Good Day, Soul Shine

Today has been an alternating mix of gross and muggy and torrential downpour. The good news was that the times that I was outside today were only mildly muggy and the rain was light. Today started kind of crummy because I am still hurting from being on my feet all weekend at the Mid Atlantic CrossFit Regionals, couldn't make my bacon in the oven because the pilot light is mysteriously out again for no good reason, and then I left my ID and Metro card on my dresser and didn't realize it until I was all the way inside the Metro station, had to turn around and come back for them, and was an hour late to work. Basically I was having a Monday.

Wednesday I had a good day. Henceforth having a good day shall be referred to as "Having a Wednesday." On Wednesday I walked from DC to Virginia. It was awesome.

I almost had a bad day on Wednesday because a conference call I had mid-day didn't go quite as I had hoped it and found myself getting discouraged and stressed out. I was also epically hangry because said conference call was during my usual lunch time. So, during my lunch break I went out and discovered that unlike the climate in my office that rivals the arctic circle, outside was a gorgeous late spring day. Sunny and breezy and beautiful. I went to the Corner Bakery and got a really good chopped salad and decided to sit outside and enjoy being outside for the little time that I got to spend there.

I've been on a three week break from weightlifting and CrossFit and it's been pretty miserable and I have been trying to figure out ways to motivate myself and get more activity into my life. In talking with my friend Janis about this dilemma she challenged me to either get on or off the Metro a stop or two early. I initially told her that the stops were way too far apart, but after my amazing half hour outside, I wanted more. I thought about her challenge and did some route mapping on Google and decided to walk to Virginia. If you aren't really familiar with DC and Northern Virginia geography, it's only a little over two miles from my office to the Virginia border and I decided that a two mile walk wouldn't be so bad after all.

I get off work at 5pm and usually I leave right on time to get to the Metro to catch the train home so I don't have to wait around and sit in traffic. The station is really crowded at 5pm and everyone is rushing to get home. No one talks. Every day I get packed tightly into a small train with my headphones on (that I've had on all day) and get jerked and bumped all around for a half hour and then get in my car and sit in traffic for another half hour and then spend a few hours in my apartment alone and go to bed. I'm not sure exactly what I've been rushing home for all this time. I'm not like other people on the train who might have a family they can't wait to get home to. There's no one that's waiting for me to make dinner, no kids to be picked up from daycare or taken to soccer practice. There's no dog to walk and feed. I do have Stetson, my watch duck, but I'm pretty sure even he doesn't miss me while I'm gone and doesn't mind that I leave him alone for long periods. I mean, he's never complained. Why the rush to get home?

Without a CrossFit or weightlifting class to go to, and nothing to go home to, why not take a few hours and walk to Virginia? I'd also never been to Georgetown and I mapped out a route that would take me from my office near the White House, through Georgetown, and into Virginia to the Rosslyn Metro station. I set off down Pennsylvania Avenue (headphones on, because I dig music) for an adventure. I sent Janis a message so that someone would know my plan, in case I got kidnapped.

The walk to Georgetown was nice, but the first part of it was mostly like my normal commute. It was exciting to me because it was a new path, but for everyone else, they were just on their way home. The closer I got to Georgetown I could feel a change in the people around me. People were on M street to shop and eat and be with friends and family. People were excited and were out enjoying the evening. I felt like I was part of the world again, even though I was alone. I was getting a little tired and sweaty, but the sun felt nice and the whole walk was worth it when I saw this:

 

I could have stood on the Francis Scott Key Bridge and stared out at the water until the sun went down. It was so peaceful. After an hour and half of walking, all the stress of Wednesday had melted away and all that had been weighing on my soul wasn't quite so heavy anymore. It didn't take much to turn things around. Just a stretch of road, some sunshine, and the Potomac.

 

I am definitely going to make this walk a regular, maybe weekly. occurrence. Next time, I'm wearing tennis shoes.

I also need to figure out what this place is, and how I can get out on the water. That looks like it would be amazing for the soul.