Gearing up and getting out

Well after a failed attempt at a 10 mile hike on Sunday (we did somewhere between 6 to 8.. Not sure, a lot of losing trails and bushwacking). I determined that my Salomon Ellipse shoes were not going to make it for the trail so back to REI they went.. Sigh..

On the lighter side, yay a store credit to get my last few items!! WooHoo!! Who would have ever thought I would have been so excited to shop for backpacking equipment. Some girls are looking for fancy shoes or purses and I'm like 'oooh I need a bug net for my head!!' Little things, I guess...

We're in the process of packing up the house for everything to go into storage. Its kind of nerve wracking. This is the biggest, scariest thing I have ever done. If someone would have told me 2 years ago that I would be packing up my house, quitting my job and venturing off to hike 2200 miles. OK, well, I may have believed them.. hahahaha.

There is something oddly comforting in not having a point of end. There's no return ticket booked, there's no definitive end date. Just the idea that when I get there I have 1 job... Hike.. oh and enjoy nature!

Tonight at work I saw the worst case I have seen in the 8 years I've been working in veterinary medicine. I hope to never come across anything like that again. I am haunted by it in this very moment and I imagine I will be for awhile. Even just the thought of it disturbs me to my very soul and violates my core. Its a case like that that is the pinnacle of a career choice. I wanted to work in this field since I was a small child, and now I dream of nothing else than to leave it in the rear view as I step on the gas to get away from it. It's that feeling that drives me to want and need this journey. I need the AT's green trails to wash the pain and suffering from my soul. To have the serenity heal my broken heart from so much death and neglect. On that note in comic irony, I'll probably get mauled by a bear..

Just kidding... Truly I am. I want to finish the trail.

The countdown is 23 days until we leave, 26 days til we start the trail.

A person of note

I met someone today at work that was very cool to talk to, and who I was actually able to talk about our trip to.

When you work in emergency medicine, it sometimes doesn't leave any ability to be fully social.. A lot of times it's very somber, no one wants to hear you talk of a vacation or your amazing weekend while their beloved pet has been sitting in an ER all night.

Rob gets to talk to a lot of the guests that walk into the bar. When he tells people of our quickly approaching adventure, it's usually received very positively. An older couple even told him that we've got it all figured out and they wished they would have when they were our age.

But the guy, Fred, that I got to talk to at length this morning was rocking cool. He's a flight attendant and says he did it to be able to see the world. And so I have it written down, at his recommendation, to go to The Lost World in New Zealand. I will not forget, Fred! He's also the first person I gave this blog address to and didn't personally know. Other things we talked about was realizing our own  mortality and grabbing life before it catches up with you. We ended our conversation this morning by him saying he would be thinking of how our trip was going. I couldn't help but give him the blog address and tell him to "travel with us".

I meet a LOT of assholes at work. It was nice to meet and talk with someone so very cool. Keep on flying high, Fred and eff those Damn airplane seats getting smaller!!

Fabulous March

So I finally did it!! I gave notice at my job! After 7 years I'm leaving to go trek 2200 miles. Never would I have thought I would have done this!
I'm scared, excited, nervous and enthralled! We looked at some pictures of the trail today. I can't wait to be enveloped by all the beauty of the trail. To have nature wash away some of the pain and hurt and death in my soul. Just hoping the rest of my body agrees..