Blog-azic

Delays, delays. It turns out that my journey did not begin until just yesterday. I had widdled away my time last week playing a video game, God of War, and by the time I's ready to do some business the businesses were closed! And they didn't open again until Tuesday (on account of the holiday). So, I waited patiently in Athens until Tuesday came. Then, after a fast-paced morning of business, I got on the road. I'm riding a new bike and carrying gear on my back headed still for the Wayne National Forest, Ironton District. My friend Ryan is there waiting for me now. Boy, I'll tell you, those first ten miles out of Athens were killer. I felt overwhellmed: "What kind of hair-brained plan is this? How do I expect to make it all that way with this pack?" But, I kept going. When I finally left Athens County for Meigs, I stopped at a small grocery to refill my water bottles. But, the woman attendant informed me, "No plumbing." Fortunately, there was another ...

I'm so over work on the real. My last day was Friday. Goodbye to AmeriCorps! It was a pleasure serving you, America - eliminating poverty and the like - but I must be goin' now. Well I'm on my way. I don't know where I'm going. I'm taking my time but I don't know where. I awoke early this morning before the sun had risen. A faint glow could be seen in the eastern sky and only the most brightest stars were still alight in the sky. I walked off the porch (where I'd been sleeping) and looked for the moon, but the moon had sunk too far west and was blocked by the neighbor's house (the same neighbor who keeps complaining to the city that our chicken coop is on their property). Chris, me roomie, told me of a lunar eclipse, but because the moon wasn't in view, I went back to the couch on the porch and lay down watching the dawn get on. Later in the morning, after I'd been to the bank and the post office to arrange for my impending trip - oh, did I m...

I first heard of the impending rain from Art Gish, a farmer who sells at the market . Later, my housemate told me that it was a storm blowing in. Just as the storm began to break yesterday afternoon, I was on the porch working on a bicycle. The wind was blowing hard and the rain was falling in curtains. "That's worth a closer look," is what I told my friend who was with me on the porch, and I meant to walk out into the storm. I left my shirt on the porch. I walked down the river as casual as was possible. The large puddles that had formed along the sidewalks were as warm as bath water courtesy of sun-baked pavement. The lightening was ripping across the sky and striking the earth, and the deafening thunder that followed told that the storm was right above my head. The rain began to pelt me and sting my skin, so ran over the hill that buffers the river and threw myself onto the slope of the far side. I was now on the east side of the hill with my back to the river. The win...

It was a dark and humid night. Very humid and stiffling. But, even this previous afternoon, an August thunderstorm cooled off these lands. And I sat down by the river stalking ducks. I watched baby herons. Have you ever seen baby herons - two, siblings thinks I - the way they clutz around sometimes? They had just the most trouble trying to stick that landing. And once or twice I saw 'em stumble off the wire. Needless to say, I was amused. But they must've been too. Cause I was sneaking around (grass in my hair, coated in mud, wildflowers for cover) watching them and trying to be smooth. But eventually I just jumped up and left. I munched on Arrowroot Cooks - what a cute baby! - and I was consuming a large amount of one, whole, individually-wrapped - how convenient! - column - that's 15 of the 60 total servings - of vitamin B-enriched flour cookies, and what do I hear but the Oompa Loompas singing over on my neighbor's TV. And do you know what they're singing? What ...

Well, so much has happened since we've last talked. In the first part, I have lost my car, meaning I've no longer an easy way of long range transportation (talking over 15 miles here). I may not have told you this before, but I broke my bike. Yep. It's kind of embarassing to admit it, but I fell off my bike and it broke! I was riding down this real steep hill in Athens (Walnut Street, to be precise), and I was thinking, "Boy, how about that if I fell off this bike?" And I did fall off! I ran into the curb and my bike fell out from under me, and we both slip along the curb! Welll, I had these pretty thick pants on, which help up right well. But, my bike got hurt. It bent its fork, and that's not a pretty thing to happen. Well, the handle bars were all crooked (cause the fork was bent!), and I hobled that thing back to my house and didn't do a thing with it since about two months back. But then a couple mornings ago, my car brakes go out! And, I'm drivin...

Yesterday (and Saturday), I tanned a deer hide under the gaze of Quinn F. ( here ). A beautiful bit of buckskin. I watched the meteor shower from on top of "the Knob." I slept on sheep skin at Toad Hall. I awoke and drove my car down the road to work. On the way, the brake light pops on and I loose pedal pressure! I added brake fluid at the office (it was ghastly low). I'll take it in to have the lines flushed. I'll pray it's not expensive. I will sooner spend hundreds of dollars on a new bike than a costly car repair. Two days of vacation this week. Thursday, collecting materials for a tannic acid bath for a pig's head. Then, MC at the "Dog Gone Days of Summer Dog Show" in Stewart on Saturday. Questions? Comments? Concerns? .... Jokes?

Boy, I must like blogging late at night because here it is midnight and I'm on the computer typing away. Keeping my roommates awake; the rucus of nimble little fingers on a particularly clicky keyboard. But, it's not particularly the night time blogging keeping me awake. I've just been having such a good time in the late night. Last night, for example, I made a cape from an old wool army blanket. It's a pretty neat thing. It's semicircle in shape with another smaller semicircle cut out for the neck. I made the neckhole too big, alas. But, I believe it's beautiful all the same. And, a mighty fine cape. I'll put a hood on that thing, then I'll be ready for the woods. Got my poncho (see Lost and Found ). Got my backpack (see Oh, I've been in a place ... ). Got my sleeping bag (see 'H' is for 'hairy' man ... ). Now I got my cape. I also got bugs on me right now! Some multitude of litte creepers. They bite like fleas. I had fleas once in h...