same words, new meaning.

On the loose to climb a mountain, On the loose where I am free,
On the loose to live my life the way I think my life should be.
For I only have a moment, and a whole world yet to see.
I'll be looking for tomorrow on the loose.

Have you ever seen the sunrise turn the sky completely red?
Have you slept beneath the moon and stars, a pine bough for your bed?
Have you sat and talked with friends, though a word was never said?
Then you're just like me and you've been on the loose.
- Chorus

There's a trail that I'll be hiking just to see where it might go,
Many places yet to visit, many people yet to know.
But in following my dreams, I will live and I will grow,
In a world that's waiting out there on the loose.
- Chorus

So in search of love and laughter, I am traveling across this land.
Never sure of where I'm going, for I haven't any plans.
Anytime when you are ready, come and join me take my ha
nd. And together we'll share life out on the loose.
- Chorus

Year in Review

was the name of the session I did at the 2007 Spring LC retreat, and pretty much the first thing of importance, besides wrapping up a stellar WSC, that went down in 2007.

The year seems like a dream to me. Spring semester seems like ages ago, I'm still in debate with myself if May through December actually happened or not.

Nonetheless 2007 was pretty spectacular and I'm looking forward to rolling in '08 in style. I'm heading up to Madison this evening for a celebration for the books- my first new years in Madison. Strange.

wide lanes and perfect sidewalks

Racine, Wisconsin looks and feels like Pleasantville to me.

So i had to walk back home to you

When i speak of home, I speak of the place where- in default of a better- those I love are gathered together; and if that place were a gypsy's tent, or a barn, I should call it by the same good name notwithstanding.

-Charles Dickens, The life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby

stuck in houston.

Immigration officer: where where you?
me: Ecuador
Officer: why?
....
Officer: what are you going to do when you graduate?
me: ...i don't know...ahah prolly go back to south america..ahah
officer? why would you want to do that?
me: idk...
officer:i would never do that. i love america way too much.
STAMP.

Welcome to the US of A.

From Day one until Here I Am- this is me.

I am alone, but not, for seven months. I have no responsibilities from back in the states -execpt to keep the fam and good friends up to date- to hold me back. I'm on this journey alone, using this time to figure out some things, experience things compoletely different and have really hard days that make the good ones 100x better...

The final countdown of hours. The scowl on my face can't seem to leave. A fabulously frustrating 10 days of travel has left be so happy to be back in Quito, and it seems so unfair I have to leave tomorrow at 5am. I don't want to pack. I don't want to talk to anyone. I don't want to see a soul. I want to sleep.

...I know the first three months will be the hardest for me, struggling through the language and living alone, I almost want to count down till it's over- but i refuse to cause i want to live very day as full as possible...

The relief and happiness is rushing over me. I can't wait to get out of latin america. The smell of urine in the street near my house. The cheating cab drivers. The harrasment on on the streets when I walk to the bus stop. The fact that everything starts late. I hate that the sides of highways are used as garbage dumps. That there is no toliet paper or clean toilets when it seems I most need them. Constant stomach problems. Get me out.

...Fuck. tomorrow i need to find a phone, apartment, try not to be scared in down town Guatemala city- but it is all kinda sweet i have to admit...

My mom just called and said tomorrow night we are going to watch my favorite black and white christmas movie curled up in her big comfy bed with my sisters. I started bawling. I can't imagine that happening. I don't know if it was out of fear, happiness, or saddness, or a little of both. I don't want to leave. I love this place. I love Central America, I love South America, I love Guatemala, I love El Salvador, I love Ecuador, I love Colombia, I love Peru. I love the inescapable beauty of the mountains, desert, amazon, volcanoes, and the Pacific all within a few hours of bus. I love the the people, the worth their kindess and openness for complete strangers. I love speaking a different language fluently and being able to communicate with and understand someone, being on a different plane than you were ever on before. I love the food- more or less, and what i means...It means long family dinners and culture. Don't make me leave.

...Here I am embarking on this journey. One day at a time i guess, trying to feel everything- happiness, excitement, sadness, frustration- all of it adding to this beast of an experience and, hopefully, making myself more complete as to what I want to be.

border crossing blues

sitting on the beach where it never rains, in a small town in the peruvian desert...I look back on yesterday and think is it worth it?

13 hours, 3 bus rides, 2 shaddy un marked taxis, 40 nuevo soles in fake money, and 2 nasty border towns later....my brother, dad, and I made it to Mancora- the best beach in Peru. Allegedly its the shaddiest border crossing site in South America...according to the Planet- and let me tell you, the book was pretty much right on the money.

AsI sun bathed today in the hot sun and salty air without a cloud in the sky, watching my fam ´surf´with my margarita in hand ....i thought, oh yes my friend- it was worth it.

One more day of bliss.

7 wool sweaters later...

I´m not sure if its blogger, or the net cafe i´m at in Cuenca, but i can´t add any pictures at the moment.

The past four days I´ve been taking on Ecuador for a final run, with the company of my dad and older brother. Not too many road blocks thus far, not including the semi truck who losts its load on a mountain road, and then having us watch a crane attempt to put it right...when the crane took a dive as well- no worries, one hour later and no injuries, we were back on the move.

We started early Thursday morning and headed for Baños, my favorite place in Ecuador. Lush green mountains craddle a small small village that is cattered for tourists who want to take on the surounding wilderness. With only one day of my beloved baños in the game plan, i took full advantage and pushed -repeling down waterfalls- as our activity for the day. We tossed around the ideas of hiking and horseback riding, but waterfalls won out, and soon we were wetsuited up with helmets in the back of a pick up truck climbing higher and higher into the mountains with our guide named George, his wife, and their little girl. When a higher than normal river blocked our path, we started our hike up up and mooore up until we were looking over much of the sorrounding country land. George gave us a quick lesson down a dry small dirt hill on how to repel, and reassured us that nothing would happen as we started our decent down a series of six waterfalls. we started off with an 8 meter fall and ended witha monster 35 meter cascade. Each fall was a different style of repeling, so each one i lost the confidence of the one before because i was rigged up differntly.

After the first three I became a little to confident and before seeing number four i told my bro and dad...MAN! this is great! i´m not afraid at all! Within 10 minutes my bro and dad were down number four and i was shaking in my boots with George at the top as he said..katy i´m going down you have to go down last...and me, voice cracking, saying...GEORGE DON´T LEAVE ME!!!

Needless to say we all made it, had the time of our lives, and vowed never to do it again.

Highlights from the rest of the trip thus far...
*Seeing Volcano tungeraguah erupting in Banos
*2 hours more down the road in Riobamba seeing the streets filled with volcano ash from said volcano
*taking a wicked scary train ride through the devils nose for seven hour through switch back tracks in the mountains...tracks in some parts over 100 years old
*hiking Incan ruins and standing in awe at the incredible construnction of the temple.
*seeing lamas. always fun.
*market hoping through small towns near cuenca where i was tempted to buy cow brains. not.
*feeling like a parent with small children having to ask and figure out everything from prices, directions, bus routes, to information abour ruins- gotta love language barriers.

More to come...one week from today ill be in Wisco.

smok'n

don't blink and you'll see my first rings...

A glimpse of paradise: Galapagos in December

finals and family

There are currently two Hayes's in Quito, and Wednesday my Dad will make 3. I have less than two weeks less and we are going all out. I have two days of finals left, and having family in town doesn't make that too easy...but of course its worth it.

Sunday i spent the day showing Quito to my brother. I honestly thought i didn't like Quito that much as a city...but acting as tour guide, i found myself boasting and defending the city left and right. It really is a beautiful place and I've come to adore it. I don't want to leave...

Sean brought me photos of the family and the snow back home though...and it sure did put a smile on my face.

Whirlwind of emotions going on people.

warmth of the sand

What should you do when you are on the Galapagos? Island hop and get golden brown.

It tops one of the most enchanting places i´ve ever been, and nears the top of my list of most memorable days of mi vida.

The bunch of us took a boat around the bay near the main city on Island Isabela, the biggest island by land area, but not by people... The roads were made of sand, our hostel was on the beach, and our dinner was under $3 every night.

From the boat we saw sea lions splashing and showing off in front of us. They are as common as dogs here, lying in boats, and posing for the pictures we were taking. The guide took us to a small island that was taken over by animals.

Hundreds of iguanas covered the black lava rocks, some half my size. We walked over the rocks to look down into a small inlet created from the lava. We looked down and saw around 50 white tipped reef sharks. The sharks feed at night and go into this inlet to hang out and sleep during the day... the locals call them the ´sleeping sharks.´ A bit further down the path we got to another small bay that was full of sea lions , including a HUGE alpha male that was barking and barking at us, warning us to back off. We kept our distance long enough to see sea turtles paddling along with the sea lions. We walked back to the boat and took a quick dip in the tourquise water.

Later a boat took us out to an area to snorkel off the barren island of Bartolome, where we spent the afternoon swimming with with penquins on the equator. More than once i was face to face with a sea lion, and one followed me up on to a beach and kissed me on the knee when i relaxed on the sand.

where are we....?

As the plane began its decent, we slowly began to see the sharp jagged rock islands surrouned by an endless blue. The plane touched ground and we entered a new world. Flat, organge, brown, and rocky. There were no green lush mountains, tropical flowers, or animals to greet us.

For an hour on the bus, i gazed out the window. A forest of white trees with no leaves slowly changed into flat prarie lands with yellow roses. The roses slowly disapeared and lush green rainforest surrounded us as it began to drizzle and a man got up to close the windows. Within a matter of minutes, the rain stopped and large, widley spaced trees, which reminded me of an Oak, came into view. Then the fields came again, and the cows came into view, and wait, whats that? Next the that cow? A gaint tortoise.

Welcome to the Galapagos Islands.