In response to
@RickshawFan's post in T#35:
"Occasionally, it does seem as though someone manages to be a mountain man for a number of years. However,
I can't see BL doing that. He ran home to momma; he doesn't seem ever to have been out of his parents' orbit; and it's not clear when he would have acquired outdoor skills that would keep him going in the woods." in response to my North Pond Hermit post and link:
‘North Pond Hermit’: Choosing to spend life in isolation
BBM
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So I don't disagree,
@RickshawFan, that BL is
not a survivalist, not by a long shot. The reason I linked my post to the
North Pond Hermit story, is because that 27 year hermit in Maine was not a survivalist either. He was bright and anti-social. At 20 he became a petty thief, committing 1,000 local burglaries to survive alone for 27 years.
In fact, I think my point is that perhaps BL is equipped not as a specialist in survival skills, but with the mental capacity to check out from the world and remain hidden.
Here are some fascinating tidbits in the particular article I chose to share in this discussion because it reminded me of how BL may be thinking of his long term future. I have to wonder, given the variety of mental health attributes he displays on video, witness accounts, and as recounted by GP's close friend, if he is not planning to just disappear.
- "...he went into the woods to live in isolation... surviving as a petty thief. At the time, most of his peers were heading out into the world, getting jobs, going to college, forming relationships and starting families.... "It goes against what most people consider typical human behavior” Thornton^ said..."
- "...the reclusive, obsessive-compulsive and anti-social behavior described by police, neighbors and others.... painful social awkwardness, emotional trauma or the onset of mental illness, which can occur in the late teens and early 20s, may have prompted Knight to seek a permanent way to avoid human contact..."
- "...Knight described behaviors to police that might indicate an obsessive-compulsive disorder or an extraordinary ability to focus that is common among people with autism spectrum disorders, Thornton said..."
- "...Knight strived to avoid human contact... depended on... steal[ing] food, batteries and other supplies... spent most days reading books that he stole from neighbors or meditating at his well-camouflaged campsite, sitting on a bucket, looking up at the sky and watching eagles. He walked on roots, rocks and stumps to avoid leaving tracks."
- "...He usually gained weight in the fall so he could eat less during the winter and avoid making treks for food that would leave footprints in the snow. He spent freezing winter days wrapped in layered sleeping bags, rather than start fires that might draw unwanted attention."
^ Bill Thornton, a psychology professor at the University of Southern Maine
All IMO!
ETA: All IMO! & Thornton citation.
