Day 15. Emotional scabs.

I've started riding away from Kim and Anders a bit more lately. It isn't that I'm bored with them, rather, I have felt a longing to pick at my emotional scabs and it is hard to do that with people around (yet a bit dangerous to do it without people around).

I'm not sure why I need to pick at them. It is a strange combination of pleasure and pain. I just know that I can't stop myself.

Pick. Pick. Pick.

Sometimes it liberates some unnecessary blemish from my psyche, revealing a fresher, newer me. Sometimes it just bleeds again. I never know which way it will go. Still, I pick. It is strangely pleasing sensation.

Pick. Pick. Pick.

Maybe I feel safe doing it in this environment. With Kim and Anders here, I know that, before I get carried away, they will unwittingly do something to make me forget what I was picking at.

Cresting Union Pass this morning, I was in the middle of picking and I looked up and saw Kim and Anders doing the macarena. I don't even remember what was on my mind before that, but the combination of discomfort and comfort was satisfying.

It isn't just their trail antics that bring amusement, the fact that Kim and Anders are from Denmark is a continuous source of entertainment. My favourite is the response from strangers when hear that these guys are from Denmark. A few of the best lines have been:

"Cool. You've got the red light district and can smoke dope and all that, right? Or is that Copenhagen?"

And..."That's in sweden, right?"

We arrived in Pinedale for the night, narrowly escaping a nasty looking storm. We are keeping relatively good time; not to fast that it is breaking us down, but steady progress nonetheless. The pace isn't quite quick enough for me to continue the whole way to the border with these guys (I will need to return home early), but we will make it through the Basin together. I'm starting to get anxious about that day. Mostly flat and non-technical, it should be an 'easy' day, but it's probably one of the most psychologically difficult stretches of road on the trip. I will need to be careful with the picking that day. In any case, it will be nice to ride it with friends; I will be interested to see what they think of it!
Sent using a Blackberry that I'd better not lose.