"Of all nature's gifts to the human race, what is sweeter to a man than his children."
Cicero
My daughter turns eight-years-old this weekend and I want to be home for the celebration so I began making plans to leave my New York carnival a couple days ago.
I've been gone most of this year on my year following traveling carnivals, calling her daily on my cell phone.
However, I got an e-mail from my ex-wife's family saying my daughter tells them she deeply misses me.
I've been making phone calls to Chicago area carnivals listed on the state's licensing site and this morning got hired over the phone.
My boss in New Jersey said he'll send my cash to my sister's house. I'm going to a carnival with bunkhouses on the Southside of Chicago but no fixed address.
No tears were shed saying goodbye this morning to a crew of about 10 people in Westchester County. I've been here two weeks and several people have left since I signed on.
One carny collapsed and was taken to the hospital a few days ago.
Behind the scenes - before and after show time - carnivals are harsh places. In his 60s, that collapsed carny was then fired.
This morning, the crew wasn't very surprised by my announcement.
A Newberry, New York kid, 18 years old, said I should buy the crew a round of beer. Because we don't get this week's pay until tomorrow, a Jamaican said I should have given him and his brother my week's pay. They would make sure it was sent, he said, winking that they might also be tempted to keep it.
One of the brothers who own my New Jersey-based carnival said, "Say hello if you're ever in this part of the country again."
An woman some of the carnies call 'mom,' in front of the whole crew, took a smoke of her cigarette, looked into the sun and asked me, "Why."
"My daughter's eighth birthday is this weekend," I said.
This crew all has families they miss. It is obvious that some miss them madly.
The majority male crew - most of them fathers themselves - all nodded their heads in approval.
It's Tuesday and the second day of set-up for a carnival in a mall parking lot.
The crew was sweating in the heat and working on rides as they waved goodbye. I was sweating too as I went to the mall to file this blog and get water in an empty Gatorade bottle for the road.
It's 2 p.m., I have no idea where I'll sleep tonight. It will be tough hitchhiking to Chicago.
Walking the area this morning about 6 a.m., I saw I'm near the Taconic State Highway (not far from Franklin Roosevelt's home). From here I can hitch to I-85 to I-80, through Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan and Indiana.
It's a bit more than 800 miles. It completes a loop for me that started on the storied Zephyr from Chicago through the American West to San Francisco. From there I hitched through the Southwest and up to New Jersey, a bit more than 3,000 miles.
My year following traveling carnivals had to be coast-to-coast and I have to travel the way they travel.
This leg of the trip, I'm heading into harsh weather. And the murder arrest of Kai the "Hatchet Hitchhiker" can't be good for hitchhikers anywhere.
I have real concerns about Northern Indiana and the Southside of Chicago. I've hitched it before and it was always epic.
Maybe I'll be lucky this time.
I'll be a dirty, smelly mess when I get there but I am the dirty, smelly, messy gift for an eight-year-old angel.
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
It's Another Trump-Biden Showdown — And We Need Your Help
The Future Of Democracy Is At Stake
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
Your Loyalty Means The World To Us
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our news free for all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
The 2024 election is heating up, and women's rights, health care, voting rights, and the very future of democracy are all at stake. Donald Trump will face Joe Biden in the most consequential vote of our time. And HuffPost will be there, covering every twist and turn. America's future hangs in the balance. Would you consider contributing to support our journalism and keep it free for all during this critical season?
HuffPost believes news should be accessible to everyone, regardless of their ability to pay for it. We rely on readers like you to help fund our work. Any contribution you can make — even as little as $2 — goes directly toward supporting the impactful journalism that we will continue to produce this year. Thank you for being part of our story.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
It's official: Donald Trump will face Joe Biden this fall in the presidential election. As we face the most consequential presidential election of our time, HuffPost is committed to bringing you up-to-date, accurate news about the 2024 race. While other outlets have retreated behind paywalls, you can trust our news will stay free.
But we can't do it without your help. Reader funding is one of the key ways we support our newsroom. Would you consider making a donation to help fund our news during this critical time? Your contributions are vital to supporting a free press.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our journalism free and accessible to all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our news free for all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. Would you consider becoming a regular HuffPost contributor?
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. If circumstances have changed since you last contributed, we hope you'll consider contributing to HuffPost once more.
Support HuffPostAlready contributed? Log in to hide these messages.