December 31, 2017

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Good morning,
 
It’s currently 18 degrees up top. Yesterday’s high was 32 degrees, with an overnight low of 16.
 
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It took slightly longer to crawl out of bed this morning – soreness pervaded. I made for the kitchen and began brewing tea. Ironically, the morning conversations led to where today’s run would be. Laughing, two sore runners trudged to sunrise.
 
Walking up the trail, my thoughts settled on the past year, the coming year. It had been a tough year; it had been a good year. Eleven months of vagabonding had led me here. Somehow, I had ended up atop Mount Le Conte. Grateful and happy, I watched the sun creep above the distance peaks.
 
The sun was up and we began our walk back to the lodge. Conversations shifted to the final minute of 2017. Where would it best be spent? After little deliberation, the ideal spot would have to be on Cliff Top. The view would be vast, the full moon lighting the world below. If Gatlinburg has fireworks, we’d be in the best place to catch the moment. With the schedule established, the current minute came to the forefront. What would be for breakfast?
 
Cheers,
Seth
 
P.S. – Breakfast ended up being egg tacos and buttered toasted pound cake.

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“Sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast." - Lewis Carroll