I can still remember showing off my shiny, newly acquired bottle of Jim Beam before the evening’s festivities began, it was New Years Eve. No one was allowed to touch it, it was mine and I wasn’t even planning on using a glass. We had another stupid party planned, no different than any other we had thrown over 30 times that season, four out-of-town guys, local girls and their friends, and a boatload of fun. Say what you want, we were young and loving it.

Somewhere around the middle of the label (they tell me it was about 10:30) the phone rang and much to my surprise, a long lost friend was back in Saratoga Springs from her travels to “where and when ever” she pleased. There was nothing stopping me from seeing Jesse, but no one was sober enough to drive (I didn’t even have a car at the time) and it was -10 degrees. I’ll Hitchhike!

This was not my most brilliant moment.

There was one person sober at the party who was bored and ready to go, it seemed she lived at the bottom of the mountain closer to I-87 which would cover about 30 minutes of the normally 3 hour commute. She had her own party to get to two doors away from where she lived and offered me a ride at least that far. On went the jacket, in my backpack went the Jim Beam, and we were off. If I could remember her name, I would thank her now, she tried like hell to prevent my hitchhiking attempt, but it just wasn’t working. Upon our arrival at the base of the mountain, our good Samaritan intentionally hid my bottle and tried to get me drunk enough to pass out with keg stands. It nearly worked.

Half awake and fully cocked in a bed with about four other people (no, nothing dirty) generally being drunk and stupid I caught a second wind, grabbed my jacket and found my bottle. One AM or so now, I open the door and felt the cold air instantly tighten my skin like a shrinking rubber band, the fact that it was -10 F had somehow slipped my mind. After 3/4 bottle of Jim Beam, several keg stands, and miscellaneous opaque bottled beers the part of your brain that is afraid of death shuts off, while the remainder acts like Homer Simpson chasing a donut.

After about 2 miles, it was too late to turn back. At this time everyone at the party was asleep, and there was no way to call anyone else. Onward HO! At about 2.25 miles I was jumping up and down at any car that passed hoping that if they wouldn’t stop, they would at least call the police… I knew I was going to die on that stretch of road, alone.

Coyotes are funny creatures, as long as you don’t bother their den, they will leave you alone. They will however, circle and or follow you until they think you are well out of range, they stayed with me about 200 yards out, in the woods for almost an hour. The scene was the inverse of a classic movie desert scene, my desert was snow and my vultures were coyotes. Looking back, I can’t believe I am alive to tell this story.

My jacket was about a half size too big for me, and the style at the time left snowboard jackets ending about mid thigh. The only thing that kept me alive was that Burton Universe jacket. I pulled in my arms, lifted it up over my head and zipped my entire upper torso into the jacket. As cars passed I would scramble to pull my arms and head out of the jacket like a turtle and wave for a ride like a madman. When my psychotic gestures were ignored, back in my Burton “turtle shell” I went. Jumping up and down, running in place, and rubbing your arms generates warmth when your are inside that jacket. Enough warmth it seems, to have kept me alive.

In the end somewhere in the neighborhood of exit 27 or exit 26 on southbound I-87 a New York State Trooper picked me up, Jim Beam still in tow, and delivered my sorry, frozen, nearly dead body to a truck stop with a phone. Someone in Saratoga was awake, thankfully. While I awaited my rescue with my new truck stop friends, my body slowly regained all of its feeling.

I haven’t since, and will not ever wear another jacket that isn’t produced by Burton Snowboards. That Universe jacket, is the only reason I am alive after an act of such incredible stupidity. I have also done a quick review on my current Burton lifesaver, the AK Stagger 2L.

Note: Apologies on the image quality, it’s the best Burton could find from their archives.

[Image © Burton Snowboards]

1. Never give up.
   So far in my journey as a professional photographer I have lost it all. My ultimate goal is to be one of the greats in fashion at the level of greats like Douglas Kirkland, Annie Leibovitz, and Marcus Klinko and with this goal comes an unparalleled  amount of perseverance. One winter while waiting for checks from a magazine both of my cars were repossessed, relationships have gone down the tubes, there are even times where I have given up the ability to feed myself for the sake of purchasing equipment. Many things have been accomplished in my life as a photographer, but I have only started checking off goals with a long list to go. Times will always be hard, people, geography and things will always stand in your way. The only failure is not getting through the tough times, the only failure is giving up.
2. Without risk there is no success.
   How did anyone ever climb Mt. Everest if they didn’t accept there was a possibility of death. Bill Gates himself would not have built the Microsoft empire had he not taken a chance that he may miss a payment, or end up bankrupt. If you sat down and analyzed the risk behind everything you would never leave your house and would be compulsively cleaning it to avoid germs. There is a chance you can lose at anything, there is a chance you can get hit by a car walking across the street. If you fall down, if you lose anything, get back up and refer to number 1.
3. Accept defeat as an education.
   Everything you do that doesn’t help you move forward, is a step away from what some people call failure. Every time something doesn’t work out establish a “why” and never repeat the action again. Some people define insanity as doing the same thing over and over expecting different results. If at first you don’t succeed, try again and try from a different angle, a different method, a different source; anything that can facilitate success. Learn from every speed bump and move forward, if all else fails refer to number 1.
4. There is no failure, only progression.
   Every “failure” is a step forward. Every obstacle is an education. If you refuse to give up, nothing is a failure and everything is progression. Learn from everyone and everything everywhere.
5. Reality TV: Stop watching other people live their lives.
   Reality television has made so many people sit in a chair eating Oreo’s while watching someone else live their life. Do you really think watching Ace Of Cakes is going to make you a better baker? It may give you a little inspiration, but only baking will make you a better baker. Research, practice, testing, hard work, and perseverance will make you a better baker and closer to making your dream of opening a shop come true. Watching someone else live your dream will not. It would be my general assumption that many of the people who are subjects of reality television, didn’t spend much time watching TV while they were making their dreams come true. (I am in no way picking on Duff here, he deserves 100% of my admiration and respect for what he has accomplished.)
6. News, if you must follow news, read a newspaper.
   Knowing what is going on in the world is good, however watching violent videos and emotional expressions of frightened field reporters is not. A single still image gives you an idea of the scene while the written word is dependent entirely on your interpretation, not the visual stimuli of video and a reporter’s emotion. Reading a newspaper also allows you the luxury to skip certain stories, instead of being riveted to a television and stuck in a chair for an hour.
7. How did you help someone else today?
   Share your knowledge with people in your field, helping other people succeed will help you succeed as well. Don’t be arrogant, learn from people and treat people well, they will return the favor. We live in such a negative world that simple kindness can change someones life. Hold a door, pick up something that the person in front of you dropped, practice random acts of kindness… You never know when you will change someone’s life with something simple.
8. Take a break and realize how beautiful the world is.
   Remember when you used to wish upon a star? It is my job to inform you that the stars are still there, you are welcome to go for nighttime walks and stare at them free of charge.  Stop on your way home from work and smell some flowers, admire a tree, or stare at the mountains… There is no law that says you have to be a robot and forget about the little things that captivated you as a child. (Butterflies tend to be amazing creatures as well.)
9. Try reading a book that feeds your mind, instead of your loneliness.
   Danielle Steel may be great for cold winter nights, but she is not helping your career. Don’t stop reading non-fiction for a release, just rotate in something that will educate you in your chosen field of expertise. We have all worked 12 hours in a row doing what we love, but remember you are only the best because you continue to further your mind in your field.

Feel free to express more of your own feelings in the comments section, I hope you found this helpful.

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To purchase your own copy of this life changing book, please visit the Og Mandino book store.