Pewaukee High School
Run time: 57:44.5 + 1-lap kick
Last trip of the year, first real winter trip. It got cold in Idaho last month, and there was snow, but it still felt like late fall. It is the early darkness that seems so stark this week.
The photos do not do it justice, because the i-phone camera really illuminates the murk. I got to the track around 4:30, and by 4:32 it felt like midnight. It was cold and windy, which did not help. I ran the bleacher stairs, which was fine because they were solid and dry.
This was a high-end school and a really nice facility. There was quite of bit of vehicle drop-off activity at the gym, but no one on the track. And no locked gates!
The drive around the horn from Grand Rapids to Chicago was quick and uneventful. Traffic was not too back through Chicago either. I got to the Milwaukee area by mid-day and made 7 sales visits before 4 pm. A very productive day, and some good quality conversations with prospects.
We lost our dog the week before the trip. Our family dog of 10.5 years passed away. She used to go with me on runs at the local junior high track back in Oregon on occasion, until she could no longer keep up for the whole time. She was always raring to go. She would do fine for the first couple laps, then I would let her off the leash and she would lag. Eventually, she would cut across the field to catch up. She never just gave up and laid down, though.
Mortality tends to lend perspective to one’s existence. Wasn’t that run with Ruby more meaningful than this day’s 7 sales visits? Not necessarily more important, but more meaningful? Couldn’t I have brought her along more often? Or walked part of the time when I did, like I do now?
The answer to all 3 questions is, of course, Yes. She was an amazing dog. She was happy with whatever she got to do, with any table scraps we partitioned out to her, with any attention given to her. She always wanted more, but she was as low-maintenance as a pet could be. And we miss her terribly.
Don't Make It a Habit. Make It a Ritual. 