The One About Push-ups in the Ghetto

It was a baroque setting this morning as the lone street light shone down on the asphalt parking lot. My current running gear happens to be a dark grey hoodie with black running pants. My face and the dimly lit snow were barely brighter than the shadows. I'm jamming to Ingrid Michaelson's Starting Now on the i-pod, and I had just finished my run. To be fair there isn't a ghetto in Rochester. There are a few neighborhoods you don't want to be in around 2 am on week-ends, but at 5 am on a Friday morning, it's pretty safe anywhere you go. I was doing push-ups as part of my cool down, walk a lap around the parking lot, stop at the street light and push out 10, then walk another lap. I was high, I just ran a mile in way below freezing weather, this song has a great bass line and the lyrics are empowering. The contrast of the yellow light against the dark parking lot and my dark clothes reminded me of a dozen paintings. I was jamming out in my head and I just popped up from my second set of push-ups and I had to move my arms anyway and I was caught up in the music and I couldn't see anything outside of my street light, so I started flailing my arms in what my body considers dance. It didn't last long, a couple of measures of the song, then I was focused on my next set of push-ups when I hear a faint voice, "Hey!" I look around, my eyes struggling to focus on anything more than 10 feet away and I hear "Hey, can I have some?" I focus on a car sitting on the street next to the parking lot with a couple of guys smoking in their car. I pulled a headphone off and looked at them sideways, "Have some of what?" The guy in the passenger seat moved his arms up and down like a very bad air drummer, sort of did a head banger motion with his eyes shut tightly. I thought to myself, "this guy looks like an idiot, what is he doing?" and I started walking the other way. It took me about that long to realize that he was mocking me. Runner's high was immediately replaced with embarrassment as I walked away. I put my headphone back in, did another set of pushups just as the chorus was picking up steam and as I walked away from the final lap in the parking lot I was back in the moment, arms pumping, eyes tightly shut, head bobbing to the beat. I might have even hopped up and down a couple of times.

The One About Baby's Second Ultrasound

The One About It Possibly Being a Fad

I ran a mile and a half this morning. I'm beginning to think that me running may just be a passing fad that I go through every few months. I'll run a couple of times, hit about 4 or 5 miles (total) then not run again for 8 or 9 months. This time I was motivated by watching the Biggest Loser. The guy who got kicked off was really motivated while he was there, he always finished the challenges, even if it meant complete exhaustion. I guess I'll take whatever motivation I can get.

Rachel reminded me that we have a membership to the gym and that I didn't need to run outside, but I honestly think it was better outside this morning. I opened the garage door just as my neighbor was pulling out of his drive way. I started running out of the garage just as he started driving down the street. He must have thought I was running after him because he started to slow down and eventually stopped as I started to overtake the vehicle. I kept running and didn't look back. I could just imagine him thinking "What the hell does this guy want?"

I had all the right gear to run in the cold, a huge wool hoodie that keeps the wind out and my old Army jogging pants. I was surprised that my Nike+ system that hooks up to the ipod no longer works. I checked online and read some reports of a non-replaceable battery in the part that goes in your shoe wearing out after about 1,000 miles. I got about 36 miles out of it, but it was over the course of 3 years. I don't want to buy another one until I run 36 miles in one month. If I can run 36 miles for 2 months in a row I'll invest in some running gear. If I run all year I'll invest in some better winter running gear. Until then I'll stick with the wool hoodie that weighs about 10 pounds by the end of the run.