Date: 2010-10-22
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Second update of the day!  I actually wasn't finished my last one but the library has a limit on computer use.  People here must not have computers at home because there were 20 computers with a multitude of people waiting. When you go to Nursing school you learn that there are stages to establishing a relationship with your patient.  This holds true with people out here....mainly tourists.  You see, tourists have cars.  We need cars to take us to towns.  In places where tourism is abundant we have found it is often much easier to simply ask people for a ride.  Wolfman and Stoker are the masters.  It goes something like this....initiate hiker tourist contact (hi there, nice day isn't it?).   Start conversation (if they are older ya gotta go for the grand kids...so how many grand kids do you have?).  Establish trust and build rapport (tell them your story, where your from and what you do.....than reiterate things they told you about their grandkids).  Than, go for the kill (hey you wouldn't happen to be heading south?). Ya gotta let em' know your hungry and heading for food.  If it's a grandma she just might try to feed you herself.  Works every time!  Tater had a good method as well.  He'd just flag a car down and ask if it's a hard road to get a hitch on.....hint hint.I was ready to leave at 730 this morning.  12 hours later and I'm still here.  I sat looking at my bag for two hours.....I couldn't do it.  Phillies are fighting for their life tonight, they need me.  So I payed for another night and here I am.  The boys hung around all day only planning to do 5 miles out of town.  Stoker opted to stay and is on his way to my room from the camp ground.  I think he's upset about something back home but I'm not sure what.  We will do 26 tomorrow to catch the guys.I got a hair cut and a beard trim.  We were all sitting in a diner milking the free refills on coffee and soda when I noticed a barber across the street.  I just had too!  I have a surprising amount of gray in both my hair and beard.  I never knew it since I never let it grow.  Getting it cut instantly makes me look much younger, and apparently much handsomer.  When I got back to the diner, in her deep southern draw, the waitress said....oh my Goooood, you look so cuuuuute.  I turned red even though she coulda been my grand mother.We went to a local outfitter today.  I am a stuff- sack-aholic.  It is imperative that every piece of my gear has it's own little holder.  This stems from my natural neatness and organizational skills.  This was forged both in the army and college.  In school I had to be organized to keep up with my ADD.  So anyway, I have more than enough stuff sacks, in fact I have three in reserve.I wanted to buy a hatchet.  They had these hand made custom hatchets from Europe.  They were beautiful.  I imagined myself doing all kinds of manly things with it.  Stripping down a branch to make a spear?  Chopping down trees to make a cabin?  Yeah I have no use for a hatchet, and it weights 5 pounds or more.  But I surexwoukd look like a bad-ass if I carried a hatchet on the trail.  When I finish this trail I'm getting that hatchet.Well, the Phillies are on......PRAY!!!