Epic

Jay Price - Hiker - Wrapping things up in Napoleon, OH

The man in this photo hiked 29.93 miles today from Bowling Green, Ohio to Napoleon, Ohio with a twenty five pound pack. He was still smiling at the end of the day. Not bad for a Monday.

That is all.

Morning at Chittning Pond

This morning I awoke to the honk of geese, the twitter of birds, and Dad saying, “time to get up….we’re burning daylight.”  It was five forty-five.

I blinked open my eyes and thought, “Damn it’s cold in here.”  I was toasty warm under my down sleeping quilt that had been snugged up around my neck with a drawstring, and my head was covered under my fleece stocking cap.  I did not want to get up and face the chilly morning of our campsite on the banks of Chittning Pond in Sangerfield, NY.

Regardless of what I wanted, it was time to wake up and face whatever the day had in store.

Mist on the water as the sun peeks over the mountain on Chittning Pond.

I grabbed my frigid shoes, slipped my formerly warm feet into the icy togs, and unzipped the tent flap.  I noticed that the character talking about burning daylight was still tightly wrapped in his own sleeping quilt.  No movement out into the cold for him quite yet.

Nevertheless, I stepped out into the morning and was greeted with a glorious sunrise.  Mist had risen over the water, and the sun was just beginning to peek over the hills to the east.  I tucked my head back inot the tent to grab my camera knowing that I wouldn’t be able to capture the moment in the way that it really made me feel.  It was one of those morning that you just had to experience.

The cool dampness of the air nipping at your cheeks while your breath added clouds of vapor to the mounting morning layer of fog.  The geese honking softly as they swam across the pond, and the birds twittering softly in the surrounding woods getting ready to greet the day.

I’m grateful the old man woke me up.  It was a great way to start the day.

Route Planning IV - Tension in the Expedition Party

I’m a little bit frustrated with Rory right now. I probably shouldn’t be writing this, but let’s face it, he’s probably not going to take the time to look at the blog anyway. I suspect I’m safe from being discovered. If I’m wrong about that, it will be yet another example of how bad I am at predicting the future, but I’m pretty sure I’m on solid ground this time.

I’m frustrated because of our morning phone conversation. I’m frustrated because I think I’ve been doing a pretty good job of planning and preparing for the N2N-TCP while holding down a day job with a non-trivial commuting burden. I’m frustrated a little because he has what I perceived to be loads of discretionary time. He also seems to want to wax philosophically about planning, but he doesn’t seem to want to do any of it.

Today, he laid out the case for the fact that “we” haven’t planned enough and that all we’ve really done is to put together a “vision” for the N2N-TCP. On that assertion, I agree that we really do need to buckle down and start planning the final details associated with the pilgrimage. Here’s where I think we need to focus our efforts:

1. Drafting a general letter of introduction to people or organizations that may be in a position to help with the execution of the pilgrimage. Like a logo or a brand, time spent on this type of activity has a very good chance of paying off in multiple locations an multiple scenarios. For example, I think we would be well served to introduce our proposed effort to the Cities of Newport, RI and Newport, OR. I’m not sure if this pilgrimage is going to generate any public interest, but if it does these two cities might want to capitalize on the publicity. I also think a letter of introduction would be useful in trying to drum up support for major logistics companies like Amazon or Sam’s/Walmart. Logistics in Nebraska seems to one of Rory’s major concerns since he keeps bringing it up, but other than research a pull cart, he hasn’t done a whole lot to address the concern. Getting a professional organization to help with the logistics aspects of the walk would be a real coup d'etat. It would also be a whole lot less physical work than pulling a cart.
2. We need to start purchasing our gear for the walk. There’s a couple of reasons behind this push. First, it would be nice to get a little experience with the equipment before we strike out in the event that we decide it needs to be replaced. Second, this is going to be a pretty expensive endeavor, and spreading out the burn rate is probably going to serve us well. When I refer to gear, I’m really talking about the major items that we’re going to need to accomplish the trip. In my mind this includes packs, sleeping bags, sleeping mats, and shelter. I’d thought Rory and I had decided to start off the trip with a single two man tent. This is by far the most weight efficient set-up. I’m pretty sure I asked Rory if he’d like to do enough research to make a recommendation. I’m not sure we ever closed out that perceived action.

Long story short, I think we’re getting to the stage of the project that we need to start closely coordinating and EXECUTING our planning process. For whatever reason, Rory and I don’t seem to be in alignment on what aspects of the planning execution need to be prioritized. I’ve asked him to provide an initial comprehensive list of focus areas by the end of the week. That will give us both a good picture of the differences in our approach (if any). We’ll see if he follows through on putting together the list. It’ll tell me a lot about how much work we have to accomplish.

Route Planning I

Now that we’re about nine months from the kickoff date of the Newport to Newport Transcontinental Pilgrimage, Rory Conlan and I have decided that it’s probably time to really get down to brass tacks and start a serious route planning effort. It seems a little silly that we’ve put things off this long, but in our defense, it’s a difficult challenge to agree to and plan for an effort that covers this much scope. We’re also discovering that we are both taking slightly different “philosophical” approaches to the pilgrimage. Getting these philosophical differences out on the table where we can discuss them is starting to be an important part of the planning process.

Now I don’t want to make it seem as if we’ve done no planning at all. Thanks to modern technology, Google Maps in particular, we’ve managed to lay out a route that is pretty detailed and appears to be executable on foot. This is the overview of the route.




One of the first planning factors that this overview route gives us is the total distance from Newport, RI to Newport, OR that we’ll have to cover to successfully complete the pilgrimage. This particular route chalks up at 3,109 miles. Now this is not the only route that we’ve plotted, and it’s interesting to note that for a journey this long the overall distance is pretty sensitive to route changes. The planning factor that we’ve settled on using is a route distance of 3,350 miles.

Once we figured out the overall distance, we begin to break down this distance into daily goals. Based on the walking I’ve done over the last several years in preparation for the pilgrimage, I think that an average daily target between twenty and thirty miles per day is what we’re going to have to accomplish in order to be successful.

Twenty miles per day for 3,350 miles yields a duration of about one hundred sixty eight days. Assuming a mid-March departure, this duration indicates we can expect to complete the pilgrimage sometime in late August or early September. If we’re able to average twenty four miles per day, we can complete the route in early August approximately twenty eight days earlier than the twenty mile per day average. An average daily progress of fifteen miles per day has us finishing the trek in late October with a mid-March start.

After defining these ranges of outcomes, the details of the walking philosophy really begin to become important. For instance, Rory and I both agree that we’re probably going to need a rest day every now and then to make sure we have the physical stamina to finish the pilgrimage. Where we haven’t reached an agreement yet is how we should plan for this short or no walking day.

We’ve basically agreed that we really ought to shoot for an average daily progress of no less than twenty miles per day. One of the factors associated with this decision is weather. Another one is money. We think that if we finish in about one hundred fifty days, the weather will remain reasonable and we won’t run completely out of money to support our families while we chase this adventure.

To average twenty miles per day, you’ve really got to plan the “down days” that both agree we’re going to need. Do you notionally schedule these down days every five days, every week, every ten days, or some other longer duration? It makes a real difference to your walking day targets. For instance, if you plan on one day off every five days of walking, you’re going to have to cover one hundred miles every five days to keep to the twenty mile per day average. That’s four twenty five mile days in a row. On the other hand if you’re willing to extend the rest day out to once a week, you only have to cover about twenty three and a half miles every walking day for six days in order to rest on the seventh. Extending the rest days out even further or deciding to walk a non-zero reduced day for your resting days also makes a big difference in execution.

Rory and I noodled on this dilemma for about forty minutes this morning, and we weren’t able to come to an agreement. It’s not like we’re arguing over these details, but coming to a conclusion for planning purposes is proving elusive.

This is one of many details we’re going to have to nail down over the coming nine months. Wish us luck because we’re going to need it.

Homecoming 2018

It’s been over a year since I posted in this space.  I had to look it up myself, and I’m a little surprised it hasn’t been longer.  Be that as it may, consider this my homecoming post. First the developments over the last year.

1. The Newport to Newport Transcontinental Pilgrimage is still planned for spring and summer of 2019.  When I last left you, Rory Conlan (my pilgrimage partner) was working on healing a foot injury, and I had just taken on a new two year assignment at work.  I’m happy to report that Rory’s toe has healed nicely, and he’s recently discovered the magic of an aloe ointment that’s continuing the process. I’m a little more than halfway through the two year assignment, and I’m still looking forward to the trek across the United States.

2. Back in February of this year, I was plagued with another stress fracture on both the fourth and fifth metatarsals of my left foot.  This appears to be an ongoing condition that is healing nicely but will have to monitored on the walk.

3. Rory and I have had a couple of logos for the Newport to Newport effort made, and I’m happy to share them here now.  The first shows the Newport, RI lighthouse and two characters heading west from that location. Here it is:

The second is a little more abstract, but I’ve come to think of it as our trademark:

I really like this one.  The stones that make up the feet and the TCP of the logo represent the pebble beach at the back of the Vanderbilt mansion in Newport, RI as well as the cobble beach on Yaquina Head leading out to the lighthouse in Newport, OR.  Both of these beaches make a rattling noise when brushed by the waves and the tide.  I’ve only personally heard this “magic rocks” sound in Newport, RI, but I’m looking forward to experiencing it on both ends of our cross country journey.  It seems a little trivial writing it, but this sound speaks to my soul, and I think it’s worth making the trip to experience it for yourself.

4.   Both Rory and I have started to practice yoga.  I’m only speaking for myself, but I wish I had started this practice about twenty years ago.  I picked this up in February when the stress fractures in my foot reappeared as a way to stay active and work on my upper body strength and my overall flexibility.  Even in this short time, it’s been a journey of discovery where I’ve made both physical and spiritual improvements. I’ve been challenged in ways that I would not have imagined, and made progress on certain poses that I would not have dreamed possible.  It took a few months, but here’s a picture of me finally conquering the Crow Pose. Crow is a relatively straightforward arm balance that requires a bit of shoulder and wrist strength, but mostly some flexibility and balance.

I was pretty excited to make make this progress.  While I’m not sure how it will help with the pilgrimage, I keep telling myself that it can’t hurt.

That’s probably enough discussion of past developments for this particular homecoming post.  Suffice it to say that I’m back, and I plan on being a little more regular in my posting here as we really start to ramp up the preparations for the N2N-TCP.

Rory's Back in Town

I'm happy to report that Rory Conlan is still breathing and walking. Although he hasn't (yet) followed up on his promise of more to follow on these pages, we did lash up this weekend for a series of long training walks in Huntsville, AL.

Monte Sano State Park Overlook - Huntsville, AL

I'm happy to report that the weather's been spectacular, and we've gotten in some credible distance over the last couple of days.

Alligator Gar - Aldridge Creek - Huntsville, AL

We even saw quite a few fish today including several good size large mouth bass, two alligator gar, and some sunfish/bream.

It's been quite enjoyable to get out on the trail with Rory, but we both have some work to do conditioning wise in the lead up to the N2N-TCP.

I'm not sure what tomorrow may hold, but I know it's time to get back to work.  Eleven months to go until stepping out.

Run Toward Your Dreams

Progress in the direction of the N2N-TCP is gaining momentum.  After a lackluster year of physical training last year because of my broken foot in January 2016, I've changed shoes, gotten some downtime for healing, and I'm back out on the trail.  Yesterday was a sunrise and sunset day, and it was truly spectacular. The trail stretched between the two, and the walking itself was just exactly what I needed as well.

Squeezing the Last Fire Out of the Day - College Creek - Annapolis, MD

In addition to walking, Rory Conlan and I have engaged the help of a great graphics designer to help us out with a logo to represent the walk.  It's something we've been kicking around for about two years now, and while we came up with some concepts, I'm really excited to see what a professional can do with this crazy idea we're pursuing.

I don't know what's going to happen tomorrow, but I know that as long as we're willing to take the next step toward our dreams the universe is conspiring to deliver exactly what we need.  What started as an escape has transformed itself into a goal, and I'm having the time of my life.

Leaning Into the Dream

A series of events happened this week that have pushed me deeper into pursuing the dream of walking from Newport, RI to Newport, OR.  It's been awhile since I told the tale of the beginning of this journey, but it's worth recapping a short version of the story here.

About four years ago (almost to the day really), I had managed to earn my way into a very dark place in my life. I couldn't stand staying where I was, and I really couldn't imagine moving forward. All I really wanted to do was escape, and the notion crossed my mind to drop my job, my possessions, and all other attachments and strike out on the road headed west.  I was in terrible physical shape, and I had no real plan other than to escape the pain that I'd created for myself. It was a silly escape fantasy, and fortunately for me I went in another direction.

The narrative of that branch of the trail is a completely different story, so I'll let it sit for now, but about a year later, I found myself in a much better place.  I'd begun the process of shedding my demons, and my physical fitness was on the mend. My thinking had changed from a feeling of crushing entrapment to optimism.  My work, relationships, finances...almost everything that defines the standard notion of the "American Dream" had improved.  One thing that I kept from that dark morass of hopelessness was the notion of the walk.

I have no inkling why this idea proved to be so sticky. There was nothing really to escape from at this point, but there the idea sat...percolating. I decided something had to be done.  The idea was crazy. It was irresponsible. There was just no way to "earn a living" (more on this notion of earning a living in a later post) walking across America. Something had to be done to rid myself of this idea, so one day I mentioned it to Rory Conlan (you know him, the guy who is overdue on his once every six month post promising more posts).

Rory is a responsible sort. I've even accused him of having an overdeveloped sense of responsibility from time to time. He's steady, practical, and traditional. I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he would hate the idea of walking across America. He'd tell me it was irresponsible. Crazy. Not the right thing to be thinking about doing much less seriously planning on doing it. I'd verbalize the sticky idea, and he'd give me all the logical reasons it should be discounted immediately. I was not wrong.

Rory performed admirably. He laid out his case. He reacted with great skepticism. He went through a long list of reasons that it couldn't and shouldn't be done. He appealed to the irresponsibility of it all. He poured cold water all over my silly notion. The flames had gone out, and I left that conversation with only a little ember of thought that I was sure would fade with time.  My plan to get rid of the idea had worked.

Two weeks later, I was on a call with Rory, and he brought up the walk. He asked me where I had thought it might happen. I'd done some initial research, so I said the thought before he killed it had been to walk from Newport, RI to Newport, OR largely along US Highway 20. I hadn't named the walk yet, but that was about as far as I'd gotten.

I began to get a little anxious. Rory was making positive sounds. Then he did what I thought was about a 50/50 chance when I first told him about the walk. He said it sounded like a fine adventure. The embers of the idea burst back into a little flame.

Over the coming months he and I talked about the idea more and more. We both did more research. We talked about ideas for funding it. I wondered what it would feel like to walk 3300 miles, and I wondered how long it would take. I eventually settled on a 30 mile per day target, and we continued to talk. Eventually the talk led to action, and we both began to train.

We've had setbacks since then, and we're still not out on the road. Lot's of things have happened in my life, but the dream of the walk continues to be pushed to fruition through work and the gentle hand circumstances beyond my control. Just this week, I was given the gift of more discretionary time to work toward the dream that is slowly becoming the Newport to Newport Transcontinental Pilgrimage (N2N-TCP).

College Creek Sunset (from a few days ago) - Annapolis, MD

I continue to encounter enriching experiences along this journey. I've gotten outside. I stopped watching television. Many of my worries, things that I once thought were important enough to drive my anxiety level higher than warranted, have vanished.  Today, I've walked eight miles, and I'll probably get in a few more.

I don't know what will happen tomorrow, but four years later, we're closer to the dream of the N2N-TCP than ever before.  I'm enjoying the trail, and I'll keep pushing forward.

Rafting Life's River

Today was spectacular. Rory Conlan and I spent about an hour while we walked, and I managed to pull myself out the calling of walking to make it to my day job.  On the way, I experienced the morning of four suns.

Four Sun Morning - US 98 Causeway - Daphne, AL

We live in extraordinary times. Metal coated flat glass mirrors were not produced until early in the Renaissance in Venice. Due to the difficulty of making plate glass of uniform thickness, they were a very expensive luxury item. There are legends of the Countess de Fiesque purchasing a mirror for the price of a wheat farm she sold to finance the transaction. Today, we have mirrors everywhere. I didn't really notice this till I got out on the trail and started moving a little slower. Now I see them, and what they reflect, everywhere.

Later in the afternoon, I made my way back to Fairhope, AL for another round of trail work, and the day was then bookended with the glory of the universe.

Fellow Travellers - Fairhope, AL

Because of the cloud coverage, I was a little concerned the sunset would be a little dull. I couldn't have been more wrong.

Fishing - Fairhope, AL

People aren't something I normally photograph, but today, down on the end of that pier in Fairhope, the opportunities were just too beautiful to let pass.

Family Sunset - Fairhope, AL

I stood in awe as a raging river of life flowed by as the sun dipped below the horizon. Sometimes...oftentimes it's like that during my pilgrimage training. I raft down the river of life, and the universe brings me just the right things to achieve peace and serenity. I feel like I've discovered an endless river of wealth, and it costs hardly a thing to experience the flow in all it's grandeur. I am blessed, and although I don't know what will happen tomorrow, I have faith that the river of life will deliver just what I need.

Changes in Attitudes

Today after my day job wrapped up, I spent some time chasing a sunset. A little bit of map recon would have gone a long way because I ended up in a less than optimal viewing location. On top of the initial geographical mistake, I got to the spot just in time to watch Sol slip below the horizon, and I was left with the dregs as the light faded into night. Don't get me wrong, it was much better than any number of evening pastimes (like watching the "news"), but there's some improvement to be achieved.

That said, Google Photos salvaged a photo or two automatically, so the walk wasn't a total loss in terms of scenery.

Dregs of the Sunset as Interpreted by Google - Fairhope, AL

After the walk, I found myself in a Target looking for bottled iced tea. That's a whole story in and of itself, but suffice it to say that I'm battling my way through breaking a Diet Coke habit and I needed some non-artificially sweetened caffeine.

As I walked through the store, my thoughts brought me back to one of the great Jimmy Buffet songs, "Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes."  While Jimmy sings about a geographic changes driving a shift in outlook. Walking is doing something like that to my outlook. It's getting more and more difficult to stomach the complexity that I find inundates almost every moment of my conscious existence. Material wealth, choices, distractions, entertainment, and agendas froth around my senses begging for attention and often getting far to much of it.

All this after I've curtailed many of the purchases I used to make and essentially have ejected television from the list of activities I find fulfilling.

The road is calling. I sense a building of circumstances surrounding what amounts to the crazy idea that a pedestrian trek of some distance will allow me to reset and reconnect with something whole and spiritual that even now I can't really define. Today, the draw was greater than it's felt in the past, and every day that passes without moving out seems to make the pull a little stronger...the whispers of my thoughts and feelings a little louder...my resolve to step out and complete this fantastical journey a little more steely.

Rory Conlan has said in the past that "sometimes it's good to step out of line just to see if the line is leading you anywhere you'd like to be going." Maybe it's time to take a step to the right and forge off in a different direction.

We'll see what the morning brings. It'll be different, and I'm looking forward to that possibility.

Easing Back Into the Daily Practice

For the last three weeks, I've not been particularly rigorous in conducting the daily practice.  I've gotten in a decent attempt at my current set of habits and given the distractions (moving, travel, churn at my current day job, etc.) the efforts haven't been all that bad.  For the first time today, I finally had enough time with enough rest behind it to start missing some of the rigor that's been spent on other, less fruitful, endeavors over the last several weeks.  It things go well, I'm on the cusp of ramping up into full swing on the elements in the very near future.

It's worth listing the activities that I now consider mandatory work toward a more spiritual future.  Generally in the order I acquired them, they are:

1.   Walking
2.   Talking to Rory on the Phone
3.   Landscape/Skyscape Photography
4.   Blogging
5.   Daily Self Portrait
6.   Calisthenics (push-ups, crunches, resistance band curls, plank, flutter kicks)
7.   Meditation
8.   Minimalism
9.   Prayer
10. Saving Money
11. Introducing Myself to One New Person

Another Glorious Day in Fairhope, AL

Considering that less than four years ago I truly believed that I didn't have even a few extra minutes to spare in my busy daily life, this is a pretty good list of habits to have implemented. That said, I believe there are more than a handful more things that should at least be added to this list for a month or two on an experimental basis at least.

I am grateful for the friends I have met, the help I have gotten, and the relationships that have been enhanced by this steady but sure accumulation of habits that have displaced ones of more dubious value as time has marched forward.

I don't know what will happen tomorrow, but I'm going to go search for an alligator, a sunrise, and a sunset if I'm graced with experiencing the dawning of a new day.

Rory Turns Seventy Six

Today was Rory Conlan's seventy sixth birthday. You heard that right folks...a seventy six year old is contemplating walking across the country in the Newport to Newport Transcontinental Pilgrimage. It will be a real gift if we can pull off this feat. We talked briefly on the phone, but I am really looking forward to spending some time out on the open trail with him. I believe it will be good for both of us to get out and see where the chips may fall.

Till then, I suppose we'll both have to get by on what the universe sends our way.  Today in Maryland it was a magnificent sunset.

Sunset Fishing on the Severn River - Annapolis, MD

The sunset as seen from Jonas Green Park on the Severn River proved to be an amazing event tonight.  When I snapped this photo of the fishermen in the foreground, I was pretty sure that I'd captured the best light for the evening. That's not how things worked out in the end.

It Just Kept Getting Better - Severn River Sunset

Ten minutes after I thought I'd seen the best that the universe had to offer, the sky was alight with the fiery expiration of the sun. Suffice it to say that I think the little beach down at Jonas Green Park in Annapolis is positioned quite nicely for a Key West style sunset festival or perhaps a luau.

I hope that Rory's day ended on the same high note that mine did. Soon enough, I hope, we'll be able to compare notes on the unfolding of the path at our feet. Until then, we'll bot keep our eyes open for what tomorrow may have in store.

Transitions Into a New Future

Today the morning's walk was marked by a great sunrise over the Anacostia. It proved to be an auspicious start to a day where I felt that the transition to a different and I believe better life moving forward gained some significant headway.

Sunrise over the Anacostia

Deep into the third round of thirty day minimalism, the practice is finally getting into a comfortable rhythm, and I'm really liking the results. Meeting new people is starting to gain some traction, and I'm mostly keeping up with a solid effort at previous incarnations of the thirty day principles.

A year ago, I was beginning to sense that major lifestyle shifts might be possible. Now I know they are a reality with some relatively simple rule sets, and that knowledge is giving me a great deal of confidence that almost no goal is out of reach if you make small steps in the right direction and keep it up over time.

Acting the way to right thinking has been the key in unlocking this previously untapped resource for me, and I'm grateful that my focus has shifted from a lethargic intellectual approach to a more active physical approach. I'm also grateful that I've had a great partner in this journey in Rory Conlan. I believe we've supported each other in making some significant changes, and that relationship has really been a bedrock of some of the great things that are happening around both of us.

Today we spent over an hour discussing the walking route between Newport, RI and Newport, OR.  We both approached the challenge in our own way. He tackled it with paper maps in a Rand McNally road atlas, and I took a more digital approach with Google Maps. Regardless of the reference material, this action and discussion helped solidify the path forward in our march toward what I hope will be a collective adventure of a lifetime.

I haven't the faintest idea what tomorrow might bring, but I'm excited to experience the unfolding of what promises to be another great day.

Meeting a Fellow Traveller

Today, I went searching for a slightly different view of the sunrise over the Anacostia River.  I was also running a little short on time for the morning ambulation, and because of the confluence of these events took a route less travelled.  I did get a slight different view of the rising of the sun, but that's not the only thing that happened.

Sunrise on the Anacostia as Seen Under the 11th Street Bridge - Washington, DC

Shortly after taking this picture, I walked up to the crest of the 11th Street Bridge in Southeast, Washington, DC, and on my way to the top I was passed by a relatively young woman jogging and carrying a video camera on a tripod.

She set up her camera on one of the pedestrian overlooks facing downriver to the west and started filming.  I was on the phone with Rory Conlan talking about agreeing on a "new" thirty day practice, so I took little notice.  On the way back, I did think it a bit odd to be filming to the west, and I decided to ask her what the jogging and the filming were all about.

She told me she was filming the sunrise (to the west mind you) over the Anacostia for a documentary film. I countered that I'd been considering setting up a camera to take a series of still photos to create a time lapse sequence, and she said that particular approach was on her list as well. She expressed some concern that she'd be able to find a spot where a camera wouldn't be bothered by other people, and I allowed that I shared similar reservations.

At the end of the conversation, I moseyed along, and as I walked away realized that I'd not given her my name and she'd not volunteered her own moniker. In retrospect, the civil approach would have been to introduce myself, and given a chance to have another go at that conversation I would have tried the introduction route.  I'm not sure it would have worked, but it would have been worth a try anyway.

This realization coupled with the recent conversation between Rory and I has solidified in my mind what form my next thirty day practice will take.  I'm going to introduce myself to a stranger every day for thirty days and see what falls out of that experience. I'm not sure where it will lead, if anywhere, but I'm amazed I have lived for over four decades and have never tried an experiment of this nature.

I'm looking forward to tomorrow and the new experiences that the new addition to my practice might add. I may even have to get a series of business cards printed up to aid in the introductions. I've got a number of professions to list, so it certainly wouldn't be boring. It might even be time to put that Newport, OR phone number to use.

Thursday Waning

I'm pushing pretty hard now at my day job, but walking is still getting done. Today the universe delivered on another spectacular sunrise.

Anacostia Sunrise - 11th Street Bridge, SE, Washington, DC

I hate to admit that the quality of these postings seems to be slipping, but rest assured that the work behind the scenes is still happening.

Rory has hatched a scheme to fund our pilgrimage by volunteering to be the subjects of medical experiments along the way. It's really not as crazy as it might sound, and he's got some contacts so he's going to pursue the enterprise a bit. I told him I was all in, so we'll see where it all goes.

Every day is a grand adventure, and I'm looking forward to what will be thrown our way tomorrow.

Going on Another Long Walk

It's been a little over a year since Rory and I hit the trail for a relatively long walk.  Today at a swim meet, I overheard one of the participants talking about a Scout hiking trip in Arizona that covered sixty four miles in five days. That's a pretty good showing, and it got me thinking about hitting the road for a multi-day march sometime in the relatively near future.  I'm thinking next fall.

Sunset on College Creek

Until then, I guess I'll just have to go day for day sipping on sunsets like this one I come across during the more routine aspects of the daily practice.  All in all...not a terrible way to mark the time. I'm looking forward to travelling and adventure tomorrow...wherever that might be.

Caught Up in the Sunset

Posting has been light the last several days. Truth be told, I'm in a bit of a rut. Part of the trouble is weariness. I need a change of pace to refresh my creative spark. I suspect twelve hours of uninterrupted sleep would do me a world of good as well.

Be that as it may, I was talking on the phone with Rory this afternoon when I dropped off the line to take another call.  During the second call, I went on a mission to spot alligators, and eventually found myself in the back parking lot of a gas station overlooking Mobile Bay. Reading that last sentence, I understand how strange it sounds, but I assure you the experience was quite a bit more pedestrian than it sounds on the page.

My second call ended, and the sunset arrived. It took me twenty five minutes to call Rory back as I'd promised.

The beginning of the end of the day - Mobile Bay

I've probably mentioned this before, but if you want to capture a really good sunset it helps to have some broken cloud cover on the horizon. The clouds add texture and reflective surfaces and play with the light in a the way that a clear sky just cannot master.

Sunset - Mobile Bay

The twilight deepened, and the fiery display played out it's natural course. My imagination was hooked. The call back to Rory was swept away by the explosion of colors in the sky.  No filters here, although I did manage the exposure a little.

It's been a tiring week, but I continue to be blessed by the beauty that surrounds us all each and every day. As always, I'm looking forward to what tomorrow has in store.

The End of My First Career

Today, I received the last evaluation that really mattered in the course of my first career. I'm in an up or out organization, and while there's a process to follow, the fix is in and the conclusion is all but inevitable. As I predicted, today has been another great day.

I say that because while I didn't capture any photos today (a medical appointment and a middle school talent show soaked up a little more time than I'd planned), I got some solid walking done, I added to my N2N-TCP savings coffers, and the piece of paper I signed around 1230 is the first step on the path toward completing line item number thirteen on my twenty six llist. The evaluation was worded politely, but it was pretty definitive. Time to depart the pattern. I'm not fired, but the number of days left in my day job are numbered.

It's a little hard to take this kind of news with a spring in your step, but I've been asking the universe for guidance. One should note that when you take that kind of step, the universe will invariably answer. You might not expect what you get, and even if you expect it, the manifestation can come as a bit of a shock. I buoyed by the belief that the universe is conspiring to make me successful.

We'll see what tomorrow holds, but whatever it may be, it's my path and I'm going to revel in it. Who knows what might happen.  Rory Conlan might even show up.  I'm told he's still in the land of the upright.*

* Note: Upright is used in the geometric rather than biblical sense in this sentence.

Wrapping Things Up in the South, Evicted from Alabama

Today marks the last full day I'll spend on the Gulf Coast this trip. It's been a pretty good run, and it's time to wrap it up. I saw the first alligator of the season yesterday, and this evening Rory Conlan spotted the first copperhead of his own spring training season. The cherry blossoms have come and gone, the pollen is waning, and the trees down here are fully leafed. I even managed to catch the sun setting behind the Mobile skyline.

Last Evening in Mobile...Till the Next Go Around

I'm grateful for the sunsets I've seen, the miles I've covered, the opportunity to "work the problems," and the laughter of friends. It is hard to imagine that my regular sojourns down to this part of the world are wrapping up. It's been quite a run for a six month temporary assignment that's managed to stretch to eighteen months running. It just goes to show that you can never tell what will be revealed around the corner tomorrow, but you shouldn't worry about it to very much. It's going to be spectacular.

Something to Do While Walking

Walking is its own reward.  Through my walking over the last year I believe I've become more observant and less critical.  I've embraced the concept that there is no such thing as bad weather, only inappropriate clothing.  I have a much better idea what people living on the street have to face, and I've gained a higher level of empathy for their circumstances.  I've learned to appreciate finding a bathroom, a cool drink, and the little chemical hand warming pouches.  I've gotten to see things that I never imagined even existed in the neighborhood where I live and where I work.  I've been accidentally caught up in a Mardi Gras parade.

One of the more beneficial aspects of walking is that I've found extra time that I never knew existed.  I'm not quite sure what I was doing with this time before...probably watching television or something equally unproductive.  Having this gift of time gives me the space to create something to do while walking.  Some of this time...actually quite a lot of it, I've spent talking to Rory Conlan.  I've spent a fair amount of time on the phone with other people.  I've listened to some music, and recently, I've been listening to the extensive library of TED Talks.

Street Art Portrait of Edgar Allan Poe in Annapolis, MD

Today, I was listening to a talk by Louie Schwartzberg titled "Nature. Beauty. Gratitude." given at a TEDx conference in San Francisco, CA.  Mr. Schwartzberg is a nature photographer who specializes in taking time-lapse photos nature, but that's not really captured my attention. What really grabbed me was the gist of a project that he was working on in 2011 that dealt with the gratitude of living in the moments that make up a single day.  One of the narrators pointed out the unique nature of every moment. That when we open our eyes, hearts, and minds there are endless things that enrich our lives and make mindfulness of gratitude an easy and natural state of mind.

My shadow on the trail...feeling grateful

To open my eyes and observe is to break the bonds of generalization.  Weather becomes what's happening in the moment rather than something to be clinically described by a weather predictor on the television.  The currents in the air, the moisture or dryness, the clouds in the sky that show apparently endless variation, or the nature of a particular rain.  They're always different and always interesting. This talk I was listening to reaffirmed the sense of wonder that's come back into my life since I hit the trail a little over a year ago.

A Water Tower and the Sky - Annapolis, MD

Observing the day like it is the first I've ever seen and the last I may ever see is the sense of wonder that I relearned while out on the trail. Looking back, I'm not sure when that lesson began to sink in and I began to recapture that sense of wonder we're all naturally born with, but somehow, seems to fade with the intervening years.  By recapturing the wonder of life, the gratitude for the gift of the experience seems to naturally rush back into my consciousness, and a sense of contentment and happiness follows closely in its wake.

It was another great day, and I hope for the privilege of another tomorrow.