Friday, April 29, 2005

Beer Keg

14 days until I move, but geez, whose counting.

I'm now at the stage where I have to wrestle up some muscle for moving, and set up a date for a yard sale. Looks like the stuff I got from other people's garbage will be slated from removal first. That means the drafting table is on the short list, along with the sofa, loveseat and TV stand. I think I will try to keep the futon, and I will definitely be keeping the down comforter. I was so happy to get it, and loved it instantly. Unfortunately, the boyfriend was allergic to the dust and various other things in it (that I don't want to think about). The old-fashioned sled is also on the short-list of things to get rid of. The 30gal aquarium may also have to be given away. I had to part with the 55gal, so I am not sure I want to part with the 30gal at all, but what am I going to do with an empty aquarium while I am hiking. I need more of this attitude.

Found out the neighbour, who I still have his beer and bread recipe books, left his beer keg in the basement when he moved. Damn, I am trying to get rid of things, not acquire more. I think that it will be coming with me, now I only need to find a place to put it. Maybe in the attic. I will also have to look into how hard it is to get a license from brewing and selling beer. Maybe I can start a new career as a micro-brewery, if it isn't to cost prohibitive. I could use the keg for brewing purposes. I think it is 10gal, so it would nicely match my 13gal brewing bucket. Have to find room to keep that too, it is glass and I got it for a song.

Thursday, April 28, 2005

Katahdin

15 days until I move and starting to get really nervous and excited.

Mostly because I just got my maps for Maine. This means, combined with my New Hampshire and Vermont maps, I have about 1/3 of the trail covered. This also gave me a chance to finally see the elevation gain for Katahdin. It will definitely be a killer to hike. This will take me all day to summit with an elevation gain of 4200ft in 5 miles. Ouch! I will have to plan on camping in the park the night before the climb and camping again the day of the climb as I may be coming off the mountain late. Might as well bite the bullet, spend the cash and stay for two nights. I am still trying to decide if I want to try to find a partner to start with or go it completely alone. I think I need to go it alone so I can strengthen my character. I think that I depend to much on other people being there to help me get things done, to help me get through life. No more, I have to know that I can trust myself too.

Had a chance to try on some other packs last night. I really like my pack and after trying on another similarly sized pack I appreciate the fit of mine al the more. Except that I tried on another after that, and it was great. It fit just right and even with almost 40lbs in the bag, it felt like nothing. I really like it and I do believe that I need the extra room, but 300$ is quite pricey. Even with a 20% off sale next week, 230$ is still a lot. I will have to decide soon. Maybe I could sell my old pack and upgrade. So much stuff to do and so little time and energy.

Woke up at 3:00 this morning and that was it, game over. I couldn't sleep. So I just got up and threw out all my old midterms and papers from university. Never looked at them in the 5 years since graduation, what makes me think I will look at them when I get back from the trail. This is a start but in the end, I only cleaned out half a file box of stuff. I will have to try harder.

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Wednesday, April 27, 2005

Little packages

16 days left and I am trying to take the big jumble that is currently my life and package it all into one tidy little package. I am moving back in with my parents. This means taking everything out of a large one bedroom apartment and cramming only the important things into one 11x11 foot bedroom.

I am now stuggling to decide how badly I need to keep that Birthday card my mother gave me when I was six. Or the various other bits and pieces of material posessions that make up my memories. I think I may have packrat tendencies. I won't have the storage space for most of my stuff and yet how can I throw out a perfectly good item. I also have to haggle over items I share with my boyfriend. So much stuff and so little space to fit it all into. I think that in the grand scheme of things, most of my stuff is not worth the effort of packing it. I can always buy another bed, or cooking implements.

It is the things that I can't buy that will cause the most pain. Should I keep the well seasoned cast iron frying pan that I have been struggling to season for the last 4 years. I can buy another, but not a well seasoned, well loved one.

Tuesday, April 26, 2005

Count down

17 days until my last day at work. 18 days until I move.

I am in the process of having a life make-over. I have quit my job, am moving all my essential junk back home and within a month or so of that I will be leaving to hike the Appalachian Trail. I am using this as a chance to rediscover myself. I feel that I have been crammed into some mold and I am straining against the wrappings.

This is very exciting and yet I am also scared to death. This is a completely wack, off the wall thing for me to be doing and I know it will be great. And yet I feel there should be a but at the end of that. I am, after all, up-rooting myself from a somewhat nice life and going off to traipse around in the woods for 6 months. I will not be earning money, I will not have friends with me, I am leaving my boyfriend, I have quit my job. I am basically leaving my somewhat nice, easy life behind for a difficult 6 month tour of the rugged beauty of the great outdoors. I will be free and clear of everything except eating for the duration of my walk in the woods. I am looking forward to this with tremendous anticipation and horrible dread.

I am doing this for me and no one else and I know I will enjoy myself. This is my mantra. Now all that's left is to figure out how to tell my mother.