Learn what you want to learn, then do what you want to do.

     Introduction:
     This week we left the peaceful flatlands of Ohio to the winds and cities of Indiana. The differences between adjacent states are subtle and can be more felt than quantified as one moves through the area and interacts with the people there. At the very least though, we can conclude that Ohio is much more bicycle friendly!

Me and "Guitar Man" jammin' in the park.
One of us was a bit off-key though...

     Music:
     https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NVOawOXxSA
     https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WiagUEQqCfo


     Food Review:

 Here's Timothy. I met him hanging out by the river. What a cool dude!

 He guided me to my destination!
Thanks Timothy!

 James - "This is like, my favorite place. I'm here every Monday, for their chess night!"
Adriene - "They really care about their customers. It's pretty cool."

 My new friend Dave and I head inside to The Chicory Cafe!
I don't even remember how many people told me to come here
but this is clearly the place to be in South Bend!

 The inside is really clean and well lit.
There's a lot of room for lots of people too.

 There are games too!
I got a few Connect 4 matches in.
(Undefeated of course).

 They have a variety of events.
Live music on the weekend, and trivia nights in example.

 The menu is New Orleans inspired.
I hear the gumbo is awesome.

 Tiffany hands me my order placard while helping other customers.
All the staff there are super cool, but they get busy!
I figure it's because, as Tiffany said, "I love my job!"

 Cucumber water <3

Choose your poison:

The delectable selection of gelato
Or your typical fare of al-kee-hall

 The back of the placard gave me an idea while the food was cooking.

 I think I forgot a step or two but meh, it worked out!

We get our food and Dave digs in right away.
It all looked so good I had to restrain myself.

 As a self-proclaimed traveling food critic
I must slow my consumption in order to appreciate, savor, and identify the intricacies of the dish!
I try to, at least.

 The hummus has a full robust flavor with just the right amount of chunkiness and spice.

 Dave put this one best, "Yours is the bomb!"
As for me, my Roasted Vegetable House Mac + Cheese blew my mind! The crusty layer of cheese on top was perfect. The cheese sauce itself mixed with chewy artichoke chunks, shreds of spinach, and delectable sun dried tomatoes was everything you have ever wanted coagulated milk protein to be.

 Dave's Hemp Pesto Pasta was (nearly) equally delicious. There is so much good stuff going on in this dish! The hemp flavor is subtle and mixed into the pesto sauce. With the crunchiness of the breadcrumbs and the chewiness of the capers and tomatoes—perfection.
And did I mention it is vegan?

 There was still some awesome sauce and hummus left at the end
so I broke out the chips!

 And here are the beignets!
The outside was sweet and crunchy while the inside was warm and doughy.

Anderson here joined us just in time to even out the three pastries.
He agreed with my summation, "The beignets were amazing."

 I guess the beignet is a famous New Orleans style doughnut.
I tried it for now, but plan to compare them to one when I get myself down there!

 Towards the end of our meal some beautiful relaxing music started.
Perfect accompaniment to the evening!

Whether you want to just grab a coffee and go, chill out on the couch and play some games, meet some fine folk, or check out some great local music (or how about all of the above) you can't go wrong with Chicory Cafe!

Dave knows the owner. Thanks for the great space sir!
Final Verdict: Chicory really has it all and it's all done right! Great food, great people, great space, great service, great times. If you're in the South Bend area you really have no excuse not to come here!

     Reflection and PhotoPoetry:
     The thing about traveling is that you're always going somewhere new, meeting new people, seeing new sights, experiencing new things. But can this new-ness ever "get old"? Probably not, as long as you get whatever else you need. However, the road has many trials, and those can be taxing.
     I truly believe that anyone who wants to travel can, they just need to figure out how to navigate themselves through their lives. From talking with many people, I've learned that people seem to have a lot of fears about going out into the world, including but not limited to: bankruptcy, loneliness, malnutrition, boredom, death, etc.
     I suppose that whatever fear comes to ones mind, that is the fear which that person has to conquer. Additionally, that fear is certainly a legitimate one, no matter what it is, but never conclude that it is impossible to surmount. It is always possible to conquer our fears, the difficulty is in figuring out how. There are strategies and therapy and baby steps and drugs and prescriptions and yadda yadda but at some point, no matter what we have or haven't done to prepare or avoid it, we will all have to face our fears. I suggest challenging them ourselves, on our own terms, rather than waiting for them to surprise us, but that's just what I've found works for me. The more of our own fears we can conquer the less we'll be held back. The less held back we are the further down our path we can grow and go. Keep on going everyone!
     But back to traveling, discretion being the better part of valor and an ounce of prevention being worth a pound of cure (thank you Shakespeare and Ben Franklin, respectively), preparation is absolutely key, and how would one know what to prepare for if no time or energy goes into thinking about it? Being ready for those Justin case situations, or just having a thing to help you sleep better at night, is worth the investment for sure, but keep in mind there will be plenty of situations and challenges that could not be foreseen and that you just aren't ready for. The Unknown, as it is known. I say, do not fear that either, but charge in as ready as you can be with a honed body, mind, and spirit.

     Last week I experimented with pairing some of my photography with some of my poetry. I thought it went really well! What did you all think? (Leave a comment!) I wrote this poem during the particularly challenging ride through mid-Indiana and took some more shots as I rode. The above reflection is sort of an expansion of this thought process. It is meant to be sung but I'll leave it up to the reader to decide on the melody. Maybe one day I'll pair it with some Harmonica and/or Guitar! I've got a long way to go for that though.

     "Turquoise Winds"

     The Southwest wind is blowin’

     I’m a rider on the rooooad
     Gettin’ to where I’m goin’
     Carryin’ my own looooad

     I metta man who chose love I metta man who chose strength
     I met a man who chose them booooth
     Everybody's reachin' for the pen
     Tryin' to change what was wroooote

     The wind that gusts in the valley
     is strong against my faaaace

     Workin' on fixin' my tally

     Lookin', for my plaaaace

     Yes The Southwest wind is blowin'
     I’m a rider on the rooooad
     Gettin’ to where I’m goin’
     Carryin’ my own looooad

     Smashin' the air trucks sail on by
     Forcin' me down in the ditch
     But no they can't stop me I'm meant to fly
     I'll get there without a hitch

     Sun rain 'n dark s'all breakin' me down
     M'dear, I'm far from hoooome
     But I'll keep ridin' 'til I'm found

     I know, I'm not, aloooone

     The Southwest wind is blowin'

     I’m a rider on the rooooad
     Gettin’ to where I’m goin’
     Carryin’ my own looooad

     Pictures:

 While charging my camera at a cafe in the city of Fort Wayne, Indiana, a group of cyclists zoomed by outside. "I gotta go!!" I yelled to the barista dude I was chattin' with and ran out the door.
I caught up with these dudes a few blocks up the road and we all hung out!

 They go for a sweet midnight ride every week or so.
How cool is that?

 I tagged along to a cool spot under the highway.
We chilled and chatted and listened to music.

 Night riding has its risks though.
A lot of people have asked me about what I do if/when I get a flat.
It's no big deal, just a pain and takes some time.

 Before I left Fort Wayne I decided to check out their Botanical Gardens!

 I paid special attention to the Desert Biome room.
I took a lot of pictures of edible plants.

This cactus was huuuuuge!

 I grabbed some prickly pear fruit and ate it.
It was delicious! However, it had a but of tiny little needles on it that got in my fingers.
I was picking them out for days.

 These berries were a little less painful, but a lot more sour!

 The Egyptian Relaxation Garden.

 There was Egyptian music too.

 A beautiful Orchid in the Jungle Biome room.

 My camera died then
otherwise I'd have more pictures of the jungle!

 Oh yeah. We are checking this place out.

 It was a cool little place but I was low on daylight and had to hit the road.
Cycling is a becoming a real way of life to people though.
More and more people are identifying as "cyclists"
and bicycle themed places like this are appearing more and more.

 Another kind man along my travels by the name of Critter.
We chilled together and shared some food.
Thanks for the eggs and the vegetables Critter!

 Critter shows off his Capote made from a 4-point blanket.
A traditional Native coat, 4-points is the warmest and most valued level of blanket there is.

Passing through Rorchester.

 Who says travelers can't eat well?
Everything here I either gathered or was given.
Except I bought the avocado, which I bought for $1.69.

 Tomato, cheese, avocado, sunflower seeds, raw honey, mustard, all on whole wheat.
This really made my day!

After an 86 mile day
a place to crash is much appreciated.

 At last! South Bend, Indiana!
I was here before more than a decade ago.
Now I return, with a new goal.

But first let's explore and enjoy the city!
That box is a care package that was waiting for me at the post office (Thanks Claire)!!
Riding with it under one arm, I found this cool music event at a little park.

Pam and Regan here join me as I opened the box and shared some of Paul Newman's Peach Salsa (my favorite).

 The band was awesome!
All cities should have funds allocated for these sorts of community events.
The more the better.

 "My Baby She Wrote Me a Letter!!"

 Downtown South Bend could use some sprucing up
but I am told that it is improving by leaps an bounds!

 Now this is cool!
A garden that anyone can just help themselves to!
Talk about community! I had a couple raspberries, tomatoes, and leaves of Kale.

 The river that runs straight through the city is really pretty.
Swimming is not recommended.

The river splits down a man made canal and the current gets really swift.
It's a beautiful place to ride or hang out though.
Plenty of bridges to cross, just don't fall in!

Businesses that care are the ones we all aught be supporting with our dollar.

Rich has a recycled paper printing company.
I'll update this with his business info soon.
His cards look GREAT and I plan on getting some business cards through him for myself!

He helped me find fellow photographer David Guthrie.
We had a great chat and shared chocolate milk (:

 After the food review above

this amazing musician let me jam with him for a couple songs at the next door cafe.
Keep an ear out for when he gets his original music up. He is really good!
https://www.youtube.com/user/thenewmc/videos

At night these pretty lights color the waterfall.

They are apparently interactive

though I couldn't figure them out.

 The nearby bridge is lit up too.
Great place for a little walkabout.

I guess I'd be pretty happy if a boat house was named after me.

 South Bend by Night.

 South Bend by Day.

 Behind James Feider's boat house.
I love waking up to a river.

It took me a bit more than three weeks to get here from Tennessee
but I made it!

Look forward to some photos of the beautiful campus next week!

Another new chapter starts next week!

I'm here to really pour myself into my writing.

I want to ride a bit less and write a bit more, heeheehee.

So in other words I'm slowing myself down a bit, literally.

But remember! This is just another stop on the road to the West!

I want and need to gain skills and knowledge along the way.

I don't know where The Path of the Pen will take me

or even where I necessarily want it to

but like how I do most of my goals

I'll find out when I get there!