How My F-Count Is So High

Since my first find on April 4th, I was hooking on letterboxing. Spending time everyday on Atlas Quest searching for boxes, planning trips, trying to optimize my outings and figure out exactly which boxes I wanted to get and when. The answer was simple - I want them all, now! But of course, that was not possable. But unlike most I do have the ability to letterbox almost whenever I want.

Back in 1992, while I was in the Navy, I was in a nasty car accident. My right knee hit the steering column and my knee cap ended up around the back of my knee. Since then I have had 8 surgeries to correct the verious problems this obviously caused, but I still I have problems with it. I left the Navy in '95, and began my civilian life. But by 2005 my knee began causing other problems for me. Lower back, my other knee, ankles, etc. So the Veterans Administration decided to rate me at 100% disabled, and retire me at the age of 33. This was a joint decision with my current employer who felt I was missing to much work because of my knee.

I walk with a limp that I have learned to mask over the years, but wear bilateral knee braces. The VA wants me in a wheel chair, but I refuse. I hate using my cane, which I should use most of the time. Over the last few years, I have lost some wieght, which has helped my knee, but I still suffer from the chronic pain. Unfortunately, there is nothing that can be done for that. I was introduced to letterboxing by Red Barn Photos and it has been great.

The walking is great exercise, and great daily physical therapy for my knee. It is so much better than just walking around in circles at a mall. I still hunt in the fall, but I have modified the way I do that. For long hunts, I use my 4-wheeler to get deep into the woods. Because I know my knee can't handle the strain. And I can no long drag anything out that far.

But letterboxing has gotten me back into the woods on an almost daily basis. I check AQ several times a day for new boxes and pounce on them when they are planted. I take my boys letterboxing with me on the weekends when I have them. During the week, I usually go out several times to grab new boxes, or ones that I have been putting off. Even when I go visit friends or family out of town, I try to make sure I grab some boxes either along the way, or while I'm there.

So there it is. In 5 1/2 months (167 days) I have 372 finds. And once I finish this, I am going to venture out into Indianapolis and try to find a few more. My secret is simple - I was retired at the age of 33, and I am a single dad with alot of free time on my hands. My boys love it on the trail, and jump at the chance to go out on a mission to find more boxes. My fiance is a boxer who I met on Atlas Quest, and one of best friends calls me at all hours to let me know when new boxes are planted so we can go grab them.

So if you want to raise your F-Count, give me a call and we can hit the trail. I still have to make it lots of places around NY. And of course I had a blast in Ohio, even though we got locked in GreenLawn Cemetery and lost The OhMazing Race. I am still getting used to Indiana, it is REALLY flat. And I really need to visit CT to see family and get all the boxes Kreepy Kelli was telling me about. Plus she was a blast to hang out with. And those are just the adjacent states.