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Wednesday, October 29, 2008

The Return of Mr. Putrid...

Today is normally my day off, but seeing that Friday is Halloween and I'll be stuffing my face with sweet goodies instead of running, I figured I better get some mileage in today. I got to the gym at about 8:30 a.m. and looked for an open treadmill. There are about 15 treadmills with t.v.'s and another 10 or so without any form of entertainment attached to them. I am not a person who can run endlessly on a black belt while staring off into oblivion, though. Having a t.v. to watch helps that time to pass much more quickly. Anyhoo, the first couple treadmills were taken, so I walked further down the aisle toward the only available one. I hopped onto it, happy that I was able to snag it before someone else, and wondering if maybe there was something wrong with it--why else would it be vacant during such a peak time? Maybe the t.v. wasn't working...or maybe the belt wasn't....or maybe when I turned it on it would go faster, and faster, and faster...but alas, I pressed the power button and all was well.

Now, when I chose the treadmill, I wasn't paying attention to who was running next to me. About a 1/4 mile into my 4-mile run, I noticed a familiar smell. Actually, it's an understatement to say "smell." It was a
stench. A funk that I haven't forgotten since my encounter with Mr. Putrid a few weeks ago. I looked to my right. No, miss blondy wearing a sports bra and short shorts couldn't be seeping that awful scent, could she? I looked to my left. Aaahhh. There he was. Mr. Putrid in all his glory. I desperately looked down the line of treadmills to see if another one had opened up, but no such luck. No wonder this one had been vacant! Now there were a number of "regular" treadmills with no t.v.'s available, but was I really willing to sacrifice my entertainment in order to maintain my ability to breathe? Of course not. I squinted my eyes to see how far the man had gone: .46 miles. GREAT! Now I had no idea how far he intended on going, but I imagined he still had a ways to go. Mr. Putrid, afterall, is in pretty darn good shape. It's amazing that such a horrible smell could come out of his body. He does have a lot of body hair poking out of his shirt...maybe that is contributing to his problem.

So, I bucked up, breathed as much as I could through my mouth, and completed my 4 miles. Actually, when I was in the middle of my 2nd mile, Mr. Putrid left. It's weird, but his scent lingered for a good 10 minutes after he was gone. Really, someone ought to tell that man that he STINKS! Who knows? Maybe people (women, in particular) have been avoiding this poor man for who knows how long...maybe he should see a doctor. I mean, really, I have NOT smelled anything like this man before in my life.

Onto other things...tomorrow is my last run for the month--I'm set to do 4 miles with Amber in the a.m., which will put me at just over 100 miles for October. Yay me!

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