"For an occurrence to become an adventure, it is necessary and sufficient for one to recount it." ~ Jean-Paul Sartre

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Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Who Is?: Patrick Albert

In the introductory post of the Who Is? feature I will be placing myself under the microscope for a little inward reflection to determine Who Is?: Patrick Albert.  First though an explanation of this new feature seems in order.
I find people interesting.  The idiosyncrasies that make us different are what makes us interesting as individuals.  If we were all the same everything would be boring, and there would be no need to dig any deeper than the surface because what we would find underneath would just be more of the same.  Thankfully, we are all different and it is a worthwhile endeavour to see what is below the surface, sometimes we might be shocked by what we find or even horrified but in the end it was worth a look because we  also run the risk of being pleasantly surprised or overwhelmed by compassion and that is a risk worth taking.
Who Is? is an attempt to get at a little something below the surface by simply asking the question, Who Is?: "insert your name here".
I will pass this question around and all I ask is that it be answered in a meaningful way.  That is my only guidance.  It can be answered in any manner, words, video, photograph, painting, etc.(all of the work should be your own though).

Without further adieu:

Skate100  crop

I am a person full of ideas, and half finished projects.  The Avett Brothers song Incomplete and Insecure starts out with this line, "I haven't finished a thing since I started my life, I don't feel much like starting now".  This lyric hit me like a lightning bolt the first time I heard it.  It made me think about many things in my life.  Just a simple turn of phrase and yet so powerful.
I don't know why I am this way, but I'm sure years of therapy could yield an answer.  It's not like I have never finished anything but there are many ships yet to sail into their bottles because of me.  Having come to this realization has really helped cut down on the projects though.  The other day I heard someone described as a "thinker, not a tinkerer"  and although they weren't talking about me they easily could have been.
Perhaps the string of unfinished business in my wake is what draws me to adventure.  When you announce an adventure to the world it is a declaration of self, a bold statement that I WILL______!  You can fill in your own blank.  Skate100+, the first of the 100+Projects started with a pit in my stomach.  This was the first time I ever announced anything to the world.  The first time it ever really mattered if I finished or not.  The truth was I wasn’t sure if I could ride a skateboard 100+ miles.  I couldn't back out though.   I made the announcement and the world, or at least my small corner of it was watching!   I was prepared to do whatever it took.  I skateboarded 107miles that day and felt a great sense of accomplishment.
I am still a person with unfinished projects and unrealized ideas but I realize that some projects just don’t fit and some ideas are never meant to be realized.  Just like things, ideas can clutter your life, and I have made a good start at getting rid of that clutter.  But just like the raft, the musical, the comic strip, the canoe, and the silicone impregnated nylon, all I have so far is a good start, only time will tell if I finish.

I am Patrick Albert.  Who are you?

3 comments:

  1. 107 miles on a skateboard?? Crikey, that's incredible. I'm pretty sure I would have died.

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    2. It got to over 100degrees and I seriously doubted myself at 60ish miles. Once the thunder storm rolled through temps dropped enough for me to carry on. This video is from right before the big storm hit. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hvV9BLB6YdI&list=UUOMf2zk2hDqDaHzl-VfcEfQ&index=5&feature=plcp

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