Spinster: Unplugged

Thursday I left work a few minutes early in the hopes of making it to a Zumba class. As I approached the gym and thought about the time it would take to find a parking space, change my clothes and run to class I knew I'd still be late. I decided instead to take advantage of the sunshine, the longer day and the warm(ish) weather and take the dog for a walk. I left my music at home, grabbed a "doggie bag" and my phone and headed out. I've lived here almost a year now and I've driven the back roads, but for the most part I've kept my walking pattern pretty much the same.

This day I decided to widen my circle. I was a couple miles in before I realized that I made a mistake in plotting my path. I knew how I was going to get home; I just didn't know how long it was going to take. When I'm on the computer, I'm listening to a show on Hulu or music in the background. When I talk to a friend on the phone, there's something going on in the background. At work, my documents are up, but so is my Gmail so I can be alerted to updates from my friends. I'm never doing just one thing. No wonder I'm so tired all the time. Even when I'm exercising I'm listening to music or thinking about the 100 things going on in my life. Even though I'm "here," I'm always thinking of "there." Until I got lost. When I was trying to find my way home the other day it was getting dark. I was on a back road and I was conscious only of my surroundings -- the sound of approaching cars, the feel of the wind, potholes. It was the most focused I've been in years.

Yesterday, I headed to one of the metro parks for a hike and a run (I'm now at the point where I walk as much as I run, but not yet ready to call it a run) with the dog. My phone wasn't working and I left the music player at home. It was pretty warm and had rained earlier in the morning. We took off first past the cemetary and then back into the trails. Again, I found myself completely focused. The ground was soft and because of the rain slippery in places. I had to watch my footing. I also had to watch out for squirrels. We enountered a fat one seemingly unafraid of my plundering steps or my dog's death stare. I listened to the birds and a nature walk in progress. I was tuned in, but I was unplugged. I saw a blue jay for the first time in months. We followed several different paths until I noticed my dog's panting had increased and we exited the woods for water. I felt like I'd been out there for hours. The look on my dog's face seemingly confirmed this.

I emerged feeling refreshed and accomplished. Unlike my favorite hiking haunts in WV, there are relatively few hills on these paths so I didn't have to contemplate whether or not a run would leave me ill prepared to make it up a mountain I was sure to encounter. I ran focused only on my path and my breathing. I emerged feeling anew. When I got back to my car, I looked at the clock. I'd only been at it an hour. Sixty minutes without the bells, the whistles, the buzzing of my daiy life and it felt like so much more.

I'm not ready to head to zen mountain or sell my BlackBerry or abandon my Simpsons subscription on Hulu, but I am ready to commit to an hour (or so) a week spent off the grid. I want to experience here if only for a little while. I'll worry about the rest, when I get there.