Date: 2010-01-26
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Yesterday it rained. Hard.It's difficult to believe that during late January in Delaware (or most of the north-eastern US) we would get slammed with a sixty degree day and thunderstorms. Most people here, students and teachers, were pretty annoyed having had to walk to class in rain which blew at you sideways. I can't say I love the rain, but knowing the sort of weather and the inevitability of rainy day hiking makes the ten minute walk to class laughable. Enjoyable, in fact. Yeah, you may get wet, but how long is it until you're inside and dry? Not very long at all. Hiking is a different story entirely, and so to get a little wet on the way to or from class, does not concern me in the least.For many people, it's only when Mother Nature forces her will upon them that they really seem to understand who's in charge of the whole shebang. For me, it's a humbling experience. Most people seem to just get piss 'em off. Much better to just accept it and move along.Exactly one month from now I will by flying into Atlanta, Georgia with my mother and father. My parents have both been incredibly supportive of me. Yeah, I'm taking a leave of absence from college. And yeah, going to spend six months hiking. Yeah, I'm going alone. And yes, I will be spending most of my savings in order to complete the journey. I'll be honest, most parents would not be alright with any of these conditions. In fact, my mother is frequently asked "And you're okay with letting Dan do this?"I guess for me the idea that I would like to hike the Appalachian Trail had been with me for a long time. But, I remember distinctly sitting down to eat at Klondike Kate's, a local bar/restaurant in Newark, DE, with my dad and my grandpa. They had just dropped me off for my freshman year at the University. After dumping my stuff in my room, we went down for a bite to eat. I'm not sure exactly why in the world I thought that stepping off to college was the perfect time to unveil this idea of mine I had been tossing around within myself was, but for whatever reason, I did. I'm sure the two of them were rather expecting thoughts on college and "the road ahead". Well, I told them that I think I would like to take off the Spring semester of my sophomore year to go hike the Appalachian Trail. I gave my reasons, spoke a little bit about finances and such, and that was that. Both of them sort of nodded their heads and agreed. I'm rather certain they figured this idea was bound to burn in the next year in a half.With time, my father, as well as my mother, who was soon informed of these plans via phone call, came to realize I do truly intend to take this trip. And as time moved forward, they both realized that if they weren't gonna support it, I would simply go ahead and do it anyways. I felt bad asking them to take time from their busy schedules, and so never really asked if they could help me get to Georgia. I intended to travel by bus. My mother eventually offered that they would drive me down and see me off (it would be the last they would see of me for six months, she figured she could spend the time driving to Georgia and back), which eventually turned into checking to see if their was a cheap flight. Turns out that their was a cheap flight, and so we're now traveling by air. That'll also give me a few days vacation time to spend in Georgia with the two of them. I'm looking forward to it.Less than two weeks left of winter session at the university. One month until I'm headed down to Georgia.