03-16-11 Paranoia strikes deep, Into your life it will creep.

03-16-11
“Paranoia strikes deep, Into your life it will creep. It starts when you’re always afraid.”
After packing camp and taking my shower I stopped at the ranger station for a last bit of internet access before heading to St. Mary’s. A young man joined me at the bench and we started a brief conversation. We got around to my jouney and he took it into a whole new level. Talking about political macro economics and emphasizing each statement by fingering little circles on the tabletop. At first I though he was demonstrating who a concept would expand, but he did that with every point he made. Sometimes using a single digit, sometimes two or three. His vision of where American society was heading was dystopic and disturbing.. He said he and his family were living off the grid and constantly moving. We got to a discussion about sustainability and he told me of this friend of his who was doing “something like that” in Africa and gave me a website for it. This young man was intelligent, educated but so afraid that he’d uprooted his family and had given his trust to a religious group of possible good intentions, but perhaps so had Jim Jones and David Koresh been at one time. I grew silent and finished my internet browsing having found one bit of useful information - a KOA campground advertising a special for less that the State Park I had planned to use that night. I got up and said a polite goodbye without engaging any further. I hope that young man’s paranoia ends at some point before his life gets forever altered away from participating with society. Ironically we were both “nomadic” in America, but I still plan to be a part of America rather than Apart from America.
I took the long drive down to St. Mary’s and got a fill up of gas at the Murphy’s connected to the Walmart there thanks to the gift card from my sister Cindy almost a month prior. This would get me to Orlando and perhaps back.
I checked out the KOA offer and called in to get the deal. I had to give my credit card to secure it but was assured I could pay cash when I got there. I explained I was one off ramp away and would be there in about 5 minutes. When I got there I found out that they had collected the payment off my card. Not Ideal, but thankfully the card I gave them had enough to cover the payment. But not by much. I was escorted to my campsite. Electric, Water & Wifi for only 14.99* (Plus taxes & Fees), plus they give you a waffle breakfast! And hot Showers! The place even had a dog playground - an enclosed space for dogs to run free. I took Mischa there but the freedom didn’t seem to impress her. She did about the same as she would on leash. Look for places to relieve herself, or come over to me and look up.
After setting up camp I brought out the netbook to try to post some things on line and other research. I couldn’t get online and the code I was given didn’t seem to find a source to get connected. I went to the office and a young man named Travis said he’d be over to get me connected. He came by about 15 minutes later saying “yeah, you’ve got service” as I was still trying to connect. I said “I can’t get any pages on my browser”. See, even my cell is getting it. We’ll that doesn’t help me. Let me look at it. Oh, you’ve got a 3rd party lan card. Let me fix that” and he proceeded to go to arcane reaches of my computer and make it happen. That’s great, but…what did you do and how can I do it next time? I’ll make a shortcut for your desktop. Just click add and you can pick the server you want rather than it picking for you. Sometimes it will pick the weakest signal available. This will give you more control, plus you can see what’s available.
And that my friends, was another turning point in my Journey.
Travis and I also spoke about my journey and he had some interesting views as well. I see that when we come out of this economic time that people will become more Nomadic. (There it was again!) But rather than doing it because it was to follow herds or migratory patterns it will be because they have the technology to roam. And there’s less need to be tied to a place for a job. Maybe it’s my old fashioned sensibilities but I think people will still want to have the continuity of a home base and the community that many years helps accumulate. But with social networking he asserts you can still have those connections, but not be tied to place.
Unlike the dystopic vision of the earlier conversation, Travis’ view is optimistic and forward looking. Different than what we’ve grown comfortable with, but so were our views in the hippie days rejecting our parents idea of career for twenty years and a gold watch for service with the same company. I asked If I could interview him for my project as one of his co-workers came up and said is something wrong with your walkie - we’ve been calling you. And mosquitos started feasting on my feet and legs. It was time for both of us to go.
I spent the night writing in the tent (and watching netflix streaming a movie to my “room”.) went to sleep to calm warm winds.