Date: 2009-07-29
From: 2.5 miles past Clarendon shelter

To: US 4
Miles today: 14.4

As I put in my contacts in the morning, I thought to myself, ¢I can¢t believe I¢m sitting in the dirt, doing this!¢ I felt like I had to get moving in order to have my own space for a little while longer. Today¢s work was to climb Mt. Killington- the tallest mountain on the AT in Vermont. It was not easy! There were many long, steep sections, and unfortunately, there were no views until the top. The AT skirts the summit, where a ski lodge and cafeteria are located. I decided to take the extra trail to the summit, which was farther than I expected. I found Tord, and a nice, young hiker who was doing the Long Trail, named Bard Owl, there. I washed up and ordered a sandwich, which took forever to be made! It was a longer break than I expected and I had to get going in order to get into Rutland (10 miles away) to get my maildrop before the post office closed. I hiked back down the hill, past the wildflowers and gondolas, and back onto the trail into the woods. After two miles, I looked at my watch, and realized I had to pick up my pace if I was going to make it! So, I dug my ipod out of the bottom of my pack to help fuel me. Unfortunately, I took another bad step on my sprained ankle and fell down, on top of one of my poles. The pain was so excruciating that I just remained there for awhile. It probably looked like I was just relaxing! Finally, I got up and continued on. I had no choice. I was singing a song when a southbounder with an Alaskan dog popped up right in front of me. ¢Hi!¢ I said. We chatted for a minute, while his dog sniffed me. He said his dog liked me! Then, the dog jumped up to my chest. ¢He really likes you!¢.   I continued on, bypassing the shelter, and over the notes of my favorite female singer, I heard a big boom of thunder! I turned off my ipod and wondered if I should prepare for rain. I did so after a couple of minutes, and just in time! The rain started coming down fast and hard, but I felt prepared with my new rain jacket and pack cover. I reached US 4 at 4:20, and crossed the road to hitch a ride. The second vehicle to come down the road slowed and stopped. It was the bus. The driver asked if I was going to Rutland. It was $2. I told him I would need a minute to get my money out. I only had a $10 and a $1. He said it was okay and didn¢t take any. He directed me toward the post office when everyone got off and I got my package in time! However, now that I had stopped hiking, my ankle was very swollen and painful and I had to limp along. Freefall and Johnny Thunder had advised me to take an extra day in Manchester, so this wouldn¢t happen... They said they didn¢t want to see me again until Katahdin! I hoped I didn¢t make a big mistake by not taking their advice.    I caught the last bus back to the Inn at Long Trail. The same driver took me back and didn¢t want me to pay again! I gave him the tin of altoids that Erik had sent me in exchange for his kindness. I then crossed the highway and got a room and a bag of ice for my ankle. Then I headed down to the bar to get something to eat. By this time, most of the group that was behind me was there, as well. The only space at the bar was next to the hiker that came on to me at the gorge, which wasn't so comfortable for me. A little while later, Mr. Pink- actually his name is Mississippi- came in to see who was there and then walked out. I followed him out to ask him why he was ignoring me. He shot back, ¢Everyone¢s been saying you¢ve been asking about me and I¢m sick of it.¢ Then he went out to get his pack. I was confounded and wanted to talk to him about this. What did he mean "everyone"? I had only asked a couple of people (before I had seen and talked to him in Manchester) and had not even told them what he had done to me. I had every right to ask about him. I didn't understand the complete switch in his behavior after Manchester. After he went upstairs, he wrote me an e-mail, saying that he¢s not mad anymore and that he¢d be down in a minute. However, before I got that, I wrote to him telling him that I didn¢t think I was being treated fairly and asked him if I could tell my side of the story. I hate being misunderstood and I hate tension and bad relations due to a lack of understanding and communication. I wanted more than anything to fix the problems and make everything okay. However, his response was that he was going to stick to people that know him (Translation: He was going to keep moving into groups of people who did NOT know him or question him.). I finished my dinner and went back upstairs to wash out my clothes and ice my foot again, while everyone else remained in the bar drinking all night. After midnight, I got an e-mail from the guy who came on to me at the gorge, saying that they were all joking about Mississippi putting on lipstick and knocking on my door. I didn¢t get it... I got another one telling me that he was trying to hook-up with another girl, and was probably going to be successful. I then e-mailed Mississippi and said never mind- I didn¢t need to talk to him anymore. I was done.   I tried to get some sleep."Let Me Fall (From Cirque Du Soleil)"Let me fallLet me climbThere's a moment when fearAnd dreams must collideSomeone I amIs waiting for courageThe one I wantThe one I will becomeWill catch meSo let me fallIf I must fallI won't heed your warningsI won't hear themLet me fallIf I fallThough the phoenix mayOr may not riseI will dance so freelyHolding on to no oneYou can hold me onlyIf you too will fallAway from all theseUseless fears and chainsSomeone I amIs waiting for my courageThe one I wantThe one I will becomeWill catch meSo let me fallIf I must fallI won't heed your warningsI won't hearLet me fallIf I fallThere's no reasonTo miss this one chanceThis perfect momentJust let me fall