Kasey, my CouchSurfing host in Charleston, is one awesome and energetic guy. He's lived and traveled all over the world, had a long career in the military and as an attorney, is planning a hiking expedition to an Everest basecamp in Nepal, and as I mentioned, brews his own beer which I can attest is pretty darn good. By the time I rolled out of bed, he'd already been down to the YMCA to work out, run a bunch of errands in preparation for his weekend trip up north to catch the West Virginia University football game, and left me a detailed note with a carefully hand-drawn map of downtown Charleston outlining the noteworthy attractions.

As he drove me downtown in his pickup he asked if I'd ever seen a coyote, which I hadn't. "Well, there's one right behind you." I turned around and sure enough, there was a coyote skin hat in the back seat. He and his 4 brothers all wear them at the WVU games, more to keep warm than to make a spectacle of themselves, but end up neatly accomplishing both tasks. When the television cameras pan the audience to find the most outrageous fans, they invariably settle on Kasey and his brothers. Awesome.

What a pleasure it was to spend a sunny day off roaming about Charleston engaging in NBA (non-biking activity). How nice to peruse books in a combination bookstore/cafe that reminds me of the Trident back home in Boston. How lovely to stroll through the farmer's market and gourmet shops and load up on fancy snacks that you can't get in the gas stations: toffee-covered almonds, papaya chunks, and chocolate pretzels. What a treat to enjoy a steak salad with fresh tomatoes and parmesan cheese in a classy Italian restaurant. And all this while wearing my one normal person outfit that doesn't have stains on it, freshly laundered that very morning. It all seemed so deliciously civilized.

I wandered over to the Clay Center, Charleston's relatively new arts and sciences complex, and got talking to two of the building managers as I was photographing the giant modern art sculpture in front. Here I received yet more special treatment: David, thoroughly impressed with the whole bike ride thing, not only got me a free ticket into the galleries and the Sea Monster iMax show, but took me on a tour of the entire place, explaining every facet of the building, including the humidity controls, the giant star ball that creates planetarium projections, and (my favorite) the vents in the floors underneath the seats on the state-of-the-art auditorium. "So if the guy next to you is busy digesting beans and cornbread, you don't need to know about it." I truly felt like a guest of honor, being introduced to all the museum staff and escorted through secret passageways into the galleries.

And David related his own tale of cross-country adventure. When he was 13, he and his older brother ran away from home and hitchhiked from West Virginia to California in 6 days. Of course, they were immediately locked up when they got there, but while they were on the road, there were, in David's words, "no orders, nobody telling you what to do, no limitations: we were FREE."

I agree, the freedom is the best part. As I was walking along the river to meet up with my next evening's host Anna at an antique car show, I called my friend Becca to catch up. She told me she's feeling a little overwhelmed wtih all the demands placed on her by work, school, church activities, and so on, and I realized I had forgotten all about how insanely hectic the normal pace of life in Boston can be. I don't think I've ever in my life felt as free as I do right now. It is an incredible gift to set my own pace and do whatever I feel like doing on any given day, at any given moment, with no demands and very few responsibilities.

I got off the phone and a voice in my head said, "This trip will be over before you know it. Savor every moment." And that, as I walked along almost blinded by sun reflecting off the Kanawha River, is exactly what I did.