Helen and I made our trip to Southeast Asia happen! And it happened very well.

We flew into Bangkok after about 21 hours of air travel, which included a stop in Osaka, a transfer in Taipei, and 11 time zones. Worth it!

We had planned the trip pretty thoroughly before going, since we had limited time in an area far, far away. We were able to stick to our plan pretty well. We spent a short time at the beach, then went back to Bangkok (which happened to be during Thai New Year), north to the old city of Ayutthaya, overnight train to Chiang Mai (smaller and more relaxing than Bangkok), then a short trek in the hills of Thailand.

We then spent about a week in northern Vietnam: Hanoi, Ha Long Bay, and the Phong Nha area (known for its caves).

It was a great trip filled with new experiences and some challenges (like crossing the street).

Some of the places we went will be featured at Head First, the history adventure site I created. We certainly found great material! But first I’m going to post about more a local history adventure that I did before leaving the country, seeing as it is Spring and people might be looking for hikes to do.

Speaking of Spring and hikes, I look forward to taking some hikes this Spring. One of the things I missed most on our trip (even more than drinking water from the tap) was enjoying the Northeast Spring. There were a few green buds coming out just before I left, but I didn’t get to watch the forest fill with green. It was certainly worth missing it, but like any rational person I wish I could have everything I want.

I’m still getting adjusted to my Jersey schedule (though I ate a sub from an Italian deli within 24 hours of returning to the state). Hopefully my schedule will include more frequent blog posts. We’ll see.

Already it is spring!

Head First, the history adventure project, has been taking up a lot of my time. I’m very proud of what we’ve done with Head First and very happy with my contributions, but it’s time to scale back. As I wrote on the Head First site, going to a less regular posting schedule will allow more time for other adventures in life, and also give us more flexibility to develop and experiment with Head First. It will be nice to mix up short posts, long articles, and videos more than before. As always, it’s in the spirit of “let’s do this and see what happens.”

I have been posting cool things on the Head First Twitter page. There are a lot of cool historical facts and adventure tips out there.

I had a good time at Liberty Forum. The video of my Thoreau talk should be online relatively soon, and I’ll post it here when I can.

I have a number of projects and ideas in the works, and I’ll share them here when they are more fully developed.

All in all, I think it’s going to be a good spring.

I’ve had a busy year so far. I posted at Head First every Thursday, with articles exploring the Paterson Silk Strike centennial, an ice-covered fire tower in the Catskill Mountains, an old stone bridge and early American roads, and old mining areas. Yesterday we posted our first video that we made together. It follows us as we explore the grounds of a community that was rooted by an anarchist-inspired school with a former resident describing what life was like there.

As described at Head First,

The Modern School, based on the ideas of Spanish anarchist Francisco Ferrer, was a radical program of freedom in education. After Ferrer was executed in 1909, anarchists and social reformers founded Modern Schools in many countries, and the movement took root in the United States. From 1915 to 1953, a community anchored by a Modern School existed in Piscataway Township, New Jersey.

Head First took a tour of the old Ferrer grounds with Bob Vinik, who grew up in Stelton and attended the Modern School. He gave us a fascinating picture of community life and how students grew into successful adults. We also got a chance to see how the land of the old colony has changed as Piscataway Township grew around it. It was a pleasure meeting Bob and discovering the unique history around the corner.

Originally I had wanted to do a few videos before we did the Modern School, as I knew it would be a challenge to do justice to the topic. But I am satisfied that we made what we wanted: a fun and informative video that can inspire people to learn more about things like the Modern School and to explore the history around them. I was excited and a little nervous while filming since I had never made a documentary video before. I trust that my excitement comes through, but I do see some things I can work on for my next video presentation.

Up next is trying to grow Head First into a solid series with broader coverage and more readers and viewers. I’m working on a few trips now, which will include winter scenes and places a little farther from home. I want the series to not only impress the viewer with how cool these places are, but also to showcase examples of things that can be explored with various levels of personal investment.

It’s officially winter here in the US, which means the days are actually starting to get longer, which means the Northern Hemisphere is getting closer to the sun – in other words, the solstice is here! Phil Plait has a nice explanation of the winter solstice at Slate.

I do like having a cold time of the year, and I hope to experience some cold days before spring. But I’m glad winter doesn’t last forever, and it’s easier to do things outside when there is more sunlight anyway. Also, after being in the dark for so long after Hurricane Sandy, it’s easier to understand why a mid-winter celebration of light was such a big deal for ancient people.

What I’m up to besides the expected holiday stuff, is the history adventure project Head First. Head First will continue to grow in the coming weeks, as there is plenty of interesting history to explore.

Best wishes for a festive midwinter!

I’m working on a history adventure series. It will show discovering the past as adventure, with a healthy amount of humor thrown in. There will probably be a YouTube channel and a blog. Some friends and I are getting together to work on this in the next couple of weeks. The series will explore the hidden past, forgotten places, and local connections to big ideas. Expect a serious announcement by mid-October.

Acadia National Park is a great time. If you like hiking it is a good place to go. If you don’t like hiking, that’s something you should probably change about yourself.

I’ve been hiking since the twentieth century, and I’ve experienced some exciting trails. But Acadia’s Precipice Trail is one of my all-time favorites, possibly my favorite day-hike. They weren’t kidding around when they named it. For most of the trail you hike on a precipice, typically with a rock face on one side and a steep drop on the other. At other points you climb on steel bars stuck into the rocks, and it’s extra fun when you think about how they were stuck in there and how sturdy they are. Apparently peregrine falcons like awesome places too, so the trail is sometimes closed when the endangered birds are nesting there. The only negative is that when you get toward the top you can easily hear vehicles on the park road, but I was too busy enjoying myself to let that bug me. I imagine it could get crowded if you went on a weekend.

Another worthwhile hike is Cadillac Mountain, the highest point on the US Atlantic coast. It’s more than just a checklist item: the rocky summit has excellent views and approaching it from the Gorge trail means following a creek up a deep gorge for much of the way.

Also, there are wild blueberries all over the place. It’s like candy that grows on bushes, except it’s way better than candy. If you’re in Maine and a food contains wild blueberries, you should eat it. If it doesn’t, consider adding lobster before eating it.

I enjoyed Porcfest, and as always the discussions with the AltExpo crowd were among the highlights.

My talk on Alternative Markets went well and opened a fascinating discussion. Thanks to everyone who participated and to everyone who made Porcfest possible.

Today I uploaded the notes to the presentation: AltMarkets Today. I will post the video when it is available.

It’s that time of year again, when the Free State Project hosts the greatest outdoor party for freedom-minded people: Porcfest!

I will be speaking at the Alternatives Expo at noon on Friday. My talk is on alternatives to the crisis-ridden establishment economy and what they mean for liberty.

I hope to see you there.

At the AltExpo last February I delivered a talk on left-libertarian ideas. With some minor revisions, the talk has now been published in ALLiance Journal as To Disperse Power: A Left-Libertarian Approach to Politics. The essay explores definitions, issues, and implementation.

A left-libertarian approach is to build from the bottom up to displace the rule of political and economic elites and social authoritarians. It is for a society of free, autonomous, and flourishing individuals and the communities they create together.

I have submitted all of the necessary forms to get my Master’s in history.

Graduate school was challenging and required a great degree of commitment. Was it worth it? I think I’ll be able to firmly answer that question in a year or so, but right now it definitely looks like it was worth it. My historical knowledge has expanded significantly thanks to my interactions with the excellent faculty and students of The City College of New York. I can tell that my research, analytical, and writing skills have greatly improved.

Bonus: Studying Russian led me to discover Russian rock music!