View Full Version : Sam Adams?
Has anyone seen a hiker called Sam Adams since June? His last entry on TJ was May 31 when he was in Catawba. He seems troubled and I am concerned about him. Wondering if he is still out there.
DesertMTB
06-16-2008, 11:42
What does he go by on TJ. I couldn't locate a Sam Adams.
I think he is just Sam Adams on TJ http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?trailname=7395. His is the saddest journal I ever read.
Chance09
06-16-2008, 12:52
that was just depressing...
DesertMTB
06-16-2008, 13:07
After reading, it sounds like he was going to committ suicide.
Very sad indeed.
DesertMTB
06-16-2008, 13:11
I applaud you redhat for attempting to befriend him.
Bulldawg
06-16-2008, 13:23
Any sign of him? That was a bad read. I think the poor guy may have killed himself somewhere along the trail.
HikerRanky
06-16-2008, 13:31
Such a very sad story there.... Thoughts and prayers going out that he has simply not updated his journal in some time......
Randy
some one at the restaurant in his last entry would remember him wouldnt they?
DesertMTB
06-16-2008, 13:36
I hope you are right LW.
jersey joe
06-16-2008, 13:37
Maybe he is in the process of ditching his heavy gear and making a re-emergence as Sam Adams Light.
4eyedbuzzard
06-16-2008, 13:55
Maybe he is in the process of ditching his heavy gear and making a re-emergence as Sam Adams Light.
barumprump
the guy is looking for attention.
dont all conservatives think alike:p...jsut playinghavent seen ya post ins a while walterp
Chance09
06-16-2008, 14:25
i agree with you LW and Walter, but i also feel that there is a fine line between attention whore and suicidal. Sounds like he is treading it...
I don't understand why he's hiking the AT tho
BipolarStroller
06-16-2008, 15:33
This dude sounds so bummed out, hope he doesn't hurt himself or anyone else. Maybe a good long walk will do him some good. Was he trying to say the HE tripped the old lady down the hill? If this isn't a joke than he's either pouting or just a little disturbed. A bad attitude can really mess with your perspective, shake the funk and find happiness and peace:sun
dont all conservatives think alike:p...jsut playinghavent seen ya post ins a while walterp
I've been lingering :)
the guy's an attention whore
Some 25 years ago, my ex left me for a younger woman. I probably would have done myself in, except I had three kids to take care of. They saved my life, as did my husband now, who put up with all my suspicions in our early relationship. I relate to Sam's desperation and want him to know that there is light at the end of that tunnel. Every time I read his journal I remember the pain. He spoke of a hiker named Smiley D early in his journal and I hope they are traveling about the same rate. I know there are hikers out there who can show him life is worth living. Anyway, I just wanted to know if anyone had seen him since Catawba.
the guy's an attention whore
A left wing commie also agrees with Wolf.
Lone Wolf
06-16-2008, 20:32
A left wing commie also agrees with Wolf.
i mean really. his entries keep you comin' back. 99% of journals are boring as crap. his are different. it keeps you reading. he knew that
Bulldawg
06-16-2008, 20:56
i mean really. his entries keep you comin' back. 99% of journals are boring as crap. his are different. it keeps you reading. he knew that
I think you are on to something.
Bulldawg
06-16-2008, 21:13
Deleted. Collateral damage.
Odd Thomas
06-17-2008, 04:40
i mean really. his entries keep you comin' back. 99% of journals are boring as crap. his are different. it keeps you reading. he knew that
I doubt he does. He's incredibly introverted and struggling with his relationship problems, I doubt he knows how he appears to other people.
bulldog49
06-17-2008, 07:20
I think it's a hoax. ;)
Rockhound
06-17-2008, 08:27
Some 25 years ago, my ex left me for a younger woman. I probably would have done myself in, except I had three kids to take care of. They saved my life, as did my husband now, who put up with all my suspicions in our early relationship. I relate to Sam's desperation and want him to know that there is light at the end of that tunnel. Every time I read his journal I remember the pain. He spoke of a hiker named Smiley D early in his journal and I hope they are traveling about the same rate. I know there are hikers out there who can show him life is worth living. Anyway, I just wanted to know if anyone had seen him since Catawba.
We are all responsible for our own personal happiness, but kudos to you for trying to lift the spirits of another. In the end however, it is up to Sam to look inside himself and make the changes necessary to lift himself out of his depression. On a side note,I believe zanax and the plethora of the other anti-depression pills out there are not the way to go. Change has to come from within, not in the form of a pill. We are living in the most over medicated country in the world.
4eyedbuzzard
06-17-2008, 08:56
Has anyone seen a hiker called Sam Adams since June? His last entry on TJ was May 31 when he was in Catawba. He seems troubled and I am concerned about him. Wondering if he is still out there.
Ain't that the weird thing about the internet. People come and go and we never really know who they are. One day they're here, and one day they just disappear forever. You might spend a year or more conversing regularly with someone and then, POOF, they're gone forever. I've only met a few people from DB's IRL - a few golfers from another site - we got together for an outing once. The rest are internet apparitions of sorts. Very inhuman, very inpersonal, this virtual world. Kind of sad.
Ain't that the weird thing about the internet. People come and go and we never really know who they are. One day they're here, and one day they just disappear forever. You might spend a year or more conversing regularly with someone and then, POOF, they're gone forever. I've only met a few people from DB's IRL - a few golfers from another site - we got together for an outing once. The rest are internet apparitions of sorts. Very inhuman, very inpersonal, this virtual world. Kind of sad.
Well, there are rucks and Gatherings, Billville and "Trashgiving."
I've met in person a number of folks that I met initially on the Internet. First such occasion was about seven or eight years ago in New York City. The list in question involved (of all things) Epson printers, and we met at the studio of one of the several photographers on the list. About thirty people showed, and it was like we were old friends.
I'm still in touch with a few of these folks; I've had a few come visit me in Boston and I've met a few of them near their digs, mostly down in the NY/NJ area.
Well, there are rucks and Gatherings, Billville and "Trashgiving."
I've met in person a number of folks that I met initially on the Internet. First such occasion was about seven or eight years ago in New York City. The list in question involved (of all things) Epson printers, and we met at the studio of one of the several photographers on the list. About thirty people showed, and it was like we were old friends.
I'm still in touch with a few of these folks; I've had a few come visit me in Boston and I've met a few of them near their digs, mostly down in the NY/NJ area.
I have the stylus color 640. It is very sexy. :D
Bulldawg
06-22-2008, 23:58
Anything on this guy? I was just sitting here reading the thru hikers sightings and thought about it.
4eyedbuzzard
06-23-2008, 00:00
Guess he finally went where the lonely go
Guess he finally went where the lonely go
I'm going away to the last resort
In week or two real soon
Where the fish don't bite but once a night
By the cold light of the moon
- John Prine
I take threats of suicide seriously. I've lost too many to the clutches of depression. If a person uses threats of suicide as a means of getting attention then that person needs help and should get it. If a person threatens suicide because he/she is suffering from depression then that person is sick and needs help immediately. Either way action is needed.
However, I've learned one truth about suicide...no matter how much you care for someone, or how much help you try to get them, in the end a person truly committed to taking their own life will succeed. It's nobody elses fault in the end.
Nicksaari
06-24-2008, 19:58
that person is right, i am seriously considering finally offering myself sometime around my birthday after seeing the fall colors and spending a lot of time w family and surfing.
the fundamental america and its infrastructure will collapse in time withing the close of the next decade. i dont want ot be apart of it after ive taken what i need
Odd Thomas
06-25-2008, 01:23
that person is right, i am seriously considering finally offering myself sometime around my birthday after seeing the fall colors and spending a lot of time w family and surfing.
the fundamental america and its infrastructure will collapse in time withing the close of the next decade. i dont want ot be apart of it after ive taken what i need
Only a decade? We've got a bit longer than that, we may be at our credit limit with China, but we're starting to borrow from the Arabs now too to keep our banks with cash in them.
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080624/kuwait_fund_us_banks.html?.v=1
I'm sure we can keep this Ponzi scheme going for a good 30 years or so, and after that we'll borrow from Europe.
And they say fiat monetary systems never work :rolleyes:
Sissygirl
06-25-2008, 08:36
I just finished reading Sam's journal. I, too, have been so depressed that thoughts of suicide took over. Gratefully I did come out of it and I can only hope that he did as well. I take all talk of suicide seriously. Making light of someone's pain is wrong on so many levels.
4eyedbuzzard
06-25-2008, 09:50
Well, it's been over 3 weeks since his last post, so he's moved on one way or the other. It's nice that people reached out to him. Maybe that's all he really wanted - a little attention.
Odd Thomas
06-25-2008, 11:17
Well, it's been over 3 weeks since his last post, so he's moved on one way or the other. It's nice that people reached out to him. Maybe that's all he really wanted - a little attention.
Maybe he found a new female friend, that does wonders for depression.
So I hear (sigh):p
4eyedbuzzard
06-25-2008, 11:35
Maybe he found a new female friend, that does wonders for depression.
So I hear (sigh):p
Yeah, 'till ya get to really know her. :rolleyes: :D
drastic_quench
06-25-2008, 18:13
Maybe he is in the process of ditching his heavy gear and making a re-emergence as Sam Adams Light.
Nicely played.
Sailor (The other one)
06-26-2008, 05:36
We are all responsible for our own personal happiness, but kudos to you for trying to lift the spirits of another. In the end however, it is up to Sam to look inside himself and make the changes necessary to lift himself out of his depression. On a side note,I believe zanax and the plethora of the other anti-depression pills out there are not the way to go. Change has to come from within, not in the form of a pill. We are living in the most over medicated country in the world.
Xanax is not an antidepressant. In psychiatry it is called an anti-anxiety agent, a benzodiazipine similar to Valium. It is a central nervous system depressant, a downer that gets you high just like alcohol, pot and heroin. It is extremely addictive and is appropriate only for the short time relief of severe anxiety or panic attacks. You give them Xanax for a few days while anti-depressants (anti-depressants are effective against chronic anxiety) take effect and get them in therapy. You can easily tell if a medication is addictive by wheteher or not there is a street market for it. On the street, Xanax is called Xaney bars. I've worked with several people who were otherwise not dependent on or abusing anything but became addicted to Xanax when it was prescribed for long term use. This is one of those cases in which people are routinely overmedicated, become addicted, and branch out to other drugs. I've known several people inappropriately prescribed Xanax who ended up adding pot and alcohol. Killed one of them. Combining downers has a multiplying effect, so its not 1 + 1 = 2 but 1 + 1 = as much as 9. Depress the central nervous system enough and your heart goes to sleep.
There are two kinds of depression, endogenous and exogenous. Genous, like genisis in the Bible, means creation. Exo means outside, endo inside. Endogenous depression is biologically based, usually genetic, and no amount of looking inside will do it. This kind of depression requires medication to substitute for something that is simply not there. There has been some success with some people with the use of amino acids and other natural substances. It is complicated and expensive, but lacks the side effects of ant-depressant medication, which, in a way, can include an increased risk of suicide.
Exogenous depression is caused by outside factors and our response to them, most often trauma. It involves somehow learning, usually within our families but also in our culture, to suppress emotions. "Men aren't supposed to cry," "I'll give you something to cry about", "You shouldn't feel that way," "You're too emotional," "You're a wimp," etc. etc. are examples of these kinds of messages. This kind of depression is literally the depression of emotions and can lead to and contribute to anxiety. Anti-depressants can help in that they lift the depression and alleviate anxiety while allowing someone to feel. They don't make you feel better, they simply allow you to feel what you feel, which is healthy. They don't get you high. There is no street market for anti-depressants.
The answer to depression is within, that's true, but only is the sense that the answer lies in feeling what you feel within and expressing it appropriately. Most often, people need a guide of some kind, like a counselor or therapist, to find the way inside where the answer lies. Usually, they don't believe such a thing is okay and don't know how to do it. It is critical to have someone to express your feelings to - counselor, a friend who will listen without trying to fix, a journal, God, etc. Just telling someone they have to look inside and do it themselves isn't helpful. I've worked with a lot of hospitalized, suicidal people who were told just that and concluded that since they could do it alone, they must be doomed.
Matteroo
06-27-2008, 01:05
so.. whats the status of this guy. any feedback from current hikers who know him/knew of him for real?
I read his whole journal don't think he lieing about how he feel his last post was 5/31/08. hope he don't do any thing dumb. But he sound really unhappy.He was around 700 mile up the trail he sain he was heading for daleville. that been it so far.
musicwoman
06-29-2008, 14:45
DELETED COMMENT.
What a ridiculous comment.
The guy was depressed. Whether his depression was physiological or brought on by events in his life I don't know, but that comment was really uncalled for.
And since I have several loved ones serving in both Afghanistan and Iraq right now (God keep them safe), I can tell you, you're comparing apples and oranges.
DesertMTB
07-28-2008, 09:28
BROWNSVILLE, MD - An update on a report that a body was found along the Appalachian trail in Washington County -- yesterday.
NBC25 has confirmed that remains were discovered by hikers near Brownsville-- on Sunday around 1p.m.
Dispatchers with fire and rescue say a call reporting the discovery came in just after noon. Maryland State Police in Hagerstown are investigating the incident.
BROWNSVILLE, MD - An update on a report that a body was found along the Appalachian trail in Washington County -- yesterday.
NBC25 has confirmed that remains were discovered by hikers near Brownsville-- on Sunday around 1p.m.
Dispatchers with fire and rescue say a call reporting the discovery came in just after noon. Maryland State Police in Hagerstown are investigating the incident.
Do you have a link to the story?
Do you have a link to the story?
There is a link posted in the newly opened thread. Doesn't give a lot of info though.
DesertMTB
07-28-2008, 09:51
There is a link posted in the newly opened thread. Doesn't give a lot of info though.
Yeah, that was the entire story. I just emailed Maryland State Police a link to his TJ. The body that was found doesn't look to be very far from where his last TJ entry was.
Doughnut
07-28-2008, 09:57
Comment was made before age/sex.identity established.
DoughNut
Yeah, that was the entire story. I just emailed Maryland State Police a link to his TJ. The body that was found doesn't look to be very far from where his last TJ entry was.
The news link says the guy they found was Brian Gordon from Baltimore. I looked quickly but see no link between him and "Sam Adams".
Not trying to be coy but even if it was the same guy, why would the MSP need to read his journal?
DesertMTB
07-28-2008, 10:36
The news link says the guy they found was Brian Gordon from Baltimore. I looked quickly but see no link between him and "Sam Adams".
Not trying to be coy but even if it was the same guy, why would the MSP need to read his journal?
I was just trying to provide them with information. I didn't know they had identified the body.
I was just trying to provide them with information. I didn't know they had identified the body.
Yeah, wasn't much in the news article. Really couldn't tell if they were a hiker or not. Let us know if the MSP gets back to you saying it was Sam.
DesertMTB
07-28-2008, 12:03
The news link says the guy they found was Brian Gordon from Baltimore. I looked quickly but see no link between him and "Sam Adams".
Not trying to be coy but even if it was the same guy, why would the MSP need to read his journal?
Sam Adams was a trail name. The most recent update says it was a suicide.
Although most of the comments were during the "old" WB, I find many of your critical comments to be troubling and pitiful. You folks don't know this man, just basing opinions on his trailjournal. You don't know his past, his life, or many details. He mentioned his sister committed suicide.
Calling him names is not appropriate at this time. Depression, mental illness and suicide attempts are serious things that should be treated as such and not made fun of.
The guy in question might be dead. This doesn't seem like an appropriate time to be casting jokes at his expense.
Lone Wolf
07-28-2008, 12:44
A-Train is right
Alligator
07-28-2008, 13:06
At this time, there hasn't been a connection made between the hiker Sam Adams and Brian Gordon. There is that possibility, but there is still very little information available. Please try to keep A-trains post in mind when posting, it's reasonable guidance.
DesertMTB
07-28-2008, 13:30
At this time, there hasn't been a connection made between the hiker Sam Adams and Brian Gordon. There is that possibility, but there is still very little information available. Please try to keep A-trains post in mind when posting, it's reasonable guidance.
Unfortunately, TV news website reports provide very little information. I did check out the area's newspaper, but they don't have a story. I am not sure if Sam Adams was a trail name or not. But it seems like a trail name to me.
earlyriser26
07-28-2008, 13:50
What was originally on day 47 of his TJ?
Day 47 was more about missing Martha and Rick (his girlfriend and best friend) and how life wasn't worth living without them. It was the most suicidal of his journal entries. I may be wrong, but some of his earlier entries seem to have been edited taking out a lot of the stuff about Martha. I'm wondering if he got off trail and edited his journal entries, leaving folks just wondering...
earlyriser26
07-28-2008, 14:49
Yeah, the TJ is very dark, but like you say, it may have even been darker. I'm having a difficult time understanding his obvious depression on one hand because of a broken relationship? and his obvious dislike for so many different people and things on the other.
DesertMTB
07-28-2008, 15:00
Day 47 was more about missing Martha and Rick (his girlfriend and best friend) and how life wasn't worth living without them. It was the most suicidal of his journal entries. I may be wrong, but some of his earlier entries seem to have been edited taking out a lot of the stuff about Martha. I'm wondering if he got off trail and edited his journal entries, leaving folks just wondering...
But didn't Sam indicate in his last entry that someone had his password and told them not to say anything stupid? That person may have edited it was well.
However, I know you have been following Sam more than anyone redhat. I sure hope he got off the trail and is doing better now!
Jan LiteShoe
07-28-2008, 16:45
I'm having a difficult time understanding his obvious depression on one hand because of a broken relationship? and his obvious dislike for so many different people and things on the other.
Very sad people often get stuck in a loop, where everything seems personal and intentional. I think the term is "narcissistic encapsulation." It's a treadmill of unintentional self-induced misery, fueled by active, unhappy imagination and thoughts. Those so stuck are not very kind to themselves either, deepening their misery and cutting them off further from the kinship of their fellows.
I feel for anyone stuck in such a loop. When in this state, their minds aren't working in a way that will bring them ease and allow them to experience the sweetness of life that accompanies the hard parts.
There are therapeutic ways to exit out of hell, but usually the black thinking that says "yes, but that wouldn't work for me" is believed.
It's a fiendish Catch-22 of the mind. Any good information/circumstances is discounted, or unseen. Any bad information/remark is taken as truth. The exit can be hard to find in the dark. The very tool that can set you straight - the mind - is the very tool that is pulling you down.
I don't know what the answer is, but ridicule or harsh judgment probably isn't useful; It's a "there for the grace of God go I" kind of thing...
Pedaling Fool
07-28-2008, 17:01
...It's a fiendish Catch-22 of the mind. Any good information/circumstances is discounted, or unseen. Any bad information/remark is taken as truth. The exit can be hard to find in the dark. The very tool that can set you straight - the mind - is the very tool that is pulling you down...
So true! The mind is a very powerful thing, but that doesn't always equate to a positive. Someone stuck in that loop has no less a powerful mind, it's just plain stuck.
Not passing judgement in this case, I have no idea what's going on, nor do I have an opinion.
Bulldawg
07-28-2008, 17:06
Wow, I don't know. Seems like some stuff has been edited since I last saw the journal. Who is to say if he edited or someone else did. I certainly hope he did. Does TJ not have a real name in their database somewhere?
KarenM982
07-29-2008, 14:12
Day 47 was more about missing Martha and Rick (his girlfriend and best friend) and how life wasn't worth living without them. It was the most suicidal of his journal entries. I may be wrong, but some of his earlier entries seem to have been edited taking out a lot of the stuff about Martha. I'm wondering if he got off trail and edited his journal entries, leaving folks just wondering...
I read that entry when it was first posted and that's now what it was about. I usually checked his journal every day because his entries made me concerned, and I read Day 47 and the next day I saw it had been deleted. Since he deleted it from his journal, I dont feel comfortable describing what it was about in an open forum. I will say that I didn't consider it a suicidal entry...it was a detailed account of something that happened on that day that he wishes to forget.
earlyriser26
08-07-2008, 13:33
Has anyone got an update?:confused:
Analogman
08-07-2008, 13:44
Maybe he is in the process of ditching his heavy gear and making a re-emergence as Sam Adams Light.
+1 Funny!
f8lranger4x4
08-11-2008, 19:04
I was section hiking that area the weekend of his last entry and i dont remember bumping into a sam adams. Who knows.
KarenM982
08-11-2008, 21:30
It just occurred to me that the trail name Sam Adams is most likely in reference to Samuel Adams, one of the Founding Fathers. I just watched Part I of the HBO Mini-Series 'John Adams' and Sam Adams is a prominent character. When I was reading Sam Adams' trail journal, I remember him mentioning several times that he was in the process of watching this mini-series, and would even try to plan it so he would be in a hotel to catch the next part of the series.
I agree, Karen, seems the name was more connected to history than the beer. Whatever, I know from other journals that he was hiking (one person mentioned what a talker he was early in her journals) My take is that he got off the trail and just wanted to forget about his journal.
f8lranger4x4
08-11-2008, 22:24
well hopefully he is ok and did no harm to him self