Welcome to our outdoor gym: The Terwilliger stairs leading up to the V.A. Hospital. Joe and Beth had been using this venue for their after-work training program and invited me to join them a couple months ago. We made it a standing date to meet here every Wednesday evening around 6:15. There are 148 steps to the top, and we climb them 10 times before rewarding ourselves with beer and food afterward.
Last week our schedules were blown apart by one thing or another, so I had to get my stair climb in on Thursday. My favorite adventure partner, Carole, joined me. She looked at the stairs and said, “So, we go up for one and come down for two, right?” Wrong. Ten times up, ten times down for a total of 1,480 each way. We climbed once and came back down, and as I was turning around to go back up again, I noticed Carole bending down to pick something up. A twig. She placed it down somewhat strategically on the dirt and then was ready to continue. I looked at her quizzically. She explained that when there were ten twigs there, she was stopping; I could not be trusted as the sole scorekeeper.
Last week our schedules were blown apart by one thing or another, so I had to get my stair climb in on Thursday. My favorite adventure partner, Carole, joined me. She looked at the stairs and said, “So, we go up for one and come down for two, right?” Wrong. Ten times up, ten times down for a total of 1,480 each way. We climbed once and came back down, and as I was turning around to go back up again, I noticed Carole bending down to pick something up. A twig. She placed it down somewhat strategically on the dirt and then was ready to continue. I looked at her quizzically. She explained that when there were ten twigs there, she was stopping; I could not be trusted as the sole scorekeeper.
The thing I love about Carole is that we are similarly afflicted with suppressed competitive behavioral disorders. Nearing the middle of our count I let her know that one evening, after willingly putting something in my mouth that was sure to slam shut every artery in my body, I paid my repentance by climbing the stairs 12 times. That was all she needed to hear. The bar was set. We would do one more to make it 13. On about the 11th trudge to the top, I told her that I had been to the gym that morning and spent 20 minutes grinding away on the Stair Mill and 45 minutes on the treadmill at No. 15 incline. She came back with a casual, “Yeah, I ran six miles this morning.” That was what she vocalized, but her implication was, “So what.” Gotta love her.
The broccoli, ginkgo and garlic continue. Two weeks and we’re outta here!
5 comments:
Okay, am I asking the obvious? Broccoli + garlic? Sounds like a particularly, er, noxious combination.... Makes me remember our no-odor hot fudge TCBY sundaes!
Love your adventures, my dear friend- and will start praying in advance for your safety and well- being while you're away. It'll be the adventure of a lifetime!
Mel would be proud.
Love,Deb
Oh, that brings back memories! Thank you for your good thoughts. Maybe I'll be ready for a dog when I get back. "Maybe."
Love, Iwa
6:15 P.M.? Isn't it dark? What do you do, wear headlights?
Did you learn nothing on Cycle Oregon? Headlamps, not headlights. Check out the big lamp posts in the photos. "Ohhh, I get it."
Sis, I love your k-k-k-cold motion picture of the ground blizzard. Your wind chilled dermabrasion makes you look even more fabulous than you already are. Good job on the training at altitude.
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