Well, hello there! I think we’re almost ready to jump into more recent events, as promised back in August, but there are a few more things I want to catch you up on first. Assuming there is a ‘you’ actually reading this. Fair warning, the below jumps around a bit due to my brain being severely ADD today.
After Patagonia, I actually went to Southern France/Northern Spain for a birthday trip with my family before heading to Japan. There was even a guest appearance by a great friend from Germany. Because it was a family trip, and not exactly a normal adventure I’ve left it out, but it’s a thing that happened. It was a great trip filled with wine, food, cooking, hiking, exploring… not a bad way to start my last year in my 30s.
I happened to be in France when Anthony Bourdain died, which hit me pretty hard. Bourdain had a large influence on how I view life, my writing, my travel, my love of food and cooking, and was generally fascinating to watch. The no bullshit style suited me, showing me that there was room for people like myself in the world. Part of what really fascinated me was how he jumped right in the middle of the culture of where he visited. He really showed that people are people, and food can unite nations. Miss the guy daily.
Between then and now, in addition to the stuff I’ve posted about thus far, I’ve seen a lot of bands, plenty of hockey games (including one in Calgary), ridden motorcycles, broken my arm, and so many other things. Nothing that we need to get crazy into detail after the fact over, but still a lot of more ‘normal’ stuff. In order to spare you the details, I’m gonna hit some highlights for ya… all the way back to 2017! Yikes.
In March of 2017 I took a job with Mazda that would send me back to Irvine, CA to be in charge of Fixed Operations training. Bittersweet leaving Oregon (more than just bittersweet, to be honest… freakin’ love Portland), but it was great coming home to family, and getting to see nieces & nephews all the time.
Immediately after moving home I went and broke my arm. When I say immediately, I mean it. The first weekend back. I went on a dirt bike ride, had a small off, and fractured my arm in two places. My first cast only took 37 years to get. Would not actually recommend to anyone. Even so, it’s a funny story.
The job was really fun. I got to do a lot of cool things with training, including help launch two vehicles. It was a great learning experience working very closely with my sales counterpart, and a fantastic setup to what would come next.
What came next was a promotion to oversee all dealership training, both sales and service! Such a rad opportunity that perfectly capped my Japan trip. From August of 2018 to May 2019 I got to work for the best boss I had at Mazda, push training in new directions, directly influence the launch of the new Mazda3, star in some trainings (yeah, for real), and develop some amazing projects. Certainly some of my best work of my career. I was in my creative element, and making a difference.
The unfortunate reality (or counterpoint, I suppose), however, was that I was mostly unhappy. While the work itself was great, I was burning out, mentally frustrated, and ready for a break. A break I decided would take me on another motorcycle trip, then return to work ready to rock again. At least that would have been the plan if I hadn’t been mulling something over in my head for nearly 6 months. So I called an audible, and took a near 90-degree right turn.
What was the right turn, you ask? Give notice, quit my job, and take a nearly two-month trip instead. Yup! I left Mazda at the end of May, celebrated my 40th birthday in June, jumped on my motorcycle, and didn’t come back until August 8th (for a very special reason). This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity I really couldn’t pass up.
It isn’t every day that the stars align, you’re in the right position, and you have the option to do something crazy like this. So when it does… jump at the chance. I did, and I don’t have a single regret. Best thing I’ve ever done.
So that basically catches us up to the point where you know the important highlights. It catches us up enough that I can share the story of my grand adventure, something I am super excited to do. After that you’ll get to find out what else I’m up to.
My plan is to do much the same as I’ve done with the previous ‘trip reports’, and basically repost from other places. This time, though, I’m also going to add additional commentary where it is warranted. I’m sure I’ll have additional details to share. I might even ask some others to contribute.
First installment drops this Wednesday. Bye for now!
Ryan Cavalier 