1. You’ll recall last week that I had a close encounter with a train. I had to scurry down a rocky embankment as it approached while I was on the tracks uploading a video I had just shot. It ended up being a fun video with the train passing almost right overhead but there was a price to pay. I aggravated my sprained left ankle, which is no good. I sprained it a week and a half ago playing basketball. It was pretty stiff and swollen. Now it is almost back at square one thanks to diving down the rocks. I had to pull out of a race I had signed up for. Luckily, they were understanding and refunded my money. Honestly, though, I have no clue when I will even try to run again. Walking is fine unless I do several miles and then it gets uncomfortable. Not sure if this ends my race comeback but I feel like I am going to be spending most of the summer working on strengthening my lower body and not running.
2. I will tell you something. I was out for a walk on the bike trail and stopped to use a porta-potty. I had to wait for someone to get finished inside. The guy who stepped out looked like a backpacking hippie from the 1960s. It was confirmed when I walked into the porta potty and the smell of B.O. was stronger than the literal crap inside. It was like the Seinfeld episode when the valet driver had such bad B.O. that it stayed in the car after he left. Not sure if the guy heard my gagging but I did try to make it loud enough to be heard.
3. In the grocery store, I passed a very short woman. I am by no means tall, so my calling her short should tell you that she was sub-5-foot. Anyway, she calls to me and asks me to get her a 2-liter bottle of Diet Coke off of the shelf. I grabbed one of the dozens there and handed it to her. The first thing she did was ask me to show her where it said that it was Diet Coke. Rather than ask her if she knew how to read I simply pointed to the large letters on the bottle. Satisfied that I had chosen the right product for her she turned and walked away. No thank you, no nothing. Fine. The next aisle over, we passed each other. I smiled at her. She, in return, scowled at me. Wait, what? I help you out, and you look at me like I kicked you in the back of the knee? Idiot.
4. This is the point in the year, late June, where it is a game of chicken between me and my air conditioner. This is where the weather jumps into the hot and humid stage. Granted it’s not every day, but once you feel 85 and high humidity, you don’t want to feel it again. I try to wait as long as I can to put the A/C in. Mainly, it’s because my apartment has two windows, and blocking one cuts off airflow. Also, there are plenty of days where it’s cooler and the A/C isn’t needed but I’m not going to take it out and put it back in repeatedly. That’s a recipe for a back injury. So here we are. Last year I held out until after the Fourth of July. How long will I go this year?
5. Going into my 3rd week of nursing a sprained ankle. I can walk pretty well but no running. Naturally, I saw a super cute yellow lab on the bike trail being walked the opposite way from me. This meant I needed to catch up so I could pet the dog. I ran a few hundred feet but the dog and owner turned off down a pathway. I didn’t want to chase them into the woods so I stopped. Of course a few hours later my ankle was sore and I didn’t even get to pet the dog. Double boo.
6. While out for a long 7-mile walk, I went down a section of the Cape Cod Rail Trail that goes through a golf course. I saw 4 early 20s preppy-looking guys driving by in a pair of carts. They look exactly how you’d expect them to look. I had to laugh to myself though, because I am pretty sure I burned more calories during my walk than all 4 of those guys combined during their golf game. Sorry for the hot take but I think golf is only a sport if you walk with your bag. If you drive a cart around, step out, swing a club, and drive again you’re not an athlete.
7. There is a new extension being constructed for the bike trail I mentioned, taking it from Yarmouth into neighboring Hyannis. It is only a few miles from where I live so I took it upon myself to check the extension out. It has been cleared of trees so I was able to start walking the dirt path. It was hot and dry so the dirt was kicking up. I ended up taking a shortcut that led me to mounds of dirt 30 feet tall. Too bad with my ankle I didn’t dare climb. Instead I went around the bottom of the dirt pile. There was no path, only thorns, loose sticks, and rocks. I shredded my left calf up pretty good. I made it to the point in the extension where a bridge will have to be built to carry riders over a particularly busy street. It was a fun summer adventure that brought back memories of my teenage years. Those feelings don’t come around too often anymore. Here is a short video of my adventure: https://youtube.com/shorts/h6gNbM4UWIc?feature=share
8. Late in the evening, I was listening to the birds outside. I always hear cardinals and blue jays. On this evening, I heard a bird making a squeaking call every few seconds. I thought it was weird. Blue jays make some sounds that are like a rusty swing set, so I figured it was just a blue jay. It took me way too long to figure out the squeak call was not a blue jay, or any bird at all. No, it was from my oscillating fan. Each time it got to a certain point, it squeaked. Wicked smart.
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| They sound the same, right? |
9. Something I don’t think I’ve mentioned in this blog since its return in February 2024. As you know, I am dealing with a sprained ankle, which is really hindering what I can do physically. Back in 2011, I got back into running after not doing anything of the sort since middle school. In those early days of my running return I got injured frequently, probably as much as I did over the last several years as well. The difference is that now I work as a personal trainer, which means that any sort of ache or pain I take very seriously. If I injure a body part and I cannot demonstrate exercises then what good am I as a trainer? Back in 2011 I worked as a cook and didn’t care about pushing through injuries because as long as my arms worked, I could cook. The ultimate irony is the unequivocal fact that I was in better shape when I was cooking than I am as a trainer. It’s like if you work a certain job the last thing you want to do in your free time is that same job. I hated cooking at home when I was a cook. I’m not saying I hate going to the gym, but it just takes way more effort to get me out the door than it did 10 years ago.
10. I was sitting at the beach just enjoying a nice summer afternoon. A tow truck pulled up behind an SUV, probably 6 spots away. The driver began hooking the SUV up to be removed. I have no idea what the deal was with the vehicle. Anyway, some random fool drove by and yelled something at the tow truck driver who was just doing his job. The driver stopped what he was doing and climbed up onto the flatbed of the truck and lifted his arms like he was calling the other person back. Of course, the other person was a coward and just drove away. It’s like what are you mad that the guy was doing his job? Or did you have to turn slightly more to one side to avoid the tow truck? Phony outrage and phony tough guys are the worst. It was like social media was happening in real life in front of me.
11. Speaking of phony outrage. While in the deli section of a grocery store, an old man with a big white beard and a straw hat on was asking about getting some bologna sliced. The employee was explaining the differences between types of bologna and for some reason, this triggered this old man. He started yelling about how not all bologna is the same. To his credit, the employee stayed calm. When the old man said he didn’t know anything, the employee calmly shot back and said he must know something since he’d been working at the same place for 19 years. The angry old man walked away. Another customer made it a point to sympathize with the deli employee and said some things loud enough that the angry old man could hear. I stayed nearby for a few moments just in case there was a second act to the bologna drama.
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