A Living Magazine - Day 282 - Homecoming - Petersburg to Colonial Heights

I woke quite refreshed and fairly chipper for such a dark night of the soul. The sleep spot had worked very well. I was somewhat more exposed than I thought I would be, in the cold light of day. I packed up, appreciating just how nice it was to have dry things again...

The plan now was to get to Walmart to buy new pants and shoes. It was located in a town just north and over the river, called Colonial Heights. First I had to get to the library and hop on their Wi-Fi to chart the route. They weren't open for another couple of hours, but I was pretty sure that if I stood outside I could get online...

I loved this building's architecture. It is pure Classical. Notice the Doric columns--the simplest

and earliest of the Greek columns. They have no bases. Very rare to find.

I tried to find out what the building was online but couldn't find a description.

I probably should have crossed the street and just read the plaque.

Prompted by a comment here after publication, I went back to Google and did
a street view then zoomed way in, and saw this...

It is a Southern Baptist Church. Thanks, Ellen!
[Google Street View Screenshot]

Veteran's support services.

When I got to the library I was able to get online and memorize the maze of streets leading to Walmart. With that, I was off...

Brodies and donuts that looked like this subatomic particles image to me...

[Google Images.]

I crossed over the river and into a much nicer area... 

The Appomattox River.

I thought this light fixture looked a bit like the helmet of the Witch King of Angmar.

When I finally got to Walmart I found them woefully understocked. Online, they advertised convertible pants. But there were none, and the head of men's clothing was completely unhelpful. I decided to buy some Dickies pants, and then some shoes that looked like they might be okay.

Neither item was good. The pants were super low cut and the material was way too heavy. The shoes were hard on the heels and they cut into my ankles. I'd thrown my old clothes away and now was faced with a dilemma. How could I return/exchange these and still be able to wear something while I did it? I asked the Customer Service woman. She decided to load a gift card with my return amount while I shopped. Then they would take whatever new amount off, and I could change in the restroom.

I chose what would be much better shoes. They were simple walking shoes with a very soft soles. And, I picked up a pair of shorts instead of pants. This left me with no long pants; something I would have to rectify somehow. The transaction worked out fine and I was much more comfortable as I left.

I found the Starbucks and got online to look for a Goodwill. Sure enough there was one about 1.3 miles away. I set off to find it, and along the way checked out the sleep spot I'd planned on for later.

At Goodwill 80% of the clothes were women's. There were no hiking pants. So, I looked through the jeans. They would be heavier than my hiking pants but not as heavy as those Dickies. As luck would have it, I did find a good pair in my size. I changed out of the shorts and into the jeans.

Looking at myself in the mirror, I saw that I appeared like a normal, everyday guy again. It was the first time I'd worn different pants in in 282 days! I liked it. And, it was a good thing that I had jeans on, for when I climbed up the hill and into the sleep spot. It was a great place, well-hidden and relatively clean. I quickly set up the tent...    

I heard a small creature squeal and really freak out that I was in his territory. I told him I wouldn't hurt him if he didn't hurt me. He didn't answer for some reason. Eventually, I climbed into the tent and fell asleep easily.