[pct-l] VVR.... my final words

[walkinglarry at yahoo.com (larry hillberg)]

So true.  I enjoyed VVR, and will visit again given
the chance.  During my visit, other thru hikers were
both cooking and waiting on tables.  We enjoyed the
boat rides, resupplied, shared a few beers, meals, and
stories with our companions, paid our bills and hiked
on with new stories.

This long thread now reminds me of some wisdom given
to me during my backroads walk across mid-America.

Arriving in Rib Lake Wisconsin, I rested against the
outside wall of a gas station/convenience mart.  The
crusty, 80-something owner came outside to introduce
himself.  "Hi, I'm Pete Peterson, what the hell are
you doing in this god-forsaken place?"  The usual
question and answer session followed, during which he
offered a room in his motel for $20.  After asking
permission for a photo of he and I together, he sent
his daughter for a camera, leaving himself as the sole
worker at the station.

As we chatted, a black cadillac pulled up near the
SELF SERVICE pumps about 25 yards away.  Dark tinted
windows prevented light from showing the driver.  Out
of state license plates (Illinois) adorned the back. 
After a couple of minutes, the driver beeped the horn
several times.  As Pete shuffled over, the car window
rolled down, and we could see a silk shirt-covered
arm.  I imagined a massive gold chain around the neck
of the driver.

As Pete approached the car, a voice boomed out, not
asking permission.  "I don't wanna buy any gas.  I
have a question for you."  "Uh, okay," answered Pete. 
The driver went on.  "I'm going to be moving to your
town, and I want to know what kind of people you got
living here."  Pete, politely, answered, "I don't
rightly know.  What kind of people live in the town
where you live now?"  "Jerks and assholes" said the
stranger, "nothing but jerks and assholes."  Causing
me to choke on my V8, Pete answered, "I reckon that's
what you'll find we got here too."

 --- StoneDancer1@aol.com wrote:
> So.... opinions run from heaven to rip-off hell.  My
> guess is that  people, 
> wherever they go, see what they take with them.  My
> gaze is always  toward the 
> mountain peaks and the ridge tops, and anything that
> gets in the way  is, as 
> John Muir said, "mere dust and hotels and baggage
> and chatter."
>  
>  
> "No Way" Ray  Echols
> _______________________________________________
> pct-l mailing list
> pct-l@mailman.backcountry.net
> unsubscribe or change options:
> http://mailman.hack.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
> 


		
__________________________________ 
Do you Yahoo!? 
Yahoo! Mail - Helps protect you from nasty viruses. 
http://promotions.yahoo.com/new_mail