Elliott C. Back: Internet & Technology

I am a hottie!  Are you, too?

I went with my girlfriend to Mont Tremblant for skiing this week, since we were both on spring break:

Mont Tremblant is in Quebec, Canada. On the way, amusingly, in terrible weather, we passed Mexico:

It was an awesome Spring Break–we stayed at a 5 star hotel, ate good food, and enjoyed driving. I got a speeding ticket–my first. Although the weather for the last couple hours coming back was terrible, I think my driving improved because of it.

I’m filing this away for tomorrow:

Win a Trip with Nick Kristof

I’m hoping that you’ll be changed when you see a boy dying of malaria because his parents couldn’t afford a $5 mosquito net, or when you talk to a smart young girl who is at the top of her class but is forced to drop out of school because she can’t afford a school uniform. I’m not saying you’ll turn into an aid worker — but I’m hoping you’ll remember how much of the world lives and carry that memory through your life and let it affect your work and priorities. I began backpacking through Africa and Asia when I was in university, and the experiences changed me as I hope this trip will change you.

I’ve never been outside of North America except for a brief NAFTA visa run to the Mexico border a couple times when I used to live in Phoenix and before my greencard came. I’ve never pumped gas, worked theatre popcorn, or mopped floors, let alone done hard, bluecollar labour. My skill with computers has mostly isolated me from the hard, gritty parts of life. Even our American bums make enough to eat every day–where do I go on this continent to find the truly poor? I’ve travelled extensively and never seen anything shocking enough to change my life. Perhaps travelling to a third-world developing nation would let me experience life’s struggle instead the American dream.