3/22/2015
I love the sound of little bird feet on top of the trailer. It always sounds like the tiny creatures are having so much fun. I’ve had the pleasure of spotting so many kinds of birds on this trip. I could see why so many bird watching enthusiasts existed. The morning was spent downsizing and organizing the trailer. It seemed that the vehicle was in a constant state of disarray despite our best efforts. After Crystal gave our sinks a thorough scrubbing, they shined brilliantly. The final matter was to dump all excess weight and we could hit the road. We were thankful for the opportunity because the heat from prior days cooked the waste and left a scent less than desirable.
We pulled out and said good-bye to Sandy our wonderful host. Crystal said, “I wish we could have stayed at this resort a little longer.” Slowing down would have been a luxury. Crystal dropped me back on the 17 because I had run extra the day before. I didn’t realize the road to the resort didn’t connect with the road I had to take.
Running on a very straight road gave my legs the opportunity to coast. I breathed in deeply as I enjoyed all the trees. Pollen had been a problem of springtime in my past but for some reason I wasn’t feeling too bad. My eyes itched but I didn’t feel redness and I wasn’t sneezing. I was still recycling my beat up shoes, trying to squeeze out any last bits of life. A pair of trail runners felt surprisingly comfy as they took down twelve miles without a snag. I met up with Crystal at a Burger King in Ridgeland. I used their internet and drained my battery in the process. I had hoped to find a place to charge up in the upcoming stops.
Our cupboards had grown increasingly barren from all our consumption of canned goods. Because we were beginning to run low we picked up a few items at the grocery store. They carried the brand of veggie meat I enjoyed so we decided to eat something different for dinner. We chose vegetarian fried fish.
I had only ten more miles to reach our destination. We both hit the road. I did so with my feet and Crystal with the trailer. After six miles the clouds darkened. I had to pick up the pace to try and outrun the coming rain. My senses had been good to me. When I reached the trailer the rain began. We were parked in a large lot that belonged to a gas station. They were happy to let us park overnight. It was funny to me that recently the patches of bad weather were more frequent. At least I was happy and somewhat dry for that day.
Day 200 was anything but dry. It was another morning waking to the sounds of pitter patter but this time the source was rain and not bird. When the hard rain stopped, I made a break for it. My feet ran gently while the sprinkles drifted to earth. It was Sunday and I spotted plenty of cars at church. Where did all the people come from? I hadn’t spotted much by way of homes.
My socks moistened at the tips by the toes. The drops of water increased in size as I made my way to the gas station a few miles away. A slippery climb over the freeway wouldn’t have been threatening under dry conditions yet it struck terror into my heart when big rigs whizzed past me. The skinny running lane offered very little wiggle room. Going downhill might have been worse than running uphill. After only a couple miles I reached the gas station. We decided to wait out the elements. That wait lasted the entire day.
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