After seeing Into the Wild will anyone pull a Chris Mccandless?

mammasan wrote:

I would definitely go out and explore this country, maybe not permanently like Chris did. I have often thought about just taking sometime off, maybe a few months, and just galavanting across the country, in my own car. Seeing all the sights this country has to offer, but in the end I would return home to my family and friends because that is where my heart lies.

well that's awesome, and something MANY people have done and will continue to do. whether in this country, europe, australia, etc....but that's not 'into the wild'......and utterly alone either. travel alone doesn't make you alone. hell, i traveled all over europe, often alone....but as i did not do so to exit civilization, i still had LOTS of people/society about me. that's just a damn cool trip!

Watch the first 30 mins or so of Seraphim Falls. Minus the gunshot wound, it really captures the raw sensation of having to fight for your life against the elements in the wilderness. That or if you're hooked on that Man Tracker show.

http://www.sonypictures.com/homevideo/seraphimfalls/index.html

i bought a one way ticket to california with one pair of pants a couple of shirts and a couple hundred dollars in my pocket. i didn't have any plan except sleep in hostels and maybe get a job on a ship or something. then my grandfather had a stroke 11 days later so i came back home and decided just to go back to college. i sometimes wonder where i'd be if my grandfather hadn't died. and fuck i didn't even graduate school.

say and think what you want about chris, but how many people on this board can say they are going to have a movie made about them after they die? with a soundtrack by eddie vedder no less.

peacocoaNMO wrote:

say and think what you want about chris, but how many people on this board can say they are going to have a movie made about them after they die? with a soundtrack by eddie vedder no less.

seriously?
me, i'd rather live past the age of 30. how old was he? 23 - 24? no thanks. i say this as someone turning 39 in less than a month, i FAr prefer having my LIFe, than a movie made about me, nor a soundtrack by ed. i am not saying anything negative about chris, but yea...i think even HE would probably prefer being alive. besides, when i am dead...i am dead...so how would i know or care that a movie/book/soundtrack ws made based on my life?

peacocoaNMO wrote:

seriously. i'm not saying i would do it either but there's something cool about having your life-your story- live on for eternity. the same way writers live on through their words and musicians live on through their music, etc. yeah they're dead but their stories live on and influence people for centuries after they're gone. is it so much worse to die while living out your dream or to live a long life filled with regret? of course it's best to live your dream and live a long life to tell about it and that's what chris would have done if it weren't for a couple crucial mistakes.

sure it is.
i was only pointing out that in chris's case, the ONLY reason it was done, was b/c he died so tragially at such a young age. i'd far rather be famous for something else, if at all. but if my choice is die young and be famous for all eternity...or get to live my life to the fullest and for a much longer time...i'd choose LIFE. that's all.


btw - the 'choices' you offer aren't the only ones. be famous and die young living your dream.......or living long with regret. it's possible to have it ALL, or any mixture of the like, and other choices in there too. just saying that in the case of chris, given THAT choice....no thanks. i want to live my dream AND live for awhile too. and i also think chris would've like that too rather than being simply famous. also, if you are not of the belief that their is an afterlife, or that you would *know* what gos on in this world after death...well then, still...you'd have NO IDEA that your story lived on, especially in this case. it's not like he was already a writer or musician, etc. and we won't know until we're dead as well, so yea....not knowing that, i still rather live.:p

decides2dream wrote:

sure it is.
i was only pointing out that in chris's case, the ONLY reason it was done, was b/c he died so tragially at such a young age. i'd far rather be famous for something else, if at all. but if my choice is die young and be famous for all eternity...or get to live my life to the fullest and for a much longer time...i'd choose LIFE. that's all.


btw - the 'choices' you offer aren't the only ones. be famous and die young living your dream.......or living long with regret. it's possible to have it ALL, or any mixture of the like, and other choices in there too. just saying that in the case of chris, given THAT choice....no thanks. i want to live my dream AND live for awhile too. and i also think chris would've like that too rather than being simply famous. also, if you are not of the belief that their is an afterlife, or that you would *know* what gos on in this world after death...well then, still...you'd have NO IDEA that your story lived on, especially in this case. it's not like he was already a writer or musician, etc. and we won't know until we're dead as well, so yea....not knowing that, i still rather live.:p

good points. i see what you're saying. to me, there's just something admirable about taking a chance and living your dream. as crazy as it might seem to us it's what he wanted to do and he did it. who can fault him for that. it's a damn shame that he died. he was a smart and generous kid with lots of things going for him. he made a huge impact on the people he briefly crossed paths with. his written goodbye to the world says it all to me: I have had a happy life and thank the Lord. Goodbye and may God bless all.

gue_barium wrote:

I would give myself a one-year time frame/test. I would get myself flown in by a bush pilot so I could carry in a bit more gear and into a place even more remote than McCandless was.

Just don't forget to book the pilot to pick you up!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_McCunn

Cree Nations wrote:

Ummmmmmmmm....those "pioneers"as you call them were not alone, the Indians showed them how to survive and live...most of the time. After finding their footing on the landscape, they "thanked" the Indians in their own "special" way.

McCandless never had any "Indians"to help him out because
A) They remembered what happened last time they helped out a few white folks
and
Most of them were not allowed to leave the reservation.

edit: thats my one nehiyaw rant for the day.

I dunno man, it sounds to me like you're saying that those white folks from the past were inherently ignorant to the ways of the land and I have to disagree.

I know you're trying to be funny, though.

sennin wrote:

Is something like that "legal"?

Would one be allowed to grab a backpack, hike off in to the "woods" somewhere remote, build a shelter (or find an old bus), and "live off the land"?

Is there still land not "owned" by anyone, or any government?

You've got to live by your wits... and that may include avoiding those (people and/or places) who would object to you being someplace that you may not be wanted.