So some of you guys may have noticed I haven’t moved in a few days. I decided to take the week off from the trail for a few reasons. My brother has gotten into hiking so I wanted to show him the ropes, make sure he has the skills to survive when he eventually makes his way to the trail.
I stopped by work and tried to touch base with everyone. They weren’t able to talk as much as they wanted because they are shorthanded. Sounds like someone in human resources screwed up. I told everyone to check out the blog so they could follow my progress.
Yesterday before departing again for the trail I stopped by my local REI. I had lightened my pack by ditching my high tech electronics but my bag was still weighing in about 50 lbs more than I had hoped. I spoke with one of the store's sales reps about my dilemma and any possible solutions. He suggested that I simply take out some of my extra food, that a 24 pack of dew was not necessary. I asked him how much he thought it might cost to rent a sherpa for a few months to carry my pack. He stared at me blankly as if he didn't understand the question. I realized at this moment that I was not dealing with an amateur salesman, but instead a hardened pro.
I had seen this angle played before when trying to procure Call of Duty before its official release date from a local GameStop. The salesmen pretends that he doesn't know what you are talking about and that it can't be done. That is of course until you slip a twenty in his hand. I decided to play along with him, passing along a twenty in a sly handshake much like a big time booster for a state college to the star player. He looked in his hand, handed me back the twenty and simply said, please leave the store sir. This guy was a real hardass so I upped the ante. I directly handed him a fifty and told him to make it happen. His response shocked me. He told me if I don't leave the store right away, that he would call the cops. Too rich for my blood I guess.
Did about 8.7 miles today. I'm a bit tired but not nearly as I was the week before.
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