Yesterday, I encountered one of those moments. It was so delightful, I have to share it with you.
A gentleman around forty years of age came in for dinner as the day grew dark. Slender, with the tidy scruffiness of a well-educated man on vacation.
It was the close of the first day of his grand adventure.
A software engineer, who had owned businesses and employeed people, he folded. He turned it all in; sold the house and all the stuff. Starting yesterday, he is bicycling to New Orleans to visit family -- via Montana and Seattle. After that, it is on to New Zealand. Or maybe somewhere else if a better idea comes along.
He was giddy with excitement.
"It was so great when I realized that when I sold the car, I bought myself another 7 months on the road!"
said the man who left Cambridge that morning, and made it the 45 miles to Sterling. We talked about the pleasures of letting everything go and having nothing but what one can carry.
He found us by googling "food." He came to the Harvest Grille and found food, conversation, and good wishes for his safe journey. I pointed him in the direction of an after dinner bar and a shady place with well placed trees for him to tie his bed. In a westerly direction, of course.
Interesting to take a late season journey like this later in the season of his life.
From our conversation I gathered that he has a few reservations, but planned a great deal to minimize his risks. No matter what, he has a hammock to sleep in and is on his way.
Best of luck and safety, John. Thanks for sharing the start of
your journey with us.
