The long and winding road

Yesterday was "walk home day" for me. Once a week, I walk home from work, a distance of 5 or 6 miles. This is my (admittedly) piss poor attempt to erase the effects of a summer full of Wrigley Field's beer and hotdogs.

I started this "workout" a few months ago and my first WHD took me over 2 1/2 hours! I decided to take the path along the lakefront, very scenic, but not very direct (as my boss pointed out on a map recently). ooops!

The WHD has, however, given me an opportunity to drain the office bullshit and frustration from my mind and arrive home calm and thoughtful (not to mention sweaty and smelly).

Interesting notes from recent WHDs:
- so THAT's where the Diversey driving range is!
- YES, people do actually buy little shoes for their dogs (thought that only happened on the East and West coasts). Too funny!
- picnicking on the lakefront is not limited to the grassy areas as I came across an older couple struggling to open a bottle of wine on the cement "beach" north of Oak Street along the outer drive. I trimmed some days off purgatory by letting them use the bottle opener on my keychain.
- why on earth would the Chicago German community authorize a statue for German philosopher Goethe that looks like a Roman eagle trainer? what's that about?? (It's at Diversey and Sheridan.)

But I digress...

As I said, my first WHD took more than 2 1/2 hours. Since then, I've been trying to cut my time without cutting the distance. And don't say, "Take up running!" Forget it! I don't run unless somebody's chasing me...and they're armed!

According to my pedometer, I walked 14,747 steps yesterday (including during my workday). Sounds pretty impressive, doesn't it? A person of 125-130 pounds needs 10,000 steps to work off 300 calories, so I probably lost oh, maybe half a Big Mac! Big effin deal!

Lately, I've noticed that my route changes from week to week and the diversions usually take place in the parks north of North Avenue. On my first WHD, I was distracted by a softball game on a hidden-away diamond. Last week, I got sidetracked onto a shady little path that left me two blocks off-course.

The paths, cute and curvy as they are, are a delightful way to spend an afternoon or evening, but not very helpful to me. While the Chicago Park District paths might lead you past a gaggle of grazing geese (like the alliteration?) or through beautifully landscaped gardens, they are someone else's idea of where to go.

But which path should I take to get where I'm going? I guess the most direct way to get where you need to be is to find your own way, make your own path.