People call this the unofficial end of summer, but I think Mother Nature is letting us know it ain’t so. As I sit writing this at my place of employment (my shift hasn’t started yet so sit back down, you have no reason to tattle to my boss), my pants stick to my legs and a coating of sweat threatens the Oil of Olay I put on my face earlier.
But I was not writing a blog post to complain about things. I mean to write about the run I took this morning. I had originally thought NOT to write about it. After all, this is not a blog about running. On the other hand, it is not a blog about me not being able to write a decent blog post either, but I seem to write a lot of those, too.
Be all that as it may, Steven had another early shift today, so i took the opportunity for another pre-dawn run. One might think the dark air would be cool and pleasant, but one would be mistaken. The humidity was thick, the temperature was none too low and the breeze seldom.
Oh, just listen to me grumble, and it gets worse before it gets better (I confess, as I write this I am laughing at myself. What a kvetch!). What bothered me first was my own legs. They felt as if I had not used them in weeks. What a crock! I ran Sunday and walked on Monday. And I did not spend all day lounging on the couch in between.
I wondered if I should have warmed up before starting. I used to stretch but then I read how you should not stretch cold muscles. Warm them first, I read, with a light jog. Well, I start my run slow, you could call it a light jog if you were so inclined. I suppose what you are supposed to do is jog in place for a minute or two, then stretch, THEN start your run. Oh, who has time for these things? And personally, I find it is best to get out the door and away from my comfortable house as soon as possible or I will find an unassailable reason for staying home (I can be very persuasive).
Before the run I had had quite a debate in my head as to where to run. I like to take different routes. But I still feel some nervousness running prior to four in the morning. Would it not be better to stick to proven safe streets? Then again, different routes can stimulate the mind. Finally I set out in my usual direction down German Street. There was no point in stimulating my mind too much.
I went all the way up German and hooked around to run back down Church Street. The only thing of note I observed were some vines growing over a privacy fence. They seemed bigger than I remembered. Had it been longer than I thought since I ran down this side of the street? Or had they grown really fast in the recent rain? It was not until I was writing this just now that it occurs to me, they may be mutant vines that will begin to eat people soon. I suppose I was still half asleep. I don’t usually miss a good B movie reference like that.
Soon I was approaching Main Street. Some people avoid Main Street. I’ve never had a problem there and continue to walk and run that way. However, early hours seem to make a difference, at least in my head. I decided to cross Main and run down Washington to Green Street. Then I could run by the police station. That would make me feel secure.
It seemed to take a long time to get to Green Street. My legs were feeling better, but I was really feeling the humidity. As I ran by the police station I realized there was a whole parking lot between me and any cops that might be there. If I was accosted by a bad guy could I count on the police hearing me? I do have a loud voice. Then again, what kind of messed up bad guy accosts a middle-aged lady running by the police station at four in the morning? Maybe there were surveillance cameras. If the extremely unlikely happened, it could at long last be my ticket to an appearance on World’s Dumbest.
As I continued towards Meyers Park I debated how much longer I should keep running. I was over 20 minutes so I had at least met the minimum goal I had set for myself. Of course one likes to do more than the bare minimum (one being me).
I took the long way home for a total run time of 33 minutes, the same length as my last run. As usual I walked around the block with my schnoodle, Tabby for a cool down. The best thing about these early morning runs is knowing that it’s DONE. As the heat and humitidy increased, I was increasingly glad that was so.
Mohawk Valley Girl 