May 6th, 2016
I got picked up before five yesterday by a network analyst named Todd, going straight through to Portland. Hurrah! I arrived around 11pm to a rather festive Cinco de Mayo celebration, which under any other circumstances would have been fantastic. Unfortunately, all of my focus was on getting rested for the day ahead of me. I found myself a little more reluctant than anticipated about mingling with the local "rough sleepers", so after a few casual conversations about the area, I decided to turn in along the highway under a particularly comfortable tree, so as to not inadvertently crash anyone else's squat. I got all of about four hours sleep before the cold started to get to me, which I suppose was just as well, given that the hard ground and noisy freeway weren't treating me all that much nicer.
This morning greeted me with a much more casual urban experience than the over-abundance of happily inebriated party-goers of last night. I was surprised to find a Safeway in an office building, but more surprised to find that the accompanying Starbucks didn't have a seating area to warm up in. Nevertheless, I picked up my morning coffee and a muffin, of which it's evidently customary to share with the local fauna, because I was immediately greeted by a rather persistent pigeon, who gazed longingly at me while I ate. It was quite flattering. A little advice from local law enforcement told me everything I needed to know about how to catch a ride south to continue my hitchhiking sidequest, but that will have to wait just a while longer, as I'm currently waiting for REI to open, so I can pick up a pair of sales tax-free hiking shoes. All in all, I'm glad I decided to stop here.
I ended up in a quaint little town called cottage grove, nearly my halfway point in only two days! A special thank you goes out to everyone that helped me along the way!
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