Day 2

I received an email from New Zealand Immigration this morning. You see, I was arrested when I was seventeen. It wasn't pretty. There was weed in the car, alcohol, and I was pretty drunk to top it off. I was under the impression that these charges were dropped after a year. So I thought was the agreement with the court. But I just found out in that email this morning that one of the charges was "filed." I didn't know what that meant until I called a lawyer and asked. It turns out the courts can bring up this charge if they want to for whatever reason in the future. So it looks like I'm lying on my visa application.

And the worst part. I'm in Colorado but I can't even see the mountains. Fort Collins truly is the gateway. And right now it seems like the key is out of reach. I suppose I can try to get lost in a book or go see a movie or something.

Day 1

Today I woke up in Colorado. Boston is officially behind me, and so my long anticipated journey officially begins. The future is uncertain and I am anxious to put the next few days behind me.

You see, although I am supposed to go to New Zealand in four days, I still do not have a visa. Things from the past like to hold on to you and hold you back, so in typical style, just like last time, my visa will be either granted or denied to me at the last minute.

There's nothing I can do but wait. I don't know what I'll do if I don't get it. I haven't decided if I'll continue on with the journey or redirect myself. In the meantime, I'm here in Fort Collins, waiting at the edge of snow-capped mountains, the Rockies, the gateway, the stream at the edge of the forest.