I'm back and I'm different!

I have an excellent excuse for neglecting this blog for so long. Although hiking the AT this summer was so meaningful and transformative for me, something else has recently happened that is even more life changing...

Since my last post on this webpage, I hiked forward through New York and the lower parts of New England, where I had a simply joyous time, and then reunited with Mad Hatter (my husband) to go home temporarily. I then finished hiking Georgia and did all of the southern part of North Carolina and Tennessee up to about the midpoint of the Smokies, at which point I'd finally hiked more than half of the trail! Retrospectively, I can now say that this milestone came rather too quickly. Time flies. I came home for a little while and one of the first things I did was buy a half gallon of icecream. I may not have hit my halfway point at a traditional spot on the trail, but I was still going to follow the tradition that all of my buddies attempted. As I was downing my icecream, I had to take a potty break. Now, what I've omitted is that I had a little secret: I was waiting to see my Aunt Flow, who was a few days late. When I bought my icecream, I also bought a little test in the pharmacy department. So, I brought the test with me to the bathroom, and upon less than a minute of waiting, was stunned by the result -- positive. I didn't go back to the icecream; I'd observed one of my friends vomit after completing his half gallon challenge, and suddenly it seemed like a reckless thing to do to my body, well, and the body growing inside it. Hiking more than a thousand miles was no longer a thing to celebrate. However, I did go back out not much later and in a single burst finished the 30-something miles that remained of the Smokies. I think I'm most amazed at my hiking in the Smokies, because although the terrain itself did not compare to the challenges faced in other parts of the trail, my body was really, really tired. I'd heard about morning sickness and other symptoms of pregnancy, but fatigue -- not. And interestingly, fatigue is almost the only symptom I've experienced in the 4+ months I've been pregnant. Go figure.

So, that's all I've got the energy for typing tonight. In the future, you can look forward to hearing about my crazy experiences in New England and the Southern Appalachians, as well as the HALF IRONMAN TRIATHLON that I miraculously relished doing a couple of weeks ago. And of course, there will now be a baby for me to babble on about. If you're interested, I am still painting and working in the school library, though less of the former and more of the latter than I'd really like, since I don't have the same energy that I used to have in a day. Perhaps I'll elaborate on the details of my work sometime. For now, so long, farewell, auf wiedersehen, und gute nacht! (Ok, maybe I get slightly weird when I'm tired, sorry).