The Blind Man Society

This is a follow up to my Conan blog, about what is best in life. And, I think the Foremost Authority on Time could use some company in this forest with the following characters, movies and books as part of the flora and fauna!

Today, I’m thinking about backpacking across the USA.  I was recently re-reading some of my notes on the book “On the Road” by Jack Kerouac which, I bought at a great bookstore in Florence, Italy years ago.  In this book, Sal Paradise, and his friend and fellow travel, jazz, and hedonism nut Dean Moriarty, embark on an adventure across America.

In my eyes, the main idea of this book – short of one HELL of an adventure, is knowing when to say when.  Sal knew this.  He finished his travels, met a woman and became a writer.  Dean on the other hand, kept right on going and wound up on an interesting road. I myself, eat salami sandwiches just as much as Sal, and I’ll bet you could live on them and olive oil for a month!

The movie Easy Rider is another great one for this idea.  The line:  “I’m hip about time man, but I just gotta go…” is one of the best in recorded history.  I use this one A LOT out here in the world.  In this movie, Captain America, and Billy who are retired musicians jump on their motorcycles and embark on a road trip from Los Angeles to Mardi Gras in New Orleans. 

The main idea here, is what happens when you get the money to be truly free but earlier and younger than you are supposed to in the USA.  And, the ending is a little unsettling, if you have never seen the movie. To quote a very famous man who appears in this movie: Neek Neek Neek Neek!  Swamp.

The final one I can think of is a wonderful book on the Appalachian Trail, here in the USA called “A Walk in the Woods” by Bill Bryson.  This one covers the adventure on, and history of, this trail from the eyes of the author. If I remember correctly, the trail starts in Georgia, and goes to Maine and is THE trek here in this country. Some of the ideas in this book cover what its like to have traveling partners, and going solo traveling and realizing that you don’t always have to get to the conclusion and cross the finish line to have one of the greater adventures of your life. This is a “its the journey that counts, not the destination” kind of story and it’s just phenomenal!

In conclusion, and as I may have previously mentioned on this website at some point, sometimes the greatest learning and lessons from the literary ideas of Man vs. Man, Man vs. Nature, and Man vs. Himself come from the process of getting there. By the time you reach the finish line or conclusion, you may or may not realize (depending on the adventure) that the most learning, fun and growth come from the journey itself. And, knowing when to stop that journey, sometimes BEFORE the finish line is also an art form.

As a final and kind of tangential thought, a tiger escaped from a zoo near where I live a day or two ago. I am at the picnic table per usual with my coffee and a pop tart, and envisioning this individual prowling, stalking and mauling me while I sit here innocently writing this blog, getting caffeinated and going supernova. This of course, would be NOT COOL were it to happen and now that I think about it, I’m relocating inside! And, remembering one of the greatest lines from A Walk in the Woods: BEAR!!!

Have a GREAT Tuesday everyone, and as always, please feel free to leave your comments in the box below.

**This story photo is of me when I was younger in the saddle between Mt. Mwenzi and Mt. Kilimanjaro (Marangu route) in Africa. Due to rising image prices, I had to dig deep into the personal archives for a stock photo re: this blog. LOL!!!