Date: 2009-05-09
From: Woods Hole Hostel

To: Pearisburg
Miles today: 10.4
Weather: light rain

It was hard to get any sleep with the loudness of the rain on the roof. The sound of the creek alone made me want to stay protected in the loft and not get wet on the way to the house for breakfast, which was to be served at 8. I wondered if it might be delayed this morning. It turned out that the rain had stopped, however, and everything was fine. I walked over to the house where Mischa was already waiting for breakfast. As we poured our coffee, a ranger pulled up in the driveway. He had come with papers for Spike! Apparently, the kid that had come in at midnight had night hiked south from Pearisburg, looking for Spike. He saw no sign of him, in part due to the intensity of the storms. The Ranger talked to the hostel owners, warned us of more storms expected that evening, and gave the kid a ride back to Pearisburg.    For breakfast, we had farm-fresh scrambled eggs, sausage patties, and home-made biscuits with jam. We were each allotted four biscuits. Since I had less than 11 miles to get into Pearisburg, where I had originally planned on staying, I decided that I could relax in the morning, and enjoy the hostel. Neville and Michael are both certified massage therapists and offer a variety of massage techniques. Since I had never studied or received a reflexology treatment, I asked Michael to describe it to me, and then decided it might be beneficial for me to receive a foot treatment. It began with a hot water foot soaking, followed by a relaxing foot massage. I never treat myself to such things when I'm at home.   Afterwards, I sat on the porch swing while Joe Kickass shelled some nuts for Neville and Michael as his work for stay. I felt completely content in a way that I have never felt at home, just sitting there. Although I had a lot of journaling to catch up on, I felt very peaceful just being in the moment, not needing to attend to anything.    O.G. was packing up his food bag, struggling with the massive amount of food his mother had sent him, as she always worries about him starving. Unfortunately, O.G. has had to give most of his food away to other hikers, which is all the sadder because he had spent so much time dehydrating a lot of healthy food meant to last the duration of his journey before he even left. I could empathize with him, having had to give away a lot of the food I had bought for myself. This is the problem with mail drops. We can control the content of our food better this way, but it is hard to have the correct quantity mailed.   As I walked back to the porch, Neville asked a question ending in 'Morning Glory.' I looked at her quizzically, and she said, "Morning Glory. That's your name! Michael just named you that...'How are the rocks, Morning Glory?'" I asked her why that name and she said it suits me. She had first thought of 'Heart', but said this one is better. She said I have a really nice smile (and I forget the other reasons...). I told them that I had wanted a feminine and unique name, and that I liked it!   It was getting late in the afternoon, so I packed up, signed the guestbook with my new name, and said my goodbyes. Joe Kickass was looking up Morning Glories in the field guide, trying to find something appropriate to say. Unfortunately, all he could find were things like, "Grows on others...sometimes invasive...". It was amusing!    After a tough evening coming in, I ended up having a really nice morning at Woods Hole. Neville has taken over her grandmother's cabin, which has been a haven for AT hikers over the years, and she and Michael have great plans for building upon the foundation left to them. Once they get a washing machine for the hikers, internet, and a maildrop location, there won't be a need to stay in Pearisburg, in my opinion. A lot of us are excited about returning to see the progress and improvements in this little sanctuary.      I ended up arriving in Pearisburg at 8:10 pm that evening, after another rocky hike. I called the Rendezvous motel to make sure there was a room available for me (there was 1), and walked a half mile to Dairy Queen to get dinner (Bound had recommended a delicious flavor of 'Blizzard', but I had forgotten the name and didn't see it on the menu... I don't know when was the last time that I had visited a Dairy Queen!). Then I had another half mile to walk back to the motel. The door to one of the rooms was open, and it turned out to be that of Braid! How nice to see him! We chatted for a few minutes before I got the key from Brenda to my very smoky room. There were no computers at this motel and really no need to stay there, other than needing to do my laundry. I slept poorly that night due to a loud TV on all night next door to me, along with a crying toddler, and a mother who kept screaming for her to be quiet. I wanted to be back in the woods where it was more peaceful.