Hey! Remember me? I’ve been a bit distracted lately. Mostly because I’ve been spending a lot of time in my fantasy writing world. This last month was a big push to the end of the current novel I’ve been writing. Guess what? I finished the rough draft! It’s been an amazing 106,000 word journey. This one was different than the ones that came before. It took on a life of it’s own and I felt like I was just simply writing down what I observed.

Some surreal things happened during this journey. My characters came to life. They would show up in my dreams at night and tell me what was going to happen. When I was writing, everything around me ceased to exist and I was totally immersed in their world. I laughed with them and at them. I yelled at them. They yelled back. I held my breath as events unfolded that I was creating but felt like I had no control over. Don’t tell anybody, but I also shed a few tears with them. It was a wild ride! I’m kind of sad it’s over. After churning out a few of these now, I’ve come to realize that writing the rough draft is the most fun part. Now the real work begins. Editing and re-writes can be an absolute pain in the ass. I know they are necessary, as they end up producing a much better book, but it can be tedious. I’ll take it, though, to be able to do what I love.

I’ve also pretty much abandoned all my blogger buddies in this final push. Sorry about that! I’ll be getting caught up on all your blogs soon. I know you were worried, right? As before, when I finished the rough draft of Sawyer’s Run, I’ll give you a little teaser below. This book is called The Last Hike. I know, I know, more hiking shit. Yeah, it’s about hiking, but it is not all about hiking. This story follows a man going through some difficult times. He’s a bit alone in the world and starts a journey that will change his life. For good or bad remains to be seen. Check it out if you’d like. I’m hoping to have it published in time for a good summer read.

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Starlight smiled and turned north.  She was definitely a faster hiker than either HT or me, and I wondered if she would eventually just out hike us and be gone.  However, it seemed like whenever we were ready for a break we would come around a bend in the trail and there she would be.  It was like she would purposely slow her roll when she anticipated we would need a break.  I felt a little bad about holding her up, but not enough to tell her to go on without us.

We had a very quick lunch at some picnic tables that were on the side of the trail just before Wayah Gap.  While sitting there eating, a cold wind started to blow and the temperature dropped ten degrees by the time we were done.  It was now in the mid 30’s and I zipped on my pant legs to my hiking shorts and zipped up my puffy as high as it would go.  The hostel had a printed out weather forecast tacked to a bulletin board and I had looked at it before we left that morning.  It was supposed to get cold tonight and there might even be a chance of light snow.  Snow in April?  Sheesh.

The climb out of Wayah Gap was a steep one, but at the top there was a reward.  It was another bald and it had a stone observation tower that offered tremendous views.  That wasn’t the reward though.  Because there was a road where you could drive up, it had a parking lot, and in that parking lot was a bathroom with running water!  Yes, I got to offload the last of the Lactulose laden ammonia in an actual real toilet.  After Starlight did some more videoing for her blog, we hiked on.  After just another mile we came to the Wayah Shelter right off the trail.  This is where HT and I had planned on staying for the night.

“We are camping here for the night,” I told Starlight.

“Guess I could hang out for now with you slowpokes.  Are you gonna tent it or sleep in the shelter?” Starlight asked.

“As cold as it’s going to get,” HT said.  “I should tent it, but that climb up to Wayah Bald has tired me out and I don’t feel like setting up my tent.  So cold ass shelter it is for me.”  He moved off toward the shelter.

I shrugged my shoulders at Starlight.  “He’s got a convincing case.”  I followed suit and so did she.

We were the only ones at the shelter and we set up our sleeping pads and bags in a corner.  Starlight set hers up between us.  I think this was on purpose to insulate herself from Sex Panther if he showed up later on.  This was a standard one deck shelter and could fit eight people if you were side by side.  I headed down to the privy to take care of business and while I was there, I discovered I had a few bars of signal on my cell phone when I took it out of airplane mode.  I checked out Starlight’s YouTube channel.  22 followers my ass!  She had over 500 followers, and by the comments, seemed to be quite popular.  I watched her first trail day video and found it very entertaining.  Just the right amount of scenery and witty comment to make it entertaining.  She was a natural.  Her videos were about two weeks behind her actual position on the trail.  I figured the delay was due to limited choices on where she could upload and a desire to not advertise her current position to avoid any crazies that might show up.  I found out later I was spot on.

“I was beginning to think you fell in, Squad.” Starlight said to me upon my return to the shelter.

“That would have been the end to our budding friendship there bud, because I wouldn’t have fished you out of there,” HT told me.

“Ha!  Thanks for having my back, buddy!”

“I’ll always have your back, unless it’s covered in that foul substance under a privy.”

“Well, I’m sure Starlight would have come to my rescue, right?

“Hell no!” she said.

“What?  Even after I just gave you a thumbs up on one of your videos?”

She actually flushed a bit at that, and then said, “Oh, those silly things?”

I turned to HT.  “She lied to us.  She is a regular YouTube star!”

“Oh, really?” was his reply.

“I am not a star!” she exclaimed.

“You definitely are a YouTube Starlight, though,” I told her.

“Puhhleeze! I am going to cook some dinner.”

As we cooked our dinner at the waist high banister under the cover of the shelter overhang, a slight drizzle started.  We all groaned at that sight but at least we were under cover.  Even the table here was somewhat sheltered from the elements.  Five other hikers showed up in various states of wetness and all set up in the shelter.  It was going to be a full house tonight.  An hour later, several of us were sitting around the table chatting when up walked Sex Panther.  Balls!

“Hey, Starlight!” he shouted when he noticed her sitting at the table.

“Hey,” was her barely audible reply.

“You tenting or sheltering it?”

“Shelter.”

“You must have been moving.  I tried to catch up to you all day.”

“Yeah,” I said.  “Lil’ Sis can move.  We barely kept pace with her.”

Panther looked at me for a second then said, “You know, I talked to a few people you’ve hiked around before, Starlight.  They didn’t recall you saying anything about meeting family.”

“We surprised her,” HT said.  “She might not have let us hike with her otherwise.”

“Huh,” was all Panther said.  He looked over to the shelter and I was glad that it was full so this jackhole wouldn’t be in there with us tonight.  “I bet we can squeeze one more in.”  Oh no.  He got up in the shelter and surveyed the placement of pads and bags, then the jizz waffle actually shoved my stuff over and put his down, like he knew exactly what Starlight’s bag looked like.  I was shocked into inaction.  I couldn’t believe he had done that.  I looked at HT, who mouthed “What the fuck?” at me.  I started to stand up and felt a hand on my arm.  It was Starlight, and she gave me a small shake of her head.  I sat back down and brooded.

It wasn’t quite hiker’s midnight yet, but not long after, everyone moved to their spot in the shelter to bundle up and get warm.  With the interloping Panther there, it was a very uncomfortable tight fit.  No one could move without disturbing a hiker on either side.  Panther seemed oblivious to it all and kept talking to Starlight.

“What are your plans tomorrow?” he asked her.

“To keep hiking.”

“Where you plan on stopping?”

“Don’t know.”

“What time are you leaving?”

“Early.”

“Cool, I’ll get up early too.  You know Wesser Bald is coming up tomorrow.  It’ll be a great spot to film for your channel.  You should interview me while we are up there.”

I could hear Starlight groan, but once again, Panther was either oblivious to it or chose to ignore it.  “Maybe.  I’m going to go to sleep now.”  She turned her back to him and pulled her bag up over her head.

“Cool, I gotta hit the privy and then I’m going to sleep also.”  He got up and as he was exiting the shelter he stepped on my foot.  I gasped and pulled my leg back.  He paused for a second, then jumped down and headed for the privy without saying a word.

I had had it with this guy.  He was very annoying and he was making Starlight very uncomfortable.  I flicked the red light of my headlamp on and looked over to HT on the other side of Starlight.  He was staring right back at me.  I made a follow me gesture and got up, making my way to the table at the front of the shelter.  HT joined me a few seconds later.

“What’s up, Squad?” he asked me.

“I’m done with this dude.” He needed no clarification on which dude I was talking about.  I’m not much of a fighter and I don’t go in for confrontations when they can be avoided, but even a radar technician in the Army got taught basic hand to hand combat.  I was getting ready to see if I could still deploy them.  “He’s all over Starlight and it has to stop.”

“What’s the plan?”

“I’m going to execute a Princess Bride maneuver.”

“A what?”

“You know the movie Princess Bride, right?”

“Of course I do!  Probably one of the best movies ever made.  I saw it in a theater for the first time.  You probably first saw it on DVD or streamed it.”

“DVD, yeah.  Well you remember the scene where Westley bluffs Prince Humperdink and says Drop…your…sword?”

“I see where you are going here, Squad.”

“Yup, I am going to confront him and tell him to lay off Starlight.  The thing is, with my health issues, I don’t have the strength for an all-out brawl if he calls my bluff.  I need you to back my play if he starts to kick my ass.  You good with that?”

“As you wish.”

We made our way down to the privy, being as quiet as possible.  I grabbed one of my trekking poles on the way.  The privy had a stairway with six steps that went up to the deck that the shack was placed on.  HT and I switched off our headlamps and waited in the shadows on either side of the stairs.  When I heard the squeak of the spring loaded door, I tensed.  Sex Panther came walking down the stairs.  When he had taken one step away from the bottom one, I came up behind him, shoved my trekking pole between his legs, got a hand full of his hair from the back, and shoved him.  He tripped over the trekking pole and went down on his face.  I was quickly above him, keeping a firm grip on his hair and shoving his face into the muddy path.  I could hear HT move to the other side, ready to jump in if needed.

“What the f…” Panther started to say.

“Shut up and listen to me!” I whispered forcibly in his ear.  “Starlight has had enough of your pink blazing.  You are going to leave her alone.  If you see her on the trail, you are going to avoid her.  If she’s coming your way, you will turn around.  You are right.  We are not real family, but we are a tramily and you are not related to us.  Do you understand what I am saying?”  Panther grunted something that I took to be in the affirmative.  For once, HT had nothing to say and just stood there to make his presence known.  “Now, I am getting ready to let you up.  Dear old Dad and I are going back up to the shelter.  So far, other than a little mud on your face, nothing but your pride has been damaged.  You stay down here for a few minutes to compose yourself.  If you want this to escalate that is fine, we can do that, but I should let you know that my trail name, Suicide Squad, comes from the fact that I was in a very special unit when I was in the Army.  A unit that taught me a particular set of skills.”

When I was done spinning that line of BS I let go of him and got up.  He sat up, but he didn’t get up, and he didn’t say anything.  I looked at HT and nodded.  We walked back up to the shelter.  On the way HT said to me, “Damn, Squad.  I’m not even going to punch you for calling me Dad.  Well played!” I gave him a thumbs up and brushed off some mud that I had gotten on myself during the little fracas.  By the red lights of our headlamps so we wouldn’t blind anyone in the shelter, we climbed back in our bags.  A few minutes later, Sex Panther came back.  I tensed up but he didn’t start anything.  He also didn’t get back in his bag.  He started collecting his stuff and announced to the whole shelter, “It’s too crowded in here.  I’m going to tent it.”  With that he was gone and we never saw him again.  Starlight poked her head out of her bag and turned on the red light of her headlamp.  She looked at me with a questioning expression.  I gave the slightest shrug of my shoulders.  She reached over and flicked off a piece of mud on my arm that I had missed.  I gave her a smile and then buried myself in my bag to get warm.

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