of Amenities aside, the good part about roadtrips in general is still here: being in a car.
8 hours is a long time, but nothing beats watching the road go by at 80 miles per hour for thinking, atrophying, and justifying long naps.

Besides bringing Dave all his junk for the year (dave flew up a couple days ago), my parents are making me do interviews at my brother's school and then at RPI, which is in Troy.
But i dont think i want to go to either school.
I'd rather just stick around home, where Uturn is going to grow, and where Kindle is going to get better at writing songs.
At the same time, i could let all the growing happen while i'm in college, and then just come back after i graduate.
But that doesn't seem like a good plan to me.

Trying to decipher the future seems pretty useless.
If i were to ask any adult right now if they had any inkling that they'd be where they are when they were deciding on college, i'd get a "no way, kid" answer.
I have absolutely no idea where i'll be, who i'll depend on, who'll depend on me, or what i'll be doing to support those dependencies in 5 years.
5 years and i'll be completely done with school.
I'll be entering the workforce as an eager wage-earner.
I'll be searching for a cheap apartment.

I just hope that i'll be where i'm supposed to be.


Anyway, my point was that driving makes me think.
Actually, movement in general makes me think.
When i talk on the phone i pace in circles.
It helps me to concentrate when my surroundings aren't constant.

But being on the road always lends itself to me thinking of the future and progression.
It makes me want to go out and lead my life, to get on with it.
To make an impact, to make a difference.
I want to go places, and not just physically.

I had a sheet of paper last year that i found this morning whilst rooting through my backpack.
On it i had written a bunch of thoughts that had come to me at random times, with intents to write blogs on some of them.
Almost the whole first side of the page was about roads.
One line read:
"Let's drag race down the straight and narrow"

Our walk with God is often paralleled with a road or path.
Jesus described this as the "narrow gate" which leads to a straight path that is difficult to stay on.

But i think that we can be competitive in our relationship with Jesus.
By that i mean that, as Christians, we can-and should- push each other to grow.
Beyond "accountability partners", which seems to entail keeping each other in check, almost passively, i'm talking about actively pushing each other, the same way you push each other on a sports team to work harder and longer.
Just like how people drag race each other on highways to get to the destination faster.