When this entry is published, assuming that I find a cache at some point today, it will be Day 2,314 of my caching streak, according to geocaching.com stats. Project-GC, while registering it under my profile, doesn’t register it under the checker because I guess I got a bunch of Adventure Labs on Day 607 (it must be a bunch because I would never do only one Lab), and Project-GC doesn’t register Labs that way. Despite 606 being a good run that can claim any non-grandfathered challenge regarding streak length, it doesn’t have the cachet of being over six years. I realize that some cachers might not even consider my streak legitimate (Ranger Fox has the longest streak in the world, and his rules seem three steps beyond). As I just stated, I grabbed nothing but Labs on at least one day—definitely more than one, or else I would have another, newer streak longer than 606. There are also days where I have logged challenges, at moments when I was ill or pressed for time, and especially during the Snowpocalypse of 2021. I had three days without power, followed by three days without water. In those six days, I found two Traditionals and logged four challenges, which was impressive since caching was pretty much the last thing on my mind at the time (but don’t tell anyone—I have a rep to protect). I acknowledge those who dispute my streak because everyone has their own (at least semi-) valid opinion of what is meet and proper when it comes to caching, but I also note that I give greater credence to the numbers generated by the HQ servers than to the grumbles of the hoi polloi. Victory requires no explanation.
I have also previously noted that, for as long as my streak is, it doesn’t even get me in the top ten in Texas. This is quite true, but unless someone is in a similar situation as me regarding streak length computation, it does make me Number 11. Further, it puts me at Number 115 nationally (about to take 114) and Number 488 globally. All that said, I never imagined being at that point, especially for a stat that isn’t official and that I don’t actually care about, which makes my current bout of soul-searching a bit puzzling. I’ve sure wasted a lot of words here about a subject I claim to be uninterested in, so I obviously don’t not care, but do I care enough to actively keep going? Do I maybe want to break into Texas’s top ten? That’s a nice idle thought, but to do that, I’d have to surpass 3,191 days, meaning I’d have to continue for almost two and a half more years. And I’d probably never be Number 1 because there are still active streaks ahead of me. At least I’ll have some time to decide, I guess.
Geocaching While Black 