As a travel writer, I tend to work on the road most of the time. Nearly every minute of downtime, whether it being on a bus, train, ferry or plane are spent in front of this laptop, where I write for you all. My hope isn't that you will be jealous or think I'm leading a better life for it, but it is to spread the joy, the experience, and the love I have of traveling. I want everyone to experience what it's like to travel, because it can change you, and to be frank, I think everyone needs to experience it. Travel gets you out of your everyday routine, and makes you think, question, and understand, while helping to guide you to happiness, ego-less, and peaceful living in a modern age where society demands a new way of thinking.

In the modern age, many inventions are created for the simplicity of our everyday lives, while others are invented to revolutionize our world. Over the past decade, we have seen drastic changes with our smart phones, computers, and in our technological and electronic experience in almost every way and industry. Everything is getting smaller, more compact, streamlined and better thought out, and today I am here to talk to you about another such invention...

Exploring the last wild places of Ohio took me to the southern areas of the state with nothing but my pack, tent, sleeping bag and stove. Having lived in Colorado for the past two years, the type of wilderness I was used to had changed, perhaps not dramatically, but was definitely noticeably. The lack of wildlife was the largest indicator, and of course, the elevation, or lack thereof. There were no fears of bears (well, not really), and to be honest, I was thankful for that.

I left my car on a forgotten gravel road and hiked into the thicker, younger surrounding wood. The leaves were falling from burnt orange and yellow and red trees, and with the ease of the wind came the silence. It fell like a heaviness on the air, and my heart eased with it. I hiked for nearly an hour before I found the perfect view on a foothill and I setup camp. My tent went up without issue and the sleeping bag was rolled out and ready for bedtime, before I started a fire in a ring of rocks from the surrounding area. I gathered thin, browning sassafras twigs and limbs and broke them into 3-6" pieces. I struck steel against the edge of my flint and a spark lit the charcoal clothe, which I placed in the middle of a ball of frail jute. I blew and the flame caught on strong. The sweet smelling sassafras piled over the smoldering ball of fiber smoked then caught fire. I placed larger pieces of limbs and wood and the fire grew in size. The familiar pangs of hunger were apparent in my midsection. It was time to cook...