I think you don't need a hike, you need professional help. You asked for our thoughts.
With all due respect (and my father had cancer, so I do have some idea of what you are enduring), no-one is going to look at a word you publish unless you clean up your spelling and grammar (especially if you send something in on spec). First impressions count.Originally Posted by ricoswava
Lose weight, not loose weight.
Your fifth and sixth sentences are syntactical disasters.
I get it about depression. Your physician or nurse will only give you three months of anti-depressants, so you will have to make arrangement for a refill during your trip. You will have "know before you go" the location of such a pharmacy. That pharmacy should be aware before you start your trip that you will be coming in for a refill. This is essential, rico. You don't want to find yourself a day or more away from a pharmacy, should the depression return (and it can, although it may not).
"There but for the grace of God go I."
"Walk a mile in my shoes."
I wish some of the folks here would be kind, and not with this GET OFF MY LAWN or WHAT YOU NEED IS A GOOD KICK IN THE ASS ****e. (Mispell intentional.) Many people are just one paycheck away from being homeless.
Muddy - Cheryl Strayed didn't mean for the PCT to be a holiday. She was there to come to terms with her mother's passing. Not everyone who does long walk is on vacation.
People - rico isn't asking YOU to fund this, so what do you care? Be kind.
Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I'll meet you there. --Rumi
This is just personal opinion, but if I had cancer, I'd be more concerned with trying to enjoy my life than to try to grind out a job. Nothing like staring face to face with death to make you realize how pointless the daily grind rat race is. I never was terminally ill, but I did go overseas in the military. I've done several hikes since then, starting another thru this friday. You can always make money in the future. I've tried to enjoy life as much as possible with crippling mental illness, and my hikes are much more important for my well being than a job.
I agree though, get better, then hike if you still want to.
1) Not for an unknown writer, unless you want to shell out $50 - $100 an hour. Don't let hubris get in the way.
2) You are a poor speller and, in these posts, not a great writer. But you could turn into one. Don't let hubris get in the way.
3) I know all about those crutches, I mean electronic devices and apps. You learn how to write by writing - and reading. Read - A LOT. If you want to write about your illness in any way (about the AT, or not), run, not walk to your nearest public library and check out a book titled The Emperor of Maladies.
4) Your cancer (no, I am not defining you by cancer) should qualify you for emergency housing. You need your doctor and your therapist to back you, though.
Everything I've posted about so far, I have first-hand experience with it all. Either via myself or an immediate family member.
Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I'll meet you there. --Rumi
*live paycheck to paycheck (yeah, I make spelling errors, too, but I'm not seeking to publish something anytime soon, but I sure would be vigilant when I sent out that first manuscript).
Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I'll meet you there. --Rumi
rico won't get his foot in the door of a housing authority if he (she?) has $3,500. One can only have $2,000 total from all sources (including life insurance).
So, rico, spend down before you submit an application.
Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I'll meet you there. --Rumi
books about forcin' one's self to hike a trail with some sorta disability or ailment are a dime-a-dozen. not best sellers. work and save and walk like the rest of us.
ricoswava,
Are you committed to residing in Hartford? You should have your name on 10 - 20 housing authority lists.
Honestly, I have been in that position, and, because I don't own a car, I put my name on every list in communities with public transportation.
I say this respectfully and kindly: you need to make an appointment with a medical social worker. You need a support network. But starting with your oncologist and social worker, your safety net of support people with spread. I live in a small city with an enormous amount of homeless people and opiate addicts (not all the same). I know many of them, including the sister of my daughter's best friend. Not one of these homeless people succeeds without support from a social worker or therapist. (Not psychoanalysis - psychoanalysts typically don't have social worker skills.)
Not dissing your hike. But what will you do when you return home? There are few things worse than being sick and homeless. Please, PLEASE don't count on speaker fees and cash advances. Go ahead and write that book; go ahead and find an agent But remember how many great books there are out there that will never be published.
Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I'll meet you there. --Rumi
On the other hand:
PrairieFlax found a non-profit to fund her hike. I return she will give talks for them later on. However, she is an educator and her talks will be designed about nature in curriculum development, and her curricula will be available online, gratis, as teacher resource. But she worked long and hard to find a group to assist her, and never took it for granted that it would happen.
So it can happen. But her success with this didn't happen overnight.
Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I'll meet you there. --Rumi
Miel, please don't assign political affiliations to people based on what they've posted in this thread. For one, it's a distraction from the topic; two, it's unhelpful; three, it's inaccurate/misleading. There are many reasons why a person might come across as unsympathetic, including gender, personality, social skills, whether they deal with similar situations daily, or simply following the herd. None of those have anything to do with politics.
Ah OkeefenoskeeJoe,
Hello fellow cancer survivor. Emotionally, I am 1000 times better. I am now at a point, I want to enjoy life. I am think I wont ever get another opportunity to Hike the AT. As speaker, and sentence structure. I am writing fast right now. Plus I have been limited to the internet. I am working on a doing a fashion show with a friend on May 14th. My biggest issue, emotionally is that I did not think I was lovable until oct 2015. I dealt the those emotions. I want to take some time being part of a community and get back in shape before I start working again. After cancer, yes money is an issue. We both realized we need to take time to enjoy life.
Hi Lone wolf, thanks for the feed back. I am not sure if I have depression any more. I went to therapy and drafted a book about working though all this issues. I think I really need to take some time to enjoy and love life before going back to work. I never did that.
Miel, no it did not. I lost the second round of disability.
Your right. I want to enjoy hike, conquering depression, and the emotional year I had. I need to do something different than going back to work.
Rock I have overcame a lot, and I believe I am very close to being out of my depression. I want to go back to school at get my PhD in Psychology to help others. I am not the best speller, I am an idea person. Not everyone is great at everything. thanks for your thoughts
thanks shutter bug. I have always gone for the job, and I do plan on going to grad school. I am not sure if I go to work I will enjoy it. After the year I had, I need some enjoyment. I know the trail it hard. I have no clue how hard it is. But I know I will enjoy many beautiful sights.
"Cheryl Strayed didn't mean for the PCT to be a holiday. She was there to come to terms with her mother's passing. Not everyone who does long walk is on vacation."
+1 You got that one right.
Walking is curative, has been show to lead to clarity of mind, can lead to awesome thoughts, more balanced emotions, a better sense of direction and purpose, affects body(and brain) chemistry, and often greater health. Walking has been medically proven to aid in curing depression, heart disease, high blood pressure, fight weight gain, osteoporosis, and some cancers. Various cultures celebrate the pilgrimage - walking with meaning - which sounds like has some applicability to the poster's situation. Not all that crazy or ill informed sounding when one looks at it like that.
Maybe, doing a long walk will not magically result in financial nirvana but the person may very well benefit from a long walk.
Just wondering what your chemo drugs do for your white count and iron count? It is not just about housing later but health during as there is Lyme disease, Norovirus, food poisoning, Giardia etc on the trail. If you are in remission go for.
*You're
(Spell-check doesn't help with these kinds of words.)
Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I'll meet you there. --Rumi
OK, fair enough.
Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I'll meet you there. --Rumi
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