A Year on My Feet
I got the urge and walked briefly on Sunday. It clicked.
This morning at 6:30 I was surprised it was still dark outside. And it was raining. I slept more. Wound up going out a little before 8:00. Walked for about thirty or forty minutes. It was still cool, and it alternated between drizzling and raining lightly. I was surprised that I didn't care much. Normally I'd be really bothered by that.
It was, obviously, more pleasant to walk on the side streets, than the main boulevard nearby. A route that includes the parks and washes is going to be more appealing than a straight run around the subdivision's inner loop.
Things that surprised me:
First, how -- especially at first -- I felt vulnerable and exposed. Simply for not being in a car. I felt... accesible, instead of shut off.
Second, how much the walking persistently made me think of my Grandpa, who also liked to go on walks.
Third, how the walking reconnected me to the dozen or so years of elementary school, middle school and high school, when I walked to and from school most days.... and to the time I spent in Japan, where we walked alot, as well. It made me realize I haven't really "walked" as part of my daily required routine for... a really long time.
I saw a coin and picked it up. A penny. It seemed like there was no choice but to do this, since the coin collecting is another recently emerged hobby.
I don't know the trees or birds, despite a personal pledge of thirteen or fourteen months ago. I'd like to learn them.
Once in a while, maybe I will take my camera along, though I don't know whether the two activities are really closely compatible -- at least not the way I am used to thinking of/ approaching the use of the camera.
I am irritated that I have a 7:00 am networking event tomorrow morning. That really messes up the walking plan. It is lousy to have momentum and resolve disturbed on Day 3 of a new venture. Maybe I'll get up early and go walk briefly in the a.m. darkness.
I was surprised I had no desire to listen to the iPod I brought, loaded with audiobooks, music and podcasts. I was surprised I had no desire to work on e-mails on the Q.
I wish I had walked with A in Chicago more often. I've told her that.
It's a mild but admittable ripple of the Krakauer book, which I finished today.
This morning at 6:30 I was surprised it was still dark outside. And it was raining. I slept more. Wound up going out a little before 8:00. Walked for about thirty or forty minutes. It was still cool, and it alternated between drizzling and raining lightly. I was surprised that I didn't care much. Normally I'd be really bothered by that.
It was, obviously, more pleasant to walk on the side streets, than the main boulevard nearby. A route that includes the parks and washes is going to be more appealing than a straight run around the subdivision's inner loop.
Things that surprised me:
First, how -- especially at first -- I felt vulnerable and exposed. Simply for not being in a car. I felt... accesible, instead of shut off.
Second, how much the walking persistently made me think of my Grandpa, who also liked to go on walks.
Third, how the walking reconnected me to the dozen or so years of elementary school, middle school and high school, when I walked to and from school most days.... and to the time I spent in Japan, where we walked alot, as well. It made me realize I haven't really "walked" as part of my daily required routine for... a really long time.
I saw a coin and picked it up. A penny. It seemed like there was no choice but to do this, since the coin collecting is another recently emerged hobby.
I don't know the trees or birds, despite a personal pledge of thirteen or fourteen months ago. I'd like to learn them.
Once in a while, maybe I will take my camera along, though I don't know whether the two activities are really closely compatible -- at least not the way I am used to thinking of/ approaching the use of the camera.
I am irritated that I have a 7:00 am networking event tomorrow morning. That really messes up the walking plan. It is lousy to have momentum and resolve disturbed on Day 3 of a new venture. Maybe I'll get up early and go walk briefly in the a.m. darkness.
I was surprised I had no desire to listen to the iPod I brought, loaded with audiobooks, music and podcasts. I was surprised I had no desire to work on e-mails on the Q.
I wish I had walked with A in Chicago more often. I've told her that.
It's a mild but admittable ripple of the Krakauer book, which I finished today.
posted by Genki na Pengin at 7:41 PM
2 Comments:
cool
I also find walking to be a surprising experience. I am often blessed with the most amazing whisper of nature . . . a butterfly, a cardinal nestled in a pine tree. The weather is never as cold or discouraging as I think it is going to be. It is always a peaceful experience. Grandpa Pendrey walked a lot too. A doctor once told him in his old age that he had the legs of a 20 year old. Grandma Marie would often look from her job at the bank and see her father walking by!
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