Briefer Sightings

[SoakdBrute]

I've been meaning to write this one down for a while, from last fall. I was on a team retreat upstate, as the leaves were beginning to turn, and we were staying in some cabins in the woods. One afternoon, several of us decided to visit one of the hiking trails not far from where we were staying, so eight of us piled into Michael's SUV and he drove us up there. It was a crisp autumn day where the breeze was blowing just cool enough to wear a windbreaker (and some of our crew regretted not wearing an extra layer.)

As we worked our way up the trail, the dirt paths bent and turned until we reached a little platform with railing for safety, and a breathtaking view of the cliffs and forests below. It was a clear day with light cloud cover, and the lighting there was perfect for taking photos. From there, we could also make out another spot with a shallow bed of rocks, and a stream flowing over it. This was another popular tourist spot, though it was marked with safety signs warning people not to step in the water. We made our way over there, and some of the more daring guys carefully stepped their way to some dry rocks to snap more photos with the grand natural views in the background.

From there we started hiking further out, with each of us going at different paces. I found myself strolling over with Michael and Peter, who were both part of our sales team and involved in closing deals with clients. We crossed over a wooden bridge which passed over a river, and we could hear it rushing under us as they got into their conversation. They were both dads, and they started talking about parenting, as well as their respective religious views and how those had changed over time. I think Peter was talking about his personal skepticism of organized religion, while Michael, a practicing Catholic, was gently ribbing him and saying that the church would be glad to have him back any time. They were both agreed, though, that it was better to give their children some guidance than to leave everything up to what they saw and read online.

Eventually Peter said to Michael, "Man I gotta pee," joking that it was because of all the running water around us. Michael informed Peter that there were some portapotties down at the trailhead where we were parked, but Peter shook his head, saying how he had to mark his territory and let people know we'd been here. I was chuckling along, but part of me felt surprised and a little amazed that he was thinking of doing that on what was, technically, a professional event.

Apparently, though, Peter was in earnest scoping out a place to urinate, since a few minutes later, when we reached the top of a hill with some light tree cover along the trail, he turned to Michael and said he was going to go here, asking him to look out for anybody who might be approaching. Michael and I stepped several paces down the trail to give him some space, and soon I could hear the patter of his stream against the dry soil. Michael turned to me and said, "Peter marches to the beat of his own drum," and we laughed about it together.

Eventually Peter finished up, not a moment too soon since there was another group of hikers walking up in the direction opposite from where we came. (I was no less immune to the chilly weather and the rushing water around us, and I thought of asking a buddy to look out for me while I pissed somewhere off the trail myself, though in the end I just used the portapotties at the trailhead before we got back in the SUV and returned to where we were staying.)

[Brian]

Thanks for writing all of that up, @SoakdBrute. Just one question: do you think it's likely that the real reason Peter refused to wait until you were at the portapotties was because he was bursting and couldn't (or at least didn't want to) hold it until then? Or would you judge that he was sincere in wanting to "mark his territory"?
Either way, very interesting to have someone do that during an outing for colleagues!

[JonInFl311]

When hiking in a decidedly wooded it seems pretty normal for a guy to go off the trail and behind the foliage to pee.