Whats In A Name
Dateline: 05/13/24
Day 305 / Miles -to-date: 2083 / 107 miles to match length of the Appalachian Trail
I completed walking the I-75 stretch from Cook to Madison Counties and hope never to do it again, (unless forced by a flat tire). My friend, Ty-2 D-Rone, tried unsuccessfully to argue that in order to make the claim of having walked “all roads”, I would now have to walk both the north and southbound lanes of the Interstate. I remarked that his words had a distinct bovine fragrance; I would NOT be doing that.
As mentioned, my target mileage is to match that of the A.T.. I’m not sure if the Mystic Portal, (which is the ellipsis between Ashley and Patterson Streets from where they diverge, to where they converge), contains 107 miles of walkin’, so I may just have to pad that with a few more steps in the rural hinterland. I hear Boring Pond is intriguing this time of year. I may just have to go see for myself.
While reviewing my WAL picture map, it struck me there are indeed a few colorful street names within the limits of our Vale of Beauty. A few notable ones might include: Dinky Run, Long Rd., and Brevity & Short Streets / Haunted House Rd. and Werewolf Run / Jumpin’ Gulley and Grasshopper Jump / Santa Clause Ln. and Christmas Tree Dr. / Leonard & Skynard Roads / Lois Ln. and Clark Cir. / Foggy Bottom and Soaring Heights / Hog Alley, Stock Pen Rd., and Cattle Crossing / Clay, Sand Hill, & Mud Swamp Roads. / Madison Ave., Dow St., and Commerce & Enterprise Drives, / Candi Rd. and LolliPop Cir. / Burma and Tobacco Roads. / Candleglow Trace and LampLighter Rd. / LaBrea Cir. and Tara St. (ironically where a family named Pitts live) / Fairway and Golf Drives / Gitmo Circle and Prison Farm Rd. / Jimmy Carter Drive and Barak Obama Blvd. (which intersects with Hero St.) / Tiger Pond Rd and Predator Ln. / Valentine & LoveJoy Roads. / Racetrack and ThunderBowl Roads. / Burnt Church Rd. and Burnt Pine Dr. / Whitewater Rd. and Stillwater Dr. / Franklinville & Troupville Rds. / Calico Dr. and Cat Creek Rd. / Divine St. and Desirable Dr. / Tree Cir. and Cambium Ct. / Calloway and Garden Drives. / Robin Hood Rd. and Sherwood St. / and a few honorable mentions; Memory Ln., Howdy St., Chug-a-Lug Rd., and Snake Nation Rd.. …to name a few. There are, of course, many more that are unique to our town & county, (like Ousley, Kinderlou, Nankin, Knights Academy, Valloton, JoRee, LobLolly, Tallokas, Spain Ferry, Ashley, Patterson, Bemis, Shilo, etc. etc.) and which evoke that “no place like home” kinship to this land we love.
Lets Go For A Walk
Quote of the week: Bill Bryson – A Walk in the Woods
“I know a woman who gets in her car to go a quarter of a mile to a college gymnasium to walk on a treadmill, then complains passionately about the difficulty in finding a parking space. When I asked her why she didn’t walk to the gym and do five minutes less on the treadmill, she looked at me as if I were being willfully provocative. ‘Because I have a program for the treadmill’, she explained. ‘It records my distance and speed, and I can adjust it for degree of difficulty’. It hadn’t occurred to me how thoughtlessly deficient nature is in this regard.”
Here here; Never walk on a treadmill unless you’re in outer space, where a walk out doors can be more difficult.
JC