Beverly Hills, CA: 9021-Whoa

Miles since last blog: 16.7
Miles Total: 3801.1
Miles left: 7.8

Route

Saturday's Route

From the Lobby of my Buddy's Hotel the cool ocean air blew in and filled the room with the air of the sea.

"It's all done." I thought to myself knowing it technically wasn't, but feeling that a distance of less than 8 miles was negligible.

"Nine months," I say all day to people wanting to know how long it took me to walk the US. They don't know my name, they call me 'Superman' because of my shirt.

"That's like having a baby," a lot of them say.

"Yeah, through your feet." I always joke back. The symbolism of time hasn't been lost on me though. I've thought about it many times. This walk has taken on a life of it's own, for me it is a person, and though some new life will be born to the Pacific tomorrow, an old one will end. The idea that this will live on only in my poor memory is a little sad to me, there are many parts I have already forgotten and many more that surely will follow.

Tomorrow will be happy and sad, I've glimpsed a little of it already. I'll probably blubber at some point but not too much. My image of Saturday afternoon is getting clearer and clearer but I still have nothing for Sunday or any of the following days. I suppose I'll just float for a while. There's an idea, maybe I'll get supplies and tubes and head north to just drift down a cool summer river for a few weeks.

My glimpse of Saturday has been in the form of old friends. D, an old friend from high school is a hair stylist in Beverly Hills and my route took me right past her salon, which is the reason I now have a fabulous new LA doo. I should have known I couldn't get through LA without a makeover, in Beverly Hills they even make sure their homeless wanderers are stylish. And Buddy, I've mentioned him before. There's something about starving in the desert and almost dying that forms a strong bond between people. He was my 'buddy,' of the buddy system buddies, during survival school which ended a scant 10 days before I started this whole trek. Tonight was the first time we had ever seen each other indoors.

It's from Buddy's hotel room that I am writing this morning, I woke up at 4 am and couldn't sleep. The night had been filled with stories and laughs and beers, it felt like a peek at the future, but at 4 am my legs ached a little in a familiar and sad way. I wanted to do something, I walked downstairs and filled my canteen that Buddy had gotten me and I had carried all the way across the country. I walked past the signs for the gym and the pool and felt a general air of not knowing what to do with myself. It's the worry I've had for a while now, afterwards, after this climax, will life be blah? Will I be returning to the black and white Kansas after walking the colorful roads of my Oz?

I will be happy to end, but I don't think it will be long before I'm putting on my Ruby Running Shoes and hitting the road again, maybe not on foot, but who knows.





Here's a schedule for Saturday if anyone is interested in walking the a few of the final miles or showing for the potluck.

Start of Route (Verve Lounge) @ 11pm
Westwood & Olympic @ Noon
26th & Olympic @ 1pm
The Pier @ 2pm (Walk End)
Beach Park #1 by 4pm (Potluck)