It had never occurred to me that hitchhiking was something for which we could train. What would we do? Attach some weights by string and do a few sets of thumb curls? Interestingly, the more reading Jeremy and I have done, the more evident it has become that hitchhiking is an art that involves many subtle nuances. In the spirit of developing our strategy, we went practice hitchhiking.
Some friends dropped us off about 60 miles away in Calhoun, Georgia. Georgians are amiable folks, so we made some good friends. The first guy who picked us up was a Vietnam Vet. (that's veteran...not veterinarian, although he does have horses) named Kenny (the man's name was Kenny, not the horses'...excuse my affinity for the parenthese). Kenny was a very patriotic man, one of those, I think, who rushed to buy ammunition last year when Russia encroached on Georgian soil. Since that time Kenny has been able to sort out some of his geographical misconceptions. He continues to serve his countrymen. We are indebted to Kenny for his service in our military, and for a ride to the north side of town.
We were surprised, for our next ride, to be picked up by two ladies. Leslie and her daughter Lynn were on their way to Dalton for an appointment with an optometrist. I thought it was brave (though reckless) of them to pick up two scruffy guys. When they pulled up Leslie rolled down the window and asked us if we had any "Nine's or 45's." We assured her of our weaponlessness, and she believed us. Evidently criminals in Georgia have a reputation for being honest about their intentions. Nice place, Georgia.
We made it most of the way back home before succumbing to the temptation to have a friend pick us up. Admittedly, it seems like two guys who claim they can make it all the way around the world by buses, trains, and hitchhiking, should have been able to make the 60 mile trip. There are some excuses that I consider relevant, but maybe it's better just to admit that we're soft. Honestly, the practice session leaves me daunted by the prospects of the real trip. But we'll get tougher. We're not overwhelmed, just whelmed.
