La Introducción, La Présentation, Die Einführung!

Quick intro, hmmmm where to begin? My name is Josh (insert witty comment here), I like soccer, I have long hair, in college there were multiple people who did not know my name (including professors) and just knew be my nickname “Gumby” (NOT MY TRAIL NAME), and I will be hiking the AT with one of my best friends, Brandon, SOBO style starting this June!

Funny story (maybe), I applied to be an Appalachian Trials Thru-hike blogger way back in October 2014. I had no idea I’d actually get it! Since then I’ve actually been back and forth about actually hiking the AT, mainly due to potential career opportunities. Well, based on the fact that I got laid off at the end of December, I will not be the next assistant soccer coach at my Alma Mater, and I have been selected to be an ambassador for the 2015 Thru-hike Syndicate (more on that later, #thruhikesyndicate) I WILL BE HIKING THE AT!

Just about everyone I have told about the AT has looked at me like I’m out of my effing mind! “What about your job?”, “What about Rebekah? (My fiancée)”, “What about your student loans?” Well my answer to these questions now is, “What’s the point of a job if you’re not happy with what you’re doing?”, “Rebekah actually supports my hiking of the AT!”, and “My student loans aren’t going anywhere, they’ll be right where they are now, when I get done hiking.”

Seriously though, sitting at a desk for hours upon hours, 5 to 6 days a week, just to make sure bills are paid and you can afford Netflix…that’s life though right? Do what you have to do to survive? WRONG! As challenging and perilous as the Appalachian Trail is, it represents freedom from the tyranny of “Corporate America” and liberty from the cookie cutter business world so many Americans call a “career.” For me, thru-hiking the AT is and exodus from an unfulfilling job and an un-lived life into the cosmic array of greatness!

On that note, I hope you enjoyed my rant, and I look forward to writing more about my AT experiences!

#WhenInRome

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