#Ten Essentials

[pcttrailsidereader]

Just a Little Bit

As the seasons begin to change and thoughts of getting outside start to bubble up into our hopes, dreams, and memories it seems appropriate to consider options. Generally when the topic of the Pacific Crest Trail comes up in conversation or reading, or in film it is framed around thru hiking. Beginning to end, start to finish. "Damn the torpedoes! Full speed ahead!" or something like that. Thru hikes are stories mostly full of success. Participants overcome adversity and find their way forward. Thru hikes get the glory it seems.

A short snowy early fall day hike on the PCT with a friend.

To day hike on the PCT is easier for some than others mostly given where you live. Living in Kansas for example, you are not going to call your friends up and say, "Hey, how about we day hike from Rainy Pass to Cutthroat Pass this weekend?" or " Let's meet at Kennedy Meadows and do a day hike...what do you say?" The day hike option in the immediate sense is challenging for a lot of us. Less so when people have some time but not a lot of time to do a more challenging or ambitious undertaking like in the summer months.

I met a fellow once who was driving to PCT trailheads on the weekends and day hiking out and back to his car. He didn't have the luxury to take extended time off of work and other responsibilities so this worked for him. To be honest the PCT is not exactly easy to move from trail head to trail head everywhere. He happened to live where it was more possible.

In my case I can easily consider various day hikes on the PCT from where I live. They might be longish days or require sleeping in my vehicle or a nearby accommodation but still doable. If you are dreaming of a PCT experience here is your opportunity to get a taste.

Jack Haskel at the PCTA wrote a really honest and informative essay in the organizations magazine 'The Communicator' last spring. He writes," The decision around what to pack for a day hike also became easier when I stopped overthinking it. I embraced the 10 essentials, added a couple of extras, and now all the necessary items live in my day pack permanently." Here's the list:

Navigation- paper maps and/or phone app maps

Headlamp-sometimes the best laid plans just take longer than your think.

Sun protection

First aid- maybe not for you but for someone else...

Knife plus gear repair kit

Fire (matches, lighter, tinder and/or stove)

Shelter (ultralight mylar emergency shelter that fits two people)

Extra food

Extra water

Extra clothes

In addition tell someone where you are going and when you plan to get back. This is critically important for staying safe. Jack also carries a knife, compass, energy bar, and some spare batteries. His view, and I agree, better to be safe than sorry.

If you don't have the time, energy, desire, opportunity, or some other good reason for a lengthy PCT hike consider a day hike. Just walking a short distance with friends on the PCT has been rewarding for them as much as it has been for me. They got a taste of what my experience was and it sprouted some great conversations and experiences of their own. These experiences bring up so many memories flooding my brain from past hikes when I have done this.

[non-plutonian-druid]

[ID: A drawing of Grunkle Stan in the 80s, sitting on the floor of what will be the living room of the Mystery Shack. There are papers and books scattered all over the floor and table, and an axolotl smiles vacantly in a tank in the top corner. Stan stares into the distance, haunted, holding Journal 1 in one hand. End ID.]

He's fine, it's fine, everything's. Fine.

[wienners]

"dude its not that embarassing to rewatch some creepypasta stuff you liked as a teenager" the character i imprinted on like a baby duck at 16 was a demon from new jersey that acts like the humanization of every offspring song and canonically listens to scissor sisters. His favorite color is purple and his favorite pokemon are gengar and haunter. His favorite candy is reeses cups. He leaves people notes with emojis on them. He acts like a beetlejuice scare actor at halloween horror nights. His catchphrase is "feeling sassy?" Hes (allegedly) worked with every war criminal throughout history and been every serial killer. even the gay ones. He ate a baby. His animal motif is a rabbit. Hes kind of based off the donnie darko rabbit. He almost exclusively wears merchandise of the quentin tarantino movie death proof. He talks to his cats in a baby voice. He wears a white fedora that makes every video he wears it in feel dated by like 7 years. Hes 5'3. Sometimes he barks like a dog. Hes from new jersey. He hacked a girls tumblr blog so he could post about how awesome he is. He added a laugh track over a video of him killing people. He named a chainsaw rex. He torments people by playing frank sinatra at them. His name comes from an animal collective song. His creator drew his "true form" as a giant buff wolf bug anthro. Theres a (semi)canon blog entry where he makes the speakers blare rob zombie before he enters a room, then holds a guy at gunpoint to describe what he did to to him while "making sure to leave in all the cool parts". The guy hes possessing has radioactive blood. He tried for 2 whole minutes to pick up a bottle of ketchup with a grabby hand. Hes kind of suicidal.He can be reasonably compared to pretty much every major tumblr sexyman. His actor has gone on record saying heath ledgers joker inspired his acting choices. His creators were too attached to him to permanently kill him at the end of the series. Sometimes his voice gets distorted and it makes him sound like bill ciphers first year on HRT. Hes basically like my artistic muse. For some fucking reason i associate the song cake by the ocean with him. I firmly believe that if everymanhybrid didn't require a masters degree in creepypasta autism to comprehend, he would've caused more teenage stabbings than the slenderman incident and more kin war tumblr scenarios than nagito komaeda.

[gunsatthaphan]

"shall we continue?"

[minecraftbookshelf]

ImpulseSV I know you’re totally not staying on the hellsite but hypothetically if you were you should know that you can in fact turn on timestamps for posts, Gem could probably hypothetically help you with that too.

[buildbuymode]

this diva

[snakesandferns]

I just know, that had Tarn gone through a redemption arc like Megatron, he would’ve crashed out immediately. He does not have the bandwidth for this shit

[dichromaniac]

They knew what they were doing...

Bonus

[anglerflsh]

I need to talk more about Sophie my good friend Sophie God's most tormented autism warrior Sophie. wa

[capnsoapy]

I've often said that I believe a foundational understanding of statistics is vitally important to have in the modern age; especially online. And having just finished a re-read, I do still think that Tim Harford's How to Make the World Add Up is just the ideal primer on how to think critically about what you see and hear.

It's a very easy read (I think), there's (almost) no hard mathematics, and if you've ever enjoyed the analyses and critiques I write on here from time to time, I learnt everything* I know from Tim.

[pcttrailsidereader]

Winter is Coming

The first snow has dusted the nearby peaks with news that a little further east there is snow and slush along the North Cascades Highway. The road will close soon as the expected winter snows arrive and won't reopen until sometime in the spring.

I am reminded of Shawn Forry and Justin Lichter's story "Cold Going" found in 'Crossing Paths A Pacific Crest Trailside Reader". The story describes a southbound (SOBO) PCT journey from Canada to Mexico in 2014-15. Their story is a powerful one. It speaks of stamina, determination, and excellent backcountry skills.

Wherever you live, the call of the trail may be heard even now as fall is falling and winter is soon approaching. I enjoy the white quiet of the woods near my house when we get an occasional lowland snowstorm. I also like to take my skis and swoosh around a little in the nearby Cascades. Venturing into the mountains is usually something I do on the short term. I go out for a day or part of one. To be honest, my feet and hands don't much like the cold for extended periods. I have learned that getting caught in frosty and snowy conditions even in non-official winter times on the PCT. When my body talks, I try to listen.

If you do answer the call and venture out for a cold weather excursion here are some things to keep in mind:

Tell someone where you are going and when you expect to be back.

Check the weather and trail conditions before heading out. If you are going into National/State forests or National/State Parks the respective ranger station will have critical information in many cases.

Bring a map and/or some form of navigation...think the Ten Essentials.

Bring extra water and food (see above).

Wear appropriate footwear clothing, such as rain gear. Bring extra layers.

Stay on marked official trails.

Plan carefully for winter weather. Conditions can change quickly and the sun sets early.

If for some reason you get lost, the U.S. Forest Service recommends the following:

Keep calm. Trust your map and compass. Shelter and warmth are more important than food. Backtrack if possible. If traveling with others, stay together, if possible. If not, send at least two people for help (depending on the size of your group.)

To find your position, climb to a place where you can get a better idea of where you are. When you reach a road , trail or telephone line, follow it. As a last resort, follow a stream downhill.

Before darkness falls select a sheltered spot and plan to stay there all night.

Don't abandon skis. Build a fire and shelter. Stay warm by getting out of the wind; insulate yourself with a parka and other clothing (use an insulated, branches or skis between you and the snow).

If you are injured and alone, keep calm. Stay where you are, clear an area down to mineral soil and build a signal fire. Green boughs will create heavy smoke.

Three signals of any kind, either audible or visible, is the universal SOS call. This is where a whistle flashlight/headlamp, or mirror can come in handy.

Going out in the winter is a serious endeavor. Informing other and going prepared are essential keys for having a successful experience. There are other winter stories to be found in "Crossing Paths" that put the above tips into some kind of context. We have also posted stories here that reflect on cold weather and snowy travel that are easily accessed. Whether or not you leave the cozy confines of home or brave the weather consider your skills and equipment. Finally, please don't rely on your cell phone. What works well at home may not work at all in the backcountry.

[todayisafridaynight]

[sivavakkiyar]

tbh amazed people didn’t catch this it’s *in* the song

[yt]

[hopeforchanges]

I'm actually marveling at your portrayal of Palpatine. Sure, in the new sith obi-wan au, but in every iteration I've read from you, it doesn't even compare to anything else I've read, I just can see and hear Palpy so clearly when you write him. It's disgusting how i character he is every time. I need like ... a tutorial? :D Pls??

haha, thank you :) yeah, ngl Palpatine IS the toughest character to get right and I will die on this hill; he is absolutely more difficult to write than Obi-Wan.

The tutorial consists of knowing how a groomer operates, essentially. Sure, you have the traits of psychopathy and sociopathy, the blatant narcissism, the delusions of being better than everyone, but if you want my two cents, (obviously you do when you sent this ask lol) the real core of his villainy is his grooming behavior. Sociopathy and psychopathy do not necessarily lead to evil, many diagnosed people lead fulfilling lives that do not cause them or others any destruction. Sociopathy and psychopathy are NOT inherently evil.

Grooming is evil by nature. And groomers absolutely follow a rulebook.

Step one: Targeting a vulnerable person. (Groomers have a radar for people who are in a vulnerable position - orphaned kids, traumatized people, homeless people, etc., could be anything.)

Step two: Gaining trust. (the victims of grooming call this 'kindness' - much like Anakin does on many occasions - when in reality, it's rehearsed empathy. It's a performance. They're nice to you, bring you gifts, take care of your most basic needs - food, shelter, companionship to make you feel like there's somebody in this world who actually gives a shit about you.

Step three: Isolating the target from their loved ones. If you are completely alone, that's a win for them, obviously. But because they more often than not target minors, there's someone taking care of them, at least one person who goes: this guy/gal has rancid vibes, I don't want you to hang out with them anymore. The groomer convinces the victim that their caretaker has nefarious motivations/goals (projecting much) and that if the victim calls the authority, they will be the one who's actually in trouble, not the groomer.

Step four: Slowly exposing the target to sexual stuff. This could be anything, really, it could start by just showing the victim porn without rhyme or reason to instructing them to perform some mild sexual acts. In Palpatine's case, this manifests as exposing the target to the power of the dark side and encouraging them to use it. However, do I think that Palpatine was entirely uninterested in Anakin in a sexual way? My feelings on this vary - sometimes I do see it and sometimes I don't. I see the constant unnecessary touching and constantly invading Anakin's personal space and I'm like: I need to perform exorcism on myself until I don't remember ever seeing this ever again. Then I see the intent behind and I think - hm, perhaps this is purely a slaver's touch asserting dominance over his property. Like I said, my feelings on this are unclear. Let's just say it's really fucking gross either way, which is something we can all agree on.

Step five: The actual sex. Again, in Palpatine's case, this manifests as revealing himself for who he is (abuser) and taking Anakin (the abused) down with him.

TLDR; you have to have the process of grooming at the forefront of your mind to write Palpatine well - even if in different aus his victim does not need to always be Anakin.

boy i did not mean for this shit to be this long lmao i hope this helps clarify not just how to effectively write Palpy but also for my girls and boys who may stumble upon a groomer irl.

Please be safe out there and talk to whoever you can to help you if you encounter a groomer.