Walk this way.
Tonight I felt inspired. I felt that go get ‘em kind of surge in my gut.
So I decided to walk to my Weight Watchers meeting.
I already did my morning walk, 55 minutes, or 4.58 miles to be precise, but I still had a lot of energy. (The giganto cup of coffee I had earlier really helped with that.)
Anyways, Mr. S was meeting me directly at the meeting, so I decided to save on gas and walk.
And after all, I’m walking now. Not just walking mind you, but training for a marathon, amongst other things.
So I laced up my sneakers, put on some light colored warm clothing, strapped on my Nike+ and my headlamp and off I went.
I forgot how much I love to walk at night. It is really empowering. Mr. S and I used to night hike all the time. There is calm at night that can’t be replicated during the day. There are noises that keep your senses alert. You can’t get lazy and apathetic on a night hike, you have to pay keen attention to everything. It is wonderful.
I was about halfway to my meeting when someone pulled off the road and rolled down their window.
“Are you OK?” The lady in the car yelled at me.
“Yep.” I said with a smile.
“Are you sure, cause I could give you a ride if you needed.”
“Nope, I’m just out for a walk.”
“Are you sure you are OK?”
“Absolutely. I’m just walking.”
“Walking? At night?”
“Yep. Walking. Thanks, though.”
While I appreciate her concern, it really shocked me that she was in such disbelief that someone, namely a woman, could be out walking.
About five minutes later, a second car called off the road and we basically repeated the same conversation.
No I know that safety is a huge priority for any person out alone night. But I took necessary precautions and frankly, I don’t plan on making walking at night on roads a regular occurrence.
Besides their safety concerns, what really bothered me is that people didn’t seem to understand just going out for a walk. For the sake of walking.
About five minutes after the second car pulled off the road, I heard a crinkling of leaves in a bush about ten feet in front of the path I was on. I was on a side street now, not a major road, so the light was dim and traffic was less intense. I stopped, being well trained to know that it was either something I didn’t want to meet or something that didn’t want to meet me.
I craned my headlamp down a notch and waited.
A nose popped out of the bush. I heard a whimper coming from the same bush. Not a cry but more like a whining. A coyote stepped onto the street. She turned to look at the bush and waited. Out popped a smaller coyote. The bigger one turned around and proceeded to trot across the street, little one in tow.
The bigger coyote did look in my direction, but she must have decided I wasn’t a threat because she didn’t stop or even start running. She just trotted to the other side of the road and disappeared into the darkness.
I’m really glad that I decided to walk to program tonight. I’m really glad I walked for the sake of walking.
You should know that I’m quite safe. I carry a cell phone, I walk with a big stick, I don’t wear both headphones, I walk against traffic and I always wear light colors and my headlamp if I’m out at night, I wear an ID bracelet and I always make sure more that one person knows my planned path and intended timeframes. Don’t worry too much, Mom. Oh and I almost forgot, Weight Watchers and all its known names and trademarks belong to them and only them. I do not work for them, nor can I answer questions about their trademarks. No coyotes were harmed in the making of this post.