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November 30: There’s an adage that says something on the order of: if it seems like almost everything in the world is lined up against you, then you can be certain that you are doing something right. Well, we’re obviously doing something very, very right. I’m afraid I can’t be specific at the moment because I really don’t have any specifics yet. But if anyone was planning to show up and help with loading the moving van Saturday, I’m afraid that will be postponed for a few days. I’ll keep you posted. For now I want to assure everyone of a few things. My walk will resume as soon as I possibly can, and that should be some time next week. You can be absolutely confident that I will continue all the way to Washington. Depending on how things that transpired today work themselves out, it may turn out to be much, much more difficult than I had expected, but it will be accomplished. For now, suffice it to say that Jonna and I are healthy and safe and will not allow anything to disrupt this mission - and your continued support and enthusiasm mean the world to us. Keep us in your thoughts and keep checking in, and I’ll let you know everything that’s going on as soon as I possibly can.

November 29: Pretty much everything is going slower than we had either expected or hoped. We thought the house would close this week. Now it looks like it’s going to be some time next week. We thought we’d have located a support vehicle for Jonna and the guys. Still looking. The one thing that is still on track is that we still plan to load a van and move our remaining stuff into storage Saturday morning. But I’m really concerned now that I might not be able to resume my walk for another few days beyond what I had hoped. I need to stop stressing about it and just do what I can. On the bright side, we had originally expected that getting all this done would take several breaks in my walk of several days and involve returning to Lakeside from ever increasing distances. At least we’ll be getting everything done in one swell foop so that next time we leave California behind us we won’t be returning for many, many months - at least. Your continuing encouragement - and patience - is priceless to me and I cannot wait to get back to my walk again. But this is one of those times when ya simply gotta do what ya gotta do.

On the support vehicle front, we discovered definitively tonight that the Winnebago-type vehicles scare the stuffing out of Jonna. There’s no way she’s going to be able to drive something where the passenger door is in another zip code. So we’ve narrowed the field down to what are called the class C type RVs - the ones where the front end looks more like a van or a truck with a growth on top of its head. We realize the rest of the vehicle isn’t any narrower than the Winnebago-type beasts, but it’s the psychology of it - if the part you’re driving looks more like a regular van, it feels more like a regular van, even if there’s an echo in back of you. We’re limited to looking at things for no more than about five grand, but there seem to be a reasonable number available within that price range that are still livable and driveable. We just have to find one...soon. Meanwhile, I am imparting my acquired wisdom from my chauffeur experience to Jonna, which consists of three basic rules that have kept me out of trouble and left me with a squeaky clean driving record. Those rules are:

(1) Never back up more than you absolutely have to.

(2) Pick a lane and stay in it.

(3) Never be more than the second fastest vehicle in sight. Addendum to rule 3: If any one of the vehicles has flashing lights on top of it, never be more than the third fastest vehicle in sight.

Simple, n’est ce pas?

We hope to be adding another page to the website soon - one that features the newspaper stories that have been written about my walk. As I continue and more papers report, we’ll continue to add their stories to the page. That’s about it for tonight. I have a long day of painting ahead of me tomorrow. One side of the house to go and I hope to have it done before the sun sets on November.

November 28: It rained. Those of you living outside of the San Diego area won’t be able to wrap your heads around just what a catastrophic failure of the natural order of things this is, but it rained. Once you’ve lived here for more than about two years, you become what I have christened "weather spoiled". You wake up every morning having made plans that assume the skies will be bright blue and the sun will be shining - and Mother Nature simply accommodates you. So on that very, very rare occasion when you are met with droplets of moisture descending from the heavens and dampening the landscape, it is not merely an inconvenience, it is a natural disaster. Understand that it doesn’t take much - yesterday’s weather would have been considered a moderate drizzle by a Midwesterner, but here in San Diego it was a downpour, a deluge, a calamity of Biblical proportions wherein one dwells upon the possibility of gathering the animals two by two and seeking out a largish watercraft.

I remember the very day I officially became a Southern Californian. We had been living here for about three years. We decided one day in August to take an extended weekend and do a huge circle tour of Arizona, starting from Yuma, heading east to Karchner Caverns, then north through the White Mountains, back westward to catch Meteor Crater, to Flagstaff, then down through the red rock area around Sedona, farther south to Quartzsite, then back to Yuma and west to home. Jonna’s mother, who lived with us until she passed away last fall, was still in the earlier stages of Alzheimer’s and was able to enjoy excursions like this, so we packed our camping and hiking gear into the van, got Jonna’s mom on board and headed for Arizona.

During our trip, as we headed north along the twisting, scenic roads on the eastern side of the state, we had made plans to stop for a while at a park near the top of the White Mountains to do a little hiking and sightseeing. But when we pulled into the parking area where we had intended to begin this chapter of our exploration, it was raining. And we looked around and discovered that while we had packed all of our camping and hiking stuff and enough provisions for several days on the road, we did not have so much as a single umbrella in the van. No rain ponchos. No tarps. You see, it was August, and having lived in San Diego for three years, it had never even occurred to us that it might rain. So we sat there quietly, watching the raindrops skittering down the windshield, and it suddenly dawned on me, "I have become an official Southern Californian." When one plans a multiple day outing such as ours and never even stops to consider the possibility that it might involve encountering rainfall, one has become a Southern Californian. While I was a chauffeur, I always carried a couple of umbrellas in my chauffeur’s bag, because the number of people in southern California who own umbrellas is roughly equivalent to the number of people in southern California who do not own cell phones.

So yesterday was a disaster. No house painting, of course. We still have stuff set up all around the house that we’re trying to sell. We pulled stuff that could get damaged back inside or put tarps over the larger items, but a good portion of this morning will be spent drying things off. Also this morning I’m going to have to zip out over the mountains to El Centro to rent the storage place for our remaining belongings. We found a place at a good price, but discovered yesterday that they only do business in person. No credit card over the phone arrangements. So I have to drive out to rent the storage locker. Having been in the ministry in the United Methodist Church, we have had to move often enough to become familiar with the fact that, at a given point during the process of any move, one seriously considers the alternative possibility of a gallon of gas and a match. We have reached that point. Pray with me that, before I am able to locate the gas can and a book of matches in this chaos, the temptation will pass.

November 25: We sold the Jeep! Hooray! Huzzah! I don’t know what took so long, but we finally had someone stop by who recognized a good thing when he saw it and we sold it yesterday. We also opened up the place yesterday for a moving sale and got rid of a surprising amount of furniture and stuff...not that there still isn’t a surprising amount to pack and move, but it did lighten the load quite a bit. We still have lots we’d like to sell and will have the place open through tomorrow, but I doubt we’ll sell much more. Then we still have to pack what’s left. And I still have about half a house to paint. And we have to find a vehicle for Jonna.

Traffic on the website has, not surprisingly, dropped during this forced hiatus and I’m anxious to pick up where I left off. The news indicates pretty much what I expected - none of our elected representatives seem capable of taking the forceful stand necessary to put the madness to rest. That’s why we can’t let up. We all know how it works - at this point in time those of us who recognize what a catastrophe the past five years have been are hearing things we’ve hoped to hear for a long time from those who have an eye on the presidency in 2008. But we already know that as the election draws nearer, candidates will move more toward the "center", hoping those who are demanding change will follow along. We can’t play that game this time. It is up to us to hold their feet to the fire. I’m trying, through my petition, to offer our politicians a way out of the mess they got us into that approaches the subject from a completely different angle than any they’ve tried so far - one of pure logic and reason. It is not a liberal or conservative argument - it is a point of view that simply removes the obfuscation of the pretense of war against nations with which we are not in fact at war. Is there anyone who can rationally argue that we are actually at war with the nation of Iraq or the nation of Afghanistan? If this argument cannot be rationally made, then it is time to sit down and figure out exactly what we are doing and exactly where we are going. At this point in time, the United States is truly the proverbial loose cannon, and if our leadership cannot understand that and bring it back under control, then our citizens must. I wish I could resume my walk tomorrow. I promise I won’t delay one minute more than is necessary. I must get to Washington. I hope you’ll be there with me, in person, by proxy, or however you can.

November 24: Other things I’m thankful for:

I am thankful for those who understand that a nation’s true strength is evidenced by the compassion it shows rather than the violence it can render.

I am thankful that patriotism is marked by vigilant insistence on truth, reason and accountability rather than blind obedience or quiet submission.

I am thankful that in a world marred by war and terrorism, where the vision of a world living in peace seems like a distant dream, there are still those who refuse to relinquish the dream.

I am thankful that Elijah experienced the presence of God not in the violent wind or the shattering earthquake or the consuming fire, but in the peaceful stillness of a whisper.

I am thankful for those who recognize that the preservation of the community is more important than the preservation of self.

I am thankful for those who still believe that one person can change the world.

I am thankful for you, my brothers and sisters.

November 23: Thanksgiving Day - Today, I am thankful for...

...My Feet!

(sometimes this can be an ugly business, folks...)

November 22: Painting and packing and packing and painting and packing...Kim had told me that my walk was like eating an elephant - you just do it one bite at a time. At the moment I feel like I’m trying to put away two elephants at the same time. Is there a soul in the world who approaches the task of packing and moving with any other emotion than outright dread? Jonna has done such an outstanding job while I’ve been on the road, but there’s still a mountain of stuff to do. Oh well, one bite at a time. Today I finished the painting on the front end of the house and got most of the office packed away. Thanks to our friends we haven’t had to worry about meals, anyway. Anne brought penni pasta and meatballs over last night and tonight Don Day came over and brought pizza with him. Don has been feeling much better the past few days and is grateful for your thoughts and prayers. Jonna and I are going to take a break for the rest of the evening and see if we can build up a little energy for tomorrow. Even with the generosity of our friends, Jonna will be making the traditional turkey dinner for tomorrow. Normally, we have at least a dozen people for Thanksgiving dinner, but this year it will be just the two of us - and the guys, of course. If any of you are nearby and would like to drop over, we’re having a sale at our house on Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. of a bunch of our furniture and stuff. Tables, chairs, bookcases, bedroom furniture and lots of other stuff like that. We’ll still be working away in the middle of it, but you’re welcome to come and see if there’s anything that strikes your fancy.

Haven’t had a chance to thank Tim for the socks yet - when I arrived home the other night they were perched on our doorstep. I have come to learn that socks are our friends. Although I hate to be taking any more time away from the walk than is absolutely necessary, we’ve set Saturday, December 2^nd as our load up the van and haul everything away date. We can’t realistically expect to get it all done before then. We’re both looking forward to getting this all behind us and getting on the road again - together this time. That’s it for tonight. Time to get some rest.

P.S. Also for local people - we have a huge, commercial-type chest freezer that is ugly as sin (the exterior is all rusted up) but works great.  We will be having it hauled away for recyling before we leave unless we can find someone who would like to have it.  It's yours for free if you can come and take it away, but you'll need some serious muscle and a full sized truck to do so.  This beast sits under the carport in back of our house and keeps everything just great even in the hottest Lakeside weather, and we really hate to just have it trashed if there's someone who can use it. 

November 21: I carved out a chunk of time today to post some pictures from the past week and a half here in the journal - check them out. Otherwise, it’s been a very frustrating day. With the growing realization that the trusty ol’ van just isn’t going to hold up to a cross-country trip anymore, Jonna and I have been looking for a small motorhome we could use as a support vehicle for the walk. We thought we had found the ideal one this afternoon. It was a 24 foot Dodge of 1984 vintage, but was very clean and well maintained - and at a very reasonable price. Trouble is, until we close on the house or sell the Jeep we don’t have the funds. We were going to go back this evening and put a $500 deposit on it to secure it for the next week or so until funds are available to us, but to make a long, sad story short, the couple who own it called us back a short time ago to tell us that, even though they really wanted to sell it to us, a man showed up and offered them $300 over their asking price - in cash. The sort of offer you can’t refuse. Sigh. So, back to the drawing board. And another plea: If you know of anyone who has a smaller motorhome they want to get rid of for somewhere under five grand, please let us know. What we need is something fully self-contained (toilet, shower, kitchen appliances, generator and so forth) yet no larger than 26 feet. That’s about as big as Jonna will be comfortable handling. We need something in decent mechanical condition to handle the trip. Any help would be much appreciated.

Just got finished with another futile exchange of emails today with a gentleman who somehow has convinced himself that what I’m trying to do with my petition is change the Constitution. Try as I might, I could not get him to understand that what I’m actually trying to do is preserve the Constitution by returning war powers and the balance of power between the branches of government to their normal parameters. As I said, it was futile. Oh well, I tried.

ERRATA: Try as I might to get everything together, some things fall between the cracks and I truly apologize.  Someone had asked about acquiring the "Five Little Peppers" book from the Walking Sale and I can't find who it was.   If it was you, would you please email me?  Also, one of you let me know that Jackie Wagner's Protest Is Patriotism site - referenced on our Support page - is currently down, which means that the map of people offering accommodations and such along the way is not currently available.  I got in touch with Jackie today and she hopes to have her site back up soon, but in the meantime, if you don't hear back from me about an offer of a place to stay please don't think I'm ignoring you - just keep on me until you get a reply and we can set things up, OK?  Thanks!

November 21: Well, here I am back in Lakeside for a few days - but believe me, it’s going to be no vacation! I think I managed to get caught up on responding to emails last night before I crashed, and I’m up early to get a journal entry done before diving into the insanity of getting us moved out of the house. The thing that will keep me going is knowing that on the other end of this next week or so everything will be sorted out - Jonna and the guys will be able to join me on the road and there should be nothing else to hinder the progress of my walk. Actually, I’m very pleased with the progress so far - 215 miles in 15 days of walking! When we drive back over what I’ve already covered it’s really hard to take in the fact that I’ve walked that entire distance...but I have. In case you’re wondering, I really haven’t lost much weight so far - maybe a couple of pounds. My health is excellent. My feet are toughening up - although I’m still getting an occasional new blister. I’m pretty sore at the end of each day but tend to recover well overnight. And I am truly enjoying every aspect of the walk.

The good folks of Wellton firing up the barbie in my honor.

Or not.

Even going through a little town like Wellton yesterday a couple of people knew who I was - although one of them thought I was walking for cancer. I am hoping that by the time we get near Tucson the word about my walk will have truly begun to go ahead of us. When I get to places like the Imperial Valley or Yuma, it’s nice that I’m getting some local press coverage, but by the time the publicity gets to peoples’ ears and eyes I’m already through the area and on down the road. I think I have a solid message that approaches the subject of the wars and the current skewed state of our government from a perspective that is hard to dismiss no matter what side of the fence a person is on, and thus has a real potential to effect change - IF people have a chance to hear about it and think about it. When I think about it, I realize that it really doesn’t get any more grassroots than this. There are still people who seem to have the impression that we have some sort of organization behind us...but it’s just me and my very brave and loving wife - and we’re both so swamped with getting the sale of the house and the moving out done right now that there’s not many hours left in a day for anything else. That’s why we’re asking that if you believe in what we’re doing, please do whatever you can to get WTETW noticed.

I guess I’m a bit disappointed after hearing from very enthusiastic people from both the LA Times and CNN the other week that neither has since called back. But I know those kind of contacts will come at some point. Some people suggest to me that the American public does not have the attention span to follow a walk clear across the country and continue to build and keep focus for that length of time and distance. But as I’ve often said, I believe that people will live up to or down to your expectations of them, and I believe that people are so tired of being deceived, manipulated and used and are so fed up with a half century of watching our government bounce all over the globe trying desperately to get us into a war somewhere in order to keep the economy chugging along (at the trivial expense, of course, of the blood and limbs and lives of our sons and daughters) that they are ready to put this war-as-economic-policy insanity to an end once and for all. They are ready to take democracy into their own hands once again and remember who it is we believe ourselves to be. They are ready to regain the respect of the world and the cooperation of nations - realizing that these are not the birthright of an arrogant superpower but rather honors we once earned, have now thoroughly squandered, and must work diligently, honestly and humbly to regain for the sake of our grandchildren. They are ready to do whatever is necessary to reclaim the country they love. I believe this. I expect this. We will see if people are ready to live up to these expectations.

November 20: (Very early)  I need to address a couple of personal concerns this morning.   First, after today's walk I'll be taking about a week and a half off before continuing my journey.  I sincerely hope everyone understands that I'm not doing this because I want to, but because I must.  We have to be out of the house by the 30th, so I have to go back to help Jonna pack, move our remaining stuff into storage, and wrap up all of our loose ends so she can join me on the road.  Please bear with me.

Second, I've noticed a bothersome trend on the website.  While our traffic remains up, averaging in the neighborhood of 200+ unique visitors per day and 300+ visits per day, the number of new petition signers and contributors seems to have declined a bit.   This seems to indicate to me that I now have a regular and faithful audience - which is great - but the word is not getting out to new people as much as it had been, which is not great.

I'm swimming in uncharted waters here.  I've been a regular internet user for a long time and know how to navigate my way around pretty well.  But I've never been one who is always up on trends or who lives on the cutting edge.  I know what blogs are, but haven't spent any time familiarizing myself with them.  I'm aware of MySpace, but haven't messed with it.

What my walk needs more than anything else right now is PR - and I don't know how to generate it.  I was thrilled a bit over a week ago when I was contacted by reporters from both the LA Times and CNN, but while both of them were very enthusiastic, I've heard back from neither.  Notice like that would do wonders to help propel what I'm trying to do into the public eye, but until it comes, I need your help.

I want to ask each of my faithful readers to plumb the depths of their internet (and media) experience for ways to get WTETW noticed.  How does a site get noticed by, say, Daily KOS or MSNBC's Clicked blog - or whatever other blogs or sites out there drive traffic?  If you know, I'd deeply appreciate your doing what you can to get WTETW out there.  Do you have media contacts?  Radio, TV, press?  Do you have contacts in the political arena?  Representatives or senators who might like what I'm trying to do?  Any and all of this would be extremely helpful.

Yesterday I forgot to mention that I passed the two hundred mile mark on my journey.  I never thought I'd get to that point so quickly and, while having to take the next several days off will slow me down a bit, it should be clear by now that I will indeed make it to Washington...and I'll do it whether anyone else notices or not.   But I have to confess that I - and I expect many of you - would feel much better if by the time I get there many millions will be noticing us.  If there's anything at all you can do to help make that happen, you have my deepest gratitude.

November 19:   Today was one of the most, um, challenging days of my walk so far.  I had planned on taking a zig-zaggy course up north around the mountains to the east of Yuma - until I realized that it added a ridiculous number of miles to my journey, all to avoid about a three mile stretch of Interstate 8 that didn't appear to have any frontage road access.  Last night I decided to heck with that, I would take my chances following Interstate 8.

A number of people who saw the article in the Yuma Sun this morning stopped to say hi or honked and waved as they passed.  I stopped at a little laundromat at an RV camp where they actually had a couple of benches in the shade and a couple of people there recognized me.  One lady said, "Well, I hope you're able to do some good for our country."  I replied, "I'll certainly try, ma'am."

A bench in the shade is one of those real luxuries, I'm discovering.  I can usually find some shade under a tree or large bush somewhere to rest, but sitting on the ground and leaning against a tree trunk isn't anywhere near as relaxing as a real chair or a bench.  It's always a great pleasure to find myself approaching a place where I see a seat in the shade.

As I neared the end of the frontage road running along the north side of Interstate 8 today no less than three people stopped to give me advice on how to navigate the next section through the mountain pass.  Like I said, there's no frontage road, so it becomes a sort of commando maneuver getting through a stretch like this.  I figured the worst that could happen would be that I'd wind up with a ticket - which we can't afford - but I have had a lifelong knack of being able to talk myself out of tickets...by not trying to talk myself out of them.  It really irritates Jonna.  The few times I've been stopped, I just say yes sir and no sir very politely, admit I was doing something wrong and apologize.  I tend to collect warnings rather than tickets.

Anyway, I try to avoid such instances if at all possible.  One gentleman told me I'd have to find a place to get under the barbed wire (which wasn't very difficult) then walk through a culvert to the south side of the interstate where there would be more shoulder room.  I followed his instructions, found the culvert, slunk through to the other side, and when I popped out I was only about 500 feet east of the inspection station on my right - and on my left, no more than 200 feet away, an officer was sitting there with lights flashing, having pulled someone off the road.  Whoops!  I ducked back into cover, beginning to feel a bit like Dr. Richard Kimble for some reason.  Every once in a while I'd pop my head out to see whether the officer was done writing the ticket yet.  They do tend to take their time.

Finally, the Highway Patrol car vanished and I scooted aross the road and out of sight of the inspection station as quickly as I could.  The only thing I could do for the next three miles or so was walk along the shoulder, right out there in front of God and everybody, and simply hope that no more minions of the law would pass by until I made it clear of this chunk of freeway.  In a completely uncharacteristic bit of good luck, none did - and I made it to the off-ramp to Ligurta without being hauled off to the pokey or otherwise accosted by armed and uniformed officials of any kind.

Ligurta is an RV park with a ramshackle bar - which was closed - a couple of porta potties (which, thankfully, I didn't need to use) and a little pavilion to one side of the bar consisting of a concrete pad with open-work wooden beams providing partial shade and several picnic tables and chairs scattered around.  I chose a chair carefully as it was obvious that quite a few of them would literally disintegrate under even the weight of my hat, and waited for Ed to arrive.

The bustling metropolis of Ligurta, AZ

When Ed got there I packed my backpack into the car and we headed back to Yuma - and didn't realize until we got there that I had left my walking stick back in Ligurta.  That's the second time I've done that - it makes me crazy.  Tammy called, discovered it was still there, and drove back out to fetch it for me.  What a sweetheart!  I tried to tell them I'd just take a motel room for tonight, citing the old adage that fish and guests tend to stink after three days, but they wouldn't hear of it.  It is a wonderful feeling to realize that when this walk is over we are going to have a string of brand new friends of the highest, truest caliber clear across the country.

I'm not going to try to make great mileage tomorrow - I'm just happy to be through the mountains and on into the desert east of Yuma.  Jonna will be coming out to pick me up and take me home for an extended break tomorrow so we can get all our affairs in order - then we'll be on the road together at last.  We're both really looking forward to that.

November 18: I'm going to try to keep this short tonight.  I'm with Ed and Tammy in Yuma again this evening.  I was concerned about what kind of progress I was going to make today because my left leg was hurting badly enough that I taped it last night to see if that would help.  I left it taped today because it seemed to be helping, but I was very sore starting out and figured I would be pleased if I could even make 10 miles for the day.  As it turned out, when I got into the walk my feet and legs worked out their kinks and I was feeling fine, so I made more than twelve miles for the day.

Ed & Tammy

I was only a couple of miles into my walk when the reporter for the Yuma Sun, Jeffrey, and his photographer, Jacob, caught up to me.   They walked along with me while we talked and, as usual, once we were done and they left I thought of about a gazillion things I wanted to say and worried about how what I did say would come across.  This evening I discovered that the article is already online (http://sun.yumasun.com/artman/publish/articles/story_28103.php) and I think he did a great job with it.  I guess it will be in tomorrow's paper.

I had planned to do kind of a detour route around the next section of Interstate 8 as it goes through the mountains east of Yuma, but on Mapquest today I saw that it adds at least ten miles to my route - Yuck!  So I'm rethinking the route and will proceed along as much of the frontage road as there is tomorrow.  There's about a two mile section with no frontage road that I'll have to see if I can get through without getting sidetracked by law enforcement types - but it's worth trying if it will save me that much walking.

The main thing I wanted to include tonight is some good news - the sale of the house is moving right along and it looks like we'll be out of the place by Nov. 30.  This has necessitated another change in plans.  Jonna will still be coming out to pick me up on Monday evening as we had planned, but instead of staying back in Lakeside for three days, coming back out on the road again, and returning later to close on the house, I'll be going back and staying through until we can close at month's end.  This mean about a week and a half break from my walk, but it also means that once I return to the walk it will be with Jonna and the guys with me.  Hooray!  No more wondering about where I'm going to be sleeping the next day!  No more lugging a way-too-heavy backpack!   No more missing my lady like crazy!  And since we'll have the computer with us, I'll be able to update everything much more easily.

A quick note to all of our local supporters who have been so gracious to us - anybody up for helping to load a UHaul full of furniture near the end of November?  We could use some people-power if anyone's available.  If you'd like to help, drop me an email and I'll try to get a definite time frame to you as soon as I can.

November 17:   I had neglected to mention last night that Jonna picked me up after my walk, we went to dinner, then I took Jonna up to meet Sue and Bob - and also took Finn and Spoof to meet their miniature schnauzer, Bonnie.  It was no surpise that everyone hit it off famously, and it was a real treat to See Finn, Spoof and Bonnie chasing each other all around the yard.  The guys have been in quite a turmoil with everything going on in our lives, especially we me being gone for days at a time.  But after a little play time last night they seemed to shake much of it off and be able to relax.

Jonna drove me out to my starting point early because she had to get back to do some work for one of her home health care clients.  We let Finn and Spoof romp through the desert for a bit, then said goodbye for the next several days.  Jonna got in the van and slowly disappeared in front of a trail of dust that hung for a moment in the still morning air.

For some reason this leg wasn't as easy on me as yesterday's.  My left hamstring has been acting up and I took several short breaks when I felt it begin to twang on me.   I was pretty certain that I wouldn't make it all the way to Yuma - it was about 20 miles from my starting point and, while I've done one 20 mile day, it didn't feel like today was going to be another.

I was about halfway to Yuma when, to my great surprise, Duncan reappeared to join me for a while.  He would wind up being my only companion for the day, and brought me a very welcome cold drink and a sandwich.  I was slowing down considerably by the time Duncan had to leave and fortunately, Tammy and Ed from Yuma called to let me know they were looking for a place for me to stay for the evening.  It wound up being their place.  My feet finally refused to go another step about five miles west of Yuma, and Tammy came to fetch me.  A hot bath to ease my aching bones and a great cup of chili (or do they spell it with two ls in Yuma?) and I'm ready to crash for tonight.   Tomorrow I'll make it out of California and through Yuma.  I'm planning on a fairly leisurely day to try to allow my hamstring some time to get it together.  I should also be interviewing with the Yuma Sun tomorrow and I had heard from one of the local TV stations - channel 11 - earlier and will see if they get back in touch.

Since next week is Thanksgiving and there is so much still to do back at the house, I'm planning on taking three days off next week - Tuesday through Thursday - to go back and help my poor wife dig out from under all the chaos.  We had originally talked about a two day break, but there's more to do that we can accomplish in that time.  I will probably have to do the same thing at least once more before the house closes, when we're ready to move our remaining stuff into storage.  But after the house closes and Jonna is able to join up with me everything should become a lot easier on us than it is right now.  For tonight, it's time for some rest.

November 16: Today’s leg was to take me from Glamis down to the point where the railroad intersects Ogilby Road, about three miles north of Interstate 8 via a dirt road that parallels the tracks. Trouble is, I didn’t have a good idea of exactly how far this was and Jonna was going to pick me up after my walk, so I had to have some sort of idea of where to tell her to meet me. So I decided that the best thing to do was to drive to my starting point with Jonna this morning by going up the road I would be walking down, so we could determine the mileage.

We were running a tad late in the first place (Scott was going to meet us in Glamis and walk with me for a short distance), and when we got to the railroad crossing, we turned onto the road that parallels the tracks immediately to the west. It turned out to be a rough, washboardy, sandy 18.8 miles from Ogilby Road to Glamis. I knew I wasn’t going to be able to make it all the way back on that surface, but fortunately the cell phone coverage was good all the way so I told Jonna I’d keep in touch and update her on my progress.

Scott was there when we arrived and walked about a half mile with me before he had to turn back to get to a meeting he had scheduled. I continued on alone for the rest of the day. In all, I’d say I passed about a half dozen people on various off-road vehicles and about as many locomotive engineers as freight-laden trains rumbled by through the desert.

My feet behaved themselves very well today (I talk to them a lot), but I was concerned because I knew that whatever amount of the 18.8 mile distance I wasn’t able to cover was the distance Jonna was going to have to drive back over that tortuous road to fetch me...and again to get me back out of there. At about the nine mile point I had a brain drizzle (I don’t get brainstorms - a drizzle is about the best I can manage). I had my trusty, if antique, GPS on my belt and I knew that Ogilby Road was not too far to the east of me, across no more than a couple mile span of open desert. Unfortunately, my GPS doesn’t show Ogilby Road - told you it’s an antique - but I knew I should be able to find it without too much effort. So I crossed the railroad tracks and headed straight east to intercept Ogilby Road so Jonna could pick me up there at the end of my walk.

Cactus, CA. Believe it or not, this place shows up on Mapquest...

But this is all there is of it.   I'm not kidding!

I hadn’t gone more than a quarter mile east of the tracks when I encountered a wide, smooth dirt road paralleling the railroad tracks...on the east side. This was the road we were actually looking for when we went out this morning - the one we should have been on from the beginning. Having found it, I could pick up my pace and wound up covering 15.2 miles today. It was easy to relay the new information to Jonna and she found me at the end of the day with no problem...and no bouncing over the ridiculous remnants of a road we had traveled in then morning.

The guys romping with Jonna at the end of my day's walk.

Time to address another couple of questions I’ve been asked. Some people have asked why I don’t carry an IPod or an MP3 player or radio or something with me. First of all, I find great pleasure in the silence of the desert. Second, it gives me time to think about what I’m doing and how to respond to various questions I may be asked. And finally, I find the world to be full of brand new - at least to me - experiences every day and I don’t want to miss them. Today, I heard the rails on the track running alongside me, elevated about six feet above the surrounding terrain, begin to sing about a quarter mile before an oncoming train arrived. Then, after the train passed, they played a completely different tune - a humming combined with a sound sort of like the tinkling of loose change. I had never heard these sounds before. That’s why I don’t have any music with me - I find it as I go.

Another question I’ve been asked is why I’m going through such a completely desolate area as where I was today. To get where I’m going, of course. But the follow up goes - wouldn’t it be better to spend your time where you could be meeting and talking to people? What difference would it make if you just skipped a section like today’s and spent the time where it would be more productive? And my answer to that involves something called principles. I’m pretty sure most everyone who’s visiting here remembers what those are. I announced that I would walk from Lakeside to Washington, D.C. I didn’t say I’d walk the equivalent or that I’d walk most of the way. There will be times when, unavoidably, I’ll face sections where there won’t be another living soul within miles. If I skipped those sections, nobody would probably ever know...except me. And since I could not truthfully stand in front of people and tell them I’ve walked the entire distance unless I have actually done that, I will walk even those parts where I am the only witness to my own walk. Simple as that.

I was joined about a third of the way into my walk today by my FFTD. For those of you unfamiliar with the desert, that stands for my Fly For The Day. It is a seldom acknowledged but completely consistent phenomenon that people who have spent time in the desert know well: every person passing through the desert is escorted throughout their trip by a fly. Just one. The fly’s mission is not to watch over you or keep you safe or any such laudable task. It is rather to see if it can drive you completely bonkers before you manage to leave the desert. If somehow you manage to swat or otherwise eliminate your FFTD, you will be spared further harassment for that day - but a new fly will be assigned for the next day if you’re still in the desert. I have imagined a place somewhere on a remote edge of the desert where the flies all gather very early in the morning to receive their assignments. They are each given a tiny piece of paper with your photograph and a little scratch and sniff area so they can identify your scent. As I understand it, flies smell with their feet, so scratch and sniff is quite easy for them. My wife would insert a pointed adlib here about my own feet smelling which I would be unable to deny - it is an ancient McDannell curse, observable from birth, affecting both sexes, and a constant lament of the mothers of the clan. I could only retort that while my feet may smell, I do not smell with my feet, so there.

But I digress. Your FFTD will then search you out. Sometimes it may take it a while to find you, as you may be some distance from the assignment station. But it will find you. And when it does, it will merrily spend the rest of the day circling your head, buzzing in your ears, landing on your nose briefly or on the back of your collar - and generally doing whatever it can think of to drive you screaming into the chaparral.

But I have spent enough time in the desert now that I have found effective methods of dealing with my FFTD. Trying to swat the little sucker is more often than not nothing more than a waste of energy - they are quite agile, and if you are successful it will be a matter of sheer luck. But I have discovered that I am quite good at deceiving them. Sometimes I have been able to convince them that they are suffering from a case of mistaken identity - that I am not really me. Other times I have managed to convince them that there has been a clerical error - that my FFTD had already been here and I had successfully dispatched it to that great garbage dump in the sky. Today’s FFTD fell for the clerical error line. Apparently their bureaucracy doesn’t function any better than ours. It took me no more than ten minutes to convince it that it really needed to file a complaint at the assignment office tomorrow morning and it flew dejectedly away. I just thought I’d include this for the benefit of desert novices so they’re not taken by surprise by their first FFTD. And in case you’re wondering what any of that has to do with the purpose of my walk or my political thoughts or insights, I want to tell you before you bruise a synapse trying to figure it out. Absolutely nothing. Nothing at all.

A road sign in the middle of nowhere.  I thought Walker Way was serendipitous.

November 15: I’m writing this the evening of the 15^th but may not be able to get in online until tomorrow - hopefully no later than that. Jonna arrived this evening in El Centro and we’re holed up in the Motel 6 with Finn and Spoof for tonight and tomorrow night, so I hope to get out at some point to find a hot spot where I can get a wireless connection and post this, along with updates to the route.

I’ve had a couple of emails from people who are a bit unclear about the mechanics of my walk, so I wanted to take a moment to make sure everyone understands exactly how I’m doing this. I walk as far as I can or to a predetermined spot each day of my walk. When I get to the place I stop, I do not necessarily stay there - in fact I do not usually stay there. For about the first week, while I was still within practical range of our home, Jonna would come and pick me up at the end of my walk and we’d go home. Now that I am out of range of home, I will sometimes be staying with a gracious soul (such as Kim or Sue and Bob) who have opened up their homes for me in the evening. Sometimes I will stay at a motel if one is nearby, as I did a few nights ago. Sometimes, if I have been unable to make other arrangements, I will camp out where I stop. Sometimes, at least for about another week, Jonna will come out to join me and we’ll either take a motel room or camp out in the van. BUT - and this is the important part - when I begin the next day’s walk, I ALWAYS begin it from the exact point where I stopped the previous day. This means that during the time I’m not walking I may be far afield from my stopping point from the day (for instance, I attended a meeting of the Peace and Justice Committee of the El Centro United Methodist Church tonight), but I always return to the place where I left off the day before, so that when I finally reach Washington D.C. I will have indeed walked every inch of the way there from Lakeside. No cheating. No shortcuts. An important part of the concept of what I’m doing is to be able to meet with and talk with various groups along the way who may be interested in what I have to say. It would be counterproductive to my purposes to simply plop where I land at the end of one day and wait there to start up again the next day. If there are people who want to come fetch me at the end of a day to talk to a group, say, 50 miles away, I’m more than willing to do that - as long as they can promise to return me to where they found me so I can continue my walk with no gaps. I hope this clears things up for everyone.

Today was without a doubt my easiest walking day so far. Even though I covered over 15 miles I felt just a little sore at the end of it and much better than usual. I suppose my feet are beginning to toughen up now, but I also tried lacing my shoes a little looser than usual today and think that may have helped as well. It was another solo day with the exception of about the last mile, when Scott Akers joined me as I came into Glamis. He plans to come out again tomorrow morning to walk with me the first mile or two. It was some amazing countryside today - the last few miles through the Imperial Sand Dunes, which have been the setting for probably a zillion desert movies, including the planet Tatooine in Star Wars. I can’t wait to get a connection where I can post some photos of the past few days - some incredible landscapes.

Coming out of the Imperial Dunes toward Glamis

A dune shadow - guess who?

I am surprised - and to be truthful, thrilled - as I’m walking along and passing cars and trucks honk and people wave. They obviously know who I am and obviously are supportive of what I’m doing - it is a tremendous feeling and gives me constant encouragement. As Scott and I got to Glamis today we encountered our first gentleman who was antagonistic to what I’m doing. But after a few minutes of quiet explanation and thoughtful conversation I think I almost had a convert.

Tomorrow is going to be one of the more interesting legs of my trip. I’ll be following a "road" that follows the railroad tracks from the nearly nonexistent town of Glamis to the clearly nonexistent town of Ogilby. It’s a dirt road and I don’t think there will be anyone the entire length of it but me and a few trains. It’s simply the shortest distance from Glamis toward Interstate 8 and on into Yuma. I just need to make sure to take lots and lots of liquids and seek out a little shade, if possible, once in a while.

Since Jonna brought the computer with her this evening I’ve been able to read all your emails since I went into the Anza-Borrego on the 10^th. You’ve written straight from the heart and I want you to know that your words continue to empower me. I’ll reply to all of you as soon as I can, but for now circumstances still restrict my capabilities. Since Thanksgiving is next week and I still won’t be a ridiculous distance down the road, Jonna is talking about retrieving me for a two day break so we can celebrate the holiday together back home - the last holiday before our home is no longer ours. If I don’t get caught up before then, I figure I’ll take one of those days and devote it to correspondence.

I think once in a while about the possibility that, at some point in the not-too-distant future, I may have the opportunity to appear on a nationally televised show where I’ll have a real chance to talk about what I’m doing as opposed to a few second shot of me walking down some highway. If and when that happens, one of the things I want to do - I think - is to look directly into the camera and deliver a message to our congress people and our executive branch. I want to say something on the order of, "My name is Bill McDannell. I’m one of your bosses and I’m on my way to see you. I expect that many of your other bosses may be arriving along with me. And I just want to let you know that I am not happy."

November 13: I arrived in Brawley today and am spending the evening with Bob & Sue Haney in Imperial. They invited me to use their computer, so I'm taking the opportunity to do a little bit of journaling.

Jonna dumped me in the middle of the desert Saturday to continue my trek and I hadn't gone more than a mile before Duncan (No, not THAT Duncan), an old geocaching buddy, caught up with me. For those of you unfamiliar with geocaching, first - you're missing out on a fantastic hobby/obsession, and second - you probably won't understand much of the rest of this paragraph.
Duncan walked a while with me - we happened to be along the stretch of road adopted by the San Diego Geocachers and I'm not saying this just to be nice, but it was the cleanest stretch of 78 I encountered. Duncan planted a geocache in my honor and also made me an official travel bug. I don't know if I'm the first human travel bug or not, but he's going to log me in and out of caches I pass along the way with the owners' permission. We both took pictures (I won't be able to post pics for a while), talked and walked some more, and Duncan headed back to Point Loma.

Not too long after that Andrew and Heather and their two sons found me moseying along as usual. While Heather took the kids up to Borrego Springs for a while, Andrew walked along with me, sharing another beautiful day. I'm still not used to people seeking me out to walk with me - I feel both honored and a bit embarrassed that people will go to that kind of effort just to meet me and talk to me. Andrew and I covered a decent piece of ground before Heather and the boys got back. They gace me a generous contribution then headed home.

Andrew & Heather

I knew this stretch of the Anza-Borrego was going to be a bit, well, different this time of year. You see, this is a great vacation spot in November - especially if you're in to off-roading. And especially on weekends. And especially on holiday weekends. The net effect is that I might as well have been in freeway rush hour traffic, except that all the traffic was humongous motorhomes and trucks with trailers full of dirt bikes and quads and so forth. I was walking right through the middle of the Off Road Vehicle area of the Anza-Borrego and it was a bit nutso. The thing that got me, though, was the dust and dirt. Bikes and quads zipping by in the desert raising huge clouds behind them, the aforementioned motorhomes and such, plus a windy day in the first place combined to make the walking a bit less than enjoyable and a bit more than gritty.

I had received no offers of lodging for the night, so this was to be my first night under the stars. The only trouble was that I didn't want to wind up getting run over by a dirt bike in the middle of the night, so I sought out a group of motorhomes circled in a contemporary version of a wagon train
and asked if I could pitch my sleep bag on the lee side of one of their behemoths for the evening. Can't remember the man's name, but he was very friendly and I set up my site for the evening. Off road activity subsided with the hours and I spent a good deal of the night wacthing Orion cross the
sky. I'll miss the desert skies.

Being a windy day, the evening skies had been filled with lenticular clouds - sort of flying saucer-shaped clouds that tend to form in winds near mountains. I believe I got some fantastic shots but will have to wait until I get fuller computer access to publish them here.

Lenticular formations over the Anza-Borrego

I got up very early on the 12th and discovered I had stopped for the night only about two hundred feet short of the San Diego/Imperial County line. I stopped to have breakfast at the Blu-Inn, which turned out to be a wise move, because it was the last sign of civilization I would see for the next
twenty-odd miles. More dust and haze as the off-roaders were getting their last licks in for the weekend. The Blu-Inn kind of reminded me of the Cantina in Star Wars - all the sand bikers dressed in variations of Star Trooper uniforms and wearing helmets with dust filters jutting out at weird angles...it was a real trip.

I've been trying very hard to remain visible from the road at all times as I know there are sometimes people trying to find me, but this stretch of road has absolutely no shade. So I wound up at one point taking a break in a dry wash, taking advantage of the shade directly under the roadway. Another time I plodded a couple hundred feet off the road to rest under the only tree I
had seen for hours. I thanked the tree profusely. I felt bad later on when I was able to get in touch with Jonna and found out that Don and Marlene had travelled a total of over two hundred miles in a vain effort to find me and walk with me for a while. The only way they could have missed me was if they had passed by during the few minutes I was under the tree or in the dry wash. I'm so sorry, Don & Marlene. I'm sure we'll have another chance.

At the Border Patrol station where I ended the day's walk I had another one of those "So, where are you headed?" moments when they stare at me after I reply waiting to see if I'm joking. One of the agents said something I've heard more than once now - "I think it's a neat thing you're doing, but it
won't do any good, you know. Nobody's going to listen to you just because you walked across the country." I replied, as usual, "Maybe, maybe not. I guess we'll see." But what I really want to say is, "They damned well better listen to me - after all, I'm their boss, you know." We are their bosses,
you know, and I think we're all pretty tired of not being listened to. I think that this time we're going to be heard.

At the end of the day's walk I was still in the middle of nowhere - there is absolutely nothing around the Border Patrol station but sand - and feeling dirty and gritty and not wanting to spend another night under the stars like that if I could help it. So I decided to try hitch-hiking into Westmorland -
the next town. I hoped I could find a motel there and then get a ride back to the Border Patrol station the next morning to pick up where I left off. A fifty-seven year old, sorta grizzled looking guy trying to hitch a ride. Yeah, right.

Ten minutes later I was whizzing down the road in the company of a sweet young lady. Before you think I'm lying or she was psycho, it turned out to be Jennifer, who had written to me wanting to take some pictures and talk with me for a while for a paper she was doing for school. She had missed me on the planned route, but had decided to keep on looking and happened to find me shortly after I began trying to hitch a ride. There was a Super 8 Motel at the north end of Westmorland, and when Jennifer dropped me off (complete with bananas, trail mix, water, juice and a donation - what a sweetheart!) I discovered i had left my walking stick and water bottle belt clip back at the Border Patrol station. I asked Jennifer to stop on her way back and tell the agents I'd get them in the morning, and we said our goodbyes.

The Super 8 was a very, very welcome respite. Got something to eat, washed my socks and soaked in a hot tub for a while - and got some very, very welcome sleep.

In the morning I needed to find a way back up to the Border Patrol station to retrieve my walking stick and belt clip and begin from where I left off. Since I would be coming right back past the motel again, I asked if I could leave a major portion of my gear there until I returned. No problem. The
woman working at the Shell station across the street was a tremendous help. Most of the people coming through a six in the morning were Hispanic, headed out for work - and I hate to admit that my Spanish is pretty much limited to Hola, taco, and que pasa - so she wound up finding a ride for me with Geraldo and Felipe, brothers headed to L.A. in a semi to pick up a load. They thought it was a wonderful thing I was doing and refused when I offered to pay them for taking me to the station.

When I got there my walking stick was right inside the door, but my water bottle clip was nowhere to be seen - and I entered a period of deep mourning. This little clip is about the neatest, most useful little piece of gear I've ever encountered. It slide over your belt and a standard water bottle snaps into it at the neck, so you have a bottle of water right at hand at all times. I've tried for years to find more of the same with no luck, and have zealously guarded this one - and now it's gone. I managed to get a rare cell phone signal and updated Jonna on my progress...and also bemoaned the loss of my bottle clip. Within fifteen minutes she called me back and told me she had found them on the internet! I had tried many times in the past to no avail, but she found it right away - what a woman!

That brightened my day, along with a good night's rest, nice cool temperatures and no more clouds of dust and grit. I got in touch with Sue and Bob, who wanted to have breakfast with me tomorrow and walk with me a bit, and then got a call from Eric Galvan, a reporter for the Imperial Valley Press, who wanted to catch me for an interview. He caught up to me at the point where I made it back to the Shell station I had set out from early in the morning, and we sat and talked while I let my poor feet air out and changed my socks and shoes. When I set out again, his photographer, Temo,
found me at the south edge of Westmorland and took a bunch of pictures.

I was more than ready to call it quits after 21.8 miles today when Bob found me at the west edge of Brawley and carted me home. A bite to eat, a nice, hot bath, and I feel almost like I could do it all over again. But I think I'll wait until morning.

I haven't said much in all of this about peoples' reactions, but that's because they have been so completely and surprisingly consistent. With the sole exception of the one defeatist border agent, everyone has been so positive, so excited, so completely supportive of what I'm doing that I can
hardly believe it! I see a spark of hope in the eye of each and every person I talk to and I cannot get over how gracious people have been. I really am at a loss for words, except to throw a far less than adequate Thank You out there to everyone I've met over the past several days.

I'll be heading into the dunes area tomorrow - what Jonna calls the "real" desert - and undoubtedly will find myself out of communication for a while again, but don't give up on me - I'll be back on a computer and into the journal again as soon as I possibly can. Over a hundred miles as of today -
Outstanding!

November 12: I'll go into more detail when I get back to computer access again, but for now I'm on the road and my daughter Becky is posting this for me, so I don't want to work her to hard. My health is fine, my feet are beginning to toughen up a bit, but now I'm dealing with a heavy backpack and my shoulders are feeling it. I made 12.1 miles on Saturday and spent my first night under the stars. Watched Orion travel across the sky through the night. I made 14.1 miles today - my best yet - and may make it to Brawley tomorrow. Tonight (Sunday) I hold up in a Super 8 motel in Westmorland working out some of my kinks and tomorrow morning will return to where I left off at the junction of Routes 78 and 86 to begin another day. Thanks go out to Duncan, Andrew and Heather, and Jennifer, who came along at precisely the right instant today. Good Karma, I guess. I'll fill in the details as soon as possible.

November 10: (Late) Well, thanks to Bill Foote I now have some quality backpacking and sleeping gear - as opposed to the $2 (I’m not kidding) backpack I started out with that I got from the Goodwill thrift store a couple of years back. We’ve loaded me down like a pack mule and it’s going to be, um, interesting to see how I cope with the additional weight. Now that I won’t be returning home for many days I have to pack enough clothes and gear to see me through the long run and as much as we’ve tried to keep it light, it’s still a decent load.

Up until now I’ve been able to personally reply to every email and personally thank everyone for their donations. I hope everyone will understand that this is not going to be the case for a while. I will be out of cell phone range most of the way through until Yuma and will of course have no computer connections. Jonna went through a quick course with me tonight on updating the Journal and the Route, but please don’t be alarmed or upset if for the next little while you don’t hear from me or see much change here. People have been so supportive and so generous and I really feel bad about not being able to communicate quickly and directly, but that’s going to have to be part of this for a while. Just know that your support, your encouragement and your donations are all priceless to us. At the very least I’m going to try to get information to Jonna each evening about where I’ve stopped, how many miles I’ve traveled, and when I’ll begin the next day. Jonna is talking about coming out to drag me back home for a break somewhere around the 20^th, but we’ll see how that goes.

Some great good news today. First of all, Dwane Brown from KPBS, the local NPR radio station, called for another interview which will air on Monday. He is planning to continue these throughout my trip. Then, representatives of Peace Pilgrim contacted me to see if I would consider carrying her message along with me as I walk. I would be more than honored. Details will come later. Then, a reporter from the L.A. Times called and wanted to know about doing a story on my walk. He was very enthusiastic and promised he would be pitching it to his editors. Jonna was thrilled when she heard this - and she was even more thrilled when she heard the next one - a reporter from CNN also called and was also excited about doing a story! Wow! And all of that within about 3 hours this afternoon! We had hoped that at some point during my walk we might attract some significant media curiosity, but we both figured it wouldn’t be happening until I was five hundred to a thousand miles down the road. If it’s happening this quickly, we may have something on our hands here that will be much, much bigger than we ever dreamed it would be. Let’s hope so. I hope that our voice will be so loud and our numbers will be so many by the time I reach Washington that our leadership will have no choice but to listen - and to act.

Until I am able to get back here again or post directly, please keep Jonna in your thoughts and your prayers, keep on working for the changes we know must come, and I offer you my profound gratitude, and Peace.

P.S. Keep Don Day in your thoughts as well - he's been having some rough days.

November 10: When I was in my twenties I kept a fresh water aquarium that brought me great pleasure. I worked for a long time to establish a community aquarium, which held a wide variety of different species of fish that could get along together in one tank without thinking of each other as lunch.

I wanted desperately to be able to include a Beta in my aquarium. For those unfamiliar with Betas, they are also called Siamese Fighting Fish. They are gorgeous fish with long, elegant fins and coloration that ranges from bright reds and vermilions through royal blues and purples - certainly one of the most beautiful fish in existence. The trouble is, they live up to their name - Betas do not get along together, to say the least. If placed in the same tank, they will often fight until one of them is dead. But I thought I might have a chance if I could put just a single Beta in my community tank. Perhaps he could coexist with the variety of species around him.

So I bought a Beta, a truly majestic, stunningly beautiful fish with fins like velvet curtains flowing around his sleek body. And I placed him in my aquarium, watching him carefully. At first I had high hopes that my experiment might be successful, because the rest of the fish in the aquarium generally ignored him and went about their own business. But before very long a problem began to develop - not with the other fish, but with the Beta.

He would approach another fish in the aquarium, nose to nose. Then he would puff out his gills, unfurl his majestic fins, and make himself appear as large as possible in what was an unmistakable display of threat. I remember one swordtail in particular that he seemed to have a grudge against. When this happened, the swordtail would simply back away from this grandiose display and swim to the other side of the aquarium. The Beta would stop his display and begin looking around for another fish to intimidate. But while this was going on and the Beta was searching for another target, the swordtail would flash across the aquarium, zip up behind the Beta, and take a good chunk out of one of his fins. By the time the Beta turned around to see what had hit him, the swordtail was long gone - and wouldn’t bother him again until the Beta confronted him once again with another belligerent display - and the process would repeat itself.

Within a few short hours I had to rescue a bedraggled, tattered Beta from the tank and put him in a little bowl all his own for the sake of his very survival. While he may have been beautiful, the poor fish was dumber than a bag of wet mice, unable to realize that he was his own worst enemy.

I don’t know what brought that story to mind...

November 9: A final note for tonight before I get some much needed rest. I am more than a bit concerned that since the majority in both the House and the Senate shifted to Democratic control on Tuesday, many people will begin to relax, confident that things will rapidly and dramatically change, and that things like what I’m doing won’t seem quite as crucial anymore. I beg of you, Don’t! Harken back just a few short months to the Abramoff lobbying scandal. Recall the outraged voices from both sides of the aisle bellowing that lobbying reform must happen NOW. What happened? Exactly nothing. The moment the eye of the public - our eye - was distracted by the next bright, shiny scandal or crisis, the entire subject was quietly shelved and our civil servants went about business (or lack of it) as usual.

Fact is, our entire leadership at this point will take the sum total of public apathy, indifference or inattention and multiply it a hundredfold. No matter who is in charge. If we want changes - if we want to reassemble our Constitution and reclaim our civil rights - then we must hold their feet to the fire daily. As much as our leadership has failed us, we have failed them. Remember, it is We the People who run this country; the people we elect are only there to carry out our wishes. And if we do not make our wishes clear and do not continually demand performance we have, in the end, only ourselves to blame. We have been quiet for far too long, cowed by the Orwellian bullying that dissent is unpatriotic - even treasonous. We must now avoid at all costs fading into the background once again lulled by the delusion that our leaders will do the "right thing" without any further vigilance on our part. Please don’t let that happen. Keep on speaking out. Keep on working for the changes that must be made. And I’ll keep on walking.

November 9: I want to get one thing out of the way first: Just before I left for yesterday’s walk I received another of the few hate mails that have come my way. Since this one involves - as I see it - a direct threat, I wanted to publish the email here...and my response to it. Here’s the email:

Mike Fitzpatrick temp@san.rr.com You are Naive and you are Wrong. We're fortunate to live in a country where you can pursue your dreams and speak your mind. If it turns out that there is an attack on Americans or our allies and it came about in part because the terrorists were emboldened by people like you...I WILL HOLD YOU PERSONALLY ACCOUNTABLE!

...and here’s what I wrote back:

Mike,

Yes, we are indeed fortunate to live in a country where you can pursue your dreams and speak your mind. That's why I'm walking - I want to keep it that way. Have you read any of what I've had to say about why I'm walking? Today's [Nov. 8] entry would be a good start. As far as my being naive and wrong, your saying so doesn't, I'm afraid, make it so. If you want to mount a good argument for that position I'm willing to listen. If all you want to do is make declarations you might as well save your breath. And as for being attacked again - we will. Sooner or later. Neither party, no person and no measure we can take can prevent that. Reduce the chances a bit for a while, yes - but prevent it, no. Get used to it. It's called life. It involves risk. And the more our actions in the world piss the rest of the world off, the higher the risk. Finally, you certainly give me far more credit for having power to "embolden" (talk about a word right out of the talking points!) someone than I think I possess. If you're going to hold me accountable for the next attack against us, is it OK if I hold you accountable for the next thousand of our sons and daughters to die in Iraq?

Peace,

Bill

There you go, Mike. Maybe a little more exposure than you anticipated but hey, if you want to write nastygrams I figure you should at least have the backbone to own up to them.

********

Sorry I’ve been out of contact for a bit, but that’s going to happen once in a while now that my walk is taking me farther away from the house. Tonight I’ll see if I can catch up. Yesterday (Wed. Nov. 8) Jonna was deep into a nasty stomach flu when we got up in the morning, so we changed our plans just a bit. I drove myself up to my starting point just outside Julian and parked the Jeep, then began my walk. Kim Gordon, who lives on Banner Grade, had offered me a place to stay that evening and I figured when he caught up to me later in the day and I finished my walk, he could take me back to the start, we could retrieve the Jeep, then drive down to his place for the evening.

Kim caught up to me a couple of miles east of Julian and we walked down to his place together, enjoying a great conversation as we went. We stopped and had a bit of lunch when we got to his place - cheese quesadillas and Banner apples (small Fujis locally grown). After lunch I continued down Banner Grade to finish my walk for the day while Kim went to retrieve his truck from where he had met up with me.

Banner Grade is a picturesque, switchback-laden descent of nearly 4,000 feet from the alpine forests surrounding Julian to the stark, rocky Anza-Borrego desert. It is one of my all-time favorite roads and I had been looking forward to walking it. The previous day’s climb up into Julian was probably one of the most grueling stretches - terrain-wise - I’ll face during the entire trip. Wednesday’s walk was nowhere near as difficult, but no less hard on the feet. Going downhill, the pressure just works on different parts of the foot and I wound up with impressive blisters on the bottom edge of both heels. They don’t hurt nearly as bad - and won’t hinder me as much - as the one I developed on the sole of my left foot, but I’m still a long way from toughening up like I need to.

Banner Grade

I told Kim where I expected to end for the day and he caught up with me just before I got there - Scissors Crossing, where S2 meets route 78 at the western edge of the Anza-Borrego. We drove back up through Julian to fetch my Jeep, then Kim took me to the home of his friend, James Hubble, who is a world-renown artist/architect. What a fantastic place! James was there so I had the pleasure of meeting him and took lots of pictures. I’ve got to get Jonna up there because this is the kind of stuff she dreams of. Kim is a stone mason and has worked with James on a number of projects over the years.

         Kim and James Hubble                                                  One of the Hubble buildings

            The Hubble workshop                                                                    Roof detail

Don Day had been trying to catch me all day, but I had been in the land of no cell phone coverage. When we were approaching Julian to get my Jeep, suddenly cell phone coverage kicked in and I got Don’s messages. We wound up missing him by less than five minutes. I’m sure he enjoyed his slice of Julian apple pie anyway.

It was dark by the time we got back to Kim’s and while he was feeding Bear and Nettie, his two dogs, I suddenly developed an intense chill. I bedded down early under a huge down comforter, but it wasn’t until after 10:30 in the evening that I was able to get warm again.

Thursday morning Kim and I drove into the Anza-Borrego twelve miles past Scissors Crossing to a point about ten miles west of Ocotillo Wells. I parked the Jeep there and Kim drove me back to Scissors Crossing, where we said goodby for now. I was committed now - I had to walk twelve miles today if I wanted to get to my Jeep! Another fine day and an easy walk, not withstanding the less than perfect feet. About four miles into the walk I came across Jim and Christie, a young couple who were looking for fossils and minerals. They reminded me of myself a few years ago when I didn’t know my agate from my quartz. I gave them some tips on where to find neat stuff in the Anza-Borrego and they asked me where I was headed. I told them Washington D.C. Everyone thinks I’m kidding the first time I say it. Once they discovered I was serious - and why I was walking - they were very enthusiastic and we talked for a short time before parting.

I stopped at a rest area where the road splits off to head north toward Borrego Springs and I would continue east toward Ocotillo Wells. It was a little past the halfway point and it was time to change socks and shoes and cool off a bit. A gentleman by the name of Herb Stone passed by and asked the regulation question to which I gave the regulation answer - and we sat and talked for a while. Herb is a retired school teacher from Borrego Springs and is going to try to find someone who can put me up for the night after the next leg of my walk. Before I resumed my walk, Herb went back to his car and returned with a donation for my walk.

Herb Stone

Back to the road. At about the nine mile point a white pickup pulled up across the highway from me. The driver asked, "Are you Bill McDannell?" I replied, "Yes, sir, I am." He gave me a big smile, got out of his truck and came over to meet me. His name was Wes Fleming, and he had been driving around for some time trying to find me. I was farther down the road than he expected me to be. He asked if he could join me and I told him sure, so we walked along through the desert, talking all the while. Wes is trying to arrange his schedule so he will be able to meet up with me and walk with me on some future legs of my journey.

The Jeep’s odometer must be a bit off, because it wound up being 13 miles rather than 12. I hope Wes wasn’t too worn out. I drove him back to his truck, he also handed me a generous donation, and I headed back home.

The long Anza-Borrego Road

The people I have been meeting have been nothing short of fantastic, and their enthusiasm for what I’m doing is continually inspiring. Each day I am reassured that I am not only doing what I must do, but what must be done. I can’t do justice to each of these wonderful souls here in the journal, but I hope each of them knows how deeply they have touched my heart and that, together, we will accomplish much.

I am home tonight (the 9^th) and am taking a one-day break from my walk to get some things done around here before I head out again. I hope everyone will understand that for the foreseeable future my journal posting may be irregular, because I will be away from home and will be in areas where there will likely be no cell phone coverage. But I will do my absolute best to at least post on the Route page where I expect to be starting from the next day and how far I plan to walk. For tonight, I’ll get this posted, answer a few emails and get some rest.

November 8: (Very early) I have been saying there’s a change in the air - I think yesterday bore that out pretty well. I wanted to say something this morning regarding a topic I’ve touched on before, but I want to try to be clear.

People have asked what I’ll do if the changes I seek happen before I arrive in Washington. My answer has been that I’ll continue to walk. That’s because when I am asked this, it is usually by someone who has concluded that my walk is about ending the wars and getting our sons and daughters home. It’s easy to see how people draw this conclusion, especially with the title I’ve chosen for my effort.

But the ending of the wars and the return of our troops is an (inevitable) effect of what I seek to accomplish, and while it is certainly central to why I am doing this, the underlying motivation has a bit broader focus. You see, I don’t just want to end these wars, but I want to help to move our country into a position that will make it far less likely that we will ever do something this stupid, this arrogant, this irresponsible again. While ending these wars will be an incredible step in the right direction, it will do us little good in the long run unless we use this opportunity to examine ourselves in a mirror, unflinchingly discover who we have become, and remember who it is we believe ourselves to be and want ourselves to be in the world.

After September 11^th, we lashed out in a blind, vengeful rage. Perhaps that was understandable, and I think the world in general even understood for a while. But over five years later, we’re still stuck in that mindless rage and the world is losing or has lost its patience with us. And we still don’t seem to get it. Last night while watching the returns, I heard yet another politician - I don’t remember who or even what party (could have been either one) - declare (I paraphrase), "Islamofascism is the biggest threat the world faces today". It is not - by a long shot. It is not even the biggest threat our country faces - by a long shot. And that statement only serves to illustrate that the fundamental changes I hope to see are still far from our grasp.

Because what I hope to see is a country that is proactive rather than reactive. I hope to see a country where consideration for the consequences of our actions comes before we take those actions rather than afterward. I hope to see a country where feel-good phrases and nationalistic declarations of bravado are immediately viewed with a huge degree of skepticism rather than a frightened herd mentality. I hope to see a country that is finally able to swallow its overblown pride and take its rightful place as a nation among nations, rather than continue to act out its self-destructive fantasy that it is a nation above nations. I hope to see a nation that learns the clear lesson of the entire history of human existence that when you put yourself (or others put you) on a pedestal, the ultimate effect is that it makes you an easy target and the ultimate desire of those looking up at you is to knock you down. I hope to see a country that realizes that there is no longer any culture on earth that is a world away - but that they are all now quite literally our next door neighbors. I hope to see a country that understands that an apology or an admission of a mistake is not a sign of weakness, but rather an indication of maturity, wisdom and strength.

Lofty goals, to be sure. But the world in which we now live demands that we seek them if we wish to survive and thrive. You see, I have no doubt that our country will be attacked again. No matter who is in power, no matter how much of our rights and our freedoms we decide to sacrifice in the empty pursuit of security, no matter how much we may wish it would not be so, we will be attacked again. And when we are, if we react as insanely as we did this time, there won’t be much of anything left at the other end that will be recognizable as the United States of America, because we will have eaten ourselves alive. That’s why my principle goals in walking are broader than what most people assume, and to state specifically what those goals are:

(1) To restore the balance of power between our branches of government so that we will be bound to act in the fashion our Constitution and Bill of Rights intends.

(2) To closely examine what has happened over the past five years so that when the next disaster happens we are ready to deal with it responsibly and effectively.

(3) To be true to our vision of ourselves, even when our outrage tempts us to allow the actions of others to change our self-determination of who we are.

So here’s the thing: If you disagree with me, this is what you’re disagreeing with. You say you support the present state of things? That you are convinced that the very continuation of civilization hinges upon whether or not we "win" these "wars"? You have the right to believe that. What you do not have the right to do, in my opinion, is to demolish the very soul of this nation in order to achieve your ends. If you are going to fight a perpetual war against a phantom enemy, then you must find a way to do it that is permissible under the laws that form the framework of our society - otherwise, you wind up destroying the very thing you seek to preserve. Changing our laws, changing our Constitution, nullifying our rights in order to achieve your purposes are not acceptable courses of action. If you cannot find a way to accomplish your objectives while simultaneously keeping our representative democracy intact, then you cannot continue to pursue your goals and call yourself a patriot. What comes first in your mind? Your patriotism or your rage? Your allegiance to freedom or your desire for vengeance? If you want to preserve this country for your children, then you MUST demand that it behaves - at all times - in a manner consistent with its own principles. And since these are my stated underlying goals, if you agree with them, you have no argument with me. I’m sorry if this does not permit you to continue to act out your anger and your fear, but it’s time for us to grow up. We cannot continue to be America if we do not act like America.

November 7: We got up early and went to vote before Jonna hauled me out to today’s starting point. When I arrived, I was met by Laurel and Janet, who would be walking part of the way with me today, and Kathy and Cindy, who had stopped (they were bicycling) to talk with Laurel and Janet while they were waiting for me and found out about my walk. They decided to wait around to meet me and wish me well. This evening I got a wonderful email from Cindy, who has told all her friends about my walk.

Laurel and Janet and I began the walk up route 78 toward Julian and talked about all sorts of things. Laurel had brought some coffee cake for me. Besides the obvious, we talked about Alzheimer’s, which is a familiar topic for me. Jonna’s mother lived with us for the past eight years and we cared for her through progressively deteriorating Alzheimer’s until she died just a bit over a year ago. Janet mentioned that she and her husband had recently published a historical fiction novel, "Follow the Sun", which was a San Diego Book Awards winner last year, so when I got to Wynola Road, I stopped in the Books In Nooks store there and bought a (signed) copy. I’m sure both Jonna and I will love it. Jonna is a truly world-class reader, devouring books like most people down popcorn.

We were soon joined by their friend Mary, who brought a dayglo vest for me. I thanked her for it, but I’m using it more like a flag as I walk the sometimes very narrow shoulders of route 78. I’m sticking as much as possible to my white long-sleeved shirt, jeans and hat as a "uniform" so people who are looking for me will be able to find me. After about three miles or so, Laurel, Janet and Mary had to turn back, so we said our goodbyes and I continued on into Santa Ysabel by my lonesome.

Just before Santa Ysabel, Shirley, who had walked with me yesterday, caught up to me again with her son. They went on into Santa Ysabel to wait for me, then Shirley joined me for the arduous trek up into Julian.

Since I stopped a bit short of my goal yesterday to care for my foot, I doubted that I could make the entire walk to Julian I had originally planned. My foot was feeling almost back to normal today, but I didn’t want to push too hard, especially since the grade up to Julian is probably one of the hardest I will face in the entire trip. Shirley and I took several short breaks. The weather, as usual, was wonderful and there was a slight breeze to help keep us cool. I had told Jonna to plan to leave home at 1:30, figuring she would catch up to me to pick me up around 2:30. It was a pretty accurate estimate. She found us about a mile and a half short of Julian, and I decided that this was good enough, since it made my distance for the day about twelve miles and my foot still needs a bit more recuperation. Within minutes of Jonna’s arrival, Shirley’s husband also showed up, so we said goodbye and headed home.

I stopped on the way to pick up my new glasses - just in time! These have just about everything you can put in a pair of glasses - Transitions lenses, graduated bifocal, anti-glare coating, scratch resistant coating, bucket seats...well, maybe not bucket seats. I’ve been needing a new pair for quite some time, and I had ordered them before my insurance disappeared when I left my job.

Tonight will be almost my last night at home for some time to come. I say "almost" because I’m going to take Friday off from my walk to get a few things done around here before I get too far from home. But tomorrow night I’ve been offered accommodations near the bottom of Banner grade, and from that point on - with the exception of Friday - I’m going to be on my own for about the next month and a half or so until Jonna and the guys (Finn & Spoof) can join me. This will mean that the number of miles I cover each day and the places I stop along the way are going to be uncertain for a while. But I’m going to try to update - through Becky - my position as precisely as possible each day so people know where they can find me. I’ve also modified the Route page so people can keep track of my mileage each day and the total miles covered on my trip. I also plan to start carrying my GPS with me so I can give coordinates for those of you so equipped. That’s it for tonight. On through Julian and down into the Anza-Borrego desert tomorrow!

November 6: (Later) Every day I am overwhelmed by the thoughtfulness, sincerity and insight of the people I have been meeting. Our hearts have been filled to the brim so many times already that the entire journey has already been made more than worthwhile for both Jonna and myself. This morning our realtor, Ann (and I’m going to stop calling her that, because she has become such a precious and supportive friend that I do a disservice to her calling her "our realtor") and her husband, Rich drove me to Ramona to begin today’s leg, as Jonna was busy tending to one of her home health care people. While we were waiting for 9 a.m. to arrive, Dave Patterson from VFP showed up, then a dear lady named Jean, who drove up from Coronado to walk with me today, arrived. Ann joined us through Ramona, then had to leave with Rich. As we Jean and I were leaving Ramona, Shirley joined us - she had brought me some "Sport Bean" jelly beans (which were delicious!) and some protein bars.

We walked on toward Old Julian Highway and had a wonderful conversation. But my foot was already killing me so the going was pretty slow. Shirley soon departed, promising to catch up to me later in the day. Jean walked on with me for about the first five miles, but then had to turn back as she had no arrangements for transportation at the other end. Jean and I would have gone farther together, but by that time I was walking like a little old man - very slow pace.

When Jean left I found myself alone for the first time in my walk. I love to have people with me to talk to and share ideas, but I also enjoy the solo time...except I wasn’t sure how much longer my foot would hold out. I started marking progress by the little half-mile markers along the road and took a few breaks along the way. I didn’t know how the mile markers related to the distance I had traveled (I’m going to have to start remembering to bring my GPS with me!), but by the time I hit the 5.5 marker I was sorely tempted to call Jonna and call it quits for today. But I rested for a while and then decided to see if I could hit one more mile marker...then another.

Before I could, a white pickup pulled alongside me and the driver asked, "Are you the man walking across the country?" I replied, "Yes sir, I am." He introduced himself to me - his name was Earl. He had heard about my walk on KLSD, the local Air America station. He told me he’d offer me a lift, but that would probably be cheating. I agreed that it would, and we laughed - although with my feet feeling the way they did it was certainly tempting! He told me that if there was anything he could do to help to just let him know, then handed me a donation. I keep meeting people like Earl - it’s wonderful.

Shortly after that, Shirley’s husband drove by and introduced himself and let me know that Shirley would be back soon. By the time I hit the 6 mile marker Shirley arrived (her son drove her there) and we set off together for however much of my planned walk I could accomplish.

As Shirley and I walked and talked, suddenly something very strange happened - nearly all of the pain disappeared from my left foot and I could walk almost normally again. I didn’t say anything to Shirley, but I could walk at a near-normal pace and it didn’t feel like someone was driving nails into the bottom of my foot anymore. Before long, we came in sight of route 78, which I knew put me within about a mile and a half of my intended goal for the day. I had gone much farther than I thought I could.

As we approached route 78, a young woman named Cheryl walked up to meet us. She had driven up from Kensington to join me on my walk. The three of us continued the short distance to route 78, where I decided to end for the day - my foot was feeling much better, but I didn’t want to press my luck any more for the day. Cheryl wound up driving me back into Ramona where Jonna would come to pick me up. We talked along the way, and Cheryl wants to join me for more of the walk.

I wound up coming home feeling one hundred percent better than I did after yesterday’s walk, confident that my foot is on the mend, and having had the terrific experience of making several new friends. This is going to be one terrific journey!

November 6: Way too early in the morning.  Just a quick note to let everyone know that Bob Davis has posted a short video of the beginning of my walk at http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3412738688971026488   It's just me rambling a bit before I start, but I truly appreciate Bob capturing it and putting it online.  Also wanted to let everyone know that I'm going to try to tough it out, but I fear that if my foot doesn't improve today or the new shoes and socks don't help, it may slow me down considerably today or, worse yet, may cause me to have to take a break for a day much, much earlier than I anticipated.  I really don't want that to happen, and really hope everyone will understand if it does.  Don't worry, though - it will not stop me.  And other than the foot, I feel absolutely fine.

November 5:  More images from yesterday:

How can you go wrong with Ghandi walking with you?

Me and Don again

Leaving Lakeside - that's my daughter and granddaughter on the right

A short break at about mile 5

Another beautiful day with the companionship of some fantastic people on the way to Ramona. When we made it into town there was a small group waiting to welcome me, which surprised and moved me. Ina traveled all the way from Los Angeles to walk with me today. She is another dear soul who has experienced oppression first hand (she is from the Basque region of Spain) and is deeply concerned about the path down which our country is headed. Don followed along to offer support today in his motorhome and his daughter walked with us. As we entered Ramona, two young girls had parked and were waiting for us - they wanted to have their picture taken with me! I’m never quite prepared for that sort of response.

Today’s trek took quite a toll on my feet again, so immediately afterward Jonna and I headed to REI to pick up some more serviceable shoes and socks. I feel much better prepared now. There’s a huge blister on my left foot in the middle just in back of my toes. I know my feet will toughen up quickly, but I’m concerned that this is going to slow me down a bit over the next few days. I hope the new socks and shoes will help.

I also have to watch my nutrition. I have no trouble taking in enough liquids, but exercise works as an appetite suppressant for me and I need to eat something more often. I wound up light-headed this evening until Jonna forced some food into me. I’m truly blessed to have her watching over me.

I received a very saddening email from someone calling herself Army mom this evening, who is going to pray to God that my journey is difficult and completely unsuccessful. She has become convinced that the enemies we’ve made "hate our religion and our freedom". Not that I think it will do any good, but I did my best to respond to her. Of all the egregious things the OOOO has done, I think that possibly the most loathsome has been to portray what’s going on as a religious war. This may be the single greatest damage he has done - and the one that will take the longest time to heal.

November 4: The weather was stunning, but the people were incredible. As far as I know, nobody did a head count - but there were somewhere between eighty and a hundred people who showed up to see me off on my journey. There were smiles, there were tears, there were so many people who understand what terrible danger our country is in right now and want desperately to turn it around. Two television stations and two newspapers were represented - including Mike from the UT (who did the first article on my walk), who brought his wife and their child along. I met many friends I’ve encountered before and many brand new friends. Don Day was there and announced that he was officially firing his representative (Duncan Hunter) and appointing me to replace him. Don gave me his dogtags, which I will wear throughout the walk.

It was a morning I will never forget. About forty or fifty people began the walk with me shortly after nine. About a dozen made it all the way, including my daughter, Kari. Her daughter was crestfallen that she didn’t quite make the entire distance - she took a couple of miles off with Jonna past the middle of the walk but rejoined us to complete it. She walked seven miles. She’s ten years old. Believe me, we let her know how proud we are of her.

I suffered minimal damage. The forward part of the sole of my right foot is suffering tonight, but it should probably be fine by morning and the next leg from Poway Road into Ramona. Jonna and I had planned to take bunches of pictures today, but in the middle of all the activity neither of us had the opportunity to do it. I know there were many taking pictures, and if you were one, please let me know so that I can get some from you to post here in the journal. Here are a few sent to me by Timothy McIlhenney this evening - thanks Timothy!

A little talk to a wonderful group of people

Me and Don Day, my official publicist

The very first steps of the walk - out of Lindo Lake Park and on to Washington, D.C.

Tomorrow I’ll begin again at 9 a.m. from where I left off today - where Poway Road meets route 67 - and walk to downtown Ramona, and when I catch my breath I’ll talk more about the fantastic people I’m meeting along the way, like my old geocaching buddies, Splashman and Splashette. Spread the word - I’ll continue the walk. But for the balance of tonight, some rest.

Oops, almost forgot. I had a small inauguration speech I was planning to give today and did actually use a few parts of it. Here’s the whole of what I wanted to say:

I have been asked by more than one person now if I don’t think that what I am doing is more than just a little bit insane. I have seriously thought about this - I really have. And I would like to answer that question clearly this morning.

No, I do not think what I am doing is insane. Not even a little bit. Unusual, certainly. Radical, perhaps. Drastic, yes. But definitely not insane. In fact, I am certain that what I am doing is one of the most sane things I have ever done in my life.

Thirty-eight years ago I did something similar to this. Thirty-eight years ago I firmly believed that I was truly blessed to live in a country where I had freedom and opportunities available to me that were unparalleled in the history of the world. Thirty-eight years ago I felt that, in return for what I believed would be a lifetime of freedom established by uncommonly wise forebears, endorsed by public approval and continuously guarded by dedicated leadership, giving up four year’s worth of that uncommon freedom in service to my country was not too much to ask. For a time, as a member of the armed forces of my country, I did not have all the rights and freedoms an ordinary citizen had. For a time, I was not permitted to participate fully in the political process, I was not permitted full freedom of choice, or of movement, or of action. These were restrictions I was willing to accept for a time, if they meant that the rest of my life could be lived with the assurance that those freedoms would never be encroached upon again.

But now I realize that the freedoms I expected to be immutable need more diligent protection than I once believed, and the character of the country I cherish requires at times more attention than I expected. Four years were not enough. It is time for me to serve my country again. What I am doing is not the least bit insane. What I am doing, if you want to put a label on it, is patriotic.

I’ll tell you what is insane. The leadership of my country standing in the halls of Congress and debating whether torture - in any form and to any degree - is an acceptable practice is insane. Attempting to eradicate terrorism by continuing to pursue a course of action that demonstrably has the effect of encouraging, producing and even legitimizing more terrorists is insane. Attempting to establish democracies by force is insane. Refusing to attempt to communicate with those we fear may have a desire to harm us is insane. The idea that the Congress of my country would one day pass - and the president of my country would one day sign into law - legislation that immediately and completely nullifies nearly every right guaranteed to me as a citizen under the Constitution of the United States and the Bill of Rights is insane. Declaring war against an idea is insane. Executing a pre-emptive strike against a country - any country, for any reason - is insane. Not holding accountable a leadership that, on pretense, drove my country into a war that has so far claimed the lives of three thousand of our sons and daughters and half a million or more foreign lives and by its very definition has no set of circumstances that could be defined as a victory nor any parameters that could be established as an end is insane. The fact that there aren’t already tens of millions of my fellow citizens walking to Washington D.C. to demand that our leadership returns to the employment of rationality and reason in administering the affairs of our nation and restores the country we entrusted into their hands is insane.

At this very moment, the country I love so dearly, the country I had hoped to leave to my children and grandchildren as their birthright, no longer exists. But I will not let go of her easily. I will do whatever I can, whatever I must, to reclaim her. I will make whatever sacrifice is necessary. I have felt powerless, voiceless, disenfranchised for too long, and I know that many, many of my neighbors have felt the same way. They have come to believe that they don’t matter - that those who hold power have become too powerful, that the route to reclaiming what we cherish is too difficult, that one person - even one person who truly cares - cannot make a difference. And that is why I am walking. I am walking to show my friends and neighbors that one person can be heard. I am walking to demonstrate that it is still possible to speak truth to power. I am walking to illustrate that each and every one of us can indeed make a difference. I am walking because I believe that the greatest threat to the security and continuity of my country is no longer from without - it is now from within. I am walking to pry my country out of the hands of those who would quench her beacon of freedom and mutilate the image, esteem and promise she has represented for generations to the entire world. I am walking as a patriot.

As I am walking, don’t wave your flag in my face and mouth senseless slogans to me. Instead, remember what the country you love - if you love her - stood for, and look around you at what she has now become. Think about what is happening. Think about what our actions - and our inactions - are telling the rest of the world about us. Think about whether or not you want your children - and their children - to be blessed with the freedoms you always assumed would be theirs as a matter of course. They will not, unless you have the courage to do what you can, to do what you must, to make it so.

I am beginning my walk today, and as I do, I am serving notice to the public servants - the members of Congress, the president and the vice president - to whom I have granted by my vote the temporary authority to manage the affairs of my country. I am serving notice that I demand that the wounds inflicted upon my country by their inattention to their duties and their inability or unwillingness to execute the powers of their offices with honesty, vision, courage and transparency be healed and corrected. It only took a few months for them to be coerced, misled and duped into a course of action that is rapidly unraveling the very fabric of our nation. I am giving them much more than that length of time to figure out a way to undo the damage they have done. I want my country back, and despite their continuing actions that indicate to me a general inability to even recognize the severity of the problem, I am willing to give them several more months to restore her to me.

When I reach Washington D.C. I will have accomplished what I set out to do. But whether I realize the goals I am setting for the restoration of these United States is going to depend not on the willingness of our leadership to hear me, but rather on how many of you will join your voices with mine, how many of you will do what you can do - and what you know you must do - to reclaim our country. Whether or not we ever see our beloved country again will depend on whether or not we are willing to join our voices together to make a statement so loud and so determined that our leadership will no longer be capable of ignoring or dismissing us. Whether or not I realize the goals I have set will depend entirely on how many patriots we have left.

November 3: Early entry for today - the muffins are ready...

...Jonna's on her way to get the coffepots, I'm busy getting the front end of the house painted - and we're ready to hit the road.  See you at the park tomorrow morning - directions are below.

November 2: Some items of business to address first tonight:

I’ve mentioned it before but I’ll mention it once more - I am trying like anything to respond to every email I’ve received, but if you haven’t heard from me I sincerely apologize. First of all, it may well mean we didn’t get the email, because we’re still having the corrupted email problem, and second of all, with the volume of correspondence we’ve received there may sometimes be one I miss. Remember, this is just me and Jonna doing this. And once I start walking on Saturday, Jonna will be doing the bulk of the correspondence - and since she has an allergic reaction to the computer (she breaks out in anger) things may get backed up a bit.

Also, we have had a number of occasions now where someone has sent a donation through the Paypal button, the donation is recorded in our Paypal account, but for some reason Paypal has not sent us an email that the donation has been made. Again, I think I’ve caught them all so far, but if you send a donation and I don’t acknowledge it, don’t hesitate to write and ask if we received it. Your generosity is more than deeply appreciated and we want to let each and every person who makes a donation know that personally.

Some information about Saturday morning, which I’ll also try to post in the journal tomorrow. Lindo Lake Park is easy to find, but here’s some quick directions:

Coming from route 67: exit at Mapleview to the east. Turn right immediately onto Maine St. Go to the first stop light (Woodside) and turn left. The park will be directly in front of you and we’ll be meeting at the baseball field (we hope), which will be directly ahead of you. You’ll have to go through one stop sign at the corner where the post office is (one block), then jog right and left to the entrance to the park.

Coming from Interstate 8: Exit at the El Cajon 2^nd street exit and head north on 2^nd street. It eventually becomes Wintergarden, and a couple miles later, after you pass Albertson’s, it intersects with Woodside. Turn right on Woodside. Continue on Woodside through two more traffic lights and past the post office to the stop sign. Then follow the directions above.

OR

Exit at Los Coches Road and head north (away from WalMart...of course). Los Coches Road becomes Maine Street (don’t turn on Main St. - that takes you to El Cajon). When you get to Woodside, turn right and follow the directions above.

Some preliminary instructions for the day of the walk: We have absolutely no idea whether one hundred or one thousand people are going to show up, and we’re a bit nervous about that. After about a month’s worth of calls to CHP, various Sheriff’s departments and Caltrans, just this week we finally got in touch with a fine gentleman at the San Diego county roads department who could give us the straight scoop. He says that we have every right to walk along the roadway without having to obtain any sort of permits, permissions or other authorizations - AS LONG AS we do so without causing a hindrance to traffic. That means that if you want to walk with me, we must stay on the shoulder of the road. It’s alright to carry a sign if that’s your thing. If we wind up with a large crowd, I’m going to be asking for a few volunteers to act as monitors for about every 20-25 participants we have, just to make sure it goes smoothly. If you are planning to drive along as an escort for some people who are walking, you cannot pace the walk (that would be considered to be causing an obstruction to traffic) - you must leap-frog - drive a mile or half mile ahead and find a place to park until we catch up with you, then do it again. We expect to have at least two vehicles doing that just in case someone has a problem along the way. These vehicles will have extra water supplies (bring water if you’re going to walk!), protein bars, first aid supplies and so forth. In the park before the walk, Jonna and our daughter Kari will have coffee, tea, hot chocolate and muffins - hopefully enough for anyone who would like some. Remember that if you plan to walk, you need to make arrangements to get from wherever you stop walking to wherever you want to go from there.

That does it for business.

Today I met a fine gentleman by the name of Don Day. Don had called me the other day. He was terribly excited about my walk and wanted to meet us. So we drove over to his house this afternoon. Don was quite active in the San Diego political and community activism arena about twenty-five years ago, and he wants more than anything to be my publicist - a desire to which I readily agreed. Actually, I have to correct myself. More than anything, Don wants to walk with me. But he can’t. Don has had a stroke, prostate cancer that should have killed him a couple of years ago, several surgeries, and lung cancer that is killing him. He is essentially constantly attached to a supply of oxygen and extremely limited in his mobility. Last week, he came down with the flu, which he figured would be the final act. But Sunday, he saw the article about my walk in the paper and decided he wasn’t quite ready to die yet. He told me that he wants my petition and my walk to be the last thing he does. He told me I’m his hero.

As I write this I have to pause. I lack words. It’s hard enough for me to take in the fact that someone considers me to be their hero. I don’t feel like a hero. And to think that Don wants to spend the little time he has left working on promoting my petition and my walk - it’s just more than I can take in. Don will be there Saturday morning in his motorized wheelchair with his oxygen bottle. He even wants to go on part of the walk with us. I hope you’ll have the opportunity to meet him. He is, as I said, a fine gentleman.

November 1: We sort of collapsed today. It began when the guy who was supposed to wash the house for us arrived this morning. I had spent a chunk of the previous evening moving things away from the house so he could wash it, which was no easy task since everything has become pretty well discombobulated with all the swap meets we’d been doing and cleaning up and beginning to pack and so forth. I had left a few small items for first thing in the morning, but he arrived before I could actually get them moved. When he got here, he immediately got all pissy with me because there were still some things that hadn’t been moved. I had also put some large items under a tarp in the middle of the driveway, and this was unacceptable to him. After being as polite as possible while he went into a tirade about how he just couldn’t do the job with all the stuff in his way, I told him, "Let’s just forget it." He told me he’d come back tomorrow if I would get the rest of the stuff moved, but I told him no, we’ll just forget the whole thing.

Fortunately, our realtor, Anne, happened to come by while this was going on. After the guy left, she just looked at me in amazement and told me that it was certainly the last time she’d recommend him to anyone.

But this meant we were down to less than three days before the walk begins and I still had a house to wash and paint. And suddenly I decided that I had been pushing myself too hard. The house doesn’t actually have to be painted until we close at the end of November, and even though I’ll be gone we’ll figure out some way to get it done. Pushing myself to have it done before the walk begins was just stressing me (and Jonna) out and it was time to let go of some of this for now. So we pretty much took the day off today. And it felt good.

The man from Channel 10 came out for an interview at 10 a.m. and wound up staying for two hours. I’m sure he has some particular angle in mind for the report he’ll be doing. It will be interesting to see what it turns out to be. He at first told me it would air this afternoon, but called me later to tell me it won’t air until tomorrow.

Yesterday our district House representative, Duncan Hunter, who is chair of the House Armed Services Committee, announced he’ll be running for president in 2008. That was good for a couple of laughs. Mr. Hunter happens to serve one of the most conservative districts in the entire nation and runs virtually unopposed every election. I guess this has led him to start believing his own press. I can think of no other reason he’d try for the presidency. This morning I read a recent interview with him, and wanted to offer you a portion of what he had to say:

He said, "I think we all generally agree that our campaign in Iraq consists of a three-step process: To establish a free government, which we’ve done, to establish a military that will protect that government, and to leave Iraq. It’s the same pattern we’ve followed in freeing a lot of countries over the last 60 years. It’s so vitally important to remember that if we are successful in Iraq, we will have a government there that is a friend to the United States, a benign one that is not a threat to our nation, and will not be a state sponsor of terrorism. I still believe the American people understand this."

I’m not going to spend a lot of time on this, but there is one portion I wanted to highlight - the observation that "It’s the same pattern we’ve followed in freeing a lot of countries over the last 60 years." Let me see, Mr. Hunter...to which countries do you refer? Perhaps you’re referring to Iran, where we put the Shah into power. That worked out well, didn’t it? Bad example. Oops, sorry. How about The Philippines, where we backed Marcos. No? Well, um, maybe Noriega in Panama? I could go on. No, wait - I know! I know! How about Iraq, where we propped up what’s-his-name...yes, Saddam Hussein! Yes, our success rate has been pretty stunning, Mr. Hunter, and I’m certain we should follow the same pattern we have for the past 60 years - look where it’s gotten us.

It occurred to me quite a while ago that most of our leaders do not really believe in the merits of a democracy. I do. I truly believe that for most (not all) societies, democracy is probably the best, most benign form of government. As a matter of fact, I believe that so resolutely that I believe that most people, given time and the chance, will eventually choose to form some sort of democratic government for themselves. But our leadership seems intent on forcing, by political, economic or military pressure, other countries to establish democracies. And this is why I don’t think they truly believe in the merits of a democracy. If, for example you believed that Fords were the absolute best vehicles on the face of the planet, would you (a) force all your neighbors, by whatever means necessary, to buy a Ford, or (b) demonstrate through superior performance, reliability and service that this was one really great car? How many of your neighbors would be happy or grateful to you if you chose option A? What does option A say about your faith in the merits of the vehicle itself to win others over to it? How many of your neighbors would be so torqued off by your overbearing arrogance and lack of any consideration whatsoever for them that they would swear never to even look at a Ford again, no matter how good it was? Just a thought.Products

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