Oh, So That's It....

[+tneigel]

It’s not that difficult to envision it, and understand it really. It’s more a level of degree, of understanding. You go through a basic understanding, and then add on more and more levels of understanding until to come to the full realization, and then it hits you, - and you understand. You understand with clarity of knowning that you’ve really understood all along. And that’s ok.

 

You think back at the first time exposed to GPS units, tracking, orienteering, letterboxing, and geocaching, whatever. What was that like, when was it? Can you even remember? I mean it’s not like there was no world before all of this. We went outside before. We played with gadgets. We wondered and investigated things. We looked at maps, hadn’t we?

 

And what came first - Geocaching or a gps unit? Was it perhaps letterboxing or some orienteering thing, being your first exposure? Maybe you heard about geocaching somewhere, but didn’t put your full attention to it immediately.

 

However you found out about it, you know now. So, what is this erge that drives you? Drives you to the stangest places, sometimes do the strangest things. You find yourself crawling under city benches, bushwacking to the point of blood in the woods, water up past your knees. Money seems to go out the door on meaningless things. Your bag of Swag and Stuff gets so full, you need another, and another. One gps unit isn’t enough, maybe 2 or 3 isn’t enough.

 

You stay up late downloading waypoints, just to upload them again. You squint at small numbers and letters and curse when you press the wrong key. You print out loads of paper logs, until your printer says, feed me, feed me…

 

You may be thinking about your next cache adventure in the middle of the night, or who will beat you there first. Travel bugs and geocoins float in your mind as counting sheep turns into counting numbers and the 'do not finds' only you know about, keep you restless.

 

Seeking the solitude or seeking the crowds of friendly caching co-members, you are beside yourself. What is the next event, who will be going out this weekend? Should I try this one again, or try another, or another. Swag, coins, travel bugs, containers of every degree and form add up in your memory.

 

Events and gatherings - who will be there, when is it, when is the next, and the next and the next. How far will you travel today, tomorrow, and the next time? How much time will you spend on a cache – how much is this one find worth it. Is it making you late, making you frustrated, and making you angry. Is it even there? Why oh why does the little arrow move this way and that….

 

Should I buy a tent, a boat, a strong light, or perhaps a new vehicle? Do you really need that 4-wheel drive for anything else and how will you trick yourself into its justification, when you really know its for geocaching and hardly anything else.

 

Why do I do this? I have done enough of them already. Do I really need to find them all? I thought I was going to stop. I have other interests. Really, I do. You’ll take a break and do something else, yet find yourself going on one more trip. One more geocache, if not for anything, other than its where you were going anyway. Or because its only right over there.

 

You can’t wait to find it. You are utterly beside yourself seaching, circling, scanning up, then down, then up again, kicking everything in site - long since used to people looking at you, giving you that look. Or that, umm-hmm, as you realize you’ve been telling somebody about geocaching and they’ve lost interest 10 minutes ago, but you have at least 10 minutes of telling left to your story – and you’ve just got to get it out.

 

What is this common malidy that affects us all in such similar ways? Is this a disease, a virus, a fixation, or fix, or even a drug? It makes you gittery, the find makes you calm, the excitement winds you up, and you’ll drop everything else in the world to get to that one last cache before the end of the day.

 

It’s not that difficult to envision it and understand it really. It’s more a level of degree, of understanding. You go through a basic understanding, and then add on more and more levels of understanding until to come to the full realization, and then it hits you, - and you understand.

 

You’re a Geocacher. It’s what you do….

 

Simply the answer - and that’s ok.

[+tneigel]

Look for a quote from this in the Gloucester County Times on Thursday 3/23.

[+Arrow One]

All of the above!