wayfaringgeekery-blog

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Pretty much sums up my feelings.

She is a gift

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RARE HISTORIC PHOTOS WE MIGHT HAVEN’T YET SEEN

An Exotic Dancer Demonstrates That Her Underwear Was Too Large To Have Exposed Herself, After Undercover Police Officers Arrested Her In Florida

Dorothy Counts – The First Black Girl To Attend An All-White School In The United States – Being Teased And Taunted By Her White Male Peers At Charlotte’s Harry Harding High School, 1957

Austrian Boy Receives New Shoes During WWII

Jewish Prisoners After Being Liberated From A Death Train, 1945

The Graves Of A Catholic Woman And Her Protestant Husband, Holland, 1888

A Lone Man Refusing To Do The Nazi Salute, 1936

Job Hunting In 1930’s

German Soldiers React To Footage Of Concentration Camps, 1945

Residents Of West Berlin Show Children To Their Grandparents Who Reside On The Eastern Side, 1961

Acrobats Balance On Top Of The Empire State Building, 1934

Mafia Boss Joe Masseria Lays Dead On A Brooklyn Restaurant Floor Holding The Ace Of Spades, 1931

Lesbian Couple At Le Monocle, Paris, 1932

The Most Beautiful Suicide – Evelyn Mchale Leapt To Her Death From The Empire State Building, 1947

The Remains Of The Astronaut Vladimir Komarov, A Man Who Fell From Space, 1967

Race Organizers Attempt To Stop Kathrine Switzer From Competing In The Boston Marathon. She Became The First Woman To Finish The Race, 1967

Harold Whittles Hearing Sound For The First Time, 1974

Nikola Tesla Sitting In His Laboratory With His “Magnifying Transmitter” more

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The nightly ritual of setting up my tent.

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Hiker Musical Parody #1.

This is the sort of thing my mind generates when hiking for long hours…

“Oh we’re off to Mount Katahdin, Mount Katahdin in Maine!

We hear that it’s a heck of a hike and we’re certifiably insane.

If ever, oh ever a hard hike there was, we will try to do it because,

Because, because, because, because, becaaausssee.

Because that’s what a long distance hiker does!

Do do do do do do doooo

We’re off to Mount Katahdin, Mount Katahdin in Maine!”

*Break into a skipping dance number and promptly trips over a root*

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I think I'm in love.

The little town of Bennington, VT is quite possibly the next place I want to live. Imagine the fictional town of Cicely from the show Northern Exposure crossed with Stars Hollow from Gilmore Girls, and add a touch of Con Man in that the town seems to be populated by geeks. Seriously, so much comic/gaming/maker culture!

I knew it was love when I was eating an early morning breakfast at the Crazy Russian Girls Bakery and overheard this conversation in the back… Baker: We need some music. Barista: Anything in particular? Baker: Nah, just something to liven things up a bit. Barista: Cool. I’ll put on the Mad Max: Fury Road soundtrack if that’s ok…

I chimed in at this point with an enthusiastic “Yes!” and a few seconds later was enjoying the most high octane, coffee fueled, geektastic breakfast EVER!

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Change of Plans!

So, it turns out I’ll be leaving the trail in the beginning of August. However, this is not a bad thing. The reason is that my band, Red Cedar Strings, has been invited to perform at the 55th annual Philadelphia Folk Festival! To quote a bandmate, this is a really big deal :D I’m super excited about this opportunity and am getting off trail so I can get back into musical shape.

What I’ve decided to do for the month of July is spend a week hiking in each of the remaining states along the AT. I just finished with mt week in Massachusetts, so what I have left is a week in the Green Mountains of VT, a week in the White Mountains in NH, and a week in Maine, ending with trip of to Baxter State Park. Then I’ll travel down the coast back to Philly where I’ll make beautiful music. After that I have no idea where I’ll be heading. Adventure!!

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I'm a huge #booknerd and have been experiencing symptoms of literary withdrawal on the trail. That said, I was really excited to see this beautiful library in the town where I took a zero. My intent was to spend an entire afternoon in there, but alas! They were closed for renovation 😢 #at2016 #appalachiantrail #hiking #backpacking #adventure #booklover #libraries #liveyourownadventure #takethetrail #townlife #oldbuilding #books (at Salisbury Town)

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This has been making the rounds through my hiking bubble. A great example of the type of creative people one encounters on the trail. :D

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Ha! Love it!

When Expectations Meet Reality. Photograph by pmoney923 on reddit

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This is the song that most often runs through my head while hiking PUDS (pointless ups and downs) on the trail. Yes, I realize I am a huge nerd...

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My general response to when somebody asks how many miles I hike per day on the trail… (i.e. I’m having too much fun exploring along the way to care).

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The Hedgehog Chronicles: Day 1

Note: It all started because I was getting bored of making the standard trail log entries of "So and so was here. Hiking x number of miles today..." when it occurred to me that 1) hiking the AT is a type of quest, 2) many of the places I was hiking through had names that sounded like something from a fantasy novel, and 3) my trail name "Hedgehog" was reminiscent of the Redwall series or Narnia. So, I started writing my trail log entries as part of an ongoing fantasy adventure story about a little hedgehog on a great pilgrimage to the north lands. Everything that happens is based on actually events...just tweaked a bit to make them fit in a more magical world. It's been hugely entertaining to write and it appears that my fellow hikers have been enjoying reading the sections as well. Since I didn't start writing the story until I was almost three weeks on the trail, I've gone back and written entries for those days based on my trail notes. Hope you enjoy! ~~~~~~ The little hedgehog was both excited and terrified. She had done it. She had left a life of comfort and had started her journey to seek the wisdom of Katah-din, guardian of the North Mountain. The pilgrimage would most likely consume nearly three months of her life. She knew she would face many challanges and difficulties, but she also hoped to experience things that were lacking from the normal life of a hedgehog. Indeed, unlike many of her kind, she craved adventure...

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It's funny. Everytime I think I'm done with hiking, that I'm too tired, in too much pain, or just plain getting bored, the trail has a way of throwing something at me that pulls me forward. Case in point, this beautiful wetland park on the northern border of NJ. There's a lovely breeze, a ton of songbirds, and a bench I'm using to rest my feet for a bit. The next shelter is only 7 miles away so I'm able to take my time and enjoy this peaceful spot of earth.

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Inspirational song for getting through Rockslyvania.

I’ve discovered that “Steppin’ Time” from Mary Poppins is an excellent song to sing to yourself when clambering over the infamous rocks of PA. It’s upbeat, easy, and has a good beat. Even better, the lyrics lend themselves to easy alteration when you inevitably lose your temper and start cursing said rocks of PA. For example, “Break your ankles, steppin’ time! Break your ankles, steppin’ time. Never need a reason, never need a rhyme, break your ankles, steppin’ time!”

Other verses might include “slip on green moss,” “curse the heavens,” “fall on your butt,” “f#@$ the boulders,” “trail master’s a sadist,” “give up all hope,” and “my arches are crying.” It makes for a cheery way to get through an otherwise unpleasant day of hiking. Be warned, day-hikers will look at you as though you are deranged (at least the ones I encountered did…).

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Here’s a #motivationmonday post for you: discovering a previously unknown fear of exposed heights while in the middle of having to do some unsupported bouldering up the steep, exposed, rock side of a former mining site. You feel yourself start to panic, find a stable spot to take a break and give yourself one hell of a pep talk, take a good hard look down, and proceed to finish crawling up that mountain on you knees and butt. Dignified? No. But you got it done! Ha!

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This is how I feel after going into town for a resupply...

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rip purple sneakers. You trained for and ran a halfmarathon, you climbed mountains, and you walked across 1.5 states. You served me well and I regret that the rocks of PA were your downfall. Still, what a way to go.

#at2016 #appalachiantrail #lotsofrocks #shoes #boulderhopping #rockslyvania