A is for Alwood Oak
Image 1. Selfie with the Alwood Oak. (Original photograph, Andrew Vaughan) 2.10 Favorite Tree 10/24
Dear Alwood Oak,
Thank you for standing tall and broad, arms branching out, reaching towards tomorrow. For being a gentle reminder that with time and space great things can happen. And that sometimes we will start things that we will never see at their peak, but these things are still worth doing. Not just for the sake of legacy, but for the small benefit of many, and how those small benefits will go on to convince them to save space, and spend time, and one day something great may happen.
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B is for Bench
Image 2. A good bench, Duck pond. (Original photograph, Andrew Vaughan) 2.05 A Good Bench 10/8
It’s a chance to slip off the path, everyone else keeps walking quickly back and forth to their cars. It’s a nice spot to take off my heavy backpack and watch everyone else pass by. A rock wall to my back, two trees reach above me and begin to shed their leaves. A squirrel shuttles acorns past me to a bush above the wall. The ducks quarrel over bread. A golfer shanks his drive across the pond. Everything around me is in a rush, except for me and the bench.
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C is for Commute
Sketch 1. Drawing of my short walks from class to work. (Original sketch, Andrew Vaughan) 2.12 Indoor Walk 10/10
Work and school are intertwined for me. I run a shop that is a mere twenty four steps from my desk. I run this shop because I am paid to. I am paid to run this shop because I was always in it. Now I never leave. I averaged fifteen trips to the shop a day for the week I was keeping track. Yet no walk is ever quite the same. People, chairs, ideas, conversations, and scrap materials make a shifting labyrinth to create a new meandering trip each time.
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D is for Drillfield
Image 3. View of the Drillfield from War Memorial Chapel. (Original photograph, Andrew Vaughan) 2.06 Talking along the Drillfield 10/20
As we walked a lap and some crisscrosses around the drillfield we passed a few other students but it was a sparse October evening. Some prospective families wandered around, examining campus as the school band played for an event by the library. A professor lugged his bag to his car. It was one of those days where you really feel like a hokie. The trees matched logos, jackets, and pamphlets. The wind rushed us back to class. The drillfield welcomed us to stay and toss a ball for a while.
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E is for Exit
Video 1. Two mallards use a duck designed desire path to exit the duck pond. (Original Video, Andrew Vaughan) 2.19 Duck Pond 11/14
It turns out we are not the only ones creating desire paths around campus. The ducks and geese have been wearing in their own entrances and exits from the pond for who knows how long. It seems that they’ve still got a ways to go before facilities take them seriously enough to install some stairs, but for the time being they’ve developed quite a robust system. So if you slow down and watch the edge as you make your way around the pond you’ll notice worn paths down the banks.
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F is for Fish
Image 4. My friend Maggie holds up a largemouth bass caught at Pandapas pond. (Original photograph, Andrew Vaughan) 2.35 Go for a hike 10/5
I decided to do some interpretation of the term “hike,” but there was still walking and an intimate awareness of the nature around us. So between that general awareness and the fish my friend caught I’d call it a great hike. Through conversation with some other fisherpeoples we ran into and later some confirmation on Wikipedia we learned that the Pandapas pond area was originally built as a private recreation area for a local company and its employees. And was then later donated to the state. Shout out corporate donors.
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G is for Gazing
Image 5. Photo of the stars above the Drillfield. (Original photo, Andrew Vaughan) 3.14 Star Gazing 10/9
I felt small. I felt cold. I felt like I was going to fall. Initially the sensation felt like the spins, a dropping in my gut that I’d gone too far. But as I moved and the stars drug past me overhead I felt like I couldn’t go far enough. I weaved around lamp posts and across desire paths as I made a lap down the drillfield. The lights made it harder to see than I expected, promising I was almost to a view. The lamps hid the giant puddle.
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H is for Hidden from sight
Sketch 2. A quick and dirty sketch of campus before walking a loop on my lunch break. (Original Sketch, Andrew Vaughan) 2.01 Campus Map of the Imagination 11/8
For someone studying design, which uses a lot of spatial reasoning, I’m pretty ashamed of this one, but I managed to leave the entire construction site with the massive crane I’ve been happily watching for the last 5 months off of my map. My defence for this one is that I was hungry while drawing it and managed to include all of the places I regularly eat on campus. The reference I was using to lay out this map is my memories of freshman walks from my dorm to Cowgill.
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I is for Intrigued
Image 7. A stairway that peaked my attention between Henderson Hall & Theatre 101. (Original photograph, Andrew Vaughan) 3.05 drawn and repelled 11/27
Normally when I’m on campus I’ve got a destination in mind, and a deadline to be there by. So I took this opportunity to meander through the crevices of campus that I don’t normally get to see. This recluse of a stairway seemed particularly inviting with good lighting and the excuse of an English project in case I found myself where I shouldn’t be. It turns out to be guarding some very welcoming theater majors and their favorite smoke spot. It also hid some interesting architectural odd balls for campus.
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J is for Juxtaposition
Image 8. Sunset from Blacksburg Municipal Golf Course. (Original photograph, Andrew Vaughan) 2.20 Blacksburg municipal golf course 10/14
On this walk the juxtaposition between the golf course and newly constructed housing and the wild fields off the back of the ridge and the old developments started to fall into place. There is a satisfying predictability and manicuredness of the golf course and the new houses. However the life I find more interesting is untamed is happening in the wild fields and old rows of houses. There’s been time and space for wild flowers to sprout and hobbies to fill front yards, they feel lived in.
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K is for Knowing the way
Image 9. The lone curb cut on a 300 yard stretch of residential sidewalk. (Original photograph, Andrew Vaughan) 3.20 Observing Accessibility 10/28
I took a walk around my neighbourhood to revisit it through a lens I hadn’t used since I was on crutches last winter, accessibility. All of a sudden I realized that on my half of the block there is only one curb cut and a single handicapped spot. It’s over 150 yards to the next cut in one direction and 250 yards in the other. I asked the grounds crew about this, they said that since the division was built in the 70s it’s grandfathered in and won’t be updated.
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L is for Loping around Lane
Image 10. A full Lane Stadium from the student section . (Original photograph, Andrew Vaughan) 2.08 Sporting Event 10/4
My “walk” started with a ride. A quick jaunt over to Lane Stadium coasting downhill through the cool fall air whizzing past families in orange, towards the sweet smell of tailgates, it felt like a game day should. After family tailgates the next mission was to find my friends at Center Street. Here I became part of the masses hobbling and bumping along the paths and through security, racing to catch Enter Sandman, this felt like Hokie football. Soon we were being ravaged by Wake and the sun. Go Hokies.
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M is for Mountains
Image 11. The evening view from my remote campsite in the Jefferson National Forest. (Original photograph, Andrew Vaughan) 3.01 Why do you walk 11/23
When given the time and opportunity to truly just go walk, I head for nowhere. And as deep into nowhere as I can get. The national forests around us are a wonderful and underutilized resource. Over the last few years as I’ve grown more confident in my ability to make smart choices and keep myself safe in the wild, I have been hiking routes with no destination in mind. True journey is the destination adventure with no trails or signs. And I cannot recommend this enough, go find some solitude.
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N is for Nikes
Image 12. My near death Nikes. (Original photograph, Andrew Vaughan) 2.02 Shoe Portraits/Memories 10/13
These Nikes have carried me more miles than I can count. They have been my daily beaters for over three and a half years and I’ve damn near worn through the heel. They have carried me through six countries and left a part of themselves behind in each one, as I have learned more about myself. I’ve worn them for first dates, break ups, memorials and birthdays. Unfortunately they are nearing retirement but I will always have a soft spot for the souls that wore away so mine could grow.
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O is for Observing Overhead
Video 2. Timelapse of Stratus clouds over Blacksburg. (Original photograph, Andrew Vaughan) 2.03 Overhead at a time of day 11/24
These clouds feel like they’re skimming the ridges on the horizon, just out of reach from the peaks. At first they appear stationary, misting down on the valley as I walk. But after picking some details and using a street lamp for reference it becomes obvious they’re slowly sliding east across the landscape, hopefully dragging in nicer weather behind them. Slowly the details I had originally latched onto morph into blobs and hues as the clouds mush together and the sun sinks farther behind them. Soon Theres a new sky.
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P is for Path
Image 13. Desire path leaving campus. (Original photograph, Andrew Vaughan) 2.17 Desire paths 10/27
This path is a victory. This path is my path. This was the beginning and end of my journey across campus each day. For the last year it was a muddy pit. They tried new turf and signage. However there was a small contingent that remained throughout the summer and kept the path worn in. Until one beautiful day halfway through the summer; I was approaching campus, there was mulch. They had laid down a beautiful brown carpet, and I got to take the first steps to trod it down.
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Q is for Quack
Audio recording 1. Audio recording of joggers, people, vehicles, birds & water around the Duck Pond. (Original recording, Andrew Vaughan) 3.09 Sound walk 11/19
This was recorded, as you may guess, at the duck pond. On a wonderfully rainy day in bleaksburg. You can hear the sound of passing runners, friends laughing, ducks quacking, some smaller chattier birds, cars passing, and the dam at the end of the pond. It was a quaint way to experience the pond on a day when I’d normally feel like there wasn’t much to look at. The shift from focusing on watching to listening brought out a recently hidden wonderful world of details that we’re losing to earbuds.
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R is for Ritual
Video 3. How I started every morning run, by tagging my reference post. (Original Video, Andrew Vaughan) 3.21 Walking Ritual 11/16
My ritual for a week has been to go for a quick run every morning. It starts from the same point every day, a sign at the top of my hill. This sign marks the exact start and end of a 2 mile out and back across my side of town. I ran in high school and can still run a decent distance, however the consistency is where I’ve been lacking. So to start every day with a run was a great reminder of why I stopped doing exactly this.
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S is for Stairs vs Elevator
Image 14. Transition area between Cowgill and Hitt Hall. (Original photograph, Andrew Vaughan) 2.22 Stairs VS Elevator 10/31
For my entire time at tech I’d been taking the stairs through this little area, and I truly enjoyed it. The tight small tree canopy and architecture make it my favorite spot on campus. And I had lamented the elevators for not fitting in. But I was forced to use them after being put on crutches. Only then I realized they had a beautifully cinematic view of campus. I still prefer the stairs now that I can walk again, but on occasion at sunset I’ll go for a joy ride.
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T is for texture
Image 15. Earthen textures captured along a walk. (Original photograph, Andrew Vaughan) 3.10 Texture archive 11/26
As I walked, I decided to focus on the textures that I was actually walking on. This started with brick pavers, concrete, and asphalt. But as I made my way through the walk and off the beaten path, I realized I was “getting back to basics.” Sure, the pebbles and stones tried to roll my ankles, but we’ll see who’s in better shape in another thousand years. Probably every little stone I stepped on and every mile of asphalt. But I think I know who will have the better story.
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U is for Unfolding adventure
Sketch 2. Hand drawn map of my neighborhood walk. (Original photograph, Andrew Vaughan) 3.06 Hand drawn Map 11/28
This map is of my favorite walk to take with my neighbors. It pops up the hill and across the street straight to their front porch. After cutting through the parking lot to throw their trash in the dumpster we slip through a gap in the fence at Nelly’s cave park. From here the walk is a toss up. We may end up in a game of catch with some kids, or on the playground ourselves. But my favorite ending is making it to the ridge and catching the sunset.
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V is for View
Image 16. Image of scarlet tanager through the fog. (Original photograph, Andrew Vaughan) 3.08 Bird Watching 10/7
I took a quick drive out to Dragons tooth with some friends who like to hike a little slower than I do. But they like to cool the pace to take in more of the journey and less of the destination. Along the way we found a bluejay, goldfinch, and my favorite of the trio, a Scarlet tanager. The camera doesn’t do it justice but he was perched majestically through a clearing into the morning fog with just a hint of his orange and red shoulders cutting through the mist.
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W is for what goes on in there?
Image 17. The only decorated door in the building. (Original photograph, Andrew Vaughan) 2.07 What goes on in there 10/6
I slip in the back door of an imposing new building with no signage along my route to the bus. As I work around the corners I come across a lab. White coats and goggles, pipettes and biohazard symbols. I’m immediately out of place. Every floor is more labs with different warnings and students diligently nose down in research or laptops. After more than my fill of suspicious looks for eyeing up expensive equipment I find my way outside and am greeted by a sign, “Undergraduate Research Building”, absolute shocker.
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X is for eXtras
Image 18. Knolling of my backpack contents. (Original photograph, Andrew Vaughan) 2.23 The things you carry 11/30
My daily carry includes an LL Bean backpack that carries everything comfortably; an HP Victus laptop with mouse and charger that handles most of my work; a Waymo drawing pad on loan that I rarely use but rely on in a pinch; a Sony digital camera with charger for personal documentation; a Samsung SSD containing all my Tech-era data; assorted pens, markers, pencils, a small ruler, scissors, and embroidery supplies; headphones, a sketchbook, reading glasses, a Leatherman, spare batteries, deodorant, and a lighter for everyday convenience and preparedness and reliability.
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Y is for Your next step
Screen Shot 1. Screen shot of my average walking data over the course of the project. (Original photograph, Andrew Vaughan) 2.13 Step counting 12/1
I am not an obsessive stat tracker for any hypochondriac or “10 thousand steps for immortality” reasons. But I’m definitely in the upper percentile of stat trackers out of the people I know. I love to have proof that “something has been done and here’s how it compares.” I’ll analyze the elevation gain, pace and steps of everything from a century ride to a walk in the park with my family. Luckily my family is nerdy so we all start comparing the difference in step counts between people and apps.
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Z is for Zanny
Image 19. My friend Lilly becoming one with her feathered brethren. (Original photograph, Andrew Vaughan) 2.34 Directions for a first year student 11/22
Dear future hokie, don’t worry about remembering the building names, that will come naturally with time. Don’t worry about remembering your classroom numbers, it will become second nature to walk through the right doors. Don’t stress about accidentally giving touring families the worst routes to their destination. Just make your way to Lane. That is where you will be initiated as a hokie. The dorms, drillfield, and classrooms are nice for meeting people, but if you want to meet your school, follow the parade. Claim your spot, and start jumping.
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