As he approached the counter to his two dollar total, he made a request of the kind cashier. Shane put forward some extra and told the cashier he would like to pay for as many people’s purchases behind him as that money could. The cashier was surprised and lit up with a smile as she loved the plan!
One of those events is leaving money and a note to recognize hotel staff before checking out. Hotel housekeeping is one of the least recognized jobs despite the fact that most travelers expect to find their accommodations untouched and without a trace. We count on them each time we stay, but rarely offer forward the recognition someone working so hard deserves.
After ordering Shane pulled up to the window and handed his debit card to the cashier to pay for his meal. When she handed it back with a receipt she asked, “Would you like any extra sauces with that?” Shane smiled and said, “No, but I would like to pay for the meals for everyone behind us.”
At the checkout counter an incredibly friendly cashier asked which state we were from. “Minnesota,” we answered in unison. “Oh, I know another guy from Minnesota,” she replied. “He’s a friend of mine and owns the local board shop downtown. You guys should check it out.” Her name was Hilda, and she widened our eyes to yet another serendipitous moment for Project Wildness.
On July 24 we entered the city of looking for a barber. I (Shane) had made peace with my mustache, Tom, and was ready for a shave. No electronic shaver or dollar store razor would do – no, Tom was too strong for that now. I needed a straight razor shave.
Nate and I have met some incredible people along our journey and most of the time we are sharing a story about how we entered their lives with the hope to make it just slightly better if only for a moment. In a very special case Nate and I happened to be on the receiving end of such generosity.
On Wednesday night we met some more incredibly generous human beings in Amber and Jake. As we left Talk of the Town's lively jukebox dance party Shane struck up a conversation with the two locals. They quickly showed interest in Project Wildness, and Amber didn’t even hesitate to offer us a place to hang out to get out of the rain.
As we drove down Elk street we caught just a brief clip of music from a very young man. He was sitting on a bench in front of our old haunt, Pitas in Paradise. We looped back to find a parking spot and walked over to listen to the young musician. He noticed us, but continued playing his song. When he finished the gathered crowd clapped and some walked away.
Monday night we left Denver in search of even more wildness. Just before leaving we wrote up an ad in search of a videographer to follow this trip with hopes of turning the next month into a feature length documentary. As expected, Craigslist summoned the masses, and we received a great deal of emails, some promising and others laughable. A man named Keenan floated his way to the top with his vast travel and camera experience and an artistic side we knew would be a tremendous asset behind the lens.
At 6:00AM on June 7th, U.S. Army SPC Ross Cameron attempted to turn a corner on a rainy Sunday morning only to miss the turn by less than a foot. His car caught a curb and rolled over a median, hitting two trees before landing upside-down in the opposite lane of traffic. His airbag deployed leaving behind a gruesome memory as he died of positional asphyxiation.
As we drove down Main Ave into Fargo we spotted a man with a sign on the corner of 2nd St. Shane turned to Nate and asked, “What about this guy?” Nate suggested we turn around to see what his sign said. After making another pass we noticed the sign read “VET NEEDS HELP GOD BLESS”.
The man removed his headphones and introduced himself as James from Philadelphia. “I’m just so happy today. I don’t even know why!” he said. We asked if he was hungry. “Am I hungry? Hell yeah, I’m hungry!” James didn’t turn down our dinner invite, and we walked together looking for two more hungry folks to fill up the back seat.
As the last drops of sunlight faded behind an eastern mountain I climbed down and met Nate back at the car. As we stood by the car and took in the last moments of a dying day I turned to Nate and said, “I don’t know if I have ever lived in a moment as much as I have lived in this moment right now.” It was at that point that Nate expressed his reluctance to leave this all behind and we decided that this trip would not end, but only take a break.
It was a Wednesday afternoon and Project Wildness was running into the first bad weather of the whole trip. Driving in and out of torrential downpours throughout the day created an ominous prediction of what our night would be like in the mountain forests of Wyoming. As we passed through Daniel Junction in southern Wyoming we noticed a man standing on the side of the road hitching in the rain. Nate turned to Shane and asked, “Should we pick him up?” Shane immediately responded, “Yes we have to give this guy a ride.”
Crested Butte was incredibly kind to us and the owner of Pitas In Paradise invited us back for lunch the following morning -- on the house! As we sat eating their incredible food, we talked about the work kitchen staff does with little to no recognition. Anyone who has worked behind those closed doors knows that when a cook makes a mistake the blame lands almost entirely on him/her.
