Lame Effort?

Does anybody else look at the first page of a new notebook and hesitate before writing anything down? This was not the half-baked philosophy I had originally thought to write about, but let’s run with it for a sentence or two (for those of you just tuning in, today is Lame Post Friday, when I amuse myself and I hope others with random observations and half-baked philosophy)(and for regular readers, sorry that I boringly repeat the explanation yet again).

On a blank page I could write something brilliant or wonderful or… oh, what the hell, now I’ve written something. Now it’s just a run of the mill notebook with words in it, not a magic spiral-bound receptacle of possibility. But one thing I’ve noticed about me: I like to write. I enjoy the physical process of putting words on paper. So rather than feeling the middle-aged mix of disappointment and philosophy that happens when reality meets potential, I feel content. And pleased about my new little notebook, purchased at Hummel’s Office Plus in Herkimer, NY (I am Mohawk Valley Girl, after all). So much for that topic.

The half-baked philosophy I had meant to expound upon is, “No effort is wasted.” That phrase occurred to me at work this morning as I struggled up the stairs with my heavy bag. My bag is heavier than previously, because I switched my lunch to salad instead of sandwich. You wouldn’t think a small thermos would weigh so much more than a pita pocket (whole wheat, of course), but it totally does. But, I told myself, the extra effort will at least burn a calorie or two. No effort is wasted, I went on. Any effort can make us stronger or teach us something.

Last night I was suffering from a bit of angst and wanted to post a Facebook status of “Does anybody care if I run the stupid Boilermaker?” What I wanted to see was comments like, “Yes, we like to read your running blogs,” or “I’ll look for you on the TV coverage” (my sister Cheryl saw me on TV the first year I ran), or even, “Hell, yeah, I’m not going to run it!” What I figured I would get was things like, “Do what YOU want to do,” and “These things are meaningless unless you do them for yourself.” And I was trying to think up replies, like, “No man is an island,” and “I KNOW that BUT…” or even, “Duh.” Now that I think about it, probably nobody would be rude enough to say, “What possible good can it do ME if YOU run the Boilermaker?” But you never know.

Now I have a potential answer to my internal Boilermaker debate. No effort is wasted. If I run the Boilermaker, my effort to do so is not wasted. If I don’t run the Boilermaker, my efforts at training are not wasted. What a comforting thought. Although I can’t help thinking I’d like it if somebody else would be a little bit happy if I ran it. How lame is that?