"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover"
Mark Twain
It’s always interesting meeting someone from the net for the first time, you never know what they are going to be like, and when you plan on going underground into a dark hole with them the first time you meet, it sort of gives you pause for thought.
Asked by thattallgirlaj-deactivated20130
About half and half :) its kinda hard to find people that are interested in going into old stormwater systems and abandoned building etc ;)
That said, some people once you show them totally get it, but most times the folks are just left more baffled than before.
Having friends along is great, it feels like the level of anxiety is parceled out amoungst everyone in attendance, so it’s a lot more light hearted :) plus it’s great to be able to appreciate these things with like minded souls.
Going by yourself, I find is really a battle, me vs paranoia, but when you win, it’s all the sweeter and rewarding.
Thanks Paul :) that’s Super kind!
Yeah, figured I may as well write some of the crap up :) It fills in some of the blanks when your photography doesn’t quite do justice to “every pictures worth a 1000 words” ;)
(Source: pauloctanephotography)
Sedentary lives, the 9-5, scurrying through the maze of mindless bureaucracy, reality TV. Our lives have become so boring we watch other peoples’ (un)real lives for entertainment. From active to passive, from creation to consumption, from adventure to another night in front of the TV. From lives built around experiences to lives built upon accumulating stuff.
A good job with a good future, a nice safe path to death via the predictable pit-stops all hedged by big houses, big cars and big bank accounts ready against any immediate need. Needs instilled by marketers to fill our houses with junk which weighs us down, holds us back and provides a feeling of safety. To be insulated from danger, liability, what-ifs, from men in foreign lands who apparently hate us. We’re petrified of everything: do you have symptoms x, y or z? You might have Cantankerous Ass Cancer, ask your pharmacist about our product today, and everyone: if you see something suspicious, tell someone! We have life insurance, car insurance, home insurance, health insurance, as if we can protect ourselves from the world and everything in it with money. We gamble our futures by enslaving ourselves to corporate overlords in the hope we can amass the crumbs they drop and make a cake of our own. But there’s no payoff at the end, no gold star, just shoes with tassels, cruise ships and icy fruity beverages, before descending into Alzheimer’s, disease and pissing into a bag.
When we’re not slaving to be safe and keep up with the Jonses we demand entertainment. Movies, tv, music, watching sport, inane stories about celebrities and their lives instead of stepping out and living ours. Why worship another’s when we’ve the lead role in our own?
Years ago I decided the requisite prescription was adventure, excitement and maybe even a little danger. I’m tired of watching, of feeling safe, of being scared of life and taking chances. Life is for participating not spectating. Exploring, squatting, dumpster diving, freight hopping, sleeping on rooftops, hitchhiking, climbing, caving, train surfing, road trips, taking a chance and riding the highs and suffering the lows. We’re all destined to rot in a box so shed your bubble-wrap suit and live a little. You’ll hurt, you’ll bleed, you may find yourself crouched in an tunnel alcove nose to the third rail as a train whistles past wondering how you ended up here. For what? Knowing you had the balls to take life by the balls and live it.
"Dsankt, http://www.sleepycity.net/about
Slightly longer than your average quote, but gold never the less.
Access All Areas: a user’s guide to the art of urban exploration, 2005 Ninjalicious (Infilpress) ISBN 0-9737787-0-9
