Date: 2012-01-09
To: Less than two months!
Miles today: 0.0

Happy New Year everyone!I have spent my weekend as a hermit lounging in my hammock and disregarding proper hygiene standards. Yeah, yeah, that may seem gross but laying around in my pajamas for two days and avoiding a shower has been conducive to a stress free weekend. So I¢ve entered into the year in which I am going to attempt my thru-hike. I can¢t believe it is actually going to happen after two and a half years of planning. Do I sound like a broken record yet? Christmas was very nice and I received some great presents from my parents including a titanium solo cook set, a waterproof camera and a pair of bright orange crocs! They also gave me NikWax and seam sealer so I can (re)waterproof my gear. Begin adventures in seam sealing and re-waterproofing. I managed to break the washer for about 15 minutes and get seam sealer in my hair. My hands are covered in black marks where I seam sealed my fingers and it reminds me of when I would get pine sap on my hands as a kid from climbing trees. But my tent and rain jacket are (hopefully) sufficiently waterproofed.From what I can tell, the winter weather has been mild throughout most of the country and not just where I am. I fear that means we are going to have a late and long winter ahead of us. While that may seem like just an inconvenience for those of you in cities, for those of us who will be venturing into the wild Appalachian mountains this could prove to be extremely uncomfortable. Of course, this is just my hypothesis. The mild weather could continue straight into the Spring.On the gear front, a wonderful friend of mine, Jill, has offered me her Granite Gear backpack to use for my hike if it fits me. It is at least a whole pound lighter than my current backpack and more compact which is great. Jill is amazing. It is definitely going to take some creative packing since my other backpack had excess room and now I am more limited in space. I need to take it out on a spin to see if it fits properly but my work schedule is making that difficult. It looks like I may not have time for a shakedown hike either, which while not preferable, is not the end of the world. I have used 90% of my gear and am comfortable with the other 10% so I¢m not worried. I have been stockpiling Knorr sides, hot chocolate packets and Girl Scout cookies like a squirrel preparing for winter. Some of it will come with me when I start but a large portion of it is going to be put into boxes for my mail drops.My list of pre-trip errands is increasing faster than I can get them accomplished. My laptop needs a new charger and motherboard which should be coming in this week. I need to schedule a dentist appointment, vet appointment, and doctor appointment. I need to call my bank, finalize my mail drops, acquire the last few pieces of gear, and work on my two week notice for work. Phew. But for now, I am going to continue lying around in my pajamas, crochet some more of my blanket, finish watching Sex and the City Season 3, and contemplate that overdue shower.Thanks to all who have written in my guest book. Your words of encouragement mean a lot and I hope to meet some of you out on the trail. Best of luck to everyone![Edit] I have more to write but I am going to split up the posts.[Edit] I took that overdue shower; my poor hygiene threshold had been reached. Also, I made the best friggin¢ quesadilla ever.