Adam Jackson

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The place I call home is equivalent to what most of my friends would consider a weekend getaway. A New England home out in the country on a small piece of land, on a dirt road that is dusty, muddy and covered in foot deep snow depending on the season with slow Internet, a power generator that kicks on twice a week when the wind blows in a town that has a population just shy of 1,700 inhabiting 54 square miles. SF is 7 times small but 700 times more people. The town I grew up in has 60,000 people and two Wal*Mart locations.

It’s hard to believe that I’ve lived here for 3 years this coming September. I’m 2 months away from my 27th birthday and, at this point in my life, would imagine that I’d be pretty set in my ways. I’d have a hobby that was for sure something I was extremely passionate about, I’d be pretty settled in where I lived and maybe even be married. None of these things are true. One thing that is true is that I ponder life a lot less than I used to. I feel less nostalgic now than I did 10 years ago.I have less regrets, more friendships but I do have a lot of ex-friends and ex-lovers and am driving my 4th car and living in the 6th house as an adult since I moved out of my dad’s house at age 20.

It felt like I was on the path to write an introspective quarter-century biography on my 25th birthday. I started that project but ended up throwing it away not because it wasn’t important to me but I finally gained some perspective and a proper value of my life and realized a quarter-century biography did nothing but serve my own ego so it was thrown out. Good riddance. It was a boring read.

Elizabeth and I have been living together since a week before New Years Day 2013. Prior to that, we dated since October of 2010 and lived separately about 15 miles from each other. my commute to work is a bit longer now but we both made compromises to find a place that worked for us. I’ve known her now for over 2 and a half years. That’s pretty cool. Moving in, combining our stuff and working on a household budget was difficult. We’re both very independent so each day feels like a compromise. I think we’ve found our rhythm.

I still fail to fully grasp the extent of things. It’s a left-over trait from my childhood I guess. I don’t take things as seriously as most people do. I decided to take my current job and move across country within a moment of being offered the position. No deliberation, just an instant visit to craigslist to start selling my stuff. I flew to SF mid-May of 2010 to look for work and 2 weeks later, I had a few garage sales and as there in June. I make big decisions a bit too easily. So far, they’ve worked out. Now that I’m over 25 and soon approaching 30, the habit of jumping into things has bigger consequences. I just hope I’m not wasting Elizabeth’s time. We’re both adults but she certainly considers choices a lot more seriously than I do. She knows of my impulsiveness. I think that overall, getting older hasn’t changed my swift decision making. Overall, I’ve had good luck with the choices i’ve made. So far, us living together is going pretty well.

When I returned from Denmark, I had a cold that lasted over a week. This was in March. After a few tests were made, my doctor said the only possible option was that I may have HIV. Eliz was with me in the doctor’s office. We both thought it was funny but then, over the next 3 days, I actually got worried. I’m not a self-diagnosed hypochondriac but I did the test as my doctor recommended and waited for results. By the time my results came back, I was feeling better and the results were negative. Of course they were. Why wouldn’t they be? Those of you that read the blog since it’s inception including my other blogs dating back to 1999 (wazzzup LiveJournal?) know of how preposterous any STD is for how I’ve lived my life but I spend slightly more time worrying about my future now than I used to. I say slightly because I still am impulsive and sometimes impatient but I’m working to make more decisions or at least consider things that may have an affect on my future and the people I love.

My sisters are getting older. I was telling my Dad a few months ago that he’s always going to be 35 in my eyes. I don’t see him aging. To me, he’s always the same. I wonder if my sisters see me this way? I was there in the hospital room when both of them were born. I was almost 10 when Cheyenne was born and, 3.5 years later, Marley was born and I was practicing for my driving test. Now, they’re 16 and 13. Cheyenne will be 17 in 2 weeks. Mind blowing. I hope they look up to me and look to me for guidance, advice and that they see my mistakes and don’t make them. A dream that I’ve succeeded in accomplishing is to have my own experiences shape my perspectives in a way that expands my mind. I hope they can do the same. 

An anonymous commenter on the Internet said something along the lines of people who travel aren’t any smarter than those who don’t. Just because you can afford $300 for a plane ticket doesn’t make you a better person. 

I really disagree with that. My personality is not solely shaped by a flight to Europe. That’s not the point. The point is the more you put yourself outside of your comfort zone, outside of what you know and think and perceive, the more you’ll grow. I hope my sisters find that same path. So many people in my family are married at 18, pregnant at 19 and they’re happy with that life and I love them. They’re my family, they’re great people. However, I don’t hang out with people like my family. I don’t connect with people who don’t travel, didn’t go to school, didn’t take risks or wander strange towns in foreign countries at night. the sort of people I get along with are the explorers who take risks. Very few in my family did that while we get along, the people I’m friends with and those who are in my family are a different group of people with different politics and ideals. 

I remember one of my greatest memories while traveling was learning how to play Rugby in the slums of India while in Mumbai. The area felt unsafe, I was wearing flashy clothes and had a camera and did not fit in at all. I made some great friends that day, some spoke english and it was just a fun day.

I hope my sisters have these kind of experiences. Travel can be cheap and the world is smaller than you think.

Something unthinkable has happened over the last few years. I care less about Technology and more about culinary. Beer especially has become a big part in my life. It’s only a small bit of my pursuit to become more self-reliant. Just this weekend, I made pork that I raised, slaughtered, processed, cured and smoked myself. The hogs I raised last year is still some of the best tasting meat I’ve ever had. It’s a shame I can’t have animals where I live currently. Everyone should experience gardening, raising animals and slaughtering them, making beer and cheese and wine.Making your own cheese and churning butter is very easy. So many people I know don’t even feel comfortable at a stove. The art of sustaining ourselves is being lost. It’s pretty sad.

Beer as a hobby has taken such an unexpected hold over me that I’m still grappling to understand what it means. The obvious assumption is that I’m an alcoholic. I’ve taken some very important steps to limit that possibility. Taking breaks from beer, hanging out with my beer friends and not drinking, pouring beer that’s not A+ down the drain because I don’t want the calories and other things have helped me understand that I’m not an addict. Of course, there are both physical and mental addictions. As long as I keep a handle on the relationship I have with alcohol, I should be okay. I actually don’t drink all of the beer I brew. Most of it is given away. Brewing and exploring yeast and various hops has been an extremely fun addition to this hobby. Also, seeking out rare and special beers and sharing them with friends is also fun. like any hobby, beer is very expensive. Some of the bottles I have cost $300 just to acquire. Yes, some of these beers are cellarable for many years as long as light is absent and the temperature is in the 50s but it’s a hobby and I just have to keep the expenses within reason. Things like harvesting my own yeast and learning how to brew some of the beers I like the most has helped me keep the budget in check.

My job is as great as the day I started almost 3 years ago. Every day is a new challenge with teams all around the world. The successes at my company over the last 3 years are too many to list but some I had a hand in and that’s a great feeling. I still do some side-work outside of the day job. That and beer and culinary hobbies keeps me very busy. 

I didn’t have a point in this blog post. It’s just nice to sit here outside among thousands of chirping birds and the smell of flowers and write what’s new.I’ll do a yearly birthday update like usual but this was more of a rambling bit. 

This blog isn’t updated as much as it should be. This is for a few reasons. The first is that my interests in technology often collide with my job. I can’t post my opinion here as often as I’d like. The second is I write more about beer and there’s a blog for that separate from this one. Finally, I stay pretty busy with work, friends and hobbies. I’m sure you all understand. Besides, too much of me is never a good thing.

I’d like to lose some more weight this summer which means drinking less beer. It also means cutting out more meat from my diet and spending more time at the gym. I’d like to buy some new clothes which I haven’t done in over 2 years. I remain stubborn that I won’t buy 38 waist jeans..therefore I wear 36 waist jeans like an idiot and pretend that these are the correct size. Things like that need to change. Either I lose 25 pounds or I buy the right jean size. Don’t sit in limbo, right?

Well, I’m going to go for a hike and listen to the new Kanye West album which I hear is a bit mixed on how good it is. We’ll see.

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Two years ago today, I wrote this blog post. It was an overall update where the weather had warmed up and I was blogging by the river. I miss that little gazebo by the river. It was so relaxing. In that post, I wrote this:

Next week, I’m picking up a brand new, never driven Toyota Corolla. My salary sort of means I could afford any car on that lot and I’m not bragging, it’s just true but, being a first time car buyer who traveled from 17-24, I don’t have much credit so I had to get a cheap car to prove that I can pay payments on time.Believe it or not though, I kind of love the car. I don’t need a huge SUV (nor do I want one) but I’d love to drive a Mercedes off the lot but my credit said no to that. So, this $21,000 Corolla with leather trim, bluetooth, upgraded sound system, larger engine, extra bod kit and all kinds of features like a mooon roof and steering wheel car controls is mine. I’m paying for it over 36 months and I got a great deal on it considering I’ve never had a car before or a credit card for that matter. 

My first new car and it was a fun one. While I enjoyed the Corolla, it wasn’t my choice, it was the only option I had with the lack of credit history. It was also a lease, so the car was due back or I had the option of buying it when the lease was up but the buyout was considerably higher than the worth of the car after paying $315 a month for the past 24 months, that’s $7560 and then they asked me to pay $15,000 or $22,560. Not much over the value of the car but for a car I didn’t want, it was a lot.

In January, the search began for a new vehicle. I was pretty set on a Mini Cooper S, a Toyota Avalon or a Toyota FJ Cruiser. They are 3 radically different vehicles (sports car, luxury and 4×4 truck) but each catered to a desire of mine. I love going fast, I love luxury / comfort and I’m tired of getting stuck in the snow / mud on my dirt road here in New Hampshire.

A couple of things happened. The first is that Mini Cooper would require I drive 2 hours to Boston when i needed car work done since there is no BMW or Mini dealership in my area. The Avalon I was laughed at for wanting a grandma car and the body was huge, it’s a full-size and a lot of wasted space especially considering the back seats don’t fold down aside from a small hole for skis, I can’t put anything in it and the FJ cruiser well, I think it’s going away or at least no Toyota dealers in my area could get one for me. “They’re all stuck at port. we don’t know when we’ll ever get any in” and that lasted for 2 months. My dad has an FJ and I love the look of it but, trucks eat gas and have bigger tires, brakes and other parts. It’s a pricey car and lacks the technology and conveniences. It was a practical choice but I couldn’t drive any of the new models since none were available locally.

While my friend Justin was here from SF on the 17th of March, we looked at the Volkswagen Golf R. He told me it’s the perfect car for me, all wheel drive and a lot of fun to drive. I thought Golfs were cheap cars that kids bought used and added a ton of modifications. I thought Volkswagens were the black sheep of the German car makers where Audi shined and BMW / Mercedes were the crown German vehicles. I see Audis all over town but I don’t see many VW vehicles.

A few days after Justin and I peered at the Golf R through a window on a Sunday at the local VW dealership, I went to the dealer locally. Thank goodness there’s one near my work. After test driving the Golf, we set up the paperwork and I finally took it home 2 weeks later. That was 3 weeks ago and now that I have finally received all of the paperwork to register the vehicle, insurance squared away and a few tanks of gas later, I wanted to express the excitement on this blog and share with you a few photos. First, here’s the Golf R in a nutshell:

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The VW Golf is the original hot-hatchback. Golf vehicles spend many thousands of miles on the road, retain a nice resale value and each generation is followed quickly by many aftermarket parts, modifications and tweaks that can be made. The VW GTI is a Golf on steroids and it’s faster, slightly larger and more fun to drive. The Golf R is a vehicle that comes around every few years (previously called ‘Golf Rabbit’ or R32) and it’s basically a wickedly improved GTI but with the Golf name. This forum post breaks than down better than I can. While the Golf R is around $6,000 more than the VW GTI, this Autobahn race between a Stage 2 GTI and a stock Golf R shows an idea behind just how much faster the Golf R is. 

The Golf R is dangerously fast and the German engineering is awe-inspiring. Every little thing is special. When the wipers aren’t in use, they hide so you can’t se them and engaging the front windshield cleaner also sprays wiper fluid on my front headlights. The lights move as I turn the steering wheel making it easier to see around corners. The steering wheel is ergonomic if that’s even the right word for it and the built in computer manages the entire driving experience. Did I mention how fast it is?

By default, I’d say this car prefers going 90 miles per hour. That’s the normal speed for it. If I am on an interstate in Vermont, cruising along with not  a car in sight (happens more than you think up here in the woods), I’ll realize almost once per day I’m going 90. Cruise control is your friend and keeps you in check. If the speed limit is 55 and someone on a single lane road is going 40, passing them is a breeze. You drop the gear from 6 into 4, realize you’ve just hit 80 miles per hour and then turn on your blinker to get over and let off the gas until you get back to 55. I’ve never passed a car so easily before. It’s pretty remarkable. 

Also, I’ve never driven an all-wheel-drive vehicle before. This video explains VW’s 4-Motion system. On Friday, there was an inch of ice on the ground and another inch of snow. In just the stock factory all-season tires, I was passing cars in the lane on Interstate 91 that had not been plowed. In fact, the snowy lane was easier to drive in than the lane covered in black ice. I’ve never before driven the speed limit during a snow storm. I didn’t slip or slide or feel at all that I was driving in a snow storm. The car just drove and I did a few tests in a parking lot covered in snow to get a feel for the handling. Each time the car loses control, I can steer a tad and recover easily. The all-wheel drive makes driving fun again in both snowy and dry conditions.

The 3300 pound car with all wheel drive and a heavy all metal frame means lower gas mileage than my Corolla. It averages 24.8 MPG versus 31.3 in the Corolla. Not only that, it requires premium gas and maintenance will be treated like a sports car…we’re talking sports car brakes, air filters, windshield wipers, clutch and fuel pumps. Turbocharger repairs aren’t cheap. I mentally prepared myself for that cost and hope it remains within my budget on par with how much fun this car is to drive.Right now, the gas + monthly payment are in line with just how much fun it is. Every time I get behind the wheel, I’m happy and in love with every aspect of it. 

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As the first car that I picked and am stoked about, the car continues to impress me. It has ever amenity I want (except for cooled seats and auto-retracting mirrors). It’s insanely fast, looks sexy on the road and has every bell & whistle of the luxury offerings from BMW. It is expensive but I see myself in this car for a long time. It has been a huge pleasure to own and I am thrilled to have it!