Rockport, Tex
Thanks to Ray Bolger’s site http://www.slackpacker.com there are new terms for folks like me.
"slackpacker has come to represent anyone that fits in between the casual day hiker and the backpacker.”
His site is fun to read and is recommended. So it seems my style is slack packer, slack paddler, slack peddler and maybe all around slacker genius. Since Mr. Bolger is a fan of going fast when doing his slacking, it seems reasonable that the OFM’s other title of Meanderthall may be a subspecies of slacker.
We Meanderthalls tend to be long on the trail but not necessarily go very far but we do wander around and observe and study major and minute details. GrannyJ with her blog introduced me to the concept of looking at everything at least twice and taking my time about it. She has passed on now and I am thankful I took the time to learn from her.
Another important person has been Tamia Nelson of http://www.tamiasoutside.com/ . She taught me HOW to look for the small or normally un-noticed things when I take the time as GrannyJ taught me. Sometimes it is a simple as carrying a magnifying glass with you or maybe paying attention to the grasshopper flying next to you as you bike in the New Mexico desert. If you want to know how fast a grasshopper flies visit my blog entry of http://ofmadventures.blogspot.com/2008/09/brantley-park-tour.html .
So there we have it. My alter ego is a Meanderthall slacker and he so loves it when he is out trying to have tooooo much fun. TheOFM.
Bay Side of Mustang Island , Texas
Enjoyed your blog today. Words of wisdom along with some humor and information. Doesn't get any better than that.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the link to the hiking trail maps, etc. That may come in handy in my travels.
My cat taught me how to slow down and look around during our oh-so-meandering-walks each day. Spiders and webs loaded with dew, a deer frozen in time, voles creeping through the grass, colorful fungus peeking out from under the leaves--all things I would have missed if walking at my normal quick pace in an attempt at exercise. I like the cat's way better.
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