I graduate in May. I have landed two really rad internships so people kind of tend to lean towards the belief that I have my life together and a job lined up for when I finish schooling. The conversation takes one of two directions when I tell them I plan on walking 2,100 miles from Maine to Georgia, through the woods. The first reaction is wide eyed amazement. I love this reaction. I get to talk about the trail and get people on the bandwagon. Hiking is cool now anyways, right?

The second reaction dampens my mood. It usually goes as follows:

"What are you doing after college? You probably have a job lined up already, right?"

"No, I'm actually hiking the Appalachian Trail starting in May!"

"That's cool, but what about after that?"

"Well I'll be gone for 5 months..,"

"You're taking 5 months... To hike...?"

"Yep, from Georgia to Maine!"

"...oh. Why?"

Why? Well because it's there and I want to. And because I don't want to be a real person just yet. I want to be free of responsibilities before I have to throw myself into the real world, paying bills, buying sofas, struggling to pay for a house I can't afford and everything else that comes with adulthood.

Now, I know adulthood isn't all bad. I mean, I can eat Easy Mac in my underwear in my own house, because it's my house and I do what I want. It's just that I would much rather be eating that same meal somewhere along the Appalachian Trail, listening to the sounds of nature and hoping no local bears have an appetite for dry pasta and powdered cheese.