Running in the Park

There's a small park near my apartment where I like to run. It has a 1-mile trail that goes through the woods and it is very fun to jog on. There is a birdhouse on a tree that is my starting line, and stepping onto the blacktop as I exit the woods is my finish line. I have a stopwatch installed on my cellphone, and my 1 mile runs have been getting quicker and quicker. Yesterday afternoon, I think I set a personal record that I may not beat for a while. And it wasn't because I just felt like running. I was running in fear.

Near the very middle of the wooded area, there is an open field that used to be a softball field. I guess you could still play softball there, but vines and bushes have crippled the backstop. The running trail runs alongside this field for a few seconds, and is fairly close to the mid-point of the trail.

Yesterday evening as I approached the field, a very familiar aroma filled my nose, one that I haven't smelled in quite a long time. I've been to enough Dave Matthews Band concerts to know exactly what I was smelling. Somebody was smoking pot, and they were really closeby. As I got closer and closer to the field, the smell got stronger and stronger. It got to the point to where my nostrils started burning from it.

There is a large bush near the edge of the field, and as I passed it, I discovered the source of the pot smell. Four high-school aged boys were smokin' it up. I tried not to look at them, hoping that they would think that I hadn't seen them.

I was running with my brand new iPod. iPods are the only mp3 players right now that are white, which makes them very easy to spot. Even the headphones are white, which makes them even more noticeable. Here were 4 boys, getting high as a kite, and here was I running all by myself with the flashy iPod in my right hand. I don't know why, but I started to become paranoid, thinking that they were going to catch up to me and mug me, and steal my precious iPod. They could very easily back track, and get to the trail's exit before I could get around to it.

As I ran, I started looking for new exits. In case I saw 4 kids approaching me, I needed to find an escape route. And keep in mind, that my pace was near sprinting levels because I wanted to get the heck out of there and fast! I made it all the way around the trail and was coming down the last stretch. I could see the parking lot pavement several feet ahead as I neared my finish line. As the trail ended, I looked at the trail entrance just in time to see the 4 boys walking towards their car. My pace quickened to an all out sprint now. I had to run about .3 of a mile to get back to my apartment's parking lot, and I wanted to get there before they could pass me. I ran, and ran, and was panting with every step, looking over my shoulder to see if they were creeping up behind me. I don't know why they were going so slow, but I made it back my apartment complex just seconds before they drove by. I was already on the sidewalk of the nearest building when they passed me. I had made it. I was safe. And thus, my iPod was safe also.

I don't know why I got so freaked out about this. But I did. In my mind, 4 pot smokers meant trouble. But I left them alone, and they left me alone.