Date: 2007-03-23
From: Hiawasee, GA

To: Hiawasee, GA
Miles today: 0.0

A great zero day today. Got up and had a really good breakfast, offered free toguests here at the Holiday Inn Express. This places really rocks w/heated pool,hot tub, nice people, and best of all BICYCLES for us to ride around town on anddo errands!Last night about 8:30 p.m., Nicole and I finally decided to go do our resupplyshopping. We hopped on the bikes (laughing of course, because we lookedhilarious) and rode down to Ingles. Got what we needed (plus a few otherthings like some ice cream) and got back to the room. I was wiped out, and atemy chicken wing dinner and sacked out.I woke up with the sun, but thought it was funny that I was laying diagonally inmy bed, like I do my hammock...what can I say? It was a nice feeling to knowI could rest today and have minimal things to do.On the list was mailing my first memory card of pics home so Rachael can spendhours uploading all 132 pics I've taken so far. So standby everyone, pics willcome soon, but she has to gave a bit of time to get them up there.I weighed myself on the scale here in the fitness center. I am skeptical, butapparently I'm told the scale is correct. I've lost 13 pounds!!! I couldn'tbelieve it, but I guess I was having to pull my pants up the last few days. Sure is easy to lose weight when all you do is hike up and down mountains allday! LOLNow for some other thoughts about the emotional and psychological aspects of allof this so far. I'm finding that in towns, I get homesick. I'm not busy enoughI guess. Hiking all day is actually mentally exhausting, because you reallyhave to concentrate on the trail and where you step, or you'll roll an ankle(which I do about 5 times a day, but my hiking poles have saved my butt).The other issue is culture shock. I don't mean as in I don't speak thelanguage, but anytime you are plucked from your normal existence and droppedinto one where EVERYTHING about your day changes, it is also emotionally andmentally exhausting. You have to create a new morning routine, you have tofigure out the best way to get chores done in the morning and evening, and somuch of it depends on weather conditions. You have to remember to grab 5things just to go use the bathroom in the woods and adhere to the Leave NoTrace ethics...there's just a lot to learn when you first start.So, that brings me to my second point...choices for in town accomodations. Whenthe Cloud 9 people picked us up and we were at their place looking around, Isaid, "Wow, you all have a really great place." (and they do by the way). Their question was, "Well, why aren't you staying then?"First, I didn't feel the need to explain myself, and was so exhausted, I rambledon about something to do with cutting the umbilical cord to town in the future,etc. (their hostel is far away from town and they shuttle hikers in to takecare of chores).I thought about the "why" question later and realized that we all have only somuch energy to deal with life. Change and dealing with change (such aslearning to be a long distance hiker) takes a tremendous toll on your physicaland mental energy, so when I get to town, I feel like (for now) I need someamount of predictability. I know in a hotel how "things" work. I know I cancome and go when I feel like it, according to my personal needs at the time. Iknow I can have my own space, and be away from discussions of mileage and gearfor a bit. I know I can take as long in the shower as I want, and where to getclean towels and my map of Hiawasee shows me where I can ride my bicycle to dowhat I need to do.So I guess the answer to the "why" question is that I ran out of energy and hadnone left to give to more change that day. I know I'll get into a groove(afterall, I've only been out here for 11 days) and perhaps I'll have theresources to be social, but for now, I just don't, and I'm fine with that.This is something I had not heard other people talk about, so I figured Iwould...it's another aspect of thru-hiking (for me anyway) and it isinteresting to learn these things about yourself. I'm generally an outgoingextroverted person, but even I have my limits and then (as my former boss Donnaand I discussed) you just need some down time to re-energize. Towns are thatfor me right now. Ironically, Nicole feels the same way.We are practically ending each other's sentences when it comes to decisionsabout towns, resupplies, where to camp etc. We can't believe how much we thinkalike and it's really really cool to be hiking with her. We've both decidedwe'd love to actually do this whole thing together, and who knows...it might bepossible. I think it's good that we both have the ability (and initially theintentions) of hiking "alone" so we both know that we are hiking together bychoice, with no strings attached. It's pretty cool, and I never thought thiswould happen.I have a feeling I'll have a life-long friend out of this and I already told herif in 10 years she wakes up one day and decides to do it again, just give me acall! LOLSo now it's off to finish packing up for tomorrow's departure. I've been slowto move today, but the rest has been great. Getting in the hot tub later forsure though.Oh, if anyone has any questions for me, feel free to post it to my guest book,Rachael figured out how to configure it so they are all emailed to me at mypocketmail account. Thanks so much everyone for your words....they are a HUGEboost to all of us hikers out here. Helps me always remember that I amexercising a huge amount of privilege to be out here doing this and so many ofyou can't right now. I don't take that for granted.Oh, my mom is doing great by the way (she got 19 teeth pulled and got dentures 2days ago!..OUCH). She told me this morning on the phone she's having to relearnhow to pronounce a few words, because everytime she says something that startswith "Ch" her top teeth try to fly out! Yes, I laugh at her too...but she'sused to it! LOL~Certain