Wipe Out
Most of you have probably already heard about my spectacular tumble at the bus stop on Monday. If you haven’t, I can summarize: I was running late after Music Lab because we had more performers than usual and there was a long line waiting to get their cards punched. Then I had to make sure I had enough sunscreen applied to not char out in the 90° weather. When I left the building, I saw a bus pull up to the station and decided to hurry. I couldn’t read the sign on the front from the distance, so running seemed like a good idea.
I dashed across the parking lot – probably a good four hundred feet or more – and as I got closer, I saw it was my bus. Another speed burst! I reach the sidewalk and hurry along, when some idiot stepped out onto the sidewalk and kind of just stood around. I decided I could dodge him. A step onto the street was all it would take! So I did.
I overbalanced. I fell. I hit my hip and upper thigh on the edge of the sidewalk. I also pulled a muscle in my shin and sort of scraped the palm of my hand. I heard a lot of gasps and “Are you okay?” I was a little shocked, but that also meant I wasn’t hurting a lot. I waved all concern away, scrambled up and ran the rest of the way to the bus. Turns out I could have slowed down a little because some people were taking forever to insert the money into the coin slot. The bus driver looked very worried and wanted to make sure I was alright. I gave him a bright smile and said, sure!
The pain of my bruised thigh and hip really set in after about ten minutes on the bus. The fat middle-aged man who plopped down almost into my lap and subsequently sat on my leg for a split second before he moved did not help.
It’s only occurred to me now that, while I feel a little gimpy and my leg is pretty bruised, there was something profoundly awesome about the experience. I was not at all winded despite running like a maniac. The workouts have definitely been paying off and that makes me happy.
The Life and Times 