Another pleasant evening last night that would have been perfect for a run. Instead of worrying about the leaves covering my local trails, my concern centered on the leaves blanketing our backyard.
We have one big tree on our property, but it gets help from the neighboring foliage. Mrs. Viper raked the front yard recently, but the rest was up to me. Considering we have other work to do this weekend, yesterday was my best chance to get it done.
And maybe, if I raked the leaves fast enough, I could fit in a couple miles before dinner.
In the 90 minutes I had from getting home to when it would be too dark, I methodically cleared the yard, raking the leaves onto a tarp and dragging load after load to the curb.
A neighbor three doors down fired up his leaf blower.
At first, I was envious, but then he wouldn't feel the same sense of accomplishment when he was finished, nor would he have the callouses and blisters to show for his "work." Besides, my leaf pile was bigger than his, and bigger than any other on the block.
Afterward, there would be no running. I took two naproxen and laid down on the couch, waiting for my wife to get home from work. She would say that she was supposed to tell me not to rake the leaves because her parents were going to bring a leaf blower for me to use this weekend.
Back Talk
Wherein a little walking is OK
B. Jarosz says walking can be a prudent choice: "As someone who is both an avid runner and an avid hiker, I've never really understood why runners dis walking?"
Answer: The idea that a little bit of walking during a run can somehow disqualify it as a "run" is ridiculous.
Happy Hour is nearly upon us, teammates! Have a finely brewed weekend. Run well and drink well. Cheers!
4 comments:
It's very important to listen to your wife even if she hasn't told you what to do yet. You'll discover this is a theme after you're not newlyweds anymore, when everything you do is wrong.
And don't think you can reason, I mean argue, with her. I tried that this morning over my supposedly hitting snooze too many times (she said it was 3, it was really just once). I then helpfully pointed out her own snoozing habits on the weekends. That earned me an icy silence the rest of the morning until she left for the gym.
Yay marriage!
So... size does matter? ;)
Hope you and Mrs. Viper have a great weekend.
I used to have similar feelings about leaf blowers. And then I got one for $5 at a garage sale. I'll never go back.
Enjoy your blisters.
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