The reality that a trip I’ve thought about for so long is not only happening but is days away from kicking off is suddenly a bit frightening. The daily routine of working at Orbitz which I’ve grown accustomed to over the past 4.5 years is about to change. I have a renter ready to move in to my loft but haven’t started packing. Not only that but my place is a construction zone as I rush to finish home projects like tiling the master bathroom. I have a pile of gear so big sitting in the corner I’m not sure how it will fit in my backpack. I haven’t yet watched the Steve Jobs keynote from MacWorld earlier today. There is so much to do.

Yet I’ve promised everyone I will start a blog and post frequent updates so here I sit at my PowerBook tweaking a WordPress install. I wish I could blame the sorry state of this site on the fact I have been in management too long and my tech skills are rusty. But alas, I’m a back-end developer. I can get in to the details and get the software running and add plugins without trouble (maybe that isn’t because of any real skills but speaks to the simplicity of WordPress). No, the other slightly harsher reality setting in right now as I muddle through CSS and PHP code is my graphical design prowess is non-existent. Hopefully the photos and stories posted as I climb Mt. Aconcagua, trek through South America and ride my mountain bike almost 3,000 miles along the Great Divide Trail can make up for this shortcoming.

I have about two and a half weeks from my last day at work to boarding a plane for Santiago, Chile. In that time I hope to flush out the content on the nav tabs answering many of the questions people have about this incredible (some have said crazy) adventure. Please throw a bookmark in your favorite newsreader or browser and check back as I get under way January 30th and will post updates from my travels when I come across connectivity.