Category Uncategorized

11/17/2015

The last evening before heading into Portland, John Nunn from the Seattle area sent me a message that informed me he was in my proximity. He wanted to introduce me to his friends, the Coopers. They lived in the Portland area and were helping me plan a preschool visit. Crystal and I had tossed clothes around the room in a haste while we readied ourselves for socializing. We left the room in disarray as we didn’t want to keep them waiting. Unfortunately someone had decided to wedge a compact car into the tiny sliver of a space in front of our truck and trailer. After a bit of maneuvering we inched out of the space and headed to the Portland Brewery and Taphouse. It was nice to have an evening out in the big city. Lighted bridges decorated the night drive.

John introduced us to S...

11/15/2011

A psychologist named Maslow wrote a theory about the hierarchy of man’s needs. He depicts our needs in life as a pyramid. At the base of this are the physiological elements we need for survival; food, shelter, water. As we move up the pyramid, friendship and community become a priority. At the pinnacle of this pyramid is the need for purpose and self-actualization. Day after day I have teetered between my basic survival and my purpose in life. As I approached my final new state on this run I closed in on my purpose in life: making this world a better place.

The grey skies kicked off my day in Kelso. Just after the first mile I started climbing a slippery wet hill. As I ascended the hill, the rain again began to pour...

11/10/2015

I had heard that Washington received a large amount of rainfall. The weather I encountered for much of the state supported those rumors. Before leaving Rainier I consumed a quick breakfast. Generous portions of peanut butter and Nutella were swathed over two hearty slices of bread. My legs were eager to return to the trail. Perhaps my body just wanted to be set in motion. I had learned that the best way to get through the difficult days was to remember that everything was only temporary. The rain would eventually replace the sun and the cold would dissipate. And so, I did what I had done for every day for the past four hundred and twenty some days. I ran forward and didn’t look back.

The trail continued to the town of Tonino...