3 Days of My Life

Day 2 2000

Brushed my teeth BEFORE eating, because we were going to take our tents down and pack up before heading across the street for breakfast. It was kind of fun seeing everyone hobbling stiffly to the sinks in various stages of dress. Breakfast was good. We sat on the sidewalk in the sun because it was still a bit chilly and the seating (same as for supper) was at picnic tables under tents). Boy, I don’t think I’ve ever enjoyed oatmeal so much! Also scrambled eggs, biscuits and gravy, bagels, pears, and yogurt. AND...a turkey sausage, which was actually quite good (and I don’t think I was supposed to get one, since I had the veggie band).

Lots of cool T-shirts. I wore my yellow one on which I had written lots of motivational quotations, including “When the will is ready, the feet are light” and “Whether you think you can, or whether you think you can’t, you’re right.” Best T-shirt: (photo of 4 women): “Two Mothers, Two Daughters, 3 Days, One Goal.”

Overheard: arguing about sore feet: “It’s not the new shoes, it’s my toes,” “What, your new toes?”

We were extremely giddy and silly Day 2 morning, but I started feeling tired again before lunch. We learned there is a difference between regular miles and “Avon” miles. They weren’t quite honest with us about how far it was to our lunch stop. It seemed to take forever. Walking, walking, walking. Some people behind us were playing what sounded like an extended version of 20 Questions. The set-up: a man is dead at the bottom of a cliff. How did he die? Turns out he was Superman, and the cliff was made of Kryptonite.

We finally heard the megaphones for lunch. Annette and I joked that they were saying, “We’re out of food! Keep walking! Don’t stop!” But luckily this wasn’t the case. I was not at all hungry and felt like I was forcing myself to eat. Lunch was not too great: a COLD veggie burger on a bun with cheese, bean salad, and a delicious cold apple. Even tho conversation was cheery as usual, I couldn’t help wondering, “How am I going to walk another 12 miles?” But, what else could I do?!! I didn’t want to get sweeped, tho at least it was an option. Felt much better after lunch and a rest.

Much of Day 2 afternoon was kinda boring; we walked along train tracks with woods on one side. But no matter how tired we got, there was always something to motivate us. In one town, we encountered a volunteer traffic guard who must’ve been in the military. She stopped us at the intersection and yelled about us being in a small town and to be especially careful of traffic, because, “NO ONE BECOMES A HOOD ORNAMENT ON MY WATCH!!!” We loved it. Also keeping us going was the thought of reaching the cheering station in Glencoe. Most of our family members were gathering there. I had told my Mom I thought we’d be coming through around noon, but we didn’t get there till around 3:30.

Oh, we finally got there! First we saw Elma’s husband, Steve, who’d told Elma he would be there with “a big sign.” Turns out the sign was her son, “Young” Steve, who had flown in from Florida to surprise his mom. OH MY GOD!!! It was so moving and amazing. We all hugged Steve, Elma cried, Big Steve beamed. Absolutely wonderful. Then I saw Mom, who had a sign, “Yay Julia!!!” It was soooo great to see her!!!!!! She’d been there since 11!!!!!!! Candus was trying to find out where Mark and the kids were, and we ended up staying at that station for about half-hour. Finally they showed up and it was well worth it to see Ava and Matthew running across the street, screaming, “MOMMY!!!” and hugging Candus. Very, very fun, and even tho we lost some time, the rest was good for us, and all the family was definitely good for our morale.

Another morale booster 2 hours later at Mason Park in Evanston. Mom, Dad, and Karl were there. I felt kinda bad Dave hadn’t popped up, but it WAS nice to see the others.

As we were walking down Grosse Point Rd., who should pass by on his way home from work but Annette’s husband Mark?!!!!! How exciting! We all screamed at him like he was a rock star, and he pulled over and talked for a bit, covered in paint but just adorable. Annette was sooo happy, and we were all so happy that she’d finally seen someone she knew. Then I had to comment, in a half-joking way, that all but one husband had shown up. We finally dragged into the camp in Skokie at about 6:30, and I don’t know where we were in the long line of walkers, but it must’ve been pretty close to the end. There were a LOT of people waiting at the opening to the campsite and cheering us in. We saw Elma’s 2 Steves again, Candus’s husband Mark, and...DAVE!!!!! I couldn’t BELIEVE IT!! But there he was!!!!! I had to stop myself from running (running is a no-no) but it was sooooooo GREAT! He scooped me up and kissed me and everyone was happy!!!! YAY!!! I was so exhausted and delirious it just seemed surreal. Some tents (not ours) had been set up by Boy Scouts, but Dave, Steve, and Mark helped us.

We hit the showers first again, getting dried off and dressed in a hurry, since it was chillier than the night before. Elma and I returned to find that the others had already gone to dinner, so we went together. I didn’t care what was for supper, I ate all of it. Another veggie burger (this time heated), with Dijon sauce, broccoli, tossed green salad, buttered potatoes, breadsticks, and chocolate éclair, which I passed on. It all tasted really good.

That evening was downright cold! I saw a LOT of people in mylar blankets, and of course, Elma had brought one with her, so I wore a tinfoil skirt to brush my teeth. Borrowed Candus’s sweats and wore 2 shirts and a sweatshirt to bed. To bed by 9:30 and fell asleep pretty quickly. GREAT NIGHT’S SLEEP! I only slept till about 4:15, but it was quality sleep. It rained at some point during the night.

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Day 3 2000