One Moment Please, Caller

When I was working with Alistair(Al) 2 months ago…he had his phone on him at all times and he always poked fun at me for my phone being near me at all times…

((I was off my phone during work(unless I was videoing something stupid that Sarah and I were doing behind Al’s back….remember..we weren’t getting paid))….but I was just starting my trip and I was researching and planning my next moves…idk I guess I am a millennial…I do have this dang phone on me all day…but hey…it connects me to you….and I did have many hours and days where I didn’t use the phone while on his land and this trip)

…..and the laptop that I could only charge during the brightest hours of the afternoon for the solar panels…he called a crap top…hahaha)….he was barely on his phone though. But when he got a call…me..or him..would be mid-sentence..the phone would ring..with some wonky 2007 sounding ringtone…and he would look at who was calling…look at me..and say…”one moment please, caller”…..he would answer the phone…every single time in the most sincere…welcoming..happy that someone called…tone of voice. He would change it up….but It was always along the lines of…”Hiya Mate”, “Oh you’re still kicking, mate”, or “Bout Time mate”….and then he would giggle…drop the joke aside and just go into the most genuine conversation…and he would walk/pace away from me…with a smile on his face…happy to talk to whoever called him.

He would mess with me sometimes…answer the phone..do his little walk away..and say to the other person on line…”one sec..gotta make sure this American doesn’t mess this up” and then tell me what to do for the next 15 minutes…”think you can handle that sonny?”….I’d say yessir. He’d say…”sweet as” or “good on ya mate”….and then turn away and say to the other person on the line..loud enough where I could hear it…”gotta watch these Americans” followed by a big laugh. It was all in fun…I think;)…and I was happy to do whatever task…..and for a second I would start doing that task..but I couldn’t help but watch this old man enjoy a connection with someone…I remember not wanting him to see I was watching…but I couldn’t help it….and I was happy to see this ol’ curmudgeon enjoying a call/conversation with a friend.

I’m skipping a few important things/days/sights/events/encounters/THOUGHTS that I’ve been wanting to write on here…because today is fresh on my mind and its worth it…and partly to give myself a break and partly to give the reader some breathing room…even though I don’t have to be worried about a reader…I mean it is their choice to read after all……………..…….I worry about a reader…and I do have a fear of piling on too much heavy stuff on people…even if they subscribe..or befriend..or offer to listen…I still feel guilty after a certain amount of time…that I’m piling too much on them…….but dang….do I have so much to say…at all times. Now that I opened the floodgates for my emotions/feelings…it’s always wanting to pour out of me…and I’m having to find a tad bit of restraint and remain conscious of how/when and…. what I’m saying might be affecting other people…in an unintentional…negative way….which is the complete opposite of what I ever want to do. Even though…I talk about not wanting to be censored…and not wanting to be muzzled…I do believe there is a line…a line…in how much to reveal…when to reveal/vent..and if revealing/venting is effective for me or the person on the receiving end of it……and I’m discovering where that line is…I will probably…always lean towards the side of divulging more than the average person…and I’ve accepted that…and I’m comfortable with it…and fully believe in the benefits of it…for all parties involved…however…I have to set boundaries…and that is something that I am working on…and will continue to work on.

DO YOU WANT TO HEAR ABOUT AN ADVENTUROUS DAY OR WHAT????

Everything you read below will be from one single day in NZ. I’m writing from a tiny loft..with nothing on the walls..a “bookshelf” to my right…there are exactly “20” books on it…three shelves…sea green is the color though..very nice. I’m on a couch..it’s…aight. Nothing special.. low ceiling…but it’s a loft…white walls…steep stairs down below…this is my spot for 2 nights…my bed is underneath the loft.

4:45 A.M…waking up in a hostel in Auckland..all they had left was a private…$45 USD. I’m exhausted from the days prior…nice to have my own room. I wake up with one leg on a bed to my left..and my right leg on the bed to my right…a king….a king imposter!…I’m awake a little earlier than what I set my alarm for…realize that I’m sinking into this canyon of a NZ hostel bed wonderland…and I’m so tired…that I just accept it…go back to sleep…Its been many hours since then that I’m writing this..…I feel some tightness…well…all over my body. We are used to discomfort at this point…we embrace discomfort ;)

I take a shower…a cold shower…a little frustrated..but it woke me up. Get an uber for $5 to the ferry…after spending a whopping 30 minutes packing my crap into the two bags that I have been using since day one of the trip…I’ve collected a few things since then…its getting heavy…and now its a full on…put all of your body weight on the bag to zip it up…oof. There is a strategy at this point.

FERRY!

I walk up to the ferry port…not many people..at all..I’m pretty early..it departs at 7:00 am…I’m there at 6:10. A lady in an orange vest asks me my name…I say “Donald”..she says..”too old”..turns me away. I say..”no no..I’m messing…Joe..names…I think…yea..names Joe.”…she…slaps me…says I’m too old for these type of jokes.

I finally admit my real name..its Zachary Dallas Houston…not from Texas..but moving to Texas..and no ties to Texas..but likes things about Texas..but doesn’t own a cowboy hat, and has a  funny accent, but can’t ride a bull, but also acknowledges that he’s not that tall, and drives a car that is born to transport tex Mex for $7 per delivery. She let me in on a special clause….she didn’t tell me what it was …she would only refer to it as the “special’ clause and I wasn’t asking any questions.

So we are waiting around to hop on the ferry…its dark…the Auckland skyscrapers are starting to show themselves…you can start to see the faces of the people around you….when the lady got done verifying I wasn’t a clown I made my way towards the boat…I was approached..very swiftly…almost felt like I was being attacked. This barefooted, disheveled man was all of the sudden in my face…its about 6:15am…I’m still asleep pretty much…haven’t had a sip of a water…I’ve spent a tiny amount of time in Auckland…and its pretty much the only place in NZ where you will come across an abundant amount of beggars or people acting erraticly  I have also lived in Atlanta…and spent time in the worst areas of SF, Portland, and Seattle….and I genuinely want to help a crisis…but I also have learned to look out for myself in certain ways..and unfortunately I have seen some abuse the crisis to their advantage and try to take advantage of people who feel sorry for them. Thats a whole other conversation that I’ve dealt with in the past few years. Homelessness…I feel like that entire situation…for me…has boiled down to….empathy…and a lack of trust…and then a lack of trust in people in charge to actually find a solution….and I’m caught in between. But I have seen some progress and good initiatives out there….I really like one called “Samaritan”…check it out.

So this man…says…”I ugh mate..I need..ugh ..someone to back my car in on the ferry, mate..”…I say “what?” He said….”all you gotta do is back in this car and this trailer a few meters over there”

It was 1.More than a few meters. 2. It was a little sedan with an absolutely massive amount of stuff being towed.

And 3…I’m usually open to hearing side quest presentations…but the presentation on this one didn’t seem right…it was weird..it was dark out..it was early…and I wasn’t even sure about where I was going on this day….the last thing I’m going to do is listen to freaking Jeffery Dahmer tell me to drive his car…much less..get inside of it.

I said “ yea mate, na can’t drive..don’t know how..thats why I’m walking on this boat”

He said “you don’t know how to drive mate?”

And I was thinking…what……………………..you can’t even back your own trailer and you’re appalled that I won’t back it in for you. Sounds like we got the same problem, mate.

I said firmly..”nope. Don’t know how to drive”

He said “ aight..whatever..I’ll find someone else who knows how to drive”…as he walked away with his barefeet on the port concrete splashing puddles every step he took.

Pause.

I’m going to sleep…I’m exhausted…I’m going to continue this in the morning. I don’t have wifi here and I’m typing this offline in my notes…and so this probably won’t be uploaded until I’m back in Auckland in a few days…but I’ll continue writing tomorrow. It really was a great day. I’ve had so many great days…I lay my head to rest tonight happy and in a good place…but dreams have a mind of their own….its every night. But guess what…they are dreams…and my reality starts again…every single morning…..every single dang morning. I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to shed the bad dreams…but I know for a fact…that they are just dreams…and I will wake up every morning…reminding myself..that they are just bad dreams..goodnight..wish me luck…I’ll be okay..I’m on top of this..I promise.

Unpause. It’s now about 3 nights since I wrote the above. I’m still going to continue the full day. Also, it was another one of those nights. Dreams are bizarre…the mind pulls from all kinds of memories and meshes them together to destroy me in my sleep. That night…was just another one of em’….it involved recent things and pulled back things that I haven’t even put thought to in forever. But guess what…I woke up…and started to breathe again..put my shoes on…walked out the door..to start a brand new day.

Okay..so where were we.. they are loading our luggage in a luggage box that is on a forklift ready to be put on the boat. A few stragglers arrive. I stand near the water looking out. A guy walks over. We talk about fishing…small talk. He’s here for a wedding. Pete is his name. A kind man. Heavier set. He is the grandfather of the groom. He shows me pictures of his grandchildren catching fish and crayfish on the great barrier island where we are headed to. I ask where the wedding is on the island..he has no clue. All he knows is the cost of things and that he’s just happy for his grandson. There are a good bit of them on the boat headed to this wedding. As I am talking to Pete…that same guy comes up to us and he asks Pete to back the trailer…Pete didn’t hesitate at all.. he agreed to back it in. I was expecting to get some kind of look from the guy like “see…thats how help out a friend” kind of look…but he didn’t…it was almost like he didn’t even remember me from a few moments earlier. Pete gets in this old black Audi…its low to the ground…the trailer is piled high with stuff…you can barely see I’m sure…there is moisture on the back window…Pete gets back out of the car…says “can’t see shit..can’t do it mate”…the glare from the port lights were piercing through the back window in the moisture I guess…(wait…is moisture even a thing…that is weird…what is moisture…moist is a weird word….moist….hmmmm…moist hahah) Finally a port employee backs the dang thing in….it was the last thing to get on the boat before we could board. We get the okay..to go..after tiny socializing off the boat as the sun begins to rise. I plug in my headphones..I have this interesting feeling come over me.

It feels like I’m in one of those movies where a group of people come together before some big trip and everything is sunny and happy before some terrible awaits them later in the movie. I think it was a mix of a few things that gave me this feeling.

I was on an adrenaline high from Cape Reigna a couple days earlier…and then skydiving just the day before…exhausted but still on fire for life…I made plans to go to this island that I didn’t even know existed until 3 days before…I boarded this ferry to ride 4.5 hours to an island that I knew little to nothing about…I had yet to book accommodation or transportation…I was gonna do what I always do…I’ll figure it out when I get there. I did know that I was headed to a remote and off the grid island. So I explore a couple spots around the boat..it’s nothing like the ferry between the North and South Island….this is a real ferry. Seating up underneath the parked cars..a little seating area up top…a little room on the bow and two walk ways perched up above the cars on the sides….I am seeing where everyone decides to post up before I make my decision.

That feeling of is this the start of some type of psychological thriller or some Jurassic park 3 journey…there are characters on the boat.. maybe 25 of us…I feel as if I’m the only one on the boat truly holidaying and backpacking…no one is near American…

The boat embarks towards a massive…glowing sun..blinding really..we are going to the sun.

I’m on another adventure. This is what I live for..this is what I love to do more than most things in the world…raw adventure..and in my mind..this is the epitome of my favorite style of adventure.

We settle in on this long ride. I find all of the best vantage points to look out…the boat begins to rock a little side to side..not much..but you are holding onto railings while moving around. People have taken their spots..some are talking..some are sleeping..some are taking pictures of the scenery. Everyone was very sociable..had their morning coffee..chatting..I obviously enjoy that…the rocking gets a little worse..I have an empty stomach. There is a little tiny kitchen.. but I don’t order any food. I don’t know if it was out of laziness or the sea sickness had already started and I lost an appetite..I knew I should have had something in my tummy. This is about the 3rd time on the trip where I was preparing to battle sea sickness..even though the other two times I did all that worrying for nothing..never got sick…I decide to stay a little lower…there is a lady with two beautiful doodle type dogs. I ask if I can pet and sit. This helped put me a little bit at ease and the dogs gave a comforting distraction to the rocking of the boat. The brown dog is a therapy dog…but a very shy..and observant therapy dog…the other dog is curious and lively. They are friends. This lady had to go back to the mainland due to a bad case of bronchitis..needed to be near a hospital? I’m guessing. She is taking her grandsons..therapy dog back to him..I think the dogs must have gone to the vet while back on the mainland. This lady also loves her grandson..who would stand at 6’3” waiting on her when we arrived on Great Barrier.

The strange man from earlier has another vehicle on this boat right in front of us..we can see him rigging something up in there..not sure what he’s doing. Lady says…somethings not right with this one…he’s strange…I said….I’ve been thinking the exact same thing…he’s got a white dog..very timid dog…walking around the boat with his tail tucked..nervous shakes…the little blonde dog next to me doesn’t like that dog…he breaks away from his owner once to go let the other dog that this is his boat today…lots of barking during the interaction…quite loud on the little boat…dogs calm down..strange man picks his dog up and walks away…lady doesn’t like that other dog lol. She goes to do something so I get to watch her dogs for a little bit…loved it. They were both very affectionate towards me..the brown one was Scooby I think? He has monkey eyes…beautiful eyes.

Lady comes back…I can’t remember name..Kristy maybe..very sweet..great conversation. She shares a motion sickness pill…she said she used to get sick on the ferry but has gotten better about it…she doesn’t like the way the waves are starting to look “I don’t trust myself so I’m gonna take a motion sickness table”..I take one too..

I’m going to make this a 2 parter. I have lots of things to share about this day.