Writing those two words in that sequence takes me back to my roots. That phrase is how most episodes of “Doug” began. The main character, Doug Funnie, invites you into his personal and sacred journal to uncover what his life was like according to him.

As I think back I almost feel ashamed I have not accredited more to this Nickelodeon show, Doug really is the two dimensional embodiment of not only my younger self, but in many aspects, my current self. Doug’s personal adventure spanned beyond reality, it spilled into his imagination, and we were along for the whole ride.

To this day I fill find myself daydreaming larger than life stories with none other than yours truly at the center. Some of these stories involve defying gravity and control of elements, but some were definitely within the realm of possibility.  “If you can dream it, you can do it,” is a famous quote by Walt Disney, and it is one I have to agree with. Often times, before a big sports event or academic trial, I’d find myself daydreaming my desired outcome, only the me that succeeded, wasn’t exactly the me I was. Sometimes the “Daydream Me” was smoother, handsomer, smarter, stronger, or whatever’”er” more than where I saw myself in reality.

Doug would often do the same, he had different alter-imagination-egos similar to Indian Jones, James Bond, and Superman who would play out scenarios for him and succeed, giving him the courage to attempt it himself. I’d like to say that my fantasies are based on more realistic versions of me, but as a 23 year old, my scenarios are just as, if not even more, unrealistic than his. I’d break every single law of science, ignore theories, and push aside all common belief to find logic.

Perception is reality and I feel like having the answer to a question can hinder the progress of people as a whole. Don’t get me wrong, it is great to question the great unknown, but I feel it is just as beneficial to question the known. It is my own personal belief that the more we “learn,” the more we find patterns and ways of predicting nearly everything. But it is the inability to recognize that we can’t predict everything that we must come to grips with. With everything we don’t know we don’t know out there, how can we possibly say without a shadow of a doubt that something is an absolute truth and law with regards to the future, present, or past?

Is it not possible that everything up until this exact moment could have been a random occurrence? Isn’t is also possible that absolutely nothing up until this point has been random and everything is explainable? If one is possible, why not the other, and why can’t it be a little of both, and who is to say which is which?

If Doug’s impossible daydreams escaped into the real world because he believed them, so whose to say yours can’t? Who is to say anything is impossible? Every moment is unique and everyone is unique with things of unique composition in unique spaces with unique forces working with, before, after, or inversely of them?

The things that were once impossible, walking on the moon, tracking seismic activity, diving to the bottom of the earth, or playing music on Mars, are now possible. The stories of fiction are now becoming fact. If someone can do that, who is to say you can’t achieve your dream?

Oh Hi, Oh?

Columbus was very cloudy and humid when I visited, but even with the gloomy weather we found some sunshine in the food. Downtown Columbus is home to the North Market, where you can find local venders sporting their most colorful and flavorful recipes. We decided to go with Polish food to celebrate Ohio’s large polish heritage. Though spicy, it was definitely a change from the norm. The new tastes made not have been my favorite in the world, but I could enjoy them simply because they were so unique.

Columbus is within reasonable distance of Cedar Point, Indianapolis, Pittsburgh, and Detroit. If you’re up around the area, you ought to swing by and check it out.

DC’s Pizza Secret

First of all, I absolutely love DC. It might be my favorite city in the Americas, so I was especially excited when DC took the crown for the best Pizza. I traveled all over New York, Chicago, California and plenty of other places searching for the best pizza and I was always disappointed. That is, until I went to Adams Morgan and had a “Jumbo Slice.”

When I ordered the goliath slice of pizza I was in shock of how huge it was. There were two plates underneath it and there was still extra pizza hanging off. They did not cut corners on giving you a fair amount for your money, and speaking of money, this slice of pizza was only $5! But this Pizza not only looked good, but it tasted unbelievably delicious. With every bite the cheese just melted on your tongue and slides into your heart both figuratively and probably literally. The only downside to this pizza the nearly 1200 calories you’ll be putting in your body. But if you think about it, that really isn’t too bad for something that will keep you full for the rest of your day. Jumbo Slice in Adams Morgan has my Presidential Seal of Approval for the BEST PIZZA in America (until further notice).

The Maine Event.

I tried to stay along the water on my search for Lobster. As I traveled up and down the coast I fell in love with the rocky beaches in Maine, the precipices dove right into the ocean breaking the waves before they could make it to the base of the breathtaking lighthouses. After running around on dangerous rocks for a while I had an epiphany, what is closer to water than a boat? So we got our lobster rolls from DiMillos, a boat-restaurant combination.

As you step on you feel like you are in the Titanic. Everything about the boat was extremely elegant and classy, but the prices were much more manageable than one might expect. I ordered my Lobster roll and took my first few bites. I was not impressed, in fact, I was actually really disappointed. However, as I continued to eat, I became more and more satisfied. The flavor was very different from anything I’d ever had, but it was phenomenal.  I just had to give my taste buds time to adjust and adjust they did. The roll has huge lobster chunks and cream on a roll that was worth the $15 by itself.

My search again ended in victory for my taste buds, but also for my eyes. The coastline up north is a spectacular site. It may not be as warm as the tropics, but it is definitely worth visiting.

Cake in a Cup

When you enter Georgia, you’re welcomed by a water tower painted to look like a big ole peach. Atlanta is beautiful. Atlanta is a large city, but it isn’t as congested as I thought. Within the city are plenty of monuments and even a few very large parks. I really wanted to eat a Georgia peach, but saw a sign for the “best cupcakes” and had to go in to this quaint little shop called “Party Chic.”

Party Chic had too many cupcake flavors to count with plenty of homely feeling rooms to rent for parties to enjoy them. I’m not big on sweets, and I usually get sick after eating a lot of ice cream, but Party Chic’s  cupcakes left my tummy extremely happy. I also left with my brain happy too. I came to the understanding of the word “cupcake,” I had never thought about it before. A cupcake is called a cupcake because it is a cake in a cup. But technically, it is a cake in a paper, so what you’re really eating is a paper cake. It’s a crazy world we live in, huh?

Chicken Fried

You’d think it wouldn’t be hard to find fried chicken in Kentucky, but it was an incredibly difficult ordeal! Fried chicken has been around since the middle ages and it is found all over the world, so why is Kentucky so famous for it? After going to Dayglow, bboying a bit, and searching all around Louisville (even talking to a cardboard Paula Deen and yelling at a huge mural of the colonel from KFC), Joe, Ben and I asked a few locals and found ourselves at “Indy Food.”

The outside was extremely colorful and so was the inside, but in-between the colors were an eclectic blend of people coming together over this  amazing food. After taking one bite I was in heaven. As my teeth sank through the crunchy exterior my tongue made contact with the amazingly succulent and tender chicken. Greasy? You better believe it, but delicious and worth it? You better believe it was! The search ended with success, the best chicken I had ever eaten. My own concern was the availability of chicken in Louisville. We didn’t get to eat until the very last day, not because we wanted to wait, but because it was so hard to find anything non “chain.”

NoLa’s Search for Po’Boys

I didn’t intend on going to Mardi Gras at first, I drove 6 hours to spend the weekend in Atlanta, but when I met up with some old friends and learned that we had a free place to stay if we left that night, how could I say no? It more than doubled my time spent driving that weekend, but well worth it. A group of us crammed in a car and as we were backing up, we ran into a tree in the yard. We were off to a great start!

In that car was myself, Brent, Traci, Neel, Adam, and Micah. Micah’s life is actually pretty similar to mine (link below) with just as many interesting travel stories, if not more. Together we put our adventurous spirit to the test and tried to do as much of New Orleans, or “NoLa” as we possibly could in 24 hours.

Everyone in the city displays their Nola pride in everything from the floats you see on TV to yellow, purple, and blue colored Portapotties. The weather was terrible, yet the streets stayed packed all week. Bourbon Street was littered with confetti and beads flying through the air, exciting costumes, bizarre people, and unbelievable situations. What I love about New Orleans is the mindset the citizens have. Unlike New York where everyone represents their own heritage and country, in Nola, they all come together over the festival and become one people with one past.

Part of that past has to do with Creole and French immigrants coming to America to find a new life. But along the way many immigrants struggled with discrimination and were unable to find work. The “Martins” restaurant attempted to aid those out of a job by supplying cheap sandwiches, the workers described the unemployed as “poor boys” and eventually called the sandwich the same. Overtime the thick accent has dropped the last “o” and “r” in poor and turned the name into “Po’ Boys.”

We weren’t able to find Martins, however we ate at Lucy’s Retired Surfer Bar who claimed the “best po’ boy in New Orleans.” The rolls were overflowing with sauces and substance making it drip everywhere. They definitely overstuff their rolls and aren’t stingy on the meat or shellfish. Our city tour was a success, but much too short, if you go to New Orleans, make sure you allow yourself plenty of time to see as much of the city as possible and watch as many floats and you can. Oh, and don’t forget to check out the food, next time, I intend to check out the Jambalaya!

Micah’s Blog: http://mleodesigns.blogspot.com/  

Baltimore’s Corned Beef Hash

President Porter Eats is my newest short film project. As I travel I’ll document important or humorous happenings describing the cities I visit and what I like best about them. This will all be done while searching for a signature food in the area.

Kicking off my short film series, Jeremy, Hal, and I visited Baltimore in hopes to find some of the best cuisine in the Charm City.  I like Maryland for it’s natural beauty. The trees look like something out of a painting. They are incredibly fluffy and green, sitting on hills and mountains that give depth, but don’t cause too much of a headache to drive on.

Parts of lower Maryland (like the BWI Airport) can be accessed by the Metro which makes traveling more convenient.  Baltimore is about an hour from Washington DC (going south) or Philadelphia (going north), if you decide to visit one city, it definitely wouldn’t be very much trouble to visit all three.

Baltimore and the surrounding cities are part of the DMV and Kodachrome, two big players in bringing together local artists, dancers, and other performers. Some of the best dance competitions I’ve been to have been in Baltimore. The city has been a major seaport since the country was young, which means they are rich in history and tradition. Inner Harbor is the part of the city with the high end shopping, attractions like a power plant converted to a barnes and noble, and of course, fine dining.

I hoped to eat crab cakes—however, years prior I had been disappointed, I had visited Charm City Cakes and was able to participate as an extra in one of their episodes. The cake was made for “The Dizz” which boasted Amazing Crab cakes, but I was not impressed with the shellfish nor the service. The food and the staff were okay, but they hadn’t demonstrated anything to separate themself from any other restaurant.

This time around we went for Maryland’s best corn beef hash from Lenny’s in the heart of  Inner Harbor. Once again I was disappointed. The cashier wouldn’t break even a smirk, and though they brought the food out fairly speedy, upon sinking my teeth, I found my taste buds searching for satisfaction. Nothing about that sandwich was note worthy either.

Dear Me by PresidentPorter: The final project of my undergraduate academic career.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2gvlM8N8bg&list=UUbeQ7GnZEnVYx7P7mZcbMZA&feature=plcp

Dear me,

I’m standing on the outskirts of my college career on the edge of the so called “real world” that the last seventeen years have lead up to-

 and though I can’t claim any true credentials that would allow to advise you on the rest of your life,

I’d have some things I’d like to say…

Remember when you were a child and a world of possibility lay before you? With the magnitude of your imagination, the word “can’t” simply wasn’t in your vocabulary. There were no limits then and if you can free your mind, it can be that way again.

A dream is our brain’s way of showing us what we’re capable of.

Chase your dreams, and once you catch them, which you will, chase another.

Work Hard.

 And Never give up,

Don’t worrie. if things are within reason, take control, if not, do what you can and lift the remaining up to God. Things may not always go your way, but that is because it’s not all about you and what you want.

Remember The times you failed or got your heart broken? Don’t forget what you learned from that.

And that time you broke that girl’s heart? Yeah, don’t do that again

Try to take advice and maybe one day you’ll learn without making your own mistakes first.

You like someone, tell them

If you want to laugh, Laugh.

If you want to cry, cry.

Stand out, and don’t be afraid to make a fool of yourself.

Do what you want, because there is never a better time than now and you’re not guaranteed tomorrow.

Don’t take what you have for granted, nothing is forever. You never know what will happen, so breathe every moment like it’s your last, and live every day to it’s fullest.

That superhero who you call mom, never, never forget how much of a blessing she has been to you.

Keep your sister close, look out for our cousins, and remember the wisdom bestowed on you from your Grandparents and elders.

Friends will come and go, but cherish them all the same.

People mess up,

Forgive them.

You will mess up.

Apologize.

Say you’re sorry, learn continuously, and always be open to being wrong.

When you feel down, remember what God has blessed you with and go squeeze someone you love, put your heart and soul into that hug and don’t let go until you both can’t breathe.

Everyday, make  a friend with someone completely random,

Hold the door open for a stranger,

And Smile, never stop smiling.

Do you still dance? You should. Keep expressing yourself in your music and art and singing offkey in the car.

Do you read the directions now? Are you still spontaneous? Do you still travel?

Are you married yet? I bet she’s the most beautiful woman on the planet, remember what your mom taught you and put her first. Never let chivalry die, and be romantic. Be her prince and treat her like the princess she is.

I hope she’s not afraid to call you out when you’re wrong, lets you lean on her for support of the crazy plans, projects, and dreams you better still be cooking up.

Do you have children? I’ll bet they’re a handful, which is payback for you being so stubborn as a kid, but I bet they’re totally worth it. I know you’re scared to be a dad, but  you’ll do just fine.

Our fears and problems are only as big as we allow them to be, so don’t allow them to be.

 It’s better to cry over memories made than chances missed. In dealing with love and your dreams, make sure not to compromise truth. Push yourself, if you don’t reach your potential, the only person you are cheating is you.

And above all else, remember where you came from, the God who has your back, and that the only thing bigger than your dreams, should be the courage to make them come true.

To the Class of 2012

Wear Sunscreen

By Mary Schmich of the Chicago Tribune

Ladies and gentlemen of the class of ‘98: Wear sunscreen. 

If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it. The long-term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists whereas the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable than my own meandering experience. I will dispense this advice now. 

Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth. Oh, never mind. You will not understand the power and beauty of your youth until they’ve faded. But trust me, in 20 years, you’ll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can’t grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked. You are not as fat as you imagine. 

Don’t worry about the future. Or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubble gum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind, the kind that blind side you at 4 PM on some idle Tuesday. 

Do one thing every day that scares you. 

Sing. 

Don’t be reckless with other people’s hearts. Don’t put up with people who are reckless with yours. 

Floss. 

Don’t waste your time on jealousy. Sometimes you’re ahead, sometimes you’re behind. The race is long and, in the end, it’s only with yourself. 

Remember compliments you receive. Forget the insults. If you succeed in doing this, tell me how. 

Keep your old love letters. Throw away your old bank statements. 

Stretch. 

Don’t feel guilty if you don’t know what you want to do with your life. The most interesting people I know didn’t know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives. Some of the most interesting 40-year-olds I know still don’t. 

Get plenty of calcium. 

Be kind to your knees. You’ll miss them when they’re gone. 

Maybe you’ll marry, maybe you won’t. Maybe you’ll have children, maybe you won’t. Maybe you’ll divorce at 40, maybe you’ll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary. Whatever you do, don’t congratulate yourself too much, or berate yourself either. Your choices are half chance. So are everybody else’s. 

Enjoy your body. Use it every way you can. Don’t be afraid of it or of what other people think of it. It’s the greatest instrument you’ll ever own. 

Dance, even if you have nowhere to do it but your living room. 

Read the directions, even if you don’t follow them. 

Do not read beauty magazines. They will only make you feel ugly. 

Get to know your parents. You never know when they’ll be gone for good. 

Be nice to your siblings. They’re your best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you in the future. 

Understand that friends come and go, but with a precious few you should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography and lifestyle, because the older you get, the more you need the people who knew you when you were young. 

Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard. 

Live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft. 

Travel. 

Accept certain inalienable truths: Prices will rise. Politicians will philander. You, too, will get old. And when you do, you’ll fantasize that when you were young, prices were reasonable, politicians were noble, and children respected their elders. 

Respect your elders. 

Don’t expect anyone else to support you. Maybe you have a trust fund. Maybe you’ll have a wealthy spouse. But you never know when either one might run out. 

Don’t mess too much with your hair or by the time you’re 40 it will look 85. 

Be careful whose advice you buy, but be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia. Dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it’s worth. 

But trust me on the sunscreen.