1. What Does He Think He’s Doing?
We were eating breakfast tacos at Torchy’s, sitting outside in the sun watching people come and go, watching the traffic, watching the joggers running on the Arbor Trails trail.
I was really enjoying my bacon, egg & cheese, captivated by the taste, by the protein coursing thru my veins lifting the veil of grim that floats about me in the morning.
My brother pointed at a guy running by.
“What does he think he’s doing?” he said. “He’s not jogging. You could walk faster than that.”
I looked up and thought that I couldn’t walk faster than that, or at least wouldn’t. And I thought that at least that guy’s out there trying.
2. You’ve Been Running All This Time?
That was a little more than a year ago. Soon after my brother’s visit, I started walking short distances and then walking longer distances and then jogging, although truth be told my jogging is more like trudging, but … whatever. I am finally out there again.
In the afternoons, I’ll push the keyboard back and put on my running gear and take the dog out for a jog around Arbor Trails. Today I did 3.5 miles. And as if the jogging isn’t slow enough, the dog and I make a point to take regular walking breaks.
These walking breaks are, frankly, key. Guinness likes the chance to do some sniffing around. I like the chance to … stop jogging. It’s a little reward for getting out there.
So on our way home today, down the final stretch in fact, up the slight grade that seems to be such a drag at the end of the run, I passed a guy whom I had passed on the way out. He looked at me and smiled.
“You’ve been running all this time?” he asked. “I saw you going out, and that was a long time ago.”
He was all impressed by how long I’d been at it. He didn’t know anything about the walking breaks. Or about the trudging. And let’s just say that I let it stay that way.