First off, I appreciate the comments that many of you posted. They were an inspiration to me and I carried a part of them with me today in my first day of work. I will now rewind the clock back to last evening where today’s journey began.
I had my backpack all packed up and ready to go. I had gone through all my gear and pre-prepared supper. It was a warm evening and I was aspiring to camp out. I donned my heavy pack and stepped outside the door. The setting sun greeted me. I needed to head out spring road at a good clip to reach my campsite before nightfall. I trudged up the street as the neighbors sitting on their porch waved at me. The neighbor’s dog ran as hard as he could towards me until his tether ran out and it yanked him backwards. He stood there and barked at this perceived threat.
It was a long hike out spring road and I sweated profusely due to my hurried pace. My shirt was ringing wet by the time I had arrived at my campsite. I pulled out a ball of twine and strung it between two trees and hung up my shirt and shorts to dry. I then changed into drier apparel. It was time to get a fire started and to get supper cooking.
On tonight’s menu was chicken and vegetables on a stick. I whittled off the bark on some oak branches and made a sharp point at the end. I then proceeded to skewer on chunks of marinated chicken and veggies. I got the fire going and roaring hot and placed these skewers into the ground close to the fire. Close enough to cook through but not burn. I took care to turn them occasionally. I sat by the fire, smoking my pipe, and listening to the Sugar Bowl via my little radio.
It was midnight when the game was finally over to my relief. I thought it would never end due to the endless commercials. I felt a need to listen to make sure Auburn finished the season 13 and 0. We scraped by at the last minute but won. I then crawled into my tent and pulled off my clothes. Into the sleeping bag I went. Before long, I was soon asleep to the sounds of countless tree frogs peeping away at the nearby pond. A few times in the night I was awakened due to the local beaver population slapping their tails upon the water to signal danger. You would be surprised at how loud this can be.
Morning arrived and I awoke at daybreak. The first orange glow of the sun was on the horizon. I hurriedly packed up my gear and made my way home in the crisp, cool morning air. I arrived home around 9:00 AM and got in the shower in preparation for work.
Today was my first day and I wanted to make an impression. I put on some of my finest clothes; a pair of khaki pants, button up dress shirt, dress socks, and a pair of dockside loafers. I looked in the mirror and surveyed myself. I carefully arranged my hair with the brush. After a few long moments in front of the mirror, I felt groomed enough to depart. I walked out to the car and made my way to work.
Work was cool and everything went well. I worked for most of the afternoon doing mainly what I did when I volunteered. This instilled confidence and I felt proud. The director is aware of my disability and did check in with me several times with inquiries on how I was doing. I assured her that I was doing fine and that I needed more to do. I was kind of disappointed that not more work was put my way. It was a slow day today and I was chomping at the bit.
After work, I decided to treat my self and ate at the Waffle House off the interstate on the way home. I ordered a ham and cheese omelet, hash browns, and a cup of coffee. I sat there eating my supper and reading today’s USA Today. I felt like a “normal” guy and was proud of today’s accomplishment. I then left a $1 dollar tip on the table and drove on home.
There was last night’s evening and today in a recap. I am tired and am going to amble towards bed soon. A few more pipes await me and I may even glimpse at the Orange Bowl a time or two. All in all it was a good day and what I feel is the start of brand new world for me.
One a side note: Tonight I received James Christian’s/Ramsey’s (The Homeless Guy in NYC) address from his pastor and wrote a letter. Hopefully, I will hear back from him soon and we can get him a blog going about his experiences in prison ala Prison Pete.
I hope he is interested in doing this as I think it will be good for him. I printed off several pages of the recent postings of homeless/formerly homeless bloggers and included it in the letter. I think he will enjoy these. We will all just have to wait and see how this unfolds. I will keep all that are interested in this informed.
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