Day 28–July 31, 2009
Strictly speaking homelessness means not having a home. But there are many ways a person can be homeless; staying with family or friends; living in transitional housing or shelters; or simply getting by on the street, in cars, or in tents.
Regardless, homelessness is the result of a breakdown in community. For those [...]

Day 27–July 30, 2009
Nearly four weeks and 230 miles into my trip I have come to the realization that injuries cannot be ignored. So, as of today, I am stepping off the road. It is my hope that after a couple weeks of rest my ankle will be ready to pound the pavement once again.
Though [...]

Day 26–July 29, 2009 (rest in Pittsburgh, 0.0 miles)
Since I began my walk not a month ago I have climbed mountains and walked beside farm fields. I have met amazing and generous people and made lifelong friends. I’ve walked through impoverished communities and been touched as those with almost nothing pulled money out of their [...]

Day 25–July 28 (North Versailles, PA-Pittsburgh, PA, 12.7 miles)
Virginia Woolf once said that for women to be successful as writers they had to have a “room of one’s own.” But many women do not even have a place to call home, let alone a room to devote to creative endeavors.
In Pittsburgh there are numerous shelters, [...]

Day 24–July 27 (Irwin, PA-North Versailles, PA, 7.6 miles)
Though I am not as fearful of spending the night sleeping outside as I was at the start of my trip, it is stressful. There is a strategy in finding a location that is safe and neither too dark nor too light. Earlier today I had turned [...]

Day 22–July 25 (rest in Greensburg, PA, 0.0 miles)
I have never understood what it is that empowers some of us to always stand up for what is right, regardless of the consequences, while others stand idly by at the injustices of this world.
While I was at Target in Greensburg yesterday I met John and his [...]

Day 21–July 24 (rest in Greensburg, PA, 0.0 miles)
As of today the federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour. It is the third and final increase in a phased hike in the minimum wage that began in 2007. Prior to 2007, the minimum wage had not seen an increase since it was set at $5.15 [...]

Day 19–July 22 (Latrobe, PA-Greensburg, PA, 11.4 miles)
For whatever reason, since I have been walking I have not gone a day without eating ice cream. Some days I find myself stopping for ice cream more than once a day. So when as I came across Peaches ‘n Cream on Route 30 in Greensburg there was [...]

Day 18–July 21 (rest in Latrobe, PA, 0.0 miles)
For the second day since I injured my ankle I decided it was too painful to walk. Yet, while I have the luxury to stay and rest, many people do not. One woman I met a few days ago told me of her battle with Crohn’s disease, [...]

Day 17–July 20 (Ligonier, PA-Latrobe, PA, 9.2 miles)
Five years ago tomorrow my father-in-law died after after bravely battling repeated strokes that robbed him of his mobility but not of his humor and wit. I did not have the good fortune of spending much time with Martin before he became ill, but I always admired his [...]

Day 16–July 19 (Laurel Mountain, PA-Ligonier, PA, 7.7 miles)
“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one’s lifetime.” –Mark Twain

Only an estimated [...]

Day 15–July 18 (Kantner, PA-Laurel Mountain, PA, 12.1 miles)
Little did I know when I got up this morning that I was about to become a Shaggy Dog. Pushing through the pain of my throbbing ankle I climbed Laurel Mountain on Route 30 and, when I reached the top, walked into Walat’s bar looking for a [...]

Day 14–July 17 (Indian Lake, PA-Kantner, PA, 7.9 miles)
The small downtown of Stoystown, Pa., has no restaurants or grocery stores. Even the vending machine in the center of town is out of order. At one time the town supported numerous shops including the small Stoystown Market. Now just a few businesses remain. When I asked [...]

Day 13–July 16 (Reels Corner, PA-Indian Lake, PA, 3 miles)
For more than an hour I sat at the Subway shop at the intersection of Routes 30 and 160 in Reels Corner debating whether to rest a day or push on. At some point during my walk yesterday I injured my ankle. But despite the pain [...]

Day 12–July 15 (Bedford, PA-Reels Corner, PA, 18.3 miles)
If there is one thing I hope to accomplish on my walk, it is to inspire people to look within their own community and make it a better place to live. One such example is the fund-raising golf tournament at the Northwinds Golf Course on Indian Lake. [...]