Week 72: Walking Backward

Brad Pitt, totally serious warrior

I find this picture funny. The movie, Troy, made me laugh, a lot. It was definitely not meant to be funny, but the direction was so silly that I started laughing early and never stopped. I laughed at an overlong stare out to sea, at the huge CGI armada, at the camerawork that was so intent on showing us the impressive sets, or maybe it was just more CGI. I think there was a slow-motion agony and death scene near the end that had me giggling. It was surprisingly kind of fun.

Last week I said I was near Highland Home, Alabama, and this week I am at Troy, Alabama, 25 miles down the road, despite walking over 40 miles during the week. The trick to that feat is that Google Maps keeps trying to change my route, both going forward and behind me, which changes the total distance and changes where I am. I try to force it to follow the route I have already walked, but the details change. A couple of weeks ago, the path to Miami was 3,481 miles. Now it is 3,496 miles, which instantly puts me 15 miles back from where I used to be.

What does not change, though, is that the real goal is 7,000,000 steps, as tracked by my phone, and I keep getting closer to that goal no matter what Google Maps says. I am over 5,775,000 steps, with 112 days at 11,000 steps per day left to go. The walk across the US is just a way of visualizing the 7,000,000 steps.

And so, I am two full weeks away from Georgia, and next week I should be a few miles past Ozark, Alabama. I have a picture in mind...