TdA Stage 54. Lowered Expectations.

114km. Game Post 1 to Game Post 2.

All off road today. Some hard packed sand, some deep and swishy sand.

The game post at which we set up camp had some basic concrete housing for the reserve workers. My friend Paul negotiated the rental of one of the rooms so that a handful of us could trade in a rainy night in our tents for a dry night on a concrete floor. As I was sweeping the cockroach carcasses off the floor to make space for my sleeping mat, it occurred to me that I would have turned my nose up such a situation not too long ago.

A few months in conditions like this has really liberated me from the burden of 'standards'. I even turned down the opportunity to have a bucket shower today, even though I haven't showered in a few days (of dirt riding, no less). Off the bike, I've been wearing the same soiled clothes for more than a week. Lowered expectations certainly make it easier to deal with some of the constraints that we have on this trip, but it is getting to the point at which I am starting to judge myself.

I just hope that my reintegration back into western society after this trip is as swift as my degeneration into my current state.