Lunch with friends – On the Cross-County Trail – Reminiscences of an old departed friend – The Hike Across Maryland – Donald Trump unaware of the Talmudic injunction “Let another praise thee and not thine own mouth” — News from Portland – Evening statistics (both days)
I was a bit lazy yesterday. The only event of note was having lunch in a local restaurant with EG and HG – the first time I have dined with others in a restaurant since March. On the occasion of meeting with friends in the winery on July 27th, we had provided our own food, and on the occasion of my trip to Jim Thorpe in early August, my meals at restaurants were solitary. So this episode represented a new step in returning to normal activities. Of course we wore masks before we were seated at the table and equally of course we were sitting out of doors. The food was excellent, the service attentive, and EG and HG are always wonderful company. We discussed many matters, including the ongoing campaign. It is something of a relief to see Biden taking the initiative, not merely attacking Trump but actively refuting the notion that he supports the rioting and looting that has been going on in several cities (he has, indeed, openly denounced such activities) and, in general, showing an energy that up to this point has lain dormant. Earlier in the campaign, as I and many others noted, he was content to allow Trump to blunder and appear increasingly inept; now that the conventions for both parties are over, he evidently feels – and, as I think, correctly – that the time has come to deliver his messages more forcibly.
Outside of that, I was fairly idle in the afternoon – hiking 17 miles the day before can have that effect. But today I met with RS to do some exploration of the local trails. We started at Difficult Run and went along the Cross-County Trail to Twin Branches in Reston, and from there we ate lunch at the South Lakes shopping center (where, unfortunately, construction blocked the entrance to the sitting area beside the lake). RS is doing a series of 25-mile hikes for four days, staying overnight close to the location of the end of the day’s hike. Since I had to get back to my car, I turned back at that point, but I will be rejoining him tomorrow and Saturday. It was hot and humid, and exposed in some areas, but the trail is relatively flat and not at all arduous. I walked about 19 miles in all, and while I was rather tired at the end I was not exhausted, despite the heat.
When I parked at Difficult Run I was assailed by certain memories. My friend Sherrie Taylor (I feel no constraint in writing out her name in full, for regrettably she passed away many years ago) and I once went on a splendid winter hike together by ourselves starting from Difficult Run, which was a favorite area of hers, and from there we went to Great Falls, about 2 miles away, where we covered several of the trails in the area. It was one of those extraordinary winter days that sometimes visit this region, with a sky of cerulean blue illuminated by a brilliant sun, its rays reflected by a light covering of powdery white snow on the ground, newly-fallen and therefore unsullied by particles of soot or mud. The views of the Potomac and of the Falls in particular displayed their most radiant aspect in such a setting.
I have mentioned that Difficult Run was one of her favorite areas and when she passed away – far, far too soon! – her ashes were scattered just off of the portion of the trail that runs from Georgetown Pike to the Potomac. Whenever I am in that area – and I go there fairly often – I am invariably reminded of her.
When I first joined the Wanderbirds, she went out of her way to make me feel welcome (as she ordinarily did for all newcomers to the club) and it was she who gave me the greatest amount of encouragement when I undertook, in 2009, to complete the Hike Across Maryland. This event occurs every two years and consists of hiking the totality of the portion of the Appalachian Trail that runs through Maryland, about 41 miles in all, with about 6000 elevation gain. That sounds like a great deal, but in fact most of the ascent is contained in three long climbs spaced well apart from one another and the remainder of the trail consists of very moderate ups and downs, interspersed with stretches of level ground. Still, this event was the first one of such magnitude that I had undertaken, and I was apprehensive about it. In particular I was anxious because I was unable, due to scheduling difficulties, do any hiking the week before. (I was working at the time, so the only times I could undertake long hikes were during the weekends.) But she told me, “You don’t want to do anything very strenuous the week before a hike like this. What you need to do is go out a few miles in your local area every day before the hike, so that you ensure that you’re limber on the day of the hike.” I took her advice, and it proved to be invaluable. I completed the route in a little over 11 hours. I was tired at the end, but I had been able to pace myself throughout and I did not run out of energy in the middle of the hike, as many of the other participants did. I look upon her encouragement and her counsel as a major factor in my being able to complete such an event successfully.
It is so tempting to run on about Sherrie. Any hike that she led was invariably a festive occasion. She was wonderfully ingenious at devising new methods of giving pleasure to others – whether it was organizing Easter Egg hunts after a hike at the appropriate season or providing hot cider after cold winter hikes when we were assembling at the bus or supplying her special nine-layer salsa as part of the after-hike snacks. There were (and are) many in the club who went out of their way to set up a party atmosphere as the hike ended and the hikers were returning to the bus, but the hikes that she led were unique all the same. When, after her death, a memorial hike was held in her honor, over 60 people signed up for it, one of the largest numbers on record; the bus held only 57 at the time and some had to use carpooling.
From such fond memories I regretfully descend into the present political scene, a journey rather like the road to Avernus described by Virgil:
“The Dow Jones Industrial just closed above 29,000! You are so lucky to have me as your President.” Would any other president in history make such a claim? Every single one of our previous presidents has regarded the office as both an honor and a public trust. To Donald Trump, such concepts are meaningless. He seriously believes that he is conferring a favor upon the American people by consenting to be their president. He speaks of the great sacrifices he makes – in a speech in California last year, for example, when he said, “”This thing is costing me a fortune, being president. It’s probably costing me from $3 to $5 billion for the privilege of being — and I couldn’t care less—I don’t care.” If it is any consolation to him, I can think of only too many who are anxious to relieve him of this crushing burden.
I heard from my contacts in Portland that the reports of the rioting in the city have been greatly exaggerated, very much to the annoyance of most of the citizens. There is a good deal of protesting going on at the area in the center of the city where the municipal government buildings are located; other than that, matters are fairly quiet and people are walking about without any particular concern. They are, however, deeply resentful of the manner in which Trump is attempting to obtain political cachet from the affair and are no more desirous of a visit from him than their mayor is.
Yesterday’s statistics as of 8:00 PM – # of cases worldwide: 26,166,763; # of deaths worldwide: 866,532; # of cases U.S.: 6,289,914; # of deaths U.S.: 189,925. Our death toll for the day exceeded 1,000 again. Brazil’s death toll was over 1,200 and its case count increased to just over 4,000,000. India’s daily increase was over 80,000.
Today’s statistics as of 8:00 PM – # of cases worldwide: 26,456,479; # of deaths worldwide: 872,473; # of cases U.S.: 6,334,570; # of deaths U.S.: 191,027. Another day of over 40,000 new cases and over 1,000 more deaths. India is also continuing to have new infections at an alarming rate; over 80,000 today as well.