Plane got in last night to Medford. In the morning it was uber rides around town to pickup a fuel canister then a $120 uber ride to the trailhead around noon. Got dumped at the edge of a busy highway and headed into the bush.

About .1 mile in, I ran into my first PCTer. Magid Marker was laying in her tent by a stream sleeping off the days heat. We chatted for a minute then I was on my way, getting in the first big climb of the day from 5k to 6.5 or so.

The heatwave is pretty rough right now. Low 90’s to start, but got cooler as I climbed higher. The trail is super shady, which is a nice change from hiking the desert last month. The downside is no views to speak of, just green tunnel on a comfortable trail.

I got to Twin Ponds trail junction around 7. There are two choices: go left for swampy pond or right for squaw lake. Took the right which turned out to be a rightous campsite right on the lake. Even the mosquitoes took the day off today and were not that bad. After I setup my tent and was eating dinner, Magic Marker turned up. She setup next to me and we chatted for a bit.

She said I must be “fresh to the trail, because I seemed so happy when we first met at the stream crossing”. Heh. I didn’t realize how charged up I was to get back out here.

She is a speech pathologist from NYC. She came out in March to do the first section of the PCT starting from Campo. It was her first backpacking experience. Well apparently she liked it and decided to keep going. She put her house up for sale and closed escrow when she got to Kennedy meadows! I asked her how she delt with all the paperwork. She had given power of attorney to some lawyer and poof….house sold, check in her account, and continue hiking. Her plans after the trail are undefined. Love it.

On a side note, she is the first african-american gal I’ve seen on the trail. Hope there are more in the future. I told her about the asian guy Vincent from NYC who had a similar story. There should be a club for NYC expats who have forsaken the City for living in the dirt.

8 miles for my first few hours on the trail. Feeling good.

Today is June 30, 2021.  Just checked my Oracle laptop for any last minute emails…login not found.   At 5:00 PM PST some automated script erased all my access.   That’s how it ends….login not found.

It is funny how when switching jobs in the past I never noticed this.  I was moving on to something new and exciting.   My previous contacts would be a source of advice, people I could network with, hire, generate leads, continue to discuss ideas, etc.   Frankly, I never really quit a company, I just moved to another gig.   The cloud of friends and associates stayed with me.  Moving forward.   Onward to the next thing.   

Well this is different.  There is no next thing in technology for me.  I’m not off to build a new product, rescue a project, or build a consulting team.   I’m not joining an organization to solve the world’s next big business problem.   Nope, it is just me and my daughter’s dog sitting here in my man cave.   I’m drinking some gifted 18 yr old Scotch and trying to deal with the void I’ve created for myself.   The dog?   He’s hoping I’ll give him another treat.   My loyal staff.  

Despite the decades of planning this is hitting me pretty hard.   It is tough when so much of my life was defined by a career that was both challenging and so much fun.   Alice threw me a fantastic retirement party.   I received some wonderful emails from previous employees and employers.  Over my career I have done a few bad things, a lot of good things, improved the world in some small way, and reaped reasonable financial rewards doing so.   I’ve climbed the career ladder, reached my personal zenith, and lingered for a while.   Even though I no longer wished to climb the next rung, I was comforted knowing it was there above me.  Waiting.  Now there is no ladder. 

There is no spoon.   

For the first time since May, 1989 I am jobless with zero career prospects.  If I spend much time in my current mindset I’m pretty sure that bottle would soon be gone.   Thankfully I will not have much time to sulk.   In a few days I will be back on the Pacific Crest Trail and have far more basic worries to occupy me.

So, here’s the plan.   I just booked a flight to Medford, OR for Saturday night.   On Sunday morning, July 4th 2021, I’ll find somebody to take me to the PCT and start walking North.   I’ll have 2 months on the trail to figure out what comes next.