The week

After cooking my brain last Sunday walking in extreme humidity and sun for fifteen miles into Versailles i awoke still having chills from the heat. Monday we walked to the Versailles State park. We went a scenic route thru town. It was only a mile to the entrance parking lot. The staff there gave me a campground spot. The campground was two miles up a steep road. I had not climbed such an incline in a very long time. The next morning, Tuesday we walked out of the park to the highway. The way was hard, overgrown, steep with ditches and some guardrailed sections. The way became easier and then opened to four lanes highway with a pull off lane. For the first time since this walk became I was able to roll unhindered by traffic. I walked briskly and the wind helped to get us the eleven miles to the Dillsboro EMS station. There I showered and washed clothes. Wednesday morning I left early, stopping at the local neighborhood diner for coffee and breakfast before getting back to the open highway and walking lane. The morning was filled with roadside visitors. I was called by two "country" radio stations and later met a Cincinnati television news crew. They interviewed and followed for awhile. About that time the steep climbs from the previous days caught up with the muscles in my right leg and buttocks with a sharp stinging ache in the hip joint. My sciatic nerve injury has atrophied the muscles and they have been slowly building strength. After the interview I sat for awhile to let the pain subside but when I resumed walking the pain intensified. I slowed to a very slow pace but dared not stop again. After three miles the pain subsided. I then came to the top of a long downhill grade into Aurora. The wind was blowing up the hill, I had to push hard to get the world to the bottom. Somehow I "powered" through the last few miles and made it to the EMS station in Aurora. The person who helped with the ride from the campground to Dillsboro (an EMT) also worked at Aurora and gave us the lift to the van when we arrived there. Unbeknownst to me, the Station Captain arranged for a room at the Holiday Inn a few miles further in Greendale so we deflated the world and stuffed it in the van to transport it to the hotel. The only road there had a long and narrow bridge which I would not have been able to safely cross. I would have had to get a ride over that obstacle anyway. After the first peaceful nights sleep I had had in quit awhile I decided to take full advantage of the opportunity and slept late until time to checkout. I then inflated the world and rolled it about three hundred feet to the vacant church parking lot next door where I let Nice (the dog) rest all day while I patched and painted a few areas of the canvas ball which needed attention. From the time I was filling the ball with air until darkness fell I was approached by people who had seen us earlier on the road, heard of us on the radio or television, were searching for us, or had seen us for the first time and were curious. Diabetics and family members whose loved ones were diabetics. Older couples with diabetes, families who were all diabetics, people who had been able to work hard to reverse type two diabetes, Viet Nam veterans who became diabetic after exposure to "agent orange", women who had gestational diabetes and more. Almost every example of the ailment was represented during the day as I maintained the world and remained stationary in the vacant parking lot. I had little time to myself throughout the day but had many conversations that more than made up for the rough road out of Indiana up for it. Friday, today my muscles felt better. The last few miles of Indiana had tall grass on the sides so the way was slow. Once we passed into Ohio the way became easier and eventually opened to a pull off lane. At the end of the day we stopped in Whitewater Township. We are now in the Kroger parking lot. I am tired and am off to dreamland.

Bush Hog Mimosa Bonsai

At the rise of an impossible hill I paused.
Looking down I saw a perfect blossom.
A Mimosa that had been hacked low from the tractor's "bush-hog" blade put all it's energy to one flower.
The perfect bloom.


There is a metaphor in there somewhere...

Trying too hard to write

I have been trying to write about the two hot days it took to get to Versailles from Madison.
The first night I stayed in a church parking area, amidst corn fields and farms. The second, we walked from five in the morning until five in the evening, walking fifteen miles in the sun. We had plenty of water but still I suffered from from heat exhaustion to get into Versailles. Yesterday we walked just a few miles to the campground of the state park at the edge of town and we were able to rest, recover. "r ah and r ah ". There I struggled to write in detail about the people and experiences of the weekend journey, but felt the whole post was dry and disconnected. I guess the heat took a toll.
Being preoccupied with the poison ivy that has covered my feet, from the sock line down, due to the heavy sweating.
The weather is supposed to be somewhat cooler today and having the day to let the rash dry out some should help.
I feel I have to write more of the many encounters I have had with diabetics and their family members. So many. I am almost overwhelmed at the number.
All who take care of themselves walk or exercise daily. Those who do not, suffer.
I am going to be selfish today.
I am going to show myself some love and go for a walk.

The right time.

Saturday I took my time to begin the twenty two mile distance from Madison to Versailles. I had been told there was nothing between the two towns except farmland. I was in no hurry to find it.
I rolled the world to the highway, had walked a few paces when a woman stopped to take a picture and thank me for what I was doing. She proceeded to tell me of the close family members, including herself, who were or had died from diabetes. I lost count after seven.
I told her that I was walking to spread a message for us all to get active to help control, prevent or reverse the effects of the disease. She said she had knee problems that prevented her from walking . I countered with descriptions of my injuries and a few tales of those I have met on my travels who have overcome their complaints. They pushed past the pains of inactivity with beneficial results. Weight loss, better mobility, sugar levels and circulation. The woman agreed that it hinges on personal responsibility. She told me of her mother who had bumped into a counter in her kitchen, resulting in a sore that would not heal. Through neglect and denial she was hospitalized. She was stabilized, sent home where she soon passed.
What could I do but give her a hug.
I thought to myself, after she drove away, that my late start was so I could see that woman.
One step at a time, one person at a time.

Madison

It was worth all the days of sweating to get to Madison. Instead of walking past the old part of town I took the day to loop down and visit the town I had not seen since I attended the annual Regatta in the early nineteen eighties. The pedestrian path going down to the riverside was beautiful. Coming to Main Street at the west end of town. Seeing the old architecture from before the Civil War after a walk through thick woods took me back to another time. Age and experience gave me a perspective I didn't have at twenty. I reveled at the old cornices, thick imperfect window glass and iron rails of the old structures.
Unlike the large cities, everyone waves or takes time to talk. By the time I had walked to the far side of Main I felt like family and had grown to know a few families whom I met.
The day was overcast and pleasant to walk in. Not like the previous days which left me soaked down to my knees. Those miserable days and muggy nights were worth it, if only to have those hours to comfortably stroll the picturesque river town. I turned off Main, the sun began to break through. We has to get back up to the main road at the tip before the end of the day. Just when I was feeling tired and concerned the dog was getting distressed we had a visitor in a truck. With his help we got to the top of the hill quickly when the dog-lover insisted on riding us up. He said he wouldn't tell anyone, that there was no shame in taking help. Nice (the dog) happily rode "shotgun" in air-conditioned comfort while I held the world in the bed of the pickup for a few minutes. Because of the nice local Madison man we spent the afternoon under the one shade tree at Walmart with the van instead of burning out in the heat.
I am glad I didn't charge past and took time to appreciate Madison and its people.
I am on the road to Versailles today.

Looking back,

When I first ventured out in the road six years ago I had a goal and a schedule. I made may way to the destination, but not in the timeline I was forcing. I rushed past people and places, missing the chance to connect with many or taking moments to appreciate the beauty.
It has taken me thousands of miles to slow down, to calm my chatter. Realizing after many walks, it is not the place I am heading that is the prize. The sights and the sunsets, the conversations and the silences make the cake rise. All the ingredients mix to flavor the frosting.
Now, am no so eager to place the cherry on top.

One in a million

While having a rest under some shade I will tell a tale from yesterday.
We were walking along the easement of a well groomed lawn out amongst the fields of beens and corn of Indiana when two large bull mastiffs came barking and charging across the acres of yard from the distant house. I heard someone yelling and thought it was the owner calling the dogs back to the house. The two were oblivious to the owner's calls. Still at a full run as they came near, I whirled the world between us and them, which stopped them, but now I had two confused barking mastiffs and a man cursing as he was running across the three acre overgroomed lawn. Then I realized the owner was not yelling at the dogs, he was cursing me. The man had issues with us walking in front of his property. After a string of curses and threats of bodily harm for being on his property I pointed out that I was on the easement, technically not his yard. This only enraged the man more, he continued his threats. I suggested I could cross to the other side of the road so his dogs could follow and get hit by the Mack truck that was bearing down a few hundred feet away. While he continued his insults and threats I rolled quickly to the far side of the highway and called for his females to follow leaving him the choice to get his dogs back to the house or continue onto the roadway to follow thru with his plan to add character to my scull. Luckily for the dogs he chose to call out a few more aspersions to my character and took his dogs back to the house.
This morning a young woman came to me with her two young children smiling and said that yesterday I made her day "a living hell". She works for the county police dispatch and had fielded calls all day about our being on the road. She told me the officers on duty were having a great time joking about the world man all day. I asked if she got a call from one particular man who was highly irate, and the approximate address of the caller. She said she remembered him. The comments she remembered were the same he had said to me (without the curses). When I asked if he had mentioned his bull mastiffs running at me, he did not.
The man was one in a million.

Late start, quick update

We had left from the old junkyard late in the morning. I thought we both were sore but Nice (the dog) began bouncing and pulling in the leash. His enthusiasm lasted for a quarter of a mile before he settled down to walking. The heat and humidity had me sweating so much my clothes were soaked quickly. Just before we made it the four or five miles to New Washington a woman with her grand-daughter stopped for a picture and conversation. She offered to take Nice the last half of a mile into town. I let her take him, and my backpack while I traversed the last hill to the Four Quarters Store on the corner of Main Street. I was given a ride to fetch the van and soon met the owner of the store who was happy to show me where I could park the van to take advantage of the shade that the one tree provided. I spent the rest of the hot and muggy day resting and talking to the townspeople who all patronize the small farm town's only store (aside from the Dollar Store) and place to congregate . I sweat most of the night. It finally cooled down enough about two in the morning to sleep without laying in a pool of sweat.
Determined to get to the next town I left at an early hour. Again hot and humid, my clothes soaked , I rolled through tall grass when the traffic was heavy. When the grass was too tall I rested as the trucks and cars passed. Three miles outside of Hanover I stopped and waited for the rush hour traffic for a out an hour. We were not wanting for water or conversation. Many stopped or came out with water and treats for the dog.
I want to write more, however, the sun has come out , the clouds have cleared and the day is going to be hot again. I have rested from our longest. walk since February.13 miles. I think I worked harder yesterday than any farmer in the county. at least I sweat more.
Forgive my poor writing.
Remember to walk each day, for you health.

A shorter distance.

The first day out of Louisville I left late in the day from Clarksville. It was overcast and deceptively cool. We had walked a few blocks from the van when the clouds broke clear and the true heat of the summer day shone through. We were soon walking from one shaded spot to another.
The women in the first car to stop gave me their phone number to call at the end of the day for a ride back to get the van. It was good to have that daily detail handled .
We walked under the expressway overpass into Jeffersonville and followed the main road out of town. It took all afternoon to pass the miles of business and restaurants. When I got to the last parking lot of a mall where I thought I could park I called the women. They didn't answer. I left a message and began walking on. My GPS showed a gas station two and a half miles away, in Utica.
The road opened to grass on the sides. Calling my contact, again with no answer, I settled into rolling over the tall dry grass.
I had rolled over the tall weeds a few hundred yards when some folks across the road invited me over for a drink of water. Within a few minutes they had offered a shaded place to park for the night and shuttled me back to Jeffersonville. When I returned I was fed and had a shower. Good people and great conversation.
I was glad the women had not answered. Worrying about a ride never helps and even if they didn't give a ride, having the offer set my mind at ease.
In the morning we started out fresh. The grass was wet and pliable from morning dew.
I'd rather push a wet and heavy ball through tall wet than stiff crackling straw.
After passing through Utica we spent most of the day on the parallel old road that was now the lane in front of the old gunpowder plant. The complex is now miles of industrial park. The four lane has been built in the decades since I last travelled up this way. The only traffic on the access lane were cyclists out for a Sunday ride. I had many pleasant visits during the day. One of the cyclist later met me while driving and at the end of the day gave me a ride to where I began.
I spent the night in a truck parking area on the corner of Charlestown next to the gas station there.
Out of Charlestown the road was narrow along a long stretch. I had to roll in the ditches along steep turns and a few hills. To add to the challenge , when the highway dept. cut back brush and small trees last they left the debris in the ditch. Thereon I drew first blood. I kept a slow steady pace. We drank a lot of water as the temperature rose
At the crest of the last difficult hill a woman was going out for her mail. She told me she walked yearly for the diabetes cause with JDRF. A close friend's child was diabetic. She offered me a sandwich and tea. We shared stories, good and bad, of friends and relatives with the disease. I learned a few things about about the area, while I sat on a log in the shade. The retired teacher had lived there four decades. I so enjoy such coincidental meetings.
The road eventually opened to farmland. The heat of the day pushed us from shade to shade.
I had been told of a store that was midway to New Washington. The store was much farther than I was told.
Just as our energy was waning a man who I had met who said he would pick me up at the store after he and his girlfriend went house-hunting pulled into a drive ahead. The place he pulled in was a storage lot with a four bay outbuilding and a closed auto repair building. While we we talking the owner drove in. He let me stop there. I rolled the world in the open carport and in a few minutes was back with the van. I am always amazed a grateful how these thongs work out.
The.rest of the hot day was much more tolerable under the shade of the carport between an old Lincoln and a Jaguar covered in dust.
We are less than five miles away from town. We both could use a shorter walk today. It is drizzling occasionally this morning. The clouded skies are good, but the rain is hard on my little companion who has metal plates on his legs. I know they must hurt. My leg muscles are sore also from my recent injuries.
All in all, we are doing pretty good for two old dogs.

Glad to be

I have met so many interesting people in the few days since I left. Two of the most memorable where women who had made good changes for their health. One had just been notified by her doctor she no longer needed to take medications for her diabetic condition because she had changed her diet and walked to work everyday instead of driving. A simple things that over time showed results.
A woman was talking with me about her mother who was suffering because she did not take care with her diabetes. Then she told me she knew it could be helped. She knew from personal experience. She had once weighed four hundred pounds and now was well under half that weight. She said it took a lot of walking and healthy diet but it could be done.
I am excited to be back on the path.
Like a child in his first week back from summer-break who is glad to be back at school.

Circles, bridges, connections and directions.

I began walking a week ago to my last chiropractor visit. I was staying at my good friends home on the outskirts of Louisville. It took two days to get into town. To the neighborhood where I first began rolling the world, seventeen years ago. with my then seven year old son.
The third day I walked by the cemetery to my mother's memorial. Then I walked around the park in which we played. Where I, thru peer pressure, got the idea to walk for diabetes awareness.
The next day I rested. I am rehabbing my pinched nerve, but wanted to get a feel of how well I could carry the weight of the backpack and shoulder bag.
On Thursday I worked.
Yesterday I walked the rest of the way to the chiropractor's office.
A day early.
I wanted a picture of us together by the world.
Without his expertise I could not be back on the road today.
This morning, Saturday, I had my last visit before I left. My back feels better than it has in years. Aside from the nerve situation, that only time will heal, I feel I am getting better.
We are officially back on the road.
Friday after I stopped at Dr. Fred's we rolled through downtown and onto the bridge over The Ohio River into Indiana.
A friend of mine has a home just over the bridge where we stowed the world away.
I have walked from Fern Creek to the Highlands, around Cherokee Park, up the steepest cobblestone street left in the city to Doc's, then thru old Butchertown and up Louisville's Main St. to the Clark Memorial Bridge.
I made it half of the way across in the "shared bike lane" that was clearly marked when a Louisville policeman had me get off the roadway. I was not riding a bicycle. I then balanced the world atop the outside rail of the bridge and rolled it to the Indiana side.
Bikes, world balls.
Potatoes, potatoes.
No harm, no foul. He was doing his job and the world is safely away.
Two weeks ago the construction for another bridge over the river began and many routes have been closed; adding extra burden on the bridge.
I was surprised I got as far as I did. Four years ago we rolled over the same bridge in the morning of the Kentucky Derby.There was no Northbound traffic and only a few cars going south.
I was there for lunch hour, Friday.
Moving on...
I wrote a few partial post during this week of reflection. I will now post these all at once, incomplete as they may be..
Such as the detail ---where am I going?
It's a surprise!

Quite at Home

I know I've been quiet when I have been back home in Louisville. We returned at the beginning of July. We have been healing at a pre-Civil War era home in the old outskirts of the county; an area called Fern Creek.
My dear friends have let me stay with them. They love Nice (the dog) and he loves them. After I returned from Florida my injuries compounded and I could hardly walk.
After many visits to the chiropractor Dr. Fred has adjusted my spine and rehabbed the pinched nerve.
When he fooled all the muscles in both legs to loosen, they ached bruise-like for days. Now, by walking, I am building back strength. The nerve is still regaining circulation, the muscles have atrophied after being so tense for months.
Most of the sensation has returned to my leg and foot. Doc says it will be several months, nerves heal slowly.
In a way it is good that I have to rehabilitate myself. I won't push Nice (the dog) too fast. He is still recovering his strength and endurance after his double knee surgery in March.
Dr. Fred wanted to see me one more time this Saturday before we left for our next adventure.
This walk is to my roots, so why not begin where I am quite at home?
Since I am staying so far out of town I have begun by walking to The Highlands Neighborhood and the area where I first ventured from my yard with the world back in the last century.
The first day we walked