Latvia, July 19, 2006

I went on a trip to Latvia with my grandmother in 2006. The purpose was to take her to some of the places she remembered and to experience some of the country for my first time. We flew there together.

Waking:

This journal will serve as my dream journal and my waking journal for this trip. Considering the potential paths this unstructured visit may take, I would be a fool not to document it. My roommate, Sandy, suggested that this trip may wind up with enough compelling content to outline a graphic novel or at least inspire one, but one of the in-flight movies available for selection was "V For Vendetta," so my hopes are grounded at the moment.

I'm not sure how to write this, so for the time being I'm only going to use the most personal style I can think of, though I already feel self-conscious and cocky about using it. The fat that the last sentence uses "feel" suggests that this journal will bear a lot of my own analysis of the situations I encounter, but I will try to also offer objective writing as well. If I'm really good, I won't analyze anything until I've written it.

If you can't tell, this is the first time I've ever written a self-motivated journal.

We're one hour or less from Schipol airport, where, thanks to a pointy metal protrusion in my chair, and my expert packing, I will be walking around with a six-inch gash in the back of my shorts. Thankfully, my expensive traveler's boxer-briefs survived the ferrous invasion and no ass hair will be making its first public debut this morning-evening-four-hour-sleepless-perpetual-day traveler's nightmare.
Blessed are the Dutch.

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Descent has begun and a flight attendant just said to me: "Thank you for taking good care of your family. Many people do not."