Date: 2004-07-06
From: Pine Grove Furnace State Park

To: James Frye (Tagg Run) Shelter
Miles today: 7.6
Weather: broken clouds

Why am I a fool? I have purposed myself to not tell dirty jokes and I did tonight¢¦UGH. In Roman 7:19 Paul talks about not doing the good which he would do and doing the evil he does not wish to do. I feel so frustrated when I sin and then face my actions later. It¢s nice to see that even Paul faced this struggle, but I still feel like an idiot. I know I have to be better prepared to resist temptation, especially when it appears to be ¢good-hearted fun¢.         As far as my hiking day¢¦I did not arrive at the trail until 2 p.m. First, I said goodbye to my parents, bought a 10 dollar piece of junk camera at WalMart (to replace my Stylus that isn¢t working), and ate at Burger King. My friend Scotty drove me and dropped me off. It¢s always weird to re-enter the trail from home. As I was dropped off I saw Graham, a section hiker who I have met on 3 separate occasions now. After saying goodbye to Scotty and joking with Graham about stalking him, I hit the trail at 2:30 p.m. The sky was gorgeous and the walk easy as I set out.        Within my first few minutes I hit the ¢Halfway Marker¢. While I really hit halfway on Friday, I took a picture none the less. The walk was easy and I zoned, pretending I was a ¢miler¢. I ran into a sweet older couple and a group of mentally disabled hikers in the woods (the subject of one of the inappropriate jokes I now feel extremely guilty for :-(. I talked with them all and then hiked on. The woods were nice, but I was zoning. I remember woods and rocks here and there but few specifics. It¢s weird to my how lost I can get while still walking briskly in one direction. Before 5 p.m. I entered the shelter with bad stomach cramps. Maybe it was because I was hiking at over 3 miles per hour with little water¢¦duh.         The water source at the shelter looked like someone vomited in it. It purified it to drink none the less. After a pack of Ramen I talked with ¢Ishmael¢, a 17-year-old flip-flop hiker from Maryland on his 8th day . I shared trail experiences with him and gave gear advice. Soon Harry and Sunshine (a guy) arrived. Harry seemed particularly chill and Sunshine is a guy who has lost 74 pounds! We all quickly settled in to chill conversation¢¦and then the stupid jokes. (DOH!)        I hope that tomorrow I will notice more of the beauty around me. I also just want to be pure and talk to God. I need to! I may do a big day because a 15 miles flat stretch is upcoming. Rather than write more I will close with some thoughts and a clean joke. Thoughts:-        I worry too much about what others think and not enough about what God does. (i.e. drinking, why I¢m hiking, joking, walking , everything)-        I figured out I could take 26 more zeros, average 14.3 a day, and still finish in time. YAY! :-) -        I miss female companionship (Letter time?)-        Most women don¢t enjoy facial hair or farting, so maybe I should just enjoy the trail. -        The more I see kids (as in this weekend) the more I want to be a daddy someday. The trail is not where I expected to have thoughts like this.-        Bugs keep attacking my head as I write¢¦GOT ONE!...Ha!-        At my current rate of facial hair growth I will be a dwarf by October.-        I wish I had a good book to read. (Chronicles of Narnia, Les Miserables, Pride & Prejudice, etc.)-        I still like Ramen. Am I a freak?-        I can walk 20 miles but I¢m too lazy to get up to pee¢¦ugh.Clean Joke: What do you call a guy 30 feet deep in a hole? DougIf I don¢t go to sleep soon, the jokes may become even more stupid. Please pray for me. Goodnight, BEATBOX      ttt