from rscottjones

I wrote a quick bit about Asshole Scott for #Blaugust2025.

If you’re not already a member, Going (formerly Scott’s Cheap Flights) is having a 53% off sale on their premium membership right now (just $23/yr; use the code HAPPY10THBDAY). We’ve been members for many years.

In spite of some fun destinations and photos, I didn’t get around to any OTD posts for #Blaugust this weekend. I probably won’t get one posted for today either—at least before bed tonight. I’ll see if I can catch up over the next few days. It’s been a fun way to relive previous trips.

I wrote a bit about how I abandoned minimalism to reduce friction though duplicative purchases. I’m just far more interested, these days, in better enabling activities I want to do than focusing on how much stuff I own. #blaugust2025 #blaugust #blogging

I’m misordering these posts again today to better highlight our Iceland memories. Man, it’s been fun looking through all of these photos.

On Aug 15 2021,

…we were campervanning around Iceland, checking out some great waterfalls, geological features, and even an iceberg-filled glacial lake.

On Aug 15 2023,

…we ventured to Dunbar, Scotland to pay homage to John Muir and his hometown, then explored the New Lanark World Heritage Site.

On Aug 15 2020,

…we were camping near Big Lake in Arizona. Funny enough, a friend I met on a group paddling trip down the Green River in Canyonlands National Park at least a decade earlier took up the adjacent campsite—he goes by the nickname “Wu.” I jokingly obscured my face a bit and walked up saying that I had gotten a call from our mutual friend Russ saying he owed us a bottle of whiskey. A bit frazzled, it took him a moment to figure out what was happening, and we subsequently spent the evening hanging out around the campfire together.

On Aug 15 2019,

…I made a trip out to Las Cruces, stopping at the Lordsburg playa along the way. In Cruces, I visited the museum to see the Paleozoic Trackways exhibit, then hiked in the (oddly named) Prehistoric Trackways National Monument.

On Aug 15, 2015,

…I attended the 100th birthday party for my great aunt, Delma—the inspiration for our ASU Football fandom. She had just been honored as the Arizona Cardinals’ “oldest fan.”

On Aug 15 2014,

I became an official ordained minister for the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster. No, seriously. Unfortunately, I only perform weddings while on vacation at amazing destinations. So, um, keep me in mind.

On Aug 15 2013

…I tried as I might to get a good selfie with my dog, Sipapu—but he would not be denied in making it extra weird. It was my last night before I moved to an apartment and couldn’t easily bring him along. My mom had just lost her dog, so she was going to care for him for a year as a transition, and could provide a better home as I was often traveling for both work and fun. Unfortunately, he suddenly passed away the following St Patricks Day. :(

Jen is starting to narrow in on the finish line of her National Park units quest. She only has ~50 remaining (the white pins on this map), which are strategically grouped into convenient batches. We have trips booked in the next 60 days to tackle the units circled in blue, with group trips in 2026 that hit the units in yellow. Even with the other travel we’re looking at, she’s on track to finish in 2027 if she wants to. There are currently only 8 of us who have visited all 433 park units.

I’m excited to get a look back at our Iceland trip, but it was especially fun to look back at our Hanford Reach tour. It’s so crazy to wander through a nuclear reactor and chat with folks about how it works and how they were still sorta figuring things out as they went.

On Aug 14 2021,

…we had our first full day in Iceland. And oh my, it did not disappoint. We saw several amazing waterfalls, hiked to a glacier, hit our first Icelandic craft brewery, and enjoyed yet another sunset at our campervan campsite. We even found a golf course; I FaceTimed my dad so he could see it. These are all iPhone shots—wish I had my Nikon shots handy!

On Aug 14 2023,

…we were still in Scotland, and met up with my aunt, uncle, and cousin in Glasgow. It was great to reconnect. We also stopped by a Big Lebowski pub for lunch; nothing special, I just like this photo. (And yes, this is out of order, just because I wanted the Iceland photos as the lede).

On Aug 14 2021,

…we camped at Big Lake in the White Mountains, driving home via the scenic Salt River Canyon.

On Aug 14 2017,

…we toured the Hanford Reach B Reactor in central Washington, one of the major sites of the Manhattan Project. This was the last of the three “sub-units” of the Manhattan Project National Historical Park, so I got the last third of the 3-part national park stamp.

On Aug 14 2015,

…these “wild horses” (read: feral horses relocated to the White Mountain Apache Reservation from the Lower Salt River) wandered through my campsite on the Mogollon Rim and interrupted my sunset viewing.

Earlier in the day, I had attended an ASU football practice at Camp Tontozona and stopped by Pinetop Brewing.

Here’s a #JulyReply2025, though a very belated one I never wrapped up and posted. Whoops!

Robert Birming recently blogged about his enjoyment of The International Bar in Sweden, and how it’s a bit more friendly than other watering holes in the country. I didn’t realize that “bar culture” was that much different in parts of Europe.

As an American, bars are one of the increasingly few public places remaining where striking up a conversation with a stranger is not uncommon¹. If you’re seated at the bar (as opposed to a table in the bar), it’s generally fair game to casually comment to someone nearby. In fact, chatting up the customers is often a big part of the bartender’s job.

This social tradition is so strong, in fact, that we often include stops at craft breweries and dive bars during our travels as it’s one of the best ways to chat with a local (we jokingly call it #LostNeededDirections). It’s a great little hack for learning more about the local area.

I happened across this video about loneliness in the US recently and was reminded of the important role that bars play in today’s America—at least when it comes to socializing with others.

And especially for older, single men. Whether for good or bad, the bar is at the heart of many of their social lives. Simply interacting with others, plus the relationships they make with fellow regulars and bar staff, and feeling like part of the “in crowd” all contribute to the sense that they’re part of a larger community.

When my dad ended up in the hospital with heart failure in 2020, it was his buddies at the Dubliner Pub that came to check on him. They did their own welfare checks when he hadn’t shown up when expected.

“Hey, anyone seen Norm recently?”

“Nope, and he didn’t answer my call this morning.”

“Yeah, I got voicemail too.”

“Hmm, let’s go check up on him.”

“Sure…but not until I’m done with my beer.”

(How I imagine the conversation at the Dubliner the day after my dad entered the hospital.)

I’m typing this at happy hour, where a longstanding group of 15-20ish regulars congregates. Most of these folks have been frequenting the same bar together for more than two decades now, occasionally switching venues as the local scene shifts or new bar owners take over. They organize a variety of sports betting pools, occasionally dine at each others’ houses, and drive each other to doctor appointments when they need a hand. But mostly, they hang out at the bar together.

After the time I spent here with my dad in his final years, I’ve been partially adopted into this crowd. They ask how my last trip went, rib me for my failed cooking attempts (of which there are far too many), and ask if I rode my bicycle over even in this summer heat (yes, yes I did).

For many of these folks, this is their primary social scene. While plenty of them drink more often than they should, they primarily show up to talk with their buddies, not drink their sorrows away. It’s their social time. A few of them show up and only drink NA beer, or get a soda instead; they’ll get a teasing comment or two from the peanut gallery, but no one actually cares.

Too many of us spend too much of our time on our phones. But here, most are focused on actual conversations, only glancing at their phone to look something up. Sure, they say they’re here to watch baseball on the bar TVs too, but they’re mostly here to chat with their bar friends while the game plays in the background. Even with people who are substantially different than themselves. Even with people who don’t share their politics (a bar is one of the last remaining places where there’s some sort of broad political mixing). Even with people they wouldn’t have stopped and said hello to in another context. But here? Yeah, they met at the bar, many of them decades ago, and that’s been enough to maintain these friendships.

Apparently, August 13th has been an eventful day for me over the years. Iceland was one of my all-time favorite trips, so it’s going to be fun seeing photos for the next week plus. Until Africa, the Angle Inlet border crossing (near the bottom) was the weirdest I’ve been to.

On Aug 13 2023,

…we continued our time in Scotland, just Jen and I at this point.

On Aug 13 2022,

…I did an evening paddle with my friend Brittany.

On Aug 13 2021,

…Jen and I landed in Iceland and picked up a campervan, our home for the next ten or so days. We grabbed some supplies, took a nap, and started exploring Thingvellir National Park.

On Aug 13 2020,

…I brought a couple bartender friends, a regular from the bar, and Jen on a morning paddle down the Salt River.

On Aug 13 2017,

…we spent the day at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument in central Oregon, my 379th national park unit.

On Aug 13 2013,

…I visited what is now New River Gorge National Park, Gauley River National Recreation Area, and Bluestone National Scenic River—quite the busy day!

On Aug 13 2012,

…I visited that silly little notch in the northern border of Minnesota. To get there, you have to cross into Canada and then back into the US—using a videophone booth to clear immigration and customs each time. It’s a trip. There’s no security, you just stop because that’s what you should do. You enter, pick up the phone handset and press a button to start the one-way video call. YOu answer some basic questions, hold your passport up for viewing (no scanning), and…well, that’s about it.

I also apparently decided to officially adopt my High Points of Otherwise Flat States quest this day (which I just finished in May).

I’m working on a new web project that showcases public lands across the US. If you enjoy our public lands and have some photos to share as a contributor, please get in touch. I’m primarily interested in BLM and USFS lands, but might scatter in some national park lands as well.

It was fun to get an email from Sid, who is blogging all month about the websites of other #Blaugust2025 participants, when he featured mine. What a great idea!

Another installment of my “On This Day” photos for the month-long #Blaugust2025 blogging challenge.

On Aug 12 2023,

…we wrapped up our time in the Scottish Highlands.

…and toured the Culloden Battlefield, where so many Scots clans were crushed;

…and stopped by the Clava Cairns, too.

On Aug 12 2017

I visited Lewis and Clark National Historical Park, then Fort Vancouver National Historic Site, and ended at a brewery in Bend, Oregon—where I finally finally got to meet one of my earliest social media friends, @Calipidder.

On Aug 12 2013

…I was continuing my roadtrip around Ohio, which included a short detour in West Virginia to visit Marshall University. Marshall is famous for the tragic plane crash that claimed its entire football team, who was returning from a game. But I didn’t visit fort that reason—it was my dad’s alma mater and I wanted to FaceTime him the campus so he could see what it looked like these days and hear some new stories that might be triggered by seeing various places on campus.

On Aug 12 2012,

…I stopped by the incomparable Corn Palace in Mitchell, South Dakota—my second visit to the famed roadside attraction.

On Aug 12 2010,

…I hiked in Fern Canyon in Redwoods State and National Park. This is the only photo in my Photos library, which is a shame because I loved this hike and back then it wasn’t crazy crowded.

I’m a day late on posting this, mostly because I belatedly decided to add some Facebook memories photos, which featured a North Rim of the Grand Canyon trip that I wanted to include. I’m still heartbroken about those wildfires—the Dragon Bravo fire that took the lodge is still only 44% contained!

On Aug 11 2023,

…we spent the day exploring around the Isle of Skye, which was incredibly scenic. I’m glad Jen suggested adding it to our Scotland itinerary.

On Aug 11 2018,

…I caught an evening ASU practice. Looks like I ran into PJ and Adam from the Crafty Devils tailgate and a former player, Antonio Longino.

On Aug 11 2017,

…we did some exploring around the San Juan Islands in Puget Sound, WA.

On Aug 11 2013,

…I was in Ohio on a national park roadtrip I called #RustBeltRoadTrip. Funny enough, I’ll be revisiting many of those stops in a couple weeks with Jen. I also marked off the Indiana high point, which really solidified it as a quest.

On Aug 11 2012,

…I found myself in Iowa and Nebraska, visiting a state high point, two competing Jolly Green Giants, and a national park unit. I’d post photos from the day, but I apparently only posted them on twitter, and I’ve deleted all those posts after Elon took over. So—make sure you don’t rely on social media as a life archive!

On Aug 11 2011,

…I visited the North Rim of the Grand Canyon with my then-girlfriend, Laura. We were planning a Rim to Rim hike and wanted to hit a bit of the North Kaibab as a test run.

Man, I’m so bummed that wildfires have devastated this area, including burning the lodge and visitor center. The entire amazing forest shown here burned. What a loss.

Another pre-scheduled post while I’m traveling. I’m back home tomorrow.

Aug 10, 2023,

…we made our north towards Inverness, Scotland.

On Aug 10 2019

…we paddle Blue Ridge Reservoir and camped again on the Rim, enjoying this excellent sunset.

On Aug 10 2017,

…we found ourselves in Seattle. We toured a bunch of the standard tourist spots, adding in a number of stops focused on Pearl Jam, Nirvana, and Soundgarden history.

On Aug 10 2013,

…I found myself in Northern Ohio and Detroit. I wish I had more photos from this day accessible, but they’re either lost or in a random hard drive somewhere. I made it to Put-In-Bay (look at this view of Cedar Point, which was a real treat when I was a kid), trucked it up to River Raisin Battlefield, and stopped by my old house in Grosse Pointe Park, a suburb of Detroit. It was my first time back since moving away after 3rd grade.

Another pre-scheduled post! I’m in LA hanging with some friends.

On Aug 9, 2023,

…we explored some of the Scottish Highlands, with a focus on waterfalls. Look at all these cool places!

We also stopped by Doune Castle 🥥🥥 (iykyk).

I should mention that Jen’s mom and her close friend along for half of this Britain trip, one of the family trips we planned with each of our parents the last few years.

On Aug 2019,

…it was another camping trip on the Mogollon Rim, this featuring some cool ass clouds.

On Aug 9, 2024,

…my buddy was moving away and we made one last stop together at our old haunt, Paradise Lounge. (Yes, this one is out of order)