The Week Before

Hey all, it’s been a minute.

We’re starting to round the corner on my start date… but there’s a huge problem.

I’m still not ready.

Well, not in the “I don’t have my stuff ready, and I’ve never backpacked, and I don’t know what I’m carrying” type of ready. I know that.

As in my apartment currently looks like this:

I don’t think it really hit me that I’d have to move, again, but this time I couldn’t just take things from one place in Boston and shove its problems into the next.

I’m stuck with what I choose. Some can go into storage, the rest must go. So there’s that.

Another one, I’m off of work now! I gave myself a week to pack… a week that… I definitely… didn’t procrastinate.

Add onto that the training I still want to do, and making up for the training I haven’t done.

Let’s recap how that plan we talked about last time went huh?

The Highs: Enjoying Some Running

During the months of January, I was chewing on at least 12-15 miles a week running — not a ton, but it still felt great to get back into the consistent habit. There were two main concerns I had through the time:

1. I normally wear minimalist shoes as my everyday wear. This started when I picked up the Altra Lone Peaks for backpacking, and realized I loved the zero drop, wide toe boxes. Unfortunately, my runners are a pair of Adidas Ultraboosts. While they’re very comfortable to run in, the narrow toebox and huge stack height was causing some foot pain. Not wearing socks in my shoes helped with the toe splaying… but I was worried about the stack height.
2. I live in Boston. Known for being cold. And icy. And that it was. Almost every other run turned into a slip and slide at some point. Or a traffic nightmare. Sometimes both! 

Pictured: My January running outfit. At least I got to test my buff?

The Highs: Killing Back Pain

Thanks to the lifts I was mentioning last time, I’ve essentially lived my life for a few months with less back pain. A combination of some massage therapy, but mostly doing PT really helped out here! It’s also produced a stronger build in general, and came with a massive increase in grip strength (though, I’m not sure how handy that’ll be on trail. Helped me climb though!)

The Lows: Illness

February hit me like a truck. First, during a massage, I was hit with COVID. This knocked me out for the first half of February. No running, no Superbowl Sunday (which… may’ve been a good thing for my fitness), no lifting. Just resting at home. This helped me get re-addicted to League of Legends. It’s a terrible habit, please dear reader, never get sucked into video games as much as I did. It knocked many things out of whack.

After I recovered, I started getting back into the swing of things. I prepared for a ski trip through my PT exercises. I was starting to bike again, and looking to get back into running. Until the second thing hit…

Spent some time at Okemo. From here, there were views of Kllington, Washington… Turns out the Appalachians are the only mountains in the east!

The second half of February ended with a case of food poisoning. During which, again, no running, no lifting, no nothing. I couldn’t consume many calories without feeling sick, and doing exercises that jostled my insides around were a no-go. I ended February about 10 pounds lighter than I started it. And there wasn’t much fat there to begin with. Physical training… was off to a rough start.

The Lows: Facebook Marketplace

Trying to wrangle cats on Facebook Marketplace while moving out is stressful. I don’t know how most people do this. In fact, all of moving has been.

To help out with some of the stuff (and since some of the nice things I own are genuine luxuries), I’ve been keeping track of things I care about in a spreadsheet, and letting people loan them. Other pieces of furniture I’m giving to friends, or trying to give away for free. But oh boy, as the proud owner of a Toyota Camry, I’m starting to realize how small it still is. Trying to get furniture to the masses still proves to be a difficult task. You can fit a cello in the trunk! But maybe not that huge flatscreen TV…

The Lows: Mental Preparation

Zilch. Nada. Nonezo.

It’s starting to hit that I’m actually committing to the AT. But, my brain’s also finally catching up. It’s starting to understand that in a week, I can’t spend an hour lounging in bed watching YouTube. I’m not going to be able to enjoy the comforts of a modern climbing gym. I’m going to be spending long periods of time being bored, and that’s simply something I’m not used to. I’ve started having anxiety about getting onto trail and simply hating it. But, that’s what sharing is about. That’s what accountability can help with. And I still think this is the right thing for me to be doing.

This also sounds silly, but I’m pre-missing my cat. I think she knows something’s coming. She’s been much more needy lately. There’s no real way to break the news to her. But I hope she knows I love her.

How could you not love her

The Highs: Spending Time doing what I Love

But, through all the chaos, and especially in the last week, I’ve been able to connect with the people I love.

Some people at the office threw together a small gift for goodbye (as well as the usual dinners, and the like. But this cookie meant the most to me)

The day after my last at work was followed up with my favourite indoor percussion group. United Percussion, a 501(c)(3) based out of Vorhees, New Jersey was a group I’m an alumni with. There was a recent show in Dartmouth, MA (an hour from Boston), so I was able to visit. And what a special group of students they are. My heart’s always a little fuller after visiting them, and seeing what they’ve been able to accomplish. The biggest thing I can do to help is to share the word! Check out their production here, and if you’re able and inspired to, check out their website! The arts need all of our assistance to stay beautiful.

Finally, I was able to perform with my community orchestra, the Cambridge Symphony Orchestra, one last time, playing a blazingly fast Violin Concerto, with a special guest soloist from the BSO! He was ethereal — and it was an amazing experience.

So… It’s your last week

So… back to myself. Well, in between packing, and eking out a bit of time to write this blog post, what else have I been up to?

While running is probably off the table now (I don’t want to ruin anything through an injury-riddled sport), walking’s still fine! And more importantly, doing shakedowns! I’m trying to walk at least 5 miles a day, in my thru-hike attire. Gear post coming soon, but I’m also trying to get better at packing my stuff just like I would at camp, and hitting the concrete. There are some nice walking paths in Boston, and the weather just cleared. So it’s been beautiful out here (even if I get weird looks for carrying a 25 pound pack in the middle of the city)

I also hit my local climbing gym for the last time. It’s a sad close to a chapter — but after four years of climbing, I’ve gotten a lot further! It was the first form of exercise I actually started falling in love with, and while I’ll miss it on trail, I’m sure I’ll be back at it afterwards. (plus, this gives my arthritis and carpal tunnel time to heal :D) 

And then… yes. Packing. We’ll get there eventually. Maybe it’s not time to worry about how movers are going to be here in 48 hours… Time to get some rest.