She Ain't Heavy, She's My Other Side

This morning at work, I planned my day. From my desk beside the window, I could see the sun was shining and things appeared acceptable for my first outdoor run of the year. I'd packed my bag last night with thoughts of doing my three mile run at the Y. To heck with that I thought as I felt the warmth of the sun coming through the glass.

The clock finally surrendered to noon with both its hands held straight up. The office closes at noon on Tuesdays, so I grabbed my jacket and walked out to my truck. Hmmmm, it's kind of windy out here, I thought to myself. I climbed up in my Avalanche, a workout in itself, and drove to the bank to make a deposit. When I got out of the truck and walked up the sidewalk to the main entrance, I zipped my jacket all the way up to my chin. I couldn't ignore the strength of the wind as I pulled the door open.

Two people were ahead of me in line. While I impatiently waited, shifting my weight back and forth from one foot to the other, I looked out the big plate glass windows at the flag in front of the building. I didn't want to believe that my plans to get some fresh air along with my exercise today weren't plausible. The flag was totally out of control, whipping and snapping every which way. Oh, no. The route I take from my home into the neighboring areas is entirely out in the open, with no significant wind breaks. If the wind is blowing, I can't avoid it.

Dog gone it. Part of me wanted to drive home and just do it anyway. If I wore a headband over my ears, I wouldn't get an earache. I have plenty of running clothes that I could layer and I'd stay warm, I told myself. I was avoiding the main issue. My sensible side reminded me that it's not fun to run at least a mile and a half into the wind. My stubborn side defended her case by arguing that the wind would be behind me for just as long.

I sat in the truck after I left the bank and tried to make the decision whether I should go to the Y or go home to run. My sensible side put it's arm around my stubborn side and spoke quietly to her, "Remember how hard it is to run three miles with no wind whatsoever? Why make it harder when you don't have to? I promise you that one day real soon, we'll have ideal weather conditions. We'll feel the sun on our skin, the pavement under our feet and no wind to slow us down. Let's hit the track. If you stop arguing, I'll carry you on my back when we start mile number three. So what do you say?"

My stubborn side stopped grumbling long enough to agree and to ask, "One more thing. Will you sing 'What a Wonderful World' to me while we run?"

My winning side replied with an imitation of Satchmo's voice, "Oh, yeah."