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  1. #21
    snab_snib African Astronaut
    4 16 2014

    About an inch of snow fell last night. Got a pretty decent lift in from where I was and walked. Not much to report. Low battery due to entertainment during rain day yesterday.
  2. #22
    snab_snib African Astronaut
    4 19 2014

    Beautiful day for lots of walking. I've adapted and strengthened to my pack better then expected. Yesterday at the ymca, a old fellow told me how back in vietnam, they'd have to carry so much ammo that you couldn't stand up, you'd have to lay down and strap into the ruck, then two guys would have to help you up. Glad I'm not carrying ammo. I think I'll be able to average ten hours a day soon, and thirty miles. I certainly have less aches and pains then when I started, nothing really hurts at all, usually. Eating lots of protein, drinking lots of milk. I don't get bored walking eight hours at a stretch. Its very nice and simple, just enjoying the sun and wind and seeing the different kinds of buildings and terrains as I see different parts of the country.

    If you're happy with who you are when you're alone, you'll never be lonely a day in your life. I'm always perfectly entertained by my train of thought.
  3. #23
    snab_snib African Astronaut
    4 20 2014

    For some reason I giggle like a fool when I roll out my sleeping bag every night. I'd like to state for the record that I do not hitchhike, I do not walk on the interstate (tried once), and I do not ever trespass on private property.

    A debate that rages in me is the source of property rights. Real estate, I'm referring to. Since we all have to live on this planet, the ownership of land is qualitatively different then the ownership of a vehicle, or clothing, or a toothbrush. And going back far enough it was all, every bit of it, claimed by violence. So the deed isn't a moral claim to the land, since the payment rendered did not necessarily accrue to an ultimate rightful owner. The next idea in line is use - that land is owned by use. But then anyone who decided, (on whose verdict and judgement?) That they had a greater use for it then you could kick you off. And that's moral BS. My instinct is to say reset the ownership clock as rightfully owned... now. But that sounds like duct tape. Anyways, the point is, I respect private property, and do not trespass.

    I remember when I was a kid saying that I'm like a rat and I could sleep anywhere.
  4. #24
    snab_snib African Astronaut
    4 21 2014

    These two guys, probably driving west with them in a couple weeks, after I meet up with truthinker in mariland. Guy A is an outdoorsy type who taught me how to fish yesterday. Guy B is kinda the jocky type and I met him yesterday a few hours after he got a divorce. I'm gonna show him some stuff on guitar, and he's gonna show me how to disrespect women and treat them like whores. I'm thinking of cutting weight again so I can move quicker, especially if I'm going to be travelling from california to wherever or around california looking for a job. No worries about running out of money now. Hell, guy A might land me a job as a river guide. They're some real good people. I had to 'the bomb' burritos and probably fifteen beers and five shots for easter, around a bonfire. Real good time.
  5. #25
    snab_snib African Astronaut
    4 21 2014

    so i'm in the beautiful scenic town of havre de grace, where it looks like a iconic village from the stepfor wives and everyone is really nice and friendly... and i'm seeing the De Carlo String Quartet perform classical music! wooo-hooo lifes a damn trip
  6. #26
    snab_snib African Astronaut
    4 22 2014

    Well. Around noon its forecasted random thunderstorms, so, I'm gonna walk on up to sasquehanna state park and make a tent. They may very well have showers there, which would kick ass. They have a museum too. Might just spend most of the day hiding from rain, or exploring the park, might go swimming. I'll find some good place to walk to tomorrow, I figure to head west from here and see what Isee for a few weeks. First, gotta hang out with truthinker, if I can get in touch with him on wireclub...
  7. #27
    snab_snib African Astronaut
    On phone, I'll upload pic at another point...its right in the center of my sternum ... its a black dot the size of a quarter, with eight equidistant arrows radiant outbound. It is sometimes called the star of Chaos, and it represents freedom... the ability to move in any direction one should choose. I don't see why people cry about tattoos. He said the sternum sucks pretty bad comparatively, and it really just felt like a bee sting. I'm pretty excited about it. I've heard the phrase "permenant reminder of a temporary feeling before". Which makes me wonder why someone would get a tattoo of anything except an eternal idea.

    By the way, the concert was exquisite. They played for about an hour and a half and they blew my mind, it was actually a quintet though... from the sasquehanna symphony orchestra... they played a little night music from mozart, some hebrew dances, a few haydn duets, and a gershwin lullaby. Very virtuous and I was close enough to watch them fretting. Blew my mind!
  8. #28
    snab_snib African Astronaut
    4 24 2014

    Walked for a little over eleven hours today. A guy my age named eric gave me a quick ride down the road, and we had excellent discussion about many things. He's a philosopher, too. A realist with a level head and a lot of things to say.  Made it about a third of the way to fredricks - I walked a lot of state roads to see if straightaways would be useful in saving time, but I think in the end I'm better off taking backroads, if I have the electricity to keep my phone on. Going to bed a bit early. I walked up to a farmhouse and asked a lady who rents the land if it'd be alright with her if I rolled my sleeping bag out back between a fence and some trees up on a ledge over a road, and she was fine with that.
  9. #29
    snab_snib African Astronaut
    4 24 2014

    Journey to fredricksburg will take four or five days. I got in touch with him and we made plans. Probably hang out and talk for a day or two, then keep on west until I hook up with those two dudes I met on easter.

    This guy, I met him in the wireclub philosophy chatroom about seven years ago. Used to be called Gully with the symbol of the super mario "level up" mushroom, now he's Truthinker, with the symbol of a computer processor. At first we fought for months... because I was pretty stupid, and faking being what he really is and was. Knowing truth. And he called me out pretty hard on it. At some point I was wise enough to notice what he was getting at and admit that in truth he had defeated me... and since then I've learned enormous amounts of fundamental truth from him. But he's never taught me anything that I hadn't known all along and had been taught (and had willingly accepted, in seeking excuse), to ignore. "Knowledge is the only good, ignorance is the only evil". most people in the chatroom hate (dread) him, because he's totally intolerant of ignorance, and he's there to make sure being stupid hurts. In fact, you can count on one hand the number of people that will acknowledge his knowledge, and of them, I'm the only one that is willing to acknowledge that his harsh criticism of nearly everyone is accurate.

    He got shot in the head during a mugging when he was in his mid twenties, because as he says, he knew right then that he was willing to die rather then submit to evil. He says of not dying with a bullet in his brain... "believe me when I say that all limits are self imposed". In his admittedly incoherent state, he put his finger into the hole and tried to remove the bullet, which probably wasn't too good for his grey matter. His left side arm and leg and eye don't work too good anymore.

    Of every person I've ever met he's easily the one I agree with the most. I've been learning a lot on my journey, every day discussing things with people and learning new perspectives on life, and pretty much everyone has something to offer. I've learned that not everyone is going to agree on most, many, or even some or a few things. The truth, however, is in fact out there, and I, in fact, do possess it - to whatever degree - there's so much more to learn that I don't know how boredom could ever be excusable. I know precious little, but what little I do know is, in fact, precious.
  10. #30
    snab_snib African Astronaut
    4 25 2014

    Rained in hard. Hunkered down to ride it out. Spirits up, I'm still happy anyhow. Went into woods near off ramp, down a tiny valley and made a tent. Haven't been this entrenched in a week I think, been a while since I actually had my pack apart and leaned up against the tent walls to provide a flying prop. Its raining heavily, and looks bad for tomorrow too. Sigh. Delay sucks. Quality raingear is enormously heavy and bulky. Non-quality raingear is not superior to a black plastic garbage bag over your head. Oh well what the hell. Got a full tank of electricity and fruity loops is begging for attention. Its about six and I have two fully charged phone batteries and a full laptop battery. Will entertain myself as best as possible with phone. Probably use a battery before I use computer. Entertainment is the best. Its just the bees knees and also tits. The phone has news and write spots like this is a write spot. I'm clearly in ramble mode. I like the feeling of typing. Even with my little five inch wide inch and a half deep qwerty keyboard on this phone I really like it. Not too big of a fan of my laptops keyboard, actually, cause the chicklets are so flat with such thin edges that my fingers can catch on the corners as they move to and fro and someday that might pop off a chiclet. I used to think that the logitech k120 was the best keyboard. Fifteen dollars and bombproof, with perfect typing action. But in havre de grace, even the keyboards are perfect, because the ones they had for their consoles were superb. Took getting used to, but ridiculously accurate, with very wide spacing and deep press-wells. Chunky and stable build as well. But enough about keyboards. What was I saying. Next thought. I found a way of running the lanyard that I hang my mora knife and compass from, through the sheath slots and through the compass-hole, so that the compass and the knife hang flat against my chest. I had been annoyed by their sideways tendency which was not recto-congruently pleasing. Rain rain go away, come again another day. I'm pretty cozy. I have on average 3 to 4 bars of reception which is plenty. This is a decent tent I've strung up. But i'd really like to be walking. I feel spunked up to it. I wanna go. Get a move on. Bang those miles out. Get as far west as possible. Slap the map. Anyhow, 7-11 had a 14 inch hot pepperoni pizza for 5.55. Wow! What a great deal! And the pizza tasted better cold and with some water sprinkled on top. But I knew it would taste better cold. Friends and family, this whole rant was the product of my fear of making the confession I'm about to make.

    I think pretty much all food tastes better at room temperature.

    Shit! Forgot to post the hi-res of my tattoo!
  11. #31
    snab_snib African Astronaut
    4 25 2014

    Walked for about three hours i reckon. stopped in the monkston library to charge up. left at 5:30. unfortunately rain. gonna see if i can't use the smaller tarp to cover my pack. looks like good woods just 20 minutes west of this tiny little town. should be two solid days of walking to get to frederick.
  12. #32
    snab_snib African Astronaut
    4 28 2014

    I'm not surprised that he speaks and acts pretty much exactly as i expected him to speak and act. The truth that would scare many people I know is that you can, in fact. learn a great deal about a person even in a short time through chatrooms, let alone after six years. We discuss philosophy and topics of importance. Its refreshing having someone around that does not require any mental assistance whatsoever. his physical impairment is barely noticeable. He speaks very softly, but conveys perfect confidence and certainty, that's quite a rare combination. he's confrontational about anything he does not agree with, which is refreshing. he does in fact type with one hand probably as fast or almost as fast as I can type with two. he's very, very tall.

    his room mates are real cool, its a very nice little townhouse.
  13. #33
    snab_snib African Astronaut
    5 4 2014

    I've not written for close to a week now. I hung out with tru and his roommates and his girl and her kids, all of which were really cool. One roommate was a electronic music producer, we had a lot of great talk about things that not many people can talk with me about. Another was the great-grandchild of the president of guam, he's in the military and dissuaded me from even considering joining by telling me about the culture there is one of sucking cock half the time, and ridiculous inefficiency. Also absurdity.

    Now headed west, whether I hook up with the river guide and divorced guy or not. I have to backtrack east a bit to find a way across the potomac, I walked through the fort frederick park for about half a day and discover the bridges upriver are farther away then the ones behind me.

    I've been thinking about diet a lot. I'm pretty much certain that the most superior diet is one of only whole grains, fruits and vegetables. That's rather difficult to affect living as I do now. I will do so eventually, when I start to live in one place. Right now, I can at least eat less and more often... space my food out so I'm not wasting nutrition by eating more then my body can use at one time.

    What shocked me most, to learn, is that your body only really needs a couple grams of protein a day even when you're pushing your muscles, though it makes perfect sense if you consider the actual mass involved in muscle repair is so very very tiny. Lots of common misconceptions in our cultural views are dead wrong, and 'scientific consensus' is an idea that anyone can decide has been reached for their personal position.

    Well, not much else to say. More working my way west right now, rather then heading west. I'll be on the other side of the potomac tomorrow night, and in west virginia.
  14. #34
    snab_snib African Astronaut
    5 6 2014

    Its where I'm at.

    Motion is lotion. Inactivity is what causes physical injury.

    Love is the key; I've decided to show love in some way to everyone I meet - simple expression of value and respect that can be contained in an enteric hello.

    I've learned to have no expectations regarding what others choose to do with my actions. When I know that I'm being congruent with myself and contributing value to every interaction, why should I care what some one else thinks about it?

    I've also learned how to use complete gibberish as a pick-up line, and therein lies the reason why guy A says something retarded and hooks up while guy B tries hard as he can to do something that will 'make' her like him and no matter what he says, she won't hook up.

    Not sure what to say about the west, but I think monarchy is the best government. Less people to shoot if things go really bad, for one.
  15. #35
    snab_snib African Astronaut
    5 7 2014

    I went to a food lion today and it sold me fruits, tortillas, peanut butter, enough to last three days. And it sold me beans n slaw for bfast. Very good. Very good david. Almost at the end of the pipe tobacco I gained from visiting my philosophy teacher, which is good, because I won't be smoking either. Never say never though. Just as a rare pleasure should it be reserved. I wrote some valuable shit that I take lightly in my notebook. I plan to get graph paper and compose mad musics all disjointulated like.

    Shee-it. Speed composition. You, from wireclub, you know who you are. Stairway to heaven, for one. Classical masters babanging on the keyboard essentially at random is another. A third would be the ability to have larger chunks of music come into existence on your mental tuner, all at once, in one piece, complete.

    You don't sharpen the knife. You sharpen the EDGE of the knife.
  16. #36
    snab_snib African Astronaut
    5 10 2014

    lady offered me a ride in the back of her truck to berklee springs.

    drank coffee. left. went down 9.

    slept. woke. went down 9. not a single business all day. thirsty hungry.

    slept.

    woke. found food and water. staying at someones house tonight... real cool guy. retired science teacher. wife cooked good dinner. i played guitar for a while and we talked for hours. sleeping on a nice bed tonight. feels good.
  17. #37
    snab_snib African Astronaut
    5 12 2014

    I've had no reception, thus no contact after leaving charlies house.

    after leaving charlies house, I met a real cool young couple, who pulled over to offer me a ride. The fella went into work and the lady took me a bit farther down the road, and gave me several boxes of snack goodies - cheese/cracker snack packs, peanut butter cracker things, a pack of fig bars, some cookies. all very welcome.

    later that day, I was walking through some tiny little town that will never be on any map, and i passed an older guy sitting in his car along the road doing something. i say hello, and strike up a conversation. this guy is from burma, and came to the USA in the last few years; he works with the DEA in the united states embassy in burma, as an investigator. his job was to shut down the heroin and methamphetamine plants out in the jungle, which fuel an insurgency. I learned a lot from him, he discussed the corrupt government and the good people that burma consists of... he says the insurgents need the government and the government needs the insurgents, so they both have something they can say they're fighting, in order that they can justify further violence and corruption and extortion. he says that in burma, if i was walking down the road like i am, every village would beg me to stay one night, have dinner, everyone is kinder there then he has found in the USA. he came here to accept a job offer, but he is unhappy here and will be going back in one year.

    Perhaps i will visit him in burma someday, and he can show me his country. we had great talk, he gave me a ride down the road and insisted on buying me lunch.

    I write to you now from a little trucker motel in grafton, west virginia. as i was walking today, a lady and her mother pulled alongside me and asked if i needed anything, food, water... i said i have plenty of food, but could always use more water (climbing these hills can work up quite a sweat. ) about half an hour later she catches me down the road a bit and gives me two bottles of cold water and fifty dollars. I tried to turn the money down, telling her i really did not need it, but she insisted. she promised to come and try to give me a lift after her husband got off work.

    a while later her husband, randy, her, jenny, and their son, shane, pull up and her husband gets out. i can immediately tell he's a good fellow. he asks if i would mind that he could put me up for a night in a motel. i say, you've shown me such great generosity already sir, i couldn't. i think to myself, i didn't set out on this trip so that others would have to provide for me - i saved up and planned specifically to avoid that -

    (i have no problem whatseover with bearing whatever privation that is my burden. i'm fine sleeping on the ground. its nothing to me. i love the feeling of lightness that comes from literally needing nothing but a few calories, some water, and a spot of somewhat level, dry ground behind a couple trees. and a pen and paper.)

    he drives me about 50 miles down the road, and we have a long talk, where he discusses the hardship he and his wife went through when they got married and how god helped them along the way and so on. i told him that i don't judge people according to what they think about god and so forth anymore, rather, i judge what they're trying to express with the word god, by the way they live their life. everyone says some shit about the things they don't understand and require an innate knowledge in order to work with, rather then against. atheists and theists are both stating what they think in whatever and as many terms as they think they need to to communicate their ideas; what i'm concerned with is to what standard does a person hold themselves, and what values do they seek. I explained that i don't have any such persuasion to the supernatural, and that my immense respect for his character, fortitude, kindness, sincerity, patience, and perseverance, was something entirely separate from whatever he thought it resulted from or was in accordance with.

    He pulls into a motel and asks again if he could put me up for the night, and this time, i concede... and then asks if he could take me to eat, his wife saying they'd 'really very much prefer it if they could'.

    Such kindness and hospitality from strangers is something that frankly baffles me. its not something that i thought existed, or should exist, its not something i grew up seeing, or hearing about, except in publications that are the progeny of chicken soup for the soul. I'll tell you what; i'm sold on the idea that cooperation is more important then competition, and that kindness and charity are crucial elements in ones happiness. To help others without expectation, i am learning, pays for itself. i'm learning alot.

    Reposted to my blog. cause i don't want to type the whole thing out saying the exact same things in slightly different order.
  18. #38
    snab_snib African Astronaut
    5 13 2014

    left the motel. got supplies at dollar store. no fresh fruit in truckertown. had a beer and fries at a bar and shot the shit withy some good old boys. forwarding a message from a good old boy: we wear shoes in west virginia.

    the more i learn the less i know. in europe, they don't have very many people on welfare, cuz if you get hurt, they send you back to college to do something else that you're capable of. they make sure everyone is productive.

    i was offered a double barreled damascus shotgun for a hundredthirty bucks. i really wanted it. did not buy it. too heavy to carry with ammo. damn it, now that i think about it i coulda sawed it off. shit.
  19. #39
    snab_snib African Astronaut
    5 16 2014

    I retain my laptop and phone. I heart technology. I'm getting too damn good at making filthy sick sounds with my computer, using ableton live. I've been studying the use of formant enhancements to create vowele sounds with wobble basses. The idea is pretty much you create several spikes in the EQ at certain overtones, then travel your spikes up and down to create the sound of wow or yah or obba or waugh.

    I also never want to give up chatting on wireclub with my friends and not-friends in the philosophy room. I've been a fixture there for close to seven or eight years now.

    So I have a cellphone with an extra battery. A pair of fiskars scissors. A canon powershot. A 13.3 inch laptop with a phenomenal battery that serves as a gas tank for my phone. The power cord for the laptop and a wall charger for the phone, with a usb cord for the phone.

    I have my excellent pioneer HDJ2000 headphones. I have a tiny notebook and some pens. I have a knife sharpener and a magnesium/flint firestarter with a 6 inch steel ruler for scraping. I have some old spice deodorant. I have a 6x8 tarp that can serve as a poncho or a rain cover or ground cover. I have some socks, a pair of gym shorts, three pairs of compression underwear, a pair of jeans, three t shirts. My jacket is rolled with my bivvy and light sleeping bag in the compression sack. I strap it to my backpack with a web-belt. I have a nylon sling for carrying groceries and a case logic pouch for my camera and phone. I have lots of carabiners and a shure microphone pouch for a wallet. I have some cloths and a extra 96oz nalgene canteen, but only use the two 48oz nalgene canteens. On of them I carabine to my belt loop. The case logic pouch I carabine to my belt loop. The tarp is folded and rolled and cinched with a nylon buckle, and carabines off the same belt that straps my sleeping bag to the backpack. I have a buck knife carabined off a belt loop on my jeans.

    Hanging around my neck is my compass and swedish mora knife. on my wrist is a US polo Assn watch. I have a lighter and my social security card and birth certifice sealed inside a ductaped sandwhich made of my highschool ID and price chopper ID.  I've got a couple bananas, half a loaf of peanut butter sandwhiches, and some snack crackers.

    I bet I can make 50 miles a day from here on out. If you need external stimulation to feel good and be happy, as a man, there's something wrong with you. A Males job is to generate their state internally and to consciously decide how they're going to feel about situations and environments. People spend their entire life trapped in a matrix of distractions, thinking they can pay for success in life if they just work their little job and stay where they belong. Magic pill! Only 19.99!

    Tyler durden: "you're not your wallet. You're not your car or your home. You're not your job. You are not your fucking khakis... self improvement is masturbation. What about self destruction?"

    (Consider the difference between development and improvement. Wisdom is born - stupidity is learned. The process of self discovery doesn't require a paintbrush, it requires bleach and a wire brush. Or sulphuric acid. Anselmo: to walk through the world... by yourself... you can't be protected.

    Anonymous: you must be exposed to annihilation in order to understand that you are indestructable. Rumi: everything rumi has ever said.)
  20. #40
    snab_snib African Astronaut
    5 17 2014

    I am in parkersburg. I was looking to get to Nemesis park to find a place to sleep. So I walk toward the river and see a bridge above me with stairs leading up to a walkway. Nice stairs. I go up them and walk the nice walkway. Which ends under the bridge onto a buncha rocks against a fence along the highway. What a ruse. Anyways I walk along it and the down some tracks till I find a good concealed spot. A train stops here... I could have climbed right into or onto some car. Going the wrong way. Nice to know its still nineteen fifty and I could ride the rails if I wanted to. Tomorrow I will go to the library, then enter ohio.
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