I took a nice, brisk walk this morning. After 3 or 4 days of cold and constant rain, today’s sunny, “somewhere in the 70’s” clime actually called-out for me to run. But, it’s been a long, snowy, run-less winter, and as I’m currently residing in a very hilly part of the country, I’m honestly not sure if I’m physically ready for a full-out run. I think it’s best if I ease into my running routine with a few brisk walks first.
With my journal in hand, I walked to a nearby park and pondered the pros and cons of a good run versus a brisk walk. First of all, you can’t easily carry a journal and a travel mug filled with coffee when you’re in the throes of a good run. So right there, the brisk walk has an obvious advantage, appeal-wise.
On the other hand, when I run, I feel much less vulnerable than when I walk. It’s not that I don’t feel safe in this neighborhood. It’s just that when I run, there’s less time and opportunity for anyone to approach me. Whenever I take my journal out to write in a public place, it’s generally been my experience that there’s always someone who comes over to chat. That someone usually tries to spark a conversation by asking me what I’m doing.
“Errrrrrr. I’m writing? In my journal?”
I try to be as polite as possible yet approriately brief in response to such audacity. I am clearly writing; you would think this would give most people a clue that maybe I’m deep in thought and would prefer not to be disturbed. Ironically, if I were sitting on a park bench having a conversation out loud with myself, people would avoid talking to me, despite all appearances that I would be much more responsive to engaging in a conversation with them.
A woman alone in a park quietly writing away in a journal seems to warrant investigation. Or perhaps, it’s just a blatant intrusion. I guess it would depend upon the motivation of the intruder…
I could ponder this thought in much greater detail. But, I have other issues to deal with right now.
Issues like my broken computer, and my inability to work on any project which can’t be done on a public library computer, which is pretty much EVERYTHING that I need to get done (except for this blog). I can work on this blog on a public library computer.
So, until my new system software discs arrive, and I can get my computer back up and running, it’s pretty much all blogging for me … and brisk walking.
