View Full Version : Weird Things we Think About
Downunda
12-29-2008, 03:16
When I was hiking the AT I found my mind wandered all over the place, sometimes I would think about regrets re things I have done or should have done during my life. At one stage I thought about every job I had during my life (14) and tried to remember everyone that I worked with in each of those companies (this took a long time).
I also went through the process of trying to remember the names of everyone in my classes at grade school.
I couldn't stop from thinking about these things so I went with the flow and exhausted each one and then it was done.
Am I weird or what, what wacky things did you get stuck thinking about whilst hiking?
mtnkngxt
12-29-2008, 08:17
I actually didn't think about home at all on my section. I'm more of a dreamer when i hit the trail, thinking about how great it would be to be a river guide or a deep sea fishing charter boat captain. I tried to forget school and the 9-5. However I'm a strong believer in HYOH, because people hit the trail for all kinds of reasons, and they grow in different ways. What was my 2 month escape from the world may have been something completely different for you. As far as being weird well we do spend weeks on end with no running water or indoor plumbing ad eat ramen like it was filet mignon, I think we are all a little weird.
My minds wanders "like the wild geese in the west" while I hike. Not day hiking though. IT takes a multi-day backpacking trip to fire up the old synapses like that. It's one of the many benefits of backpacking.
Lone Wolf
12-29-2008, 08:51
what wacky things did you get stuck thinking about whilst hiking?
food, sex and takin' a dump
I think about stuff all the time on a long hike.
One time I spent a couple of days setting up what to do with 30 years of payments after I hit the Powerball Lottery. I wish I'd written that down, since I'm sure I'll win any day now. :D
garlic08
12-29-2008, 09:57
I try to run entire albums through my head, every word to every song, in order. I hiked with someone who could do that with old movies.
buckwheat
12-29-2008, 10:04
I try to run entire albums through my head, every word to every song, in order. I hiked with someone who could do that with old movies.
Does anyone carry those little 7-inch portable DVD players with them?
food, sex and takin' a dumpWait....that's mostly all I ever think about.... :-?
Plodderman
12-29-2008, 11:04
My mine wonders for awhile but mostly after acouple of days of hiking my mind kind of blanks out and I just think about the hike. I do spend dome times on things I would like to change.
Does anyone carry those little 7-inch portable DVD players with them?
Sometimes I bring one on winter trips with my son. He's not a fan of sitting by the fire for 5 hours. I let him take it if he carries it because he only carries his foam pad, a sleeping bag and some clothes, about 6 lbs. I lug the rest.
An mp3/video player like a creative Zen would be a better option for hiking and carry less of a stigma since many people already carry ipods.
http://images.americas.creative.com/images/products/inline/inline1_16999_1_1_61.jpg
Back to the original question. Normally my somewhat ADD mind wanders all over the place, but when I'm in the woods it's blissfully empty and in the present. Like staring in the fire, but all day long.
stumpknocker
12-29-2008, 11:24
I have one problem that I've been trying to figure out for years with no success and I usually think about it at least once a day while I'm walking through the woods.........how do they get that white stuff inside a Twinkie? :-?
Please, don't tell me if you know. There's some things a hiker just has to figure out on his own. :)
When I was hiking the AT I found my mind wandered all over the place, sometimes I would think about regrets re things I have done or should have done during my life. At one stage I thought about every job I had during my life (14) and tried to remember everyone that I worked with in each of those companies (this took a long time).
I also went through the process of trying to remember the names of everyone in my classes at grade school.
I couldn't stop from thinking about these things so I went with the flow and exhausted each one and then it was done.
Am I weird or what, what wacky things did you get stuck thinking about whilst hiking?
happens all the time. that's good stuff right there. hiking's a great time to just let your mind run through things that it wants to process without having to keep your thoughts structured or worrying about things like you would at work or at home. (what needs to get done, what's not finished, etc..) it's kinda like letting a grade schooler out for recess.
it's also the reason i don't take music with me hiking. my brain needs to ramble and recharge and an mp3 would just distract me from that.
I think about my dogs quite a bit and my Mom... oh yeah, I write romance novels in my head.. they always have a happy ending too..haha
OldStormcrow
12-29-2008, 15:18
What I really hate is when I'm hiking solo and get a song stuck in my head for days on end. Like once when I had Eddie From Ohio's "Albert Einstein" and "Stupid American" repeating over and over in my head while hiking in sleet and slush for about 3 days. Seems like the only thing that will get rid of a stuck song like that is by singing Lynard Skynard's "Sweet Home Alabama" a few times.....that usually jars things loose.
Well, now, it all depends on what I want to focus on.
Sometimes, I just go Zen and focus on my breathing and my footsteps.
Sometimes, I play mind games, like those mentioned above, with songs, TV shows, movies, or remembering old classmates.
Sometimes, I do fantasy-a-go-go, like Lone Wolf, and MtnKingXT, except for the dumping part:eek:. This usually results in frustration, so I usually avoid going there.
Sometimes, I just sing derivations of songs I know. I always remember the tune, but forget most of the words, so I just make them up.
Many times, I get those "ear worms" of songs crawling through my head, but they usually aren't too intrusive, more like wallpaper in the background.
I have found that the miles pass most easily, and I have a much more profound sense of life when I go Zen. It seems to open up my awareness of my surroundings and let's me just be IN the world, but not OF the world.
What I really hate is when I'm hiking solo and get a song stuck in my head for days on end....
I had "Red Barchetta" by Rush going through my head for an entire 12-day trip. Nothing I tried could shake it. :o
Once I start counting steps, it's hard getting my mind off the process.... Things like: How many steps from tree A to tree B? 1,2,400...
The voices in my head keep up a steady chatter. Hard to do any thinking at all.
One of the things I would think about on my thru was about my own life. I would start to think of things about my early years and start from my first memories and continue on from there. I would do this for a couple of houre or until I was distracted by something. When I started again I would go back to the begining and start over again. I would keep adding things that I would remember.
I have told a lot of folks, after my hike, that one thing a thru-hike does is that it gives you plenty of time to think about your life and what you can do with the rest of it.
I often find the lyrics to songs buried in my head. Notably, I realized that I knew every song the Stevie Nicks has ever sung. I had no idea. I don't even like the Eagles (but I think she's ok.) So I had the entire Stevie Nicks catalogue in my head for one trip, accompanied by "Kill the Wabbit, Kill the Wabbit" really slow on some uphills.
Last trip: Behind Blue Eyes, specifically the line "but my dreams, they aren't as empty, as my conscience seems to be" with Metallica's One to mix things up. Which brought up the plotline of the book Johnny's Got His Gun. It may have been all the rain.
OverLoad
12-29-2008, 18:07
I spent much time thinking about the next camp and how good my liption-rice meal was going to tast.
what it would be like to be Lonewolfs son
Excellent thread. I found that I missed the sounds of the birds, and the leaves, and the running water, when I tried listening to my MP3. So I just waslked along listening to the birds and the leaves and the water. I'm a freak like that.
Highway Man
12-29-2008, 18:24
I often think about my personal life while on the trails. I realized it and kept telling myself it would ruin my trip if i continued to do so. The distraction sometimes caused a little trouble for me:confused:. No majot has happened yet. I must change this habit, and focus on what is the purpose out in the woods .
TrippinBTM
12-29-2008, 19:47
haha, I remember when I was climbing Mt. Greylock, I was "writing" a fantasy novel in my head, reminiscent of Lord of the Rings. Like I was on some great and perilous quest, going up to the tower on the mountaintop with my loyal group of warriors. I wish I'd written it down, or somehow recorded it; coulda been the makings of a book.
otherwise, I'm playing music in my head, trying to figure out all the lyrics (I'm not good enough to do whole albums). Or I'm thinking about life, God, philosophical stuff; I do my best thinking when I'm hiking/walking. I've had some pretty big epiphanies about my own life and shortcomings, and I've also thought of all kinds of random rubbish, mind candy so to speak. I like the phrase of one's mind "wandering like wild geese in the west," it really applies.
and yeah, funny to see someone else say it, but one day a hiking partner and I (mostly him) thought of what we'd each do with 300 million bucks from a big lotto win. His ideas were much better thought out; I'd just buy some big acerage in a remote place and build a cabin, and give the rest away. he was all about being a venture capitalist, haha.
TrippinBTM
12-29-2008, 19:49
I often think about my personal life while on the trails. I realized it and kept telling myself it would ruin my trip if i continued to do so. The distraction sometimes caused a little trouble for me:confused:. No majot has happened yet. I must change this habit, and focus on what is the purpose out in the woods .
maybe there's a reason it keeps bubbling up? Try following it, you might learn something.
I had "Red Barchetta" by Rush going through my head for an entire 12-day trip. Nothing I tried could shake it. :o
I've had that song in my head when I hike too. The only way I can get it out is to replace it with other great songs, such as Freewill, Limelight and YYZ.
2Questions
12-29-2008, 20:13
I met a thru I think it was 2002...Mainframe? He told me he spent most of his day designing database programs!!
The voices in my head keep up a steady chatter. Hard to do any thinking at all.
That about sums it up for me, too. And counting steps, listening to birds, water, and leaves, thinking about food, looking at the trees.
Then I get to thinking about sex and dreaming of those three beautiful nymphettes that are waiting at the next shelter for me... but all I ever see when I get there are stinky, bearded guys. At least I think they're guys.
Bummer.
mkmangold
12-30-2008, 01:32
food, sex and takin' a dump
This quote just confirms my belief that we are merely worms with decorations!
Kerosene
12-30-2008, 01:37
what wacky things did you get stuck thinking about whilst hiking?Great question. One of the reasons I go backpacking is to get away from work. My wife always notes that I look a lot more relaxed when I return ("all your frown lines are gone!").
Part of the reason is that most of my mind is occupied with thoughts such as:
How far to the next reliable water source?
When was the last time I saw a blaze?
Where the #$* did that root/stone/branch come from?
What is causing that pain and will it go away or not?
Boy, I feel great!
Boy, I feel like crap.
Is that the sun coming out?
What was that?
Did I leave anything at my last rest stop?
Did I just hear a voice?
What kind of flower is that?
How fast am I walking?
Can I make it to camp before dark?
My feet/back/shoulders/knees/ankles hurt.
I wish it wasn't so hot/cold/windy/rainy.
Am I being too risky here?
Why the hell am I subjecting myself to this discomfort?
Wow, this is great!
What kind of animal track is that?
Who blazed this trail?
Should I take a picture or not?
and on, and on, and on...
Frequently an earworm starts to lodge itself in my brain, but I've gotten pretty good at stomping them out after an hour or so, usually by working through a bunch of trivial math problems. Several times I swear that I've "composed" a fully orchestrated symphony that conveniently climaxes at the top of every ridge! Of course, I can never quite re-create the arrangement when I get back home.
Several times I've tried to do some "deep thinking", but frankly I'm just too pre-occupied with my hike and I let my mind wander anywhere and everywhere. I've gone out enough times that I realize I'll remember the good times and the bad memories will be softened a little.
Bare Bear
12-30-2008, 02:26
'How Its Made' The secret was lost when they stopped making them in 1948. They are just getting rid of old stock now. :)
ON the thread point: I believe I have solved all of the world's problems at least once each hike. That is why I find it so interesting to talk to all the other hikers at camp, which is the the second reason to get near shelters (the first is water source).
I have one problem that I've been trying to figure out for years with no success and I usually think about it at least once a day while I'm walking through the woods.........how do they get that white stuff inside a Twinkie? :-?
Please, don't tell me if you know. There's some things a hiker just has to figure out on his own. :)
superman
12-30-2008, 07:39
I have one problem that I've been trying to figure out for years with no success and I usually think about it at least once a day while I'm walking through the woods.........how do they get that white stuff inside a Twinkie? :-?
Please, don't tell me if you know. There's some things a hiker just has to figure out on his own. :)
LW already answered that question....food, sex and takin' a dump:) It's one of those.
a lot of times when i'm hiking, i get what my family calls a "song flu" where a song just stays in my head. usually its the last song i hear before i begin hiking. the past couple of years dan bern's music has been filling my head as i walk.
i also find myself thinking about the usual stuff: next water source, what food i'll eat in the next town, what kind of animal track is that?, etc.
but i've also noticed that when i'm on a long hike, my mind seems to hover around deep and spiritual concepts. considering i majored in political science/philosophy and at one time considered going into the ministry, i guess this would be par for the course. two years ago my thoughts centered around the concept of ego and how one may transcend ego. this past summer the theme was again the transcendence of ego being intertwined with forgiveness and compassion.
and i also use the trail to dynamite all the psychological bull**** that's been clouding my mind. the trail has a way of reminding me of what is really important in my life, and helps me see what it is i actually need as opposed to what i merely want.
yet regardless of what i *think* on the trail, i am more aware of the joy i feel when hiking. often when i'm plodding along i suddenly become aware of the big, dopey grin that i have unconsciously plastered on my big, dopey face, and i realize that i have for a brief moment in time cleared my mind of all thought and am just being one with the moment.
fifo
I remember, remembering Simpsons episodes during my Long trail end to end. I would laugh so hard I would have to stop hiking!!
LW already answered that question....food, sex and takin' a dump:) It's one of those.
Try not to think of more than one at a time.
Downunda
12-30-2008, 20:58
Oh I just remembered that I met another hiker on the AT (don't remember his name at present, maybe it will come back to me) who had a goal that during his hike he was going to make a decision about what he was going to do with his life after the AT (again I can't remember whether this was just related to his career or a complete lifestyle thing).
However, I do recall discussing this again with the same hiker in Maine and he hadn't even got around to thinking about it after 5 months on the trail. I figured that he had had the time to think this through but perhaps deep down it was a suject he really wanted to avoid.
johnnybgood
12-30-2008, 21:15
Supertramps " Logical Song" was the same way with me.
joshua5878
12-30-2008, 22:44
I had "Red Barchetta" by Rush going through my head for an entire 12-day trip. Nothing I tried could shake it. :o
but I love that song!
My uncle has a country place, that no one knows about
He says it used to be a farm, before the motor law
And on sundays I elude the eyes and hop the turbine freight
To far outside the wire, where my white-haired uncle waits.
Jump to the ground
As the turbo slows to cross the borderline
Run like the wind,
As excitement shivers up and down my spine
Down in his barn
My uncle preserved for me, an old machine ---
For fifty-odd years
To keep it as new has been his dearest dream
I strip away the old debris, that hides a shining car
A brilliant red barchetta, from a better, vanished time
I fire up the willing engine, responding with a roar
Tires spitting gravel, I commit my weekly crime...
Wind in my hair ---
Shifting and drifting ---
Mechanical music ---
Adrenalin surge ---
Well-weathered leather
Hot metal and oil
The scented country air
Sunlight on chrome
The blur of the landscape
Every nerve aware
Suddenly, ahead of me, across the mountainside
A gleaming alloy air-car shoots towards me, two lanes wide
I spin around with shrieking tires, to run the deadly race
Go screaming through the valley as another joins the chase
Drive like the wind
Straining the limits of machine and man
Laughing out loud
With fear and hope, Ive got a desperate plan
At the one-lane bridge
I leave the giants stranded
At the riverside
Race back to the farm
To dream with my uncle
At the fireside...
food, sex and takin' a dump
:banana:-?
Mrs Baggins
01-01-2009, 12:41
I often find the lyrics to songs buried in my head. Notably, I realized that I knew every song the Stevie Nicks has ever sung. I had no idea. I don't even like the Eagles (but I think she's ok.) So I had the entire Stevie Nicks catalogue in my head for one trip, accompanied by "Kill the Wabbit, Kill the Wabbit" really slow on some uphills.
Last trip: Behind Blue Eyes, specifically the line "but my dreams, they aren't as empty, as my conscience seems to be" with Metallica's One to mix things up. Which brought up the plotline of the book Johnny's Got His Gun. It may have been all the rain.
Pretty sure Stevie Nicks was with Fleetwood Mac - not the Eagles. Saw her perform at a Tom Petty concert 2 years ago. Still sounds great.
......
I tend to narrate my life as I'm hiking....you know, thinking of myself in the 3rd person as if I'm reading a book about someone else. I also think about places we've lived, people we've known, where I'd like to travel to next, how my kids are doing...............
Tom petty is the best. I would love to see him live. I saw fwm in the 80s.. they were terrific too.