A Hobo's Reflections

"Go big or go home." Origin unknown. For John Haugen-Wente, a motto he has embraced for most of his lifetime. Almost 67, still feeling 27, recently retired, looking for an adventure. When asked what his plans after retirement were, he would say "Going to bike alone across the country." "Alone!! That's nuts." was a common refrain. He would simply respond, "If you truly fear the unknown, you would never get off the couch." It became a thing. It became real. And that is just what he did. Leaving from Anacortes, Washington, 79 days later he landed in Bar Harbor, Maine, both he and his bike in one piece, having met some of the kindest people you could ever imagine, and also a few lunatics. Politics, nor religion ever entered into the conversation, just people interested in what he was up to, and he reciprocated by showing an interest in their lives; Being on a bicycle the glue holding it all together. Gives you hope for our planet's future. Also, makes you wonder why people can't just get along in a world divided. So follow along on a Hobo's journey from the Pacific to the Atlantic.