the lonliness of the long distance runner

well, i wouldn't call myself one; i think i would have a heart attack if i tried to run more than a mile.

but i started my daily regime of jogging again. i had stopped for more than a month due to a badly sprained/strained ankle and thenswollen bursa sacs (oh that sounds reeeeeal cool. say it outloud.). they're located at the tip of the tibia where it connects to my knee. my legs burned like a mother. after getting the swelling under control, i still had to wait until my akle healed completely.

and while it felt good, i wanted to make sure that my ankle was ok to sustain the pressure of strain on it. chalk it up to old age. joints aren't like they used to be.

when i went to the doctor to check out my ankle an swelled legs, he said my knees creaked a lot, like he sees in people who hike through unruly terrain in the woods. well, i did live in a ranch for 30 years, so i guess that would also do it. i felt like an old man; it was embarrassing. the doc told me that when we jog we put one and a half times our weight on the knes and akles. when we run, it's three times our weight. crap!

so i continued to walk to work and work my legs that way. but i held off on jogging until last week.

i don't run very far yet. i still haven't jogged as far as i did right before my unfortunate leg situation. but i'll get there. in addition, it's so hot now that i sweat like a freaking pig. but it's not such a bad thing. it shows me that i've doing something that exerts energy.

when i jog, things are different. the day becomes longer -- at least the part of the day that i'm at home. also, i think a bit clearer and i feel full of energy.

by the way, if anyone's interested, the title of the blog entry is the title of an iron maiden song from "somewhere in time." (1986)