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I never traveled outside of California before and so I haven't really seen a lot in life through my own eyes. Chris's story lets me see someone who chose their own ambitions over the comfortability of their life in society. I have kayaked in the past for a while with my sister and her boyfriend, but it was mostly me just sitting and rowing occasionally. I do want to travel and one of my dreams is to travel all around Asia through major countries such as Japan, Korea, maybe China, and Vietnam. Though the road currently may be long and covered in fog eventually I'll make my way through it may be with someone by my side or by myself. I don't plan on trying to achieve it just yet especially with college right around the corner and so many responsibilities I've yet to take care of. It's like a large mountain and I'm in no way prepared to take that climb to reach the summit. But I know it will be worth it in the end and all of the problems before it will be worth it. I haven't fully decided on what I would like to spend my entire life on for college and am so behind on everything, I should have already completed. Everything just gets farther and farther away as I reach the point in life where it gets real.

#lifeisamountain #TouchGrass!! #DreamtoReality

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This was a really fun book to read, I do respect Chris but at the same time hate him for some of the things he's done. The great things he did and that I admire would have to be how he lived without regrets, was open to people, and made lots of friends along the way. The more negative/stupid things that he did are numerous ranging from completely shutting people off/to leaving them in the dark was horrible. All of the people he meant along the way each gave him something from Franz's leatherworking skills on Chris's belt and Billie's sleeping bag she had sewn for him.

Chris can be described as immovable with his desire to keep heading north. Even when he was in Carthage, a town that he calls home, he still decided to keep moving with his original plan. Even when he was still in Annandale I still can't believe he would just leave everything behind especially when he had a pretty good life while still there. He was doing well academically, was always able to earn money, and even had a sister who supported him. I wouldn't say he is perfect in any way, but he had enough to live a comfortable life, yet I understand how much he had to put up with having to basically be a puppet for his father and not living how he would want to. It's still a miracle how he was able to live for 113 days in the wilderness without a lot of supplies or even a map.

#gonebutnotforgotten #immovablelikeamountain #legendofChrisMcCandless

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Summary: It took about ten months before Billie and Walt McCandless decides to visit Chris's final resting place. Originally they were going to take the same path Chris had taken to the bus, but with the River still running rampant they had to resort to a helicopter (p. 200). The bus (p. 202) comes into their view while they stare in silence. Walt was already irritated by the fact he had been working with NASA still in Fairbanks just before going to see his son's resting place. They take the time to look at their surroundings and take in their beauty (p. 202) as they put themselves in Chris's shoes. Walt comes back from a stroll near the stream and comes back to Billie who is sitting on the same mattress that Chris had died on. Pointing out many things such as the spoon from their Annandale house, a pair of jeans that still smell like Chris, and shoes still under the stove. Before declaring to no one in particular or maybe to herself that Chris decided to live his life to the end instead of taking himself out when it went bad. They created a small memorial just by the door adding a bouquet of fireweed, monkshood, yarrow, and spruce boughs. Billie also leaves a suitcase just under the bed filled with canned food, a first-aid kit, and other such survival supplies with a note telling people to "call your parents as soon as possible". The McCandless family is fairly religious which might have been the reason why Billie also leaves a Bible that Chris had as a child and explains that ever since she should out about Chri's death, she hasn't prayed (p. 202) once since then. It was time that they left the bus behind. As they board the helicopter and it begins to lift off, as they start to leave, so does the tiny white gleam (p. 203) of the bus, before disappearing out of sight.

Analysis: I can't imagine how much pain I would be in knowing that my child had died. Visiting their place of death provides a kind of closure and seeing what they went through. Billie leaving supplies for any other people who may become lost or need them was thoughtful. Throughout the book, there have been people who are religious and each time they're shown to have lost their faith after Chris's death. The bus becomes smaller and smaller before disappearing into nothing is kind of like it fading into a memory.

#finalrestingplace #CALLYOURPARENTS #endofchapterinli

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Summary: Even after Chris decides to wait out the river to let it die down, he still lived fairly well hunting game as well as foraging. Most of the meat he gained and ate didn't provide a lot of calories (p. 188) so he continued to lose weight. Chris was still in pretty good health either way even with the weight loss. Still reading his books (p. 189), he continues to read his book and one by an author named Doctor Zhivago talks about nature and its purity to it. Another thing Doctor Zhivago brings up is how only life similar to the life around us can truly be happy prompting Chris to write "HAPPINESS ONLY REAL WHEN SHARED" which gave Krakauer the impression that Chris really did want to leave and rejoin society. Sadly things went downhill after he got poisoned from eating some seeds (p. 191) which Krakauer believed may have killed the boy after a failed identification. Which he later changed, because Chris was safely eating potato roots without any mistake between H. mackenzii for H. alpinum. Krakauer summarized Chris's death as because of eating seeds that had been contaminated by swainsonine or mold that had built up in the Ziploc bag he used to contain his food. We are once again reminded of Chris's absence from having a map (p. 196) to assist him which may or may not have been able to save him. There were a few public cabins at the time when Chris was still alive and living in the wild, but even if he found them, he would have found them in a complete mess because of someone vandalizing them before. The authorities don't believe Chris could have done it because he would have boasted about it in his journal as an act of "setting the wilderness free". In Chris's final moments, he decided to write an adios on a page saying "I HAVE HAD A HAPPY LIFE AND THANK THE LORD. GOODBYE AND MAY GOD BLESS ALL!" as well as taking a picture (p. 199) of himself holding it and still smiling before dying a few days later in the sleeping bag.

Analysis: I didn't really feel as sad as I did for this chapter. Maybe it was because of how happy he was to even take a picture of himself in his final moments before perishing. The events leading up to his death being caused by poisoning can only be explained as unfortunate. Even if the cabins were destroyed, I still feel like Chris would have still found some use out of them that could've helped him out. A map is always going to be something that causes people to believe Chris was incompetent for not having one.

#WHYNOMAP #PeacefulDeath #returnedbacktonature

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Summary: Jon Krakauer decides to visit the bus (p. 173) himself by retracing the steps Chris took to get there on the Stampede Trail. At the time of his arrival, the river level was still high and rapid. his plan for that was to hook himself with a cable to get across the river and take the tram (p. 175) to bring his friends over with him. Luckily for him and his group, they brought a MAP which would have been a big help for Chris at the time as he would notice the cable with the basket that could have carried him back to humanity. As They arrive at the bus, Krakauer examines the carcass of the moose that he later confirms was indeed a moose and not a caribou as those hunters had claimed at the time of discovering Chris's death. Further investigation of the bus shows a lot of items that were left behind as well as graffiti left by several previous visitors of the bus. Chris went into the well very ill-prepared for what was to come trying to live off the land and people drew him to another man who died from their arrogance (p. 180). A man by the name of Sir John Franklin had also tried to survive in the wilderness on an expedition. The moment their food ran out, they resorted to hunting but could not keep up as the game was scarce which forced them to eat deer hide, animal bones, and their own boots, to eventually and sadly each other for food. He survived the first expedition just a few days before what could have been his death and was hailed a hero, which led to his downfall as he went back to the wild before completely disappearing. Many people tried to make sense of Chris's behavior and what was his purpose for going on this odyssey (p. 184) of his which led to his death. Krakauer and his friends sat by a fire discussing Chris and the many mistakes (p. 185) he had made during when he was alive trying to live in the wild. When Krakauer brings this up to them, Roman brings up his own thoughts such as how Chris was actually a lot more competent than how people had criticized him considering he did survive for a good while for months whereas the people who criticized him probably haven't even survived in the wild for less than a few weeks and was more prepared and how unfortunate it was that Chris didn't survive as he almost pulled off surviving in the wild.

Analysis: A map is and will always be useful to have in any situation, especially since being lost is the worst feeling. If only Chris had a map or even looked at one before heading out then he would have known about the basket at the time he was about to leave. Then maybe he wouldn't have died and we would still be able to learn more about him and his adventure in the wild. I am impressed yet disappointed he could survive to tell his adventure to people. Reading this book makes me want to watch the movie to see what was kept from the book.

#absolutelylostinthewild #nomapiscrazy #MOOSEnotCaRiBoU

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Summary: The chapter takes place a few weeks before Chris arrives at the Stampede Trail. Chris crossed the Canadian border and hitchhiked for a good distance before taking a break at some natural thermal pools (p. 158) at a public campground. At this point, he meets Gaylord Stuckey who he befriends that end up giving him a ride closer to Fairbanks. Chris becomes less tense and lowers his guard letting Stuckey learn more about his parents (p. 159) and how he hasn't seen them in years. Stuckey drove Chris to the University of Alaska and dropped him off before leaving to finish his delivery. Chris only spends a few days where he buys a gun (p. 160), sends final messages, and buys some books before hiking west. This is when he meets a man named Jim Gallien that drives him all the way to the Stampede Trail and is the last to see Chris before Chris's body gets reclaimed by nature. Chris brought many things but by far the heaviest item was the number of books (p. 162) in his backpack. May 1st is when Chris writes down "Magic Bus (p.163) Day" in his journal and is when he finds the broken down abandoned bus where he sets up camp. Chris had a few troubles hunting (p. 166) before making some successes that he marked in his journey, one of them being a moose. He then spends 6 days in an attempt to preserve (p. 166) it, unfortunately, it was a fruitless attempt at it and it ends up getting a bunch of maggots, completely destroying it and forcing Chris to abandon the carcass to the wolves. After a while, Chris becomes satisfied with his adventure in the wild and attempts to leave passing through the river previously. Much to his dismay the waters (p. 169) have become a flood as it raged downwards coupled with his fear from the last time he interacted with water, one could only guess his only option was to head back and wait until the water lowers.

Analysis: We gain another bit of information just before he ends up at the Stampede Trail. Another person has been cut off from Chris and left in the dark and full of concern and regret. I'm a bit surprised at how easy it was for Chris to just buy a gun as well as choose to bring several books instead of supplies with him. Surprisingly Chris actually managed to hunt his own animals and even killed a moose of all things. Sadly the attempt to smoke the moose didn't end up well, ultimately ruining the poor animal's dead body. Honestly, Chris has his smart moments as well as dumb, stupid moments such as not learning how to properly smoke/ prepare food for later. Leading to his failing to preserve the moose meat. I don't know how to feel about his fear of water because I also have a bit of fear but I would still end up looking around maybe seeing if there's another way across.

#waterptsd #thewheelsonthebus #RIPmoosebody

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Summary: So Krakauer makes it back to his tent, all butt hurt that he didn't achieve his goal of summiting Devil's Thumb.  In a genius move, he decided to smoke a joint to make himself feel better since he's a bit depressed.  Well, he ends up setting his tent on fire causing it to vaporize one of the walls so the temperature inside drops by 30 degrees or so.  Good job, Jon!  Anyway, this causes him to think about his reason for running away to climb:  his volatile (p. 147) history with his father!  They have a very similar relationship to Walt and Chris - dad is stubborn, treats his son poorly, pushes him away with his medical school expectations (p. 148) since he himself is a doctor.  Yeah, I know: we've heard this story before.  Jon uses these complicated (p. 147) family memories as motivation:  he's going to attempt to summit the Thumb to prove his disbelieving dad wrong!  He fixes his tent by packing it with snow and forges a plan to begin his final ascent on a slightly "easier" side of the mountain, the southeast side.  At sunrise, he summons ALL of his courage and overcoming all of the terrifying (p. 150) obstacles, he finally makes it to the top - YAY!  He enjoys the view for a minutes, snaps a few pics, and begins his descent.  When he finally makes it off the mountain, he tells a few people what he did.  They aren't extremely impressed.  This makes Jon think about what he did and why he did it, causing him to say, "I thought climbing Devil's Thumb would fix all that was wrong with my life.  In the end, of course, it changed almost nothing.  But I came to appreciate that mountains make poor receptacles for dreams. And I lived to tell my tale" (p. 155). Years later when writing this book, he realizes that his hubris (p.155) pushed him to his limits to achieve his goal, but that the impact his possible death had on those who loved him would've been catastrophic.  This is why he believes that Chris had NO intention to die in the wild, that he was only chasing his young, irresponsible dream.

Analysis: That was a very dumb decision to just put the remnants of the cigarette into a garbage bag without maybe putting snow inside or making it wet so it wouldn't have a chance to catch on fire. Learning more about Jon's background and his relationship with his father really does show some similarities between him and Chris really shows that others may have it worse than you would think. Yikes, I didn't expect his father to attempt suicide and take several pills before being admitted to a psychiatric hospital. Though the idea of his father once being such an amazing mountain climber yet never really wanted his own son to become like him. HE WAS ABLE TO MAKE IT and lived to tell the tale with pictures WOOHOO. A person's emotions can sometimes affect their judgment and thinking, leading to decisions that aren't as important.

#420gonewrong #failedattemptatTDT #notlovingmemorieswithdad

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Summary: To answer Billie McCandless' question at the end of Chapter 13 about why anyone would do what Chris did, Jon Krakauer flips the script and tells his own story of Alaska adventure.  At the age of 23, Krakauer decides to head to the great north to find himself not by living in the wild, but by climbing the major mountains in the 49th state.  He becomes obsessed with hiking Devil's Thumb, a very steep, challenging ascent on the glacier (p. 138) known as the Stikine Ice Cap.  Like Chris, completing this climb becomes the only important thing in Krakauer's life.  Chris obsessed over the bush, while Jon's obsession (p. 134) is this rare climbing achievement.  Much like he anticipated, the ascent is dangerous and potentially deadly.  Krakauer proceeds with caution during whiteout snow storms while crossing over delicate crevasses (p. 140) which could crack and send him tumbling down hundreds of feet.  On a beautiful May day, Krakauer decides that this is it, he must summon the courage and concentration (p. 142) he needs to summit this peak today or else...Even with the warm temps and sunny day, the ice is impenetrable and Krakauer panics (p. 143).  He can see the summit, but he can't reach it.  His only option is down.

Analysis: Didn't expect Krakauer to write about his own adventure that relates to how Chris was obsessed with the bush. While he was obsessed with climbing Stikine Ice Cap and achieving the summit. Seeing the end in sight yet still so far away to reach it must have been extremely demoralizing for him. Surely men weren't the only ones who have gotten the feeling of wanting to travel or climb mountains. Still don't see the appeal of leaving stuff behind just to climb some type of mountain or even go hitchhiking like Chris.

#anotherLtaken #theDevil'sthumb #daddyissues

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Summary: Carine keeps several photos of Chris from when he was a seven-year-old to when he was in high school. One thing that she pointed out in the photos was Chris's expression (p. 128) unchanging and the complete opposite of Carine's grin. Up to this point, Buckley the sheepdog (p. 128) still walks around with Carine but has now hobbled with an arthritic limp. Krakauer describes Carine as about the same height or even slightly taller than Chris as well as points out a crucifix (p. 128/129) dangling from her neck. Compared to Chris, Carine was a much more gregarious (p. 129) person and can't even fathom being alone in the wilderness. She finds out about Chris's death from her husband Chris Fish causing her to have tunnel vision (p.130) and tries to deny it before screaming. Before she had gone to her parent's house to break the news, she visits the church and prays to God where she wanted answers but ultimately gained none. A lot of Chris's possessions (p. 131) were recovered specifically his rifle, binoculars, a fishing rod from Franz, knives from Burres, and film. Carine, Billie, and Walt all had a change in their eating (p. 131) habits. Carine and Billie end up eating less and losing several pounds in the process while Walt gains more pounds as he begins eating compulsively.

Analysis: Buckley could have changed how Chris did things but at the end of the day we wouldn't know if Chris would have eaten him in Alaska or left him with Wayne to collect him later. The crucifix represented that she was a religious person which also later was shown more when she goes to her church to pray for answers. Chris keeping things from the multiple people he meant on the way was a saddening thing to read. When the mortuary delivered Chris's ashes with the wrong initials and Carine jokes about how Chris would have found it funny to cope with the pain says a lot.

#givemeanswersGod #eatingdisorder #Buckleygoodboy

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Summary: Chris has just graduated from Woodson High School and gives his father a telescope as a present for his birthday. Telling him about how grateful (p. 118) he is for Walt being able to take care of two families before going on a trip (p. 118) where he contacted them less and less before coming back for the fall term. When he came back the first time he ended up giving his family a shock because of how much weight (p. 118) he had lost during that trip which in turn lead his mother to try to make him eat as much as he could before heading to college (p. 119) with his machete and .30-06 rifle which at the time wasn't even that big a problem. Chris's personality (p. 120) did change a lot compared to in high school as another friend of Chris described him as "very introverted, almost cold" when he meets Chris again at a party. Chris's change in personality wasn't without reason because two summers earlier he gets some answers (p. 121) related to his father's previous marriage which resulted in his personality change. Walt McCandless hadn't actually divorced (p.121) completely from Marcia his first wife until much later when she gave birth to another son which caused light to be shed onto Walt's double life. Chris had a lot of resentment (p.123) because of his parents and it only hardened more later on where he turned of a sense of outrage for the injustice against the world. Even going so far as to write about his opinions about the government and ridiculing the Democratic party. Chris leaving his family and not contacting them at all caused them a lot of pain especially Billie who always left a note for Chris if he ever turned up and at some point even believing that she heard Chris's voice calling for help in the middle of the night.

Analysis: I didn't think Chris would be that hung up over his dad's previous marriage but I could see how it made him view his father less of an actual father and more of a hypocrite whenever he gives some sort of advice. This didn't make as much sense compared to the authors of the books he read being philanderers and even alcoholic, but able to forgive their actions. I couldn't see myself leaving everything behind especially when he was in college, had good grades, and able to make money fairly easily.

#ChristheRepublican #WalttheHypocrite #notthefirstfamily

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Summary: It describes Samuel Walter McCandless who is the father of Chris McCandless seven weeks after Chris's body (p. 103) had been discovered. He always had the air of authority whenever he is around accustomed to taking control (p. 105) much like what he did previously for his job for NASA. Growing up Walt grew up on an agricultural town and worked hard to get where he was at the time of Chris's death. Chris wasn't his first child as he had been married to a woman named Marcia before splitting and getting with a secretary who was nicknamed Billie. Chris was actually a gifted (p. 108) kid and was placed in an accelerated program meant for gifted students which caused him a lot of discomfort as he tried his best to convince everyone to get him out of the program. He wasn't really an introvert but he could go for hours alone (p. 107) without being lonely. Chris had a grandfather from Billie's side of the family who often took him on hiking (p. 109) trips overnight which may have contributed to Chris's urge to travel by himself often. Chris alongside Carine gained Walt's musical apitude leading to a musical rivalry (p. 110) between them, but Chris later dropped being a part of the band because he couldn't stand being told by his Sister what to do because she was first chair. Chris later took up running for a sport which turned into a spiritual (p. 112) exercise for himself and took friends with him occasionally try to motivate them.  He always had the knack for making money and Billie described him as an entrepreneur (p. 115) because at eight years old he actually sold veggies to neighbors on his wagon and came back with a bunch of money.

#ezmoneyearned #talentleftandright! #runningthedocumentary

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Summary: We are back on track of learning more about Chris McCandless who was discovered in a bus in the middle of the Alaskan wilds. We learn that The New York Times and
Anchorage Daily News have picked up on the story of a dead hiker. Gallien a man who was introduced earlier on the story saw the news as well as the map pointing to the Stampede Trail which caused him to feel shocked as he had dropped off Alex near to that location. Thinking of Alex, he remembers the boots (p. 99) he had persuaded Alex to take before deciding to call the state troops and described Alex's equipment that wasn't mention in the article.  After a while the troopers developed several rolls of film (p. 99) with pictures of Alex which Gallien sees confirming his worst thoughts. Wayne Westerberg receives a call on the radio (p. 100) to listen onto a different radio station where he hears about a kid that starved to death in Alaska which sounded awfully like Alex. He later called the state troops with W-4 forms (p. 100) that had Alex's real name as Chris McCandless and his Social Security Number. Sam McCandless who is Chris's half-brother (p. 101) received a call about the dead hiker which didn't occur to him could have been Chris who had disappeared. After arriving at the Fairfax County Police Department he looked at some photographs (p. 101) which confirmed that it was indeed Chris and he now had to tell his dad (Walt McCandless) that his son was now dead (p.102).

Summary: It was interesting to see the different reactions to people finding out about Chris's death up in Alaska. Starting with hearing about Gallien who had driven Chris to that area to Wayne who had given Chris a place to work and live before having to see him leave for Alaska. Didn't expect to hear about a half-brother of Chris since there wasn't much mention of specific siblings he had besides Carine. I wonder what would have happened if Sam wasn't still in Annandale at the time, would the troops have been able to find another another number? or would have the investgation stop there.

#WHOCOULDITBE?? #horribledayatwork #whenwillitgetbetter

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Summary: Another chapter about a dude who isn't Chris McCandless.  Everett Ruess shares many similarities with our main character though - he's a wanderer (p. 90), free spirit, well liked risk taker and lover of all things solitude and wilderness.  Everett is a bit younger than Chris when he begins his vagabond (p. 91) journey, dropping out of UCLA after only one semester to follow his dream (p. 96) of living a nomadic existence.  Unlike Chris, Everett focuses his travels in the southwest rather than north, but like Chris he also renames himself choosing the moniker Nemo after the character Captain Nemo in the Jules Verne classic Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea. And yes, Nemo the fish we know today is named after that character, too!  While on a solo expedition in Utah, Ruess seemingly disappears, never to be heard from again.  A search party is sent to find him after he goes incommunicado (p. 93), but other than finding his donkey, some cave drawings/graffiti he made and pieces of his gear, Ruess was never seen again.  Stories vary on what happen to him - maybe he was a victim of his own reckless innocence (p, 97) and fell while hiking or possibly drown, but some speculate that he was murdered by Native Americans.  No one ever found him or his remains, so Everett's end remains a mystery.  Like Chris, Everett's passion for nature and adventure won out over a conventional life, yet neither man made it out of the wild...

Analysis: Didn't expect to hear about another kid similar to McCandless who had also been charmed by the ideas of the outdoors. The more weird thing was how his body was never rediscovered after so many years and he was just presumed dead, I would want some sort of hope that maybe he could have survived but it really doesn't seem likely. The idea of trying to understand Chris and Everett by thinking of people from a far far place and even farther date back in time was a bit of a weird stretch from what we normally read. It did make some sense after finishing the page and realizing there were some similarities like their search for lonely places away from people, but it was also mentioned earlier that they also liked people too much to be able to completely stay in solitude forever.

#collegedropout? #NEMOnotthefish #gonewithoutatrace

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Summary: Jon Krakauer uses this chapter to show his readers that other men have come to their demise (p. 70) on Alaskan adventures, even if the circumstances are a bit different from those of Chris McCandless.  First up is Gene Rossellini, the modern day caveman!  Gene heads north from the lower 48 in the early 1970's.  He's a super intelligent guy looking to test himself in Alaska ...sound like anyone we know??  Well, "the mayor of Hippie Cove" as Gene is called lives a prehistoric existence, testing himself to see if modern day man can live in the same way as the cavemen did it back in the day. Gene tries his hardest, but sadly writes, "I learned that it is not possible for human beings as we know to live off the land" (p. 75) before plunging a knife through his heart when he realizes the true extent of his failure (p. 75).  Next up is crazy John Waterman.  Lots of similarities to Chris:  he's from the D.C. area, has MAJOR issues with his dad and is super smart.  John is an accomplish climber and alpinist (p. 79) before he starts losing his marbles, running for president of the United States on a platform to end hunger.  SPOILER ALERT:  He doesn't win the election!  Anywho, John comes unhinged, decides to climb the most difficult mountain in all of Alaska in the dead of winter and is never heard from again.  Alaska state troopers believe he probably fell down a crevasse (p. 80) to his death, although his remains were never found.  And last up is poor Carl McCunn.  Another transplant from the lower 48, Carl is the life of the party - just like Chris.  Good guy, fun to be around, charming, but lacks common sense & thinks someone will bail him out if he ends up in trouble.  Similar to Chris, he hatches a plan to go off into the wild for a few months BUT he fails to set up an Uber (think Uber plane!) to come back and pick him up.  The summer turns to fall and McCunn is starving and freezing.  But wait...a plane flies overhead and it looks like Carl is going to be rescued!!!  Unfortunately, Carl doesn't know that waving ONE hand in the air means you're good, no need to rescue you instead of throwing TWO hands in the air, the universal sign for HELP!!!  Carl is dying a slow and painful death by a mix of starvation and frostbite, so in his final diary (p. 81) he explains that he shot himself in the head to end his misery.  Guess Chris doesn't sound that crazy or unprepared after all, huh???

Analysis: It was interesting to read more about the author and the amount of negative mail he gained from Alaskans about his book. The stories about John Waterman was a weird and sad part of the story with the mention of many deaths near him and even running for presidency. The many similarities shown from the four men that's projected onto McCandless was astonishing. There was also a mention of a 20 year old boy who had walked into the desert named Everett Ruess which might be something we learn about in the next chapter.

#HateMailandStories #Anotherlostinthewild #UnexpectedPresidency?

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Summary: Wayne Westerberg who runs a grain elevator (p. 62) ends up seeing Alex 7 months prior to his death as he walks in the door to start working. The reason why Alex turns up to work is so he could get some new gear before going to Alaska, on April 15th. During those weeks when he worked, Westerberg realized Alex didn't have a lot of common sense (p. 62) as he had visited Alex's house he had smelled the stink from grease at the bottom of the microwave which Alex hadn't noticed or realized the grease had to drain somewhere. Gail Borah, an on-and-off girlfriend of Westerberg figured Alex was just shy from not being around people that often. One thing she noticed about him was that he was a big eater (p. 63) as he would always eat everything on his plate, leaving no scraps left. Alex never really said much about his family (p. 63) but it was obvious that he didn't get along with them besides his little sister. Westerberg didn't concern with Alex's family problems but figured it must have been some good reason as to why Alex had decided to leave his family such as something that happened between his father and him that stuck. This was a good conjecture because both Walt McCandless and Chris had different personalities with Walt's being controlling/feeling the need to take control of his son's life and Chris's independent nature (p. 64) which contributed to Chris reaching his breaking point and deciding to leave. One thing however that they noticed was letters from a girl but Alex hadn't mentioned anything about being in a relationship or even having a girlfriend at all. A thing that Alex had often looked at were books such as "The Kreutzer Sonata" and "Higher Laws" both highlighting chastity (p. 65) and moral purity which may have contributed to Alex's sexual innocence. He would often talk about books with Westerberg as well as someone who would live out their beliefs. The belt (p. 68) that he tailored with the help of Franz as he kept carving the many pictures of his adventures. one of the last things people gained from him was postcards (p. 68) as he got closer to Alaska

Analysis: I didn't expect Alex to go back to Carthage or rather for him to stay that long before heading to the Alaskan wilds. Another thing was the fact he died a virgin but it made sense especially when all he talked about was about out to the wilds and not really staying around in one place for too long. Personally, I understand his pain with feeling like his parents are controlling every decision you make because I doubt most people want their parents to make every choice for them and expect them to not have some sort of resentment or even them doing something rash such as running away from home.

#BackinTown #ChastityandMoralPurity #FamilyTroubles

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Summary: We see a letter from Ronald A. Franz asking for a magazine (p. 48) called Outside which talked about Chris/Alex's death in more detail. Franz is an old man who ended up developing a big impression of Alex and later even asked him if he could adopt (p. 55) Alex who didn't give an answer but would give one when he comes back. he ends up teaching Alex leatherworking as he creates his own belt (p. 51) and inscribed his fake name and real initials. Franz purchased a video camera (p. 54) which was used to record the sights during the trip with Alex. Alex tried to slip out of each emotional friendship in fear of it keeping him from his plan of going to Alaska. Even though it might have seemed painless to Alex, Franz ended up feeling horrible because Alex had caused him to open up and made him miss his family. Franz ends up taking over Alex's old campsite (p. 58) and awaited his return for 8 months before finding out from a pair of hitchhikers (p. 60) that Alex had died in Alaska. After learning about this Franz ends up losing his faith in God as he had let Alex die and became an atheist and drinks whiskey (p. 60) later wishing he had died from it but only made him feel sicker.

Analysis: This was one of the worse chapters so far in the sense that made me feel extremely sad to hear about one of the encounters Alex had on his trip. What if he had survived and made it out of Alaska, would he have gone back to Franz and accepted his offer to be adopted? or would he have told the truth and gone back to his real family? Reading about how Franz goes back to whiskey to drink his pain and sorrows away genuinely hurts to read because he only drank it when his wife and child died in a car accident.

#openscarsandalcohal. #sadnessandsorrows #willneverrecover

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Summary: Alex hadn't taken any photos because of his ruined camera and stopped keeping a journal until later next year. He later turns up again according to a letter to Jan Burres where we learned it had landed in Bullhead City, Arizona where he decides to settle (p. 39) for roughly 2 months working at a McDonald's. Alex had actually used his actual Social Security Number when he applied which was uncharacteristic (p. 40) considering the lengths he had gone to keep his cover. He ends up staying in a trailer (p. 41) after having a run-in with an old man who offered him a place to live granted he kept out of sight from the owners. Later on, he sends a letter to Burres who is coming to meet him. After their arrival, Alex explains how he's tired of working with "plastic (p. 43) people" which was why he decided to leave the town. He often kept books such as Call of the Wild, White Fang, etc. One of his favorite authors was Jack London, but Alex overlooks that those were works of fiction (p. 44) which don't often write about the true harsh wilderness. Burres saw Alex as if he was her own kid (p. 45) as her own child had previously left the family too and is out there somewhere. Afterward, Alex decides it was time to leave and keep moving forward.

Analysis: Alex uses his real name and SSN for a job at MCDONALDS of all places. I personally haven't read many books related to surviving in the wilderness besides Hatchet in elementary, but I understood the excitement of such stories. It's kind of sad to see Alex keeping to himself when it comes to settling down in an area and not being too attached to the people.

#Mcgrind #helplesstofiction #hiddenmusicatalent?!??

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Summary: Detrital Wash is located slightly south of Lake Mead. This was where Alex out of his impatience (p. 28) abandoned his Datsun (p. 26) after it couldn't start up from a flash flood that caused the engine to get wet. The flash flood became an opportunity in his eyes as he dropped unnecessary baggage which included the burning (p. 29) of his money. Alex later got ticketed for hitchhiking where he gave his parent's address back in Annandale. This causes his parents to hire a private investigator (p. 31) who tried to pick up Alex's scent in California but with no success. Alex later snuck into Mexico using a canoe (p. 34) by paddling through a dam's floodgates. He had a near-death experience as he tries to canoe in the Gulf of California from the tides almost capsizing his little canoe. He tries to get back to the border but ends up getting caught by immigration authorities for not having an ID where he spends the night in custody. instead of him being too sad from the experience at the gulf his spirit (p. 37) instead rose from his experiences. He decides to hitch a ride to Las Vegas where he works at an Italian Restaurant before he leaves it to hit the road again from a journal entry.

Analysis: The amount of Ls Alex took was astounding and even impressive in a sense. He almost dies while canoeing which seems to be some kind of omen of something bad happening related to water later on. I would be traumatized if I almost died from the water. I wonder if the private investigator will end up catching up to Alex later on in the story. Really is a weird thing reading about how confident he is even knowing that he died earlier on in the story.

#neardeathexperience #parentsalerted! #RIPDatsun

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Summary: This chapter begins with a brief description of Carthage, South Dakota, with a population of 274. Wayne Westerberg was a man who had some relations with Chris at the time. It had been 2 months since Alex's (Chris) body (p. 16) had been found in Alaska. Wayne had offered a job (p. 17) to Alex if he ever wanted a job to which he arrived a few weeks after to work for Westerberg. Westerberg had discovered Alex's real name to be Chris from a tax (p. 18) form but didn't ask him about it because he didn't want to pry into his business. Later it was revealed that Chris actually had a fairly good life in Annandale, Virginia with his father, mother, and siblings. Chris didn't really share the same thoughts as his parents and complained about them buying him a new car even though he had his yellow Datsun (p. 21) that he bought with his own money. The last thing his parents heard from him was a mail (p. 21) of his final transcript before disappearing and changing his name

Analysis: Chris's connection to the people in Carthage was interesting to hear about since it's a small town without the hustle and bustle of the city. Who knew someone who had a relatively normal life with their parent would one day just disappear before reappearing again dead all the way in Alaska. His adventures in Carthage had been a fun thing to read about from how he meant Westerberg to the letters he would write back to them and even South Dakota as his home.

#secondfamily #familytroubles #beginningofanadventure

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Summary: This chapter begins with describing the Outer Range as a series of lesser ridges and sprawls across the flats like a rumpled blanket. The Stampede Trail (p. 10) which is slightly below the Outer Range is the trail that Chris followed in the wilderness. A bus (p. 10) is described to be located on the trail left behind after being used in a project by Earl Pilgrim to upgrade the trail for trucks to haul ore from the mines. Little did anyone know it would be a gravesite after several people came to the bus. One of these people was Ken Thompson who approached the bus after hearing the couple describing "a real bad smell from inside." then a note (p. 12) taped on the door telling about Chris McCandless who abandoned his false identity after realizing the severity of his situation. Chris was found dead in his sleeping bag before being taken away by state troops. Several things were taken with him which include several rolls of Film (p. 13), a diary (p. 13), an SOS note, and finally his field guide to edible plants.

Analysis: This was an interesting chapter as in the previous chapter we read about how Alex reached the start of the trail through hitchhiking. So it was a major twist to read in the very next chapter that he had died from starvation because he didn't have the strength to go to the highway for help except wait for his impending death. The roll of film as well as the diary could have helped show his adventure and maybe more information during his final days.

#didn'tmakeit #steptootate #shockedandtraumatised

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Summary: Into the Wild begins by describing a young man named Christopher Johnson McCandless who was a Hitchhiker (p. 3) for part is his journey to Alaska.  He ventured into the Alaskan interior with little to no supplies besides a .22 rifle (p. 3), a map (p. 5), and a ten-pound bag of rice. Chris changed his name to Alex after leaving his family (p. 6) and belongings such as his money to charity. Alex meets a man by the name of Jim Gallien who drove Alex to Fairbanks, where he is going to the Stampede Trial a Trackless (p. 5) wilderness north of Mt.McKinley. Gallien advised Alex multiple times about going without proper gear, to which Alex came up with a response each time. Gallien thought of telling the state troops about Alex but thought Alex would walk to the Highway (p. 5) because that's what any normal person would do.

Analysis: I do feel his excitement though because I grew up watching those videos of people catching their own food and cooking it with what they had as well as making makeshift shelters. His unpreparedness isn't something I would do however because it just seems stupid or downright idiotic to go into a new place without any clue what might happen.

#livingoffland #freefromrestriants #determined

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I never really got a chance to go outside "into the wild" and the closest was when I helped out for a church retreat at Irvine Outdoor Center. Most of the time I was helping out with setting up things inside rather than being outside. I did however wake up early on one of the days and went hiking with some friends, sadly I didn't take any photos during that hike. I wouldn't say I'm much of an outdoor person, but I do enjoy watching those YouTube videos of people surviving on what they catch and cook as well as the different shelters from sticks and leaves.

The picture above is a sunset on the first night we arrived while setting up everything. I don't usually take photos of myself at all so the chances of me taking a selfie or having someone take a photo of me is slim. I do see some benefit to learning about different skills such as fishing, foraging, and being able to identify different things, but at the end of the day I still can't imagine myself doing that.