I knew today was to be very hot, likely over 100. Just now hearing on the radio that it is 88 degrees at 10 AM. So, I was up and out by 6:15 AM, and it was really lovely. I rode to the park and did my entire 15 miles there. Lots of folks doing the same, the park was crowded. There are several regular young peoples’ groups who run together in the mornings. These would be people in their mid and upper 30s I would guess. They have groups of 5-10 and one that must be 15-20. They must have some meeting places and times set, and they come and run before going to work. They tend to run in twos, but a long string of them, and chat and laugh and chat. It’s fun to watch.
There is one young woman, young 30s I would guess, or 20s, who cracks me up. She walks just up and down Lindell (that’s about a 2 mile stretch, flat and very straight). She walks and reads her book. She’s carrying a quite hefty tome these days, and she walks fairly briskly, not watching where she’s going at all, but seems to stay on the trail very well. She must have excellent periphery vision.
Today I rode directly to Forest Park, did my first four miles in the “highlands” of the Jewel Box, around Triple A, and through the baseball fields to the Mounted Police station, behind the planetarium and then down to the “lowlands.” Continued all over the lowlands – wetlands, Grand Basin, along under the World’s Fair Pavilion, around the boat house and Muny, back through the wet lands, down again toward the Grand Basin, but this time along the golf course, and finally all the way back to Steinberg Rink, turning to go west all the way to Skinker, up to Hi-Point and home down Clayton Ave.
Here in Dogtown they are tearing down the two houses next to Lehman’s and will begin in the next couple of days to tear down Lehman Hardware building itself. Then they will build a four story huge luxury apartment complex on floors 2-3-4 and the ground floor will be four commercial businesses. I have heard rumors that Cairdeas Coffee House may be moving into the corner space at Clayton and Tamm. I don’t know if that is so or not.
Yesterday was a very important and exciting day for me. Back on June 1st I reported to you folks that it was the 144th day of the year and I had taken exercise 77 of those days and not taken exercise 77 of those days. An even split.
For me to record in my careful records that I have “taken exercise” means that I either:
I don’t allow carry overs. So if I were to walk for 2 hours one day, I can’t then record exercise for the next day if I only walk 59 minutes. Each day is independent and requires the FULL minimums to get recorded.
So, on June 1 I was at 77 – 77.
Yesterday I was at 100 – 79
Thus in the past 25 days I have exercised 23 times and missed on 2.
Everyone of those 23 days were on the bike. So of my (now) 101 days of exercise for 2005: 63 of those were on the bike and 38 by walking (25 of those days in Ireland).
That really points up how much I love the warmer weather and hate the cold. 51 of the non-exercise days were between January 1 – and St. Pat’s Day, March 17.
Now I get up early nearly every day, ride and just love the cool and pleasant quiet of the early mornings in Forest Park. It’s so peaceful, beautiful, green, other lovely colors, surrounded by a zillion birds of all colors, the great waters of the park and the happy people enjoying the park along with me.
It is just peace and delight. I recommend it to all. It’s an awesome way to begin a day.
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