Once upon a time in a shopping mall relatively close I decided it was time, time for change, time for a new start, time to purchase some running shoes. The last time I had run any considerable distance was in FL when Lisa forgot to pick me up from work and I couldn't reach her on her phone, I ended up jogging home 3 miles. Well we live about 3 miles from work now so why not. I would save in gas, get some exercise and Lisa wouldn't have to take me with the girls. After I bought the most comfortable shoes I could find (9 1/2 wide) I needed to break them in before my attempt to work. I wore them out and about for a couple months with every intention of running the next day. This past Saturday was the day I knew they were ready, after walking around the zoo they had to be ready. Without telling Lisa I set the alarm a half hour earlier, got up and got my self out the door an hour early without anyone waking up. Here is where everything went down er "up" hill. I ran up our hill and before I got out of the apartments I was wheezing. Then the next hill came and by the end of it my calves and ankles were burning and I had reached the 100yd mark. The next 100yds consisted of fast walking (without the arm swinging thing), walking and stretching. Then I saw it, a way out, I had all ready fought the urge to turn back but now I didn't have to; I saw a bus stop. Now I just needed some cash. I stopped at the next gas station about 300yds into it and tried to buy a water to get some cash back. The attendant snapped at me "5 dolla minimum" "so what about me getting cash back does that count?" "We charge 1 dolla for cash back". So I took back my card and went to the next station across the street. When I went up to the cashier he looked at me and said 3 dollar minimum, I went over to the ATM and got a $20 instead. When I got to the next bus stop I saw that it had just picked up and the next one would be in 10 min. All the routes went to the same place in Edmonds, but my route needed to go the opposite way eventually. I figured I could cut a mile off on the same street I was currently on before the bus turned off. I decided to keep running to the next stop before the bus got there. Another 100yds later and I met up with the bus, got on it for $1.25. At the next street the bus turned left, I got worried so I quickly looked around for the bus schedule book. Frantically, I looked for the route in the book, argg, why did I not use more public transportation? Then the bus turned right and I was just finding the route. The bus turned right again and I saw that if I didn't get off I would be off into la la land (edmonds). So I hoped off at the next stop, pretty much 1 block from where I got on. I finished my trip with running the rest of the way to work, so my co-workers wouldn't think I was a Pansy. The moral to this story, exercise hurts and is more expensive then if I would have driven my gas guzzling SUV to work. Running shoes=$39.00, ATM FEE=$1.50, Bottled Water to break the $20=$1.79, 1 Block bus trip=$1.25, Effects of 2 Vicodine when I got home=Priceless
-Earl
