Hey everyone!  I'm writing this on my phone in the Blue Ridge Moubtains, out in Appalachia, pretty much in the middle of nowhere. It is amazing out here. I'm without wifi, so this will get posted whenever I get closer to the grid. But for now, it's just enjoying the nature and working on a crew harvesting apples for cider. 

I'm down here visiting my friend Eliza who runs the orchard and knows everything there is to know about apples. What better way to learn even more bout apples than to be out in the orchards working with them, hands on, tasting and working up a sweat. So far, it's been lots of collecting of apples, often climbing way up in the tree to shake all the apples off. Then down under to collect them, separating the bad apples from the good, and after collecting a full bushel (47 pounds), adding them to a bin (holds around 20 bushels). Yesterday we set a new record with 126 bushels picked. Notice the connection between Justus showing up and a new record being set?  It's tiring work and makes you realize the work that happens on a farm and makes you think more about what all happened with your food/drink before you get it. 

This past weekend Eliza and I were at a farm in central Virginia, rather a holistic cattle herd farm. They have slowly give back to nature with no nature, moving the cows every day to keep the grass and soil fresh and letting cattle be cattle. They've done a lot which was said couldn't be done and have a herd of 289 happy cattle. 

The herd farm was having a festival with lots of skill workshops, potluckin, live music and great vibes. Super fun to meet some new great people, many who are young farmers working on getting back to nature and making this world a better place. We planted trees, learned how to leach the tannins out of acorns to make them edible, found other edible trees which are native down here and did yoga outside on the grass with live bluegrass. Needless to say, it was an epic weekend. 

This being my first time in the South, it's been awesome so far, with great people, fun accents, lots of trucks and a more rural experience than most would have. Learning about apples and how supermarkets rarely sell apples with blemishes is crazy. Ugly apples are just as good and full of flavor. Do yourself a favor and eat ugly apples!

New puppy

It's been amazing to be back home with the family, resting up after all the travels and enjoying a late summer.  We recently rescued a new puppy to replace our amazing dog of 15 years, Thor.  We found a winner in Clover, a 6 month old Weimaraner / Lab mix who is super chilled out and loves people probably more than I do.  It's been a blast to have her around, sleeping in our laps and exploring around the yard.  She's a bit of a barker in the night time, otherwise, she's fit in great.  Here are a couple pictures of my parents meeting her for the first time at the rescue home and then one of her and I relaxing on the ground.  That was after having her sleep on my lap while I watched the Seahawks win on Sunday.  Doesn't get much better than that.

The good times in the Midwest

So everyone bad talks Cleveland.  This might be a good thing, cause when you get there, you get to enjoy the big city vibes in a place that isn't that crowded, where people know each other and it's easy to get around.  It's actually not that bad of a city.  Lake Erie is warm and there's some good beaches out there.  The sports teams are highly entertaining (in both good and bad ways).  There's some fun history involved (with rich people (Rockefellers) polluting the river which caught on fire).  And most importantly, you can get $1 hot dogs on certain nights at the Indians games. 

Our amazing view for the Indians game

Me and my favorite Indian player from back in the day

Celebrate no matter win or lose

A big thank you to my cousins Kevin and Kelly for hosting myself and the rest of the Peacock clan for my time in Cleveland.  Truly some of the best hosts out there, they made sure to treat me well with the best coffee spots, bars, sports knowledge, trivia and tours of the whole city.  Quite fun to be able to come back to the US and have so much family come join in the fun of this homecoming tour.  We feasted, listened to live polka, live reggae and even stopped by to see some holy relics at the Museum of Divine Statues.  Life was good in Clevland!

The cushy life in Cleveland

One of these is extinct and the other travels a lot

Good times with the family

Round two!  Macaroons done the Cleveland way

Fun in front of the tomb of President Garfield

Enjoying the Museum of Divine Statues

With the hilarious Alonzo Boden.  Comedy night!

The Christmas Story house.  Ralphie!!!!

From good comedy with Alonzo Boden, to seeing where movies such as The Christmas Story and The Deer Hunter were filmed, it was a great trip.  See you next time Cleveland!

A night out at Wrigley Field

So last night I made it to Wrigley Field for the first time.  It's one of the most iconic ballparks out there in America and after Fenway, is the second oldest at 100 years old.  From the ivy covered outfield wall (only one ball hit into the ivy in the game) to the small size, and lack of major outfield bleachers or lights, Wrigley stands out.  Sadly, for the last many years, the Cubs have not stood out.  Been a rough outing for the fans, and last night wasn't different, with the Cubbies giving up 4 runs in the first as the pitcher was extremely hittable and once threw the ball behind the batter.

This was my 3rd ballpark in 3 weeks and on Friday, I'm going to my fourth, when I'll be in Cleveland.  After visiting my beloved Dodgers Stadium for a walkoff win and a great night out, I've since seen the two home teams (Twins and now Cubs) struggle early on.  In both of these games, the score has been 7-2 after 3 innings and the home starting pitcher didn't finish the 3rd inning in either game.  But since I'm here for the ballparks and the baseball, it's still be entertaining.  We were 3 rows  away from a Joe Mauer home run in Minnesota and then in Chicago, were able to move around all over the park.

Here are some pictures from Wrigley on the night of August 20th:

100 years!

Still doing the scoreboard by hand

View from behind home plate

Up top view

Fujikawa in action

Cubs trying to figure out how to win a game

A Taste of Chicago So Far

 

Chicago has been amazing! Great catching up with old friends, exploring the city and eating like a Chicagoan.  The homecoming trip continues and here are a few pictures from the last couple days.

 

Ballpark Tour!

Fun times in Minnesota

The journey continues!  From the west coast to now the Midwest. I had an epic time out in California and Portland, and the fun on this US tour doesn't stop. Seeing friends and family around the country, and just eating and drinking my way through amazing cities. 

I'm now in Minneapolis, which is quite the city. Surrounded by lakes, forests and chill people, it is surprisingly amazing. Full of life in the summer time, it's a super active city, loaded with bike paths all over the place. One of the only cities I know of with epic waterfalls right in the city, rushing over the Mississippi River. I've learned they they are a thriving Midwestern city, full of top businesses like Target, 3M and Wells Fargo. Mighty fine setup.

So far, there had been loads of biking involved. I was awoken just after the crack of dawn to get in a bike ride through the paths before breakfast. A round trip 15 miler took us through neighborhoods, lakes and paths to a huge waterfall feeding the Mississippi. After picking up another friend at the airport, it was back on the bike to go all over the city. Pretty damn fine tour of the city, from the university area to the mill area to underneath the baseball stadium. Blue skies and great vibes the whole way. 

Today was a hiking day up in the northern bit of Minnesota. Lake Superior is mighty superior. Very cool to be around it in several areas and finish with a cold dip in the lake. Nothing finer after a hot hike. 

The food has been better than average too, with fresh fish, amazing sweet corn and some wild rice burgers. Been living it up as always!  Great to be back in America enjoying the little things (like thousand island dressing)

Rock on y'all!

Good times in Portland

So I'm back in Portland, after a week in Los Angeles.  The Justus US Tour 2014 continues!

It's been great to reconnect with friends, walk around this amazing city, get out into the Pacific NW nature, and eat and drink my way through favorite places.  Portland has been the home base for the last 10+ years, so it does feel like home coming back.  A few new buildings, some civic improvements, friends have been married, bought houses or had kids, but overall, it's that same great city it's always been. 

I've been all over the city seeing people, often having a breakfast, lunch and dinner each day planned, living it up and loving life.  But the city isn't the only thing in the area, so I had a great hike up past waterfalls in the Columbia River Gorge before swimming in the river.  Warmer than the Pacific and just as refreshing after some summertime heat.  Best time of year to be in Portland.

Another highlight so far was a Portland Timbers game.  Definitely one of the best atmospheres for any type of sport and it was wicked being back with old friends in the stadium cheering on the boys.  It feels more like European soccer than the US.  Crazy crowd, loud songs, on our feet for over 3 hours of fun and with a 2-0 victory, the perfect outcome.  Loved it!

Here are a few pictures from the time in Portland so far.  Off to Minneapolis soon to start the adventures in the Midwest.  Let the good times roll!

Timbers fans going crazy after a goal

Beer fest with Karl, Russell, myself and Ryan (Go Dodgers!)

Old mountain tunnel in the Gorge

Portland unipiper

Dressed as Darth Vader and getting Portland amped up for the MLS All Star game 8/6/14

Coming soon to a city near you!

Back in Los Angeles living it up at Dodger Stadium.  So good to be back.  Great game by the Dodgers with some excitement at the end, finishing up with a win in 10 innings.  It was my first time being at a game with Yasiel Puig playing, and the atmosphere was electric when he was up to bat.  The video below shows how hyped up everyone gets and then the disappointment of him popping out.  Great vibes, great times out with the boys and great baseball!  It's good to be back in America!

Reverse Culture Shock

I'm back in the US after almost 500 days of bouncing around the world.  Quite the adventure traveling, living and working out there in the world.  But it's time to get back to the roots and enjoy the homeland once again.  I've got a two month trip sorted out in the US going from the West Coast to the Midwest to the Northeast to the South.  Seeing friends and family all over.  After that, we'll see about settling down. 

People always talk about how crazy it can be in the world and how different it is, as they experience culture shock in another country.  Let me tell you, it's just as tricky coming back to your home country as leaving it.  You notice all the little things, and feel more like a foreigner at the start. Here are a few things that've jumped out at me so far:

Tipping.  That's right I forgot about tipping until my friend put cash on the table.  The rest of the world doesn't really tip unless the service was outright amazing.  I'm out of practice and didn't even think about it.  Dollar bills flying out of my pocket now!

Driving on the right.  Coming from Australia and New Zealand, where I've been the last 6+ months, I got quite used to being on the left side of the road.  I drove a couple times, and rode a bike almost every day.  It started to feel quite normal.  Now I have to switch the brain back over and remember to look left first.  Still a challenge, but I'm getting better and haven't been hit yet!

Different words.  Such as "connecting passengers" instead of "transferring passengers" at the airport.  Numerous people were confused on the flight from NZ with where to go to get to their next flight.  Just one different word throws it all off.  Most of the world uses transfer/transit for passengers who are just passing through an airport.  I spent 19 hours over two visits to the Istanbul airport as a transit passenger (happy memories sleeping on the floor).

Taxes.  Most of the world has the taxes already included in the price.  Here you pay extra.  Those $1.25 tacos aren't quite the even number they appear to be.  But at least they are authentic Mexican and still cheap.

Venice Beach

Spent the day exploring one of the best parts of the LA beach life; Venice Beach.  Busy no matter what day of the week, it was popping with activity and people.  Lots of fun to check out the scene, soak up some sun and get into the water.  Coming from winter in Australia, it was perfect.  Living the good life here in LA!

Basketball with palm trees and the ocean, can't go wrong with that

More good street art in Venice

Houses shut down?  Paint 'em up!

Venice Skatepark

One of the best settings out there

Bit of the Santa Monica mountains in the background