Day 83

I laced up. It was 4:00 a.m. 

I met Kevin! He had helped me out so much with the a room at the Days Inn, and was now giving me a police escort across the bridge! He handed me a St. Michael badge, and a huge wad of cash. He told me it was a donation from “the guys.”! Wow! I could not thank him enough. We hit the road. 

It was a couple miles across the bridge. I kept my pace up.The warm night air hung above the pavement. Refinery lights met with blues, sparkled across the horizon. My legs paddled up and over the I-10 bridge. It felt good to be up before the sun.

We made it! It was such a cool experience. Kevin wished me luck, and told me if I needed any further assistance to give him a call. What a great man! We parted ways.

I made my way into town. I needed somewhere to rest until sunrise.

I moseyed on over to a Baptist Church, found a dim corner, and reclined against my pack. I rested.
At 6:00 a.m. I headed over to Burger King to use wifi. It was down :(. I ate a quick breakfast and hit the road. 

I found a frontage road that ran parallel to I-10. It took me to Highway 90. 

I chipped away at the miles and made it to Sulfur. 
I hit a Walmart and bought a poncho and a usb drive. I’ve been battling storage problems on my iphone since Florida. I take so many photographs!
I headed to the library and tried to transfer the pictures from my phone to the flash drive. The computers were outdated, I couldn’t get it to work. :(. 

I stopped at a place called Jake’s Cakes for lunch.

I hit the road. It was a tough day. I lost all shoulder again :(. Losing shoulder always makes travel grueling, sometimes more mentally than physically. Sometimes there is gravel, sometimes there is grass, sometimes there is nothing, it just drops off! Every time a car passes and you hope to travel up on the pavement, there is always another one approaching in the distance. It is tiring.

I took a break at a park under a few live oaks and drank lots of water. I actually rested for more than hour. I dozed off a few times. 

Back on the road, I dug deep and kept chipping away at the miles. By 6 p.m., I made it to Vinton. 

Reaching the town limits, I felt relieved. I reached the town common and took a quick break. I headed to St. Josephs in town.

It was a beautiful church.

 I checked out the St. Joseph garden and then made my way to the rectory. There was no answer at the door. I hung around for a bit, and then, not wanting to make neighbors nervous, I doubled back to town.

I met Keegan! I was looking for the Pastor at the First Baptist Church. Keegan was working next door at a wharehouse. He told me if I stuck around I might be able to speak to Jason, the owner, before he locks up shop. He asked me if I was thristy and gave me some money to get something to drink!

I headed to Market Basket and bought some boudin for dinner, and a vitamin water. I hung out in the cafe wondering what to do next.

I doubled back to the First Baptist Church. It was more secluded than St. Joseph’s. I always do my best to get permission to camp somewhere, but every now and then I have to settle and hide somewhere dark and quiet. I found a decent spot just as the sun was setting.
I got a message from St. Joseph’s on Facebook! It was a longshot, but I had sent them a message when no one had answered the rectory door. Brandi had messaged me back, telling me that Fr. Carlos was in Orange, that she texted him, and he should be back soon! I gave her my number to forward to him, and then headed to the garden. I laid down my sleeping bag hoping for rest.

I met Fr. Carlos! He showed me into the old convent building to a room I could sleep in. It was inside and away from mosquitos! Then, he changed his mind, and offered me to stay in the guest room with a private bath at the rectory! I felt so thankful, and accepted his offer. 

I had some really good gumbo for dinner, and then retired to the guest room. I fell asleep feeling thankful. Mass was at 8 a.m.