Wednesday, July 06, 2005

Not For The Faint of Heart

(Yay! My new blog can be found here. )

Hello intrepid reader!

If someone said this was a good blog, or you accidentally clicked here from a link, and have no idea what you're in for, well I apologize.

(Nothin to see here, move along).

These are the daily entries of our hike for 130 days through the vast open range of Alaska, from Barrow to Fairbanks.

The entries are largely made up of me babbling on about random shit, but occasionally there are some germs of wisdom about hiking, cohabiting in close quarters, people, the planet and environment.

The Pilgrimage has gone on an indefinite hiatus, for assorted reasons. The eight of us all got on a conference call last night and talked and laughed and plotted about the future and its possibilities.

There's hopes that one day we might start up again, but right now it's in the 'someday' shoebox. So much can happen over a few years, there's really no telling.

I'm going to be working on the entries, from the beginning to the end, and adding input from the other seven members. While I rambled, some of them actually had deeper observations, thoughts or insights that they scribbled in their journals.

I'll be typing their stuff up and adding it where appropriate. Maybe even some pictures too, who knows. When that's done, I'm gonna take a crack at making a book out of the whole silly thing.

Below you'll find a few options to choose from.

Litany Webb, signing off

Jump to Start..........FAQ..........Synopsis Links

Tuesday, July 05, 2005

Days Walking 1 - 50

Synopsis 1-50..........Synopsis 51-100..........Synopsis 101-134


I thought it might be handy for new readers to be able to get an overview of The Pilgrimage.

I've created links to the all of the posts, with a synopsis for each.


Barrow, Alaska
Days Walking - Negative 3
Preparing to start the hike in Barrow, and how my old blog went poof!

Barrow, Alaska Day 2
Days Walking - Negative 2
More prepping, and some intro on our hopes and dreams for the trip.

Barrow, Alaska Day 3
Days Walking - Negative 1
The hiking team is introduced.

Leaving Barrow
Days Walking - 0
Mere minutes before our scary departure from Barrow.

We're Still Alive!
Days Walking - 1
Ackian Peeps are super cool, and 5 Things We Learned.

Disolving Leather, Nipples Shattering Like Glass...
Days Walking - 2
My foolish plans to dictate the blog with speech recognition software.

How My Priorities Have Changed!
Days Walking - 2
Five things I miss most about civilization.

Impossibly Warm Hands
Days Walking - 3
Weird dreams and a Hot Hot Inupiat Man.

Hardcore Lovin' and Couscous
Days Walking - 3
I gush on and on about my Hot Hot Inupiat Man.

Portishead, I Invoke Thee!
Days Walking - 4
I listen to far too much Portishead one day and am inspired to write a Portishead song of my own. They have not deigned to buy the rights yet. I think they're playing hard to get.

At Terra in This Fateful Hour...
Days Walking - 4
I ask for help with Blogger. Turns out, Blogger was just messed up.

It's the Little Things
Days Walking - 4
I find a pretty leaf where no leaf has gone before. I still have it.

FAQ - Give Me Your Huddled Masses
Days Walking - 5
I answer lots of common questions about myself and the hike.

I Don't Deserve This
Days Walking - 6
I realize this a stark and beautiful place, and I invent a nifty glove.

Fresh out of Conception Approval Forms
Days Walking - 6
Five things I don't miss about the civilized world.

Girls + Boys x Alcohol = Sex
Days Walking - 7
First rest day. We all do a lot of crank.

Nutrient-Rich Earwax Nectar
Days Walking - 8
Kwame has a frostbite emergency, and spanish phrase of the day.

Secret Do-ings and Go-ings On
Days Walking - 9
Aurora is pretty, Anneli yells at Jake, Polar Bears discussed.

Freakish Hysterical Insect Issue
Days Walking - 10
Johnny Soderstrom is killed in an avalanche, Dad and his Merc army, Ackian tundra insect problems during warm weather.

Tongue Lashings and Specialized Wigglers
Days Walking - 11
A snow shelter collapses, and 5 Habits I Hope Stay Broken.

Heavy Petting and Pasta Primavera
Days Walking - 12
Jake and Anneli get it on and I pretend to sleep, and 5 Evil Things I Miss.

Alien Visitors and Ice Fishing
Days Walking - 13
Atka Island Volcano gets fussy, and our frozen lake crossing methods.

A Lone Potty on the Plain
Days Walking - 14
I have a bizarre dream about a porta potty, and enjoy Metroid for GBA.

Be Groovy - Or Else!
Days Walking - 15
Robin asked some great questions, I ramble on forever answering them.

Damn I am a Moron
Days Walking - 16
I get hurt messing around. Lots of RICE for me.

Samus of the Light Brown Hair
Days Walking - 16
We spend the remains of the day resting, due to my dumbass injury.

Brassiere Malfunctions and The Zed Word
Days Walking - 17
Repairing equipment - important stuff like my bra. Shaun of the Dead.

Penguins in Spaaaaace
Days Walking - 18
Jake and Anneli are officially "going steady". Dane Cook. Church talks in her sleep, and a link to some real adventurers, bitch.

Huffing and Kiwi Cravings
Days Walking - 19
My commentors rock! I post my first crappy picture, coin the phrase 'Fingerclickin Good', and consider cyrogenic necrophelia.

Shelly is a F*cking Bitch :o)
Days Walking - 20
Shelly is, she really is. Online relationships and their perils.

Coming Soon: Polar Bear Wrasslin'
Days Walking - 21
Kato plots to keep me sane. We find a lost snowmobile tread in the snow. We listen to a cool Russian radio show. I'm rhyming, please someone make it stop.

Amanda Tapping and Savory Lap-Dances
Days Walking - 22
Gabe Loves Him Some Stargate SG1. The term "Incest with it" is coined. I begin dictating my posts to Marina using the Sat Phone and leaving her voicemails. Much easier than messing with the laptop. Rachael Scdoris is my hero.

A Healthy Surplus of Funk
Days Walking - 23
We really, really smell bad. I detail a Serious Discussion for the first and last time.

Orgasmville, and Step On It! (Don't Spare the Whip)
Days Walking - 24
Jake and Anneli wake us up during a lovemaking session for the first time - wish I could say it was the last. I eat too many banana chips and fight not to hurl. Link is the man!

Gettin All Up In There (With a Flashlight)
Days Walking - 25
Church and Kwame get colds, Gabe's lips crack and bleed, and Caeled's nether regions sprout fugus. Fun.

"Phase 5 is Not an Option"
Days Walking - 26
The blog's most popular topic ever - the Poop Tent - is introduced. I really need to design one of these and sell it to REI. Or Comedy Central.

Buttons as Money and Chicks for Free
Days Walking - 27
The list of medical supplies is detailed, we begin bartering for sewing materials, and iPod radio.

Thieving *ssholes Will Pay
Days Walking - 28
I get in a real bad mood that lasts a few days. I got paranoid and edgy.

Give It Up For My Homies!
Days Walking - 29
I praise my commentors and their amazingness. Critter sightings detailed, I obsess about being eaten by a polar bear, and I pick a fight with Gabe.

Repressed Virginal Ice Phobias
Days Walking - 30
Ice carving photos from the Anchorage Daily News, trees falling on innocent people, and my fellow hikers are lazy slobs.

Happy Sigh
Days Walking - 31
Church likes to spoon in her sleep - not that there's anything wrong with that... Anneli bond over clean dishes. Audio blogging.

Muk-Luk Wearing Mahakalas
Days Walking - 32
We find a rock that is definitely not a meteor, I resist gettting my picture taken in my funkified state, and Roger Zelazny rocks.

Yet Another Tale of Woah
Days Walking - 33
I accidentally burn up my thermal underpants, and bag chasing fun.

Sexy Brits and Assorted Sexy Europeans
Days Walking - 34
I invite folks to request a postcard. The Prisoner and Bad Naked.

Lips Slickery With Balm
Days Walking - 35
My brother emails me, the bastard. Psychic-related cramps. Caeled's fungus issue relapses.

Wearing Woo and Pillow Pants Too
Days Walking - 36
Girl's Grooming Night. I hope to meet a boy to seduce in Prudhoe Bay.

A Fetish for 80's Synth
Days Walking - 37
Postcard requests start coming in, AdSense is a funky thing, and hike-funding money-making plans.

Life IS Pain, Highness
Days Walking - 38
I detail "a day in the life" in the hike. I need to finish typing this one.

Carol is the Keymaster
Days Walking - 39
We arrive in Prudhoe Bay and are threatened, rounded up by security.
I have to wait for my care package.

Daddy Loves His Litany
Days Walking - 40
I get my care package, discover there is no bar in Deadhorse, and write a short poem praising electricity.

The Soup Light - New Photographic Wonder
Days Walking - 41
I post pics of Deadhorse, Anneli, and ugh, myself.

Leaving Deadhorse
Days Walking - 42
We leave Deadhorse, and begin the Dalton Highway. This is the first time in the hike we've used roads (since leaving Barrow).

Curtains For You, Mugsy
Days Walking - 43
I describe the history of The Dalton Highway, and describe communal showering in Deadhorse.

Be Vewy Vewy Quiet
Days Walking - 44
We're not really supposed to be hiking and camping along the highway, I take a vow of silence, Things I Silently Observed.

Cacophony of Curses, Swearing and Spittle
Days Walking - 45
Pee Bottle Duty, we meet a trucker, and the joys of rooming with Adrian.

High-Calorie, Buttery Dinner of Sin
Days Walking - 46
More female truckers than I thought, The Silence of Litany Day 3, and Adrian's Unregretted Shame.

There Be Bluffs Up In Here
Days Walking - 47
Franklin Bluffs, Sir John Franklin, Pingo's, and musical tastes.

Adrian is a Good Cranker
Days Walking - 48
Steinbeck characters in Warner Bros Cartoons, Caeled's Fungus, and my need for a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

The Dow of Pooh
Days Walking - 49
Kwame's sister goes AWOL from the USAF, The Tao of Pooh, and music taste queries.

Please Enjoy The Cookies
Days Walking - 50
More on Kwame's sister, the end of The Vow of Silence, and the benefits of raising children in Ack.


Synopsis 1-50..........Synopsis 51-100..........Synopsis 101-134

Days Walking 51 - 100

Synopsis 1-50..........Synopsis 51-100..........Synopsis 101-134


I thought it might be handy for new readers to be able to get an overview of The Pilgrimage.

I've created links to the all of the posts, with a synopsis for each.


What's This 'Flup' Stuff?
Days Walking - 51
Anneli is attacked by frostbite, treatment is detailed, the Poop Tent suffers a heinous injury, and Polar Bear activity.

Ecstatic Use of Its Repairedness
Days Walking - 52
I get a cold, eating cute animals is coveted, Jake eavesdrops on the trucker's CB band, Poop Tent repairs, Wolves, Bears and archery.

Not The Face!
Days Walking - 53
My cold gets bad, opportunistic cannibalism, Adrian, Church, and Jake speak their minds to the world.

Bleeping Mother Bleeper
Days Walking - 54
I'm still sick, Adrian catches my cold and I am vindicated, Rummy vs. Blackjack, and Church needs to learn the power of the dark side.

No Moleste Por Favor
Days Walking - 55
I'm starting to feel better! Kwame vanishes in the night, and we have to track his butt down. Bastard.

Poor Lil Meow Meow
Days Walking - 56
My cat gets sick, Adrian's OCD gets on my damn nerves, I run out of a precious commodity, and midnight massages.

Smell Those Yummy Humans
Days Walking - 57
Wolves howling in the night and their plots to devour us, Golden Hour, and erotic corn dog dreams.

Your Sisters The Buttocks
Days Walking - 58
Kwame's penance, frequent chopper flyby's, and our plotting to evade the authorities.

Money For My Morels
Days Walking - 59
No more Cheerios, an oil spill, money for shrooms, and my fervent dreams of one day selling out.

Trading in Delicious Disease
Days Walking - 60
Raving about beneficial germs, I think this might be one of my favorite posts on the whole blog. Once in a great while I write something good.

With Fresh Coconut Milk
Days Walking - 61
My iPod craps out 30 minutes into the day, I run out of caffeine pills, and plot to kill and eat my pals - just for the peace and quiet.

AGHIIGHHIRRRGH!!
Days Walking - 62
Too much yearning, Plotting to kill them all, starting my own cult, and a pic of Caeled.

Read My Lips - Aint No Trees
Days Walking - 63
The Army's got a thing or two to learn about Arctic Survival, everyone has a SaberSpoon but me, and the danger of pate in the Ackian wild.

Den Of Edgy Female Irkfulness
Days Walking - 64
All us girls is bitches, I try and fail to apply Peek A Boo comment code to my blog template, and Vietnamese soup is the shiznit.

High on Suffering
Days Walking - 65
35 mile per hour wind gusts, Spekk Finger, and an old journal entry I wrote before the hike started.

Flee From The Squat Progeny
Days Walking - 66
Gabe has horrific gastrointestinal issues, incest with NoDoz, and a wacked Ackian Woman and her man's hypothetical Spekk Schlong.

She Has No Clue
Days Walking - 67
Frequent Need To Squat Disorder, Shelly is clueless, Dad gets a girlfriend, Jake and Anneli have a tiff, and I accidentally steal a line from Her Greatness, Dooce.

A Rash of Suspicious Coincidences
Days Walking - 68
Gabe finally gets better, food allergies, a pic of my cat, and a transcript of a conversation with my Dad. Exciting!

Smart-Assed Sarcastic Whiney Wanna-Be
Days Walking - 69
My snowshoe goes POP! I obsess on Dad's new girlfriend, we see our first tree in months, I post a pic (wow!), and Church and I pester Anneli for details on the lover's tiff.

Comedy Caplets, C.O.D.
Days Walking - 70
We're huge geeks, and play a Harry Potter RPG that Adrian and Kwame dreamed up, and these 'tree' things are mighty pretty.

Tea Parties With Satyrs
Days Walking - 71
Harry Potter RPG rambling, frighteningly - no one is sick, and I crave chips and salsa.

Like Scrubbing Bubbles, But Evil
Days Walking - 72
We encounter a crashed trucker, snow scrubbing the nether regions, anticipating talking to Dad's GF Joann on the phone that night, and Accidental Orgy Syndrome.

April 27th Always Tends To Suck
Days Walking - 73
I miss my Mom.

Freaky Green Alien Llama
Days Walking - 74
Robin's profile pic gets even cuter, Wacky web applets, Tents are liars, and Joann seems aiight, I guess...

Like An Amateurish Inane Teeny Bopper
Days Walking - 75
My cousin Terry is preggers, my brother is still a jerk, and I make a move on Adrian.

Props to All Us World War 1 Flying Aces!
Days Walking - 76
Post-Seduce-Attempt Depression, we meet a retired couple on the road, and we barter with them for goodly goods.

Oh So Glad It Wasn't My Fault
Days Walking - 77
We lose a beloved team member, break the news to the rest of the team, and have a good cry. Seriously.

Blogging on Blogging on Blogging
Days Walking - 78
I ramble on about blogging for six or seven thousand words. Skip this one, don't read it.

Nap Nap All The Live Long Day
Days Walking - 79
I feel crappy this day, and wimp out - posting a angsty poem.

Chaos, Avalanches and Whatnot
Days Walking - 80
Silent Screaming, Ack becomes a wet and drippy realm, and several team members get into a big fight over a People Magazine.

Most Terribly Not Dead
Days Walking - 81
Caeled has manly nerves as a wolf tries to sneak into camp, and we start keeping watch at night - finally!

Halfway to Fairbanks!
Days Walking - 82
We arrive in Coldfoot at Mile 175 of the Dalton Highway, and finally get to shower. I post some pics.

Giggle Wiggle Boob Shaker
Days Walking - 83
We meet some folks in Coldfoot, Ackian mud is a pain in the ass, and The Coldfoot Cafe serves up some darned good bacon cheeseburgers!

Slapping My Face With Its Burningness
Days Walking - 84
Kwame sells the sled, onion rings hurt, and Gabe gets naughty with a random tourist-girl.

A Rush of Mutant Endorphins
Days Walking - 85
On the road again, I get an email from a troubled and misguided wife, and I 'volunteer' to carry the crank generator, now that the sled is sold.

Intimate Attentions from Big Bertha
Days Walking - 86
Whole lotta daylight goin on, what I'd do if I were homeless, The Great Wall of China, and Litany's Cracker Ass, two things you can see from space.

He's Still Father Caeled From The Block
Days Walking - 87
Ack's Craziest Tree Thief Police Chases, Leave No Trace, and our efforts to clean up Dalton Highway litter.

A Cameo By Olympian Brooke Bennett
Days Walking - 88
The Spruce Bark Beetle Calamity, Litter we've discovered and collected for proper disposal, and Holy Caribou, these things are big!

Lies! Unfortunate Lies!
Days Walking - 89
I must be ovulating or something. I have a crazy daydream about Adrian, and I describe it for one and all. It's very silly.

Goofin on Gaurana
Days Walking - 90
Nutrilite Daily Multivitamin, Gaurana, and Josta Cola I miss you so.

Witty Words Here
Days Walking - 91
The group decides I've had quite enough Gaurana, we're buzzed by three choppers, and we have a Spring fashion show, like ohmygawd.

iPod Glutes Implant Service Pack 2
Days Walking - 92
Cyborg MP3 Players, Bikers are wimps, and we're hardcore, yo.

Regarding Fruit / Tree Proximity
Days Walking - 93
We meet entomologists Tony Glenn and Marsha Butler, who are making a study of this part of the Dalton Highway. They gave us DEET I love them so much.

Evert Your Eyes!
Days Walking - 94
Kwame binges on everyone's breakfast, and then autopurges. Sounds like a handy skill, but not so much.

Mom, Ever Feel Less Than French?
Days Walking - 95
Kwame improves, rainy weather, I fall on my ass a lot, Golden Three Hours, and we annoy the truckers.

From Her Head Down To Her Toenails
Days Walking - 96
During a routine paranoid scan of my hard-drive, I discover that Church is a big porn freak, and all this time I never knew.

Maulrats
Days Walking - 97
A Big F*cking Grizzly Bear blocks our path, eating a roadkill caribou -and we live in fear and awe. But mostly fear.

Sleeping With The Enmity
Days Walking- 98
Adrian and Church fall asleep during night watch, we flog them thoroughly, and take a rest day.

Flashlight Training Inc - Obedience and Security
Days Walking - 99
Arctic Kamikaze Porcupines bustle in the bushes all night long. We enjoy Yiddish folk songs.

Got Hazmat?
Days Walking - 100
Military guys drive by in grocery-logo tanker trucks, and I post a poem.


Synopsis 1-50..........Synopsis 51-100..........Synopsis 101-134

Days Walking 101 - 134

Synopsis 1-50..........Synopsis 51-100..........Synopsis 101-134


I thought it might be handy for new readers to be able to get an overview of The Pilgrimage.

I've created links to the all of the posts, with a synopsis for each.


Unwilling Blood Donor Dinner
Days Walking - 101
I consider a number of taglines for the novelization of the POL, and the best method to minimize bug bites on one's tender backside.

Ha Ha! I Mauled Your Leg!
Days Walking - 102
A news story about a grizzly bear attack, my adventures in paintball, and Dad and Joann decide to go steady.

Duck Duck Duck - - Goose!
Days Walking - 103
I have a claustrophobic episode, we relive a Gilligan's Island moment, and the storms are beautiful and scary.

Rough and Reassuring
Days Walking - 104
Church has pugent gas issues, I describe my erotic dream from the night before, I have a thing for produce apparently.

Madame Seamstress And The OCD Itch
Days Walking - 105
We actually wash our funky selves, my improving skill in clothing repairs, and the only correct way to take pills.

Happy Birthday Jake!
Days Walking - 106
Jake's B-Day, we're bad friends and have no cake or gifts, and I invent a fly-paper baseball cap.

F*ck F*ck F*ck
Days Walking - 107
My Dad passes into a diabetic coma and is hospitalized. I freak out.

I Want My Empty V
Days Walking - 108
Death, Tombstones, the Afterlife, sex robots, and cryogenic freeze.

Sherpas Do It On Top
Days Walking - 109
Dad Goes home from the hospital, I ask for book recommendations, and I look forward to arriving in Fairbanks.

Mmmn Cherry Garcia
Days Walking - 110
Gabe slips and hurts his knee, we can't do much for him, and I'd make a really bad war correspondant.

Extra Extra! Read All About It!
Days Walking - 111
Holy Moly! Jake and Anneli get Engaged and Pregnant!

Please Excuse The Mess...
Days Walking - 112
Gabe claims his knee improved, I ramble about Jake and Anneli's hypothetically deformed offspring, and what their decisions about the pregnancy might be.

The Most Excellent Bruno Putney!
Days Walking - 113
Gabe's knee is worse than ever, and we force him to catch a ride into Fairbanks. Church rides along, and they take the heavy equipment and we press on into the night to make it to Fairbanks.

And I Wacked Myself But Good
Days Walking - 114
Fairbanks! I smash my thumb putting the tent up, we find out the details of Gabe's condition, and Jake and Anneli head to the hospital to get her a prenatal checkup.

Forceps. Scalpel. Whipped Cream.
Days Walking - 115
Caeled and I have to move the whole camp all by our little selves, Anneli is definitely pregnant, and the baby is doing well, Gabe's folks agree to pay for his knee surgery. I volunteer to do it, and am rebuffed.

Dear Santa, I Would Like a Lightsaber and a Wookie.
Days Walking - 116
We get to see 'Revenge of the Sith', our first movie in months, Kwame finds a job, and we move camp yet again.

The Girl - In The Coffeeshop - With the Lead Pipe.
Days Walking - 117
We gave blood, I earn $1 the hard way, I devise a line-waiting scam, and decide that I desperately need new panties.

Scary Undead Grandma Church
Days Walking - 118
Church gets a cold, Gabe needs to fly to New York for his surgery, and I apply for many many jobs.

Post-Partum Deletion
Days Walking - 119
I mourn Kthrne's missing posts, and relate a story about a journal from my youth and a antique incinerator.

Wessstiiiiiide!
Days Walking - 120
I get a job, delivering advertising flyers door-to-door, alas.

Outsource THIS
Days Walking - 121
How the British Occupation of India during the 18th Century led to the utter downfall of economic stability in the western hemisphere in 2007.

Ack, You Crack Me Up
Days Walking - 122
Gabe prepares to leave for New York, and we try to come to terms with his departure. An eagle plows through a guy's window and loses his fish. I wonder if the guy cooked it for dinner? I would have.

Grief'in...On a Jet Plane
Days Walking - 123
Gabe flies off to New York, it rains all day and my boss cares not. I invent flyer condoms.

Christian Bale is HOT
Days Walking - 124
I get paid! Vending Machines are evil, and music fandom is an addiction.

New Books For To Read!
Days Walking - 125
I get some books to read, finally. I borrow some DVDs from a coworker, and we enjoy the roomier tents, sans Gabe.

Win Ben Stein's Bunny
Days Walking - 126
Jake and Anneli decide to quit the team, I lose all fonts on my laptop except for 'arial', and my prediliction for wasting time online.

Oh She's Workin All Right...
Days Walking - 127
I get Caeled a job, people are damn lazy, and I obsess about how Church spends her days alone at camp.

And Then There Were 5
Days Working - 128
Jake and Anneli leave for Texas. The bus is a bad place to say goodbye, and we hope to visit them and their little one on our way through Texas.

A Little Antifreeze In Her Coke
Days Walking - 129
Kwame tries to seduce me, we assess the equipment situation, and Church gets far too much male attention.

I have to fly home
Days Walking - 130
Dad's in the hospital again - this time with low blood pressure, and I get on a plane to Los Angeles.

Stable and under observation
Days Walking - 131
I'm in Los Angeles. Dad's still in the hospital but is better. We await test results.

Going home today
Days Walking - 132
Dad improves much, and gets to go home from the hospital. It's weird to be back in Los Angeles.

Hot Oatmeal Dogs?
Days Walking - 133
Dad relaxes at home, Joann is a good egg, and we go grocery shopping.

Cosmic Curiousity and Bloody Feathers
Days Walking - 134
I make a difficult decision.


Synopsis 1-50..........Synopsis 51-100..........Synopsis 101-134