In the interest of maintaining my "25 views" audience...

Does everyone who owns a blog get excited to see the number of views on their page? Hmm, it's a new interwebs high.

In two days, I will fly out of Seattle to arrive at 1:30 in the morning in San Antonio, Texas. Now, this may seem a little rash, but in fact, it has been planned for two months. I'm visiting a friend, James, as well as catching up with my very good friends Kate and Curtis (and their new-to-me daughter Allegra). Texas, based on my week long stay a few years ago, has some things going for it: Austin, breakfast burritos, and beautiful historic missions (a la the Alamo).

This trip will involving venturing out of said cities to alternate and remote areas of central Texas (I think) - Enchanted Rock and the Lower Pecos area. Rock art aplenty. Lots of good fodder for prowling archaeologists with cameras.

My main concern currently is, upon flying out of Texas, should I let someone search (fondle) me or (essentially) photograph me naked. I feel like this is what, in the business world, people would refer to as a lose-lose-lose situation. I lose my personal bubble and it goes downhill from there.

The interference with our (proudly referred to) "freedom" is endless, and escalating at a precipitous rate. Does this scare anyone else? I had the unfortunate mental image this morning of America with caged bars around it to "keep terrorists and immigrants out" when all it actually did was look like a zoo exhibit to the rest of the world. I remember visiting the Oregon Zoo a few years ago, the last time I actually went, and saw the Hyena exhibit. There was a track worn a foot deep around the entire perimeter of the pen, and the hyena was just pacing around and around and around. Can't have taken her that long to wear that track down, and I wonder how she survived or if she did.

There was a point to this ramble - ah. Are we becoming a macrocosm of the caged hyena, pacing and getting crazier and crazier?

Okay, the end of my ramble is upon us.

Hope everyone has a kickass New Years.

Best photos of 2009

 Some of my favorite photos from the traveling summer of 2009. It was a good year.

Look closely at the sign to see who makes these pies. 

ATVs in Utah. 

Storm on the southern edge of the Grand Staircase-Escalante - right next to Lake Powell.

The canyon. The reason we had ATVs. 

Cody on the left and Bedouin on the right - we found her in the Utah desert.

The lid of the first mass produced condoms container from the early 1900's - sometimes my job is so fantastic. 

Jesse, Josh, Jim and Troy. Pole Mountain UXO survey 2009.

Me and my friend Josh.

The Stanley Hotel front porch. I would live here if I could stand the ghosts.

The only "modified" tin can I have ever found.

The Beginning

Hello all.

So here's the deal.

It's hard to stay in contact with everyone. Especially when I travel around so much. (This has become less of an issue now that I'm nesting in Portland for the foreseeable future, however, it stands to reason that I will once again travel when I finally achieve my goal: my M.S.)

Okay, so a quick update for those of you with whom I have limited to no contact with anymore (sad). I'm in Portland, attending Portland State University and getting a Master's degree in Geography with an emphasis in Geographic Information Systems.

However, I am still an archaeologist. The tattoo on my shoulder proves it.

I have a cute apartment on the east side, I have a dog (Cody) who is a lazy ruffian at heart, and I own snowshoes. There, three things about me you might not have known already.

I have no idea what I will be posting here, most likely a series of "Where in the world is Kate Clark?" blogs, and random journalistic thoughts and/or rants.

Warning: I'm liberal.
(Dad, you might not like this blog).

Cheers to the new blog!