The Perfect Weekend

Coming off a record breaking weekend. I managed to run 7.2km on Saturday. As a direct result, I feel like a 75-year old right now. It seems that any time I really push past my last PB for the first time, it takes a few days for my body to get itself back on track.


It's a simple truth that this summer has been, and will continue to be, incredible. I don't know that I've ever been as content as I am this year. We have such a great situation. Weekends... waking up on a Saturday morning, throwing on a coffee, heading out to the back yard to poke around, throw a ball around, watch Kar working in the garden..

I'm learning it from her. She's always had this thing about her. An ability to sit and watch, and look. Watch... cats messing around in the backyard. Watch... bugs crawling around in the dirt. Watch... the garden growing. There's so much to see. I sit and listen. I sit in the backyard and hear.. everything that's going on in the city. She looks.

Then, grabbing an apple, throwing on the sneaks, and hitting the road for a mid-day run. The city, just waking up, the heat not quite fully realized, but in that late morning, hard-blue sky, cool breeze, hot sun scenario. Jeff asking me questions as we run... me responding with nods and hand signals.. (must.. conserve.. energy...) Don't flex any muscles that aren't aiding in the process of running. Hands loose, thumbs pointing forward, resting on the index finger. Face relaxed. Conservation. Breathing: 3 steps... in through the nose... 3 steps... out through the mouth... 3 steps... Manage the heart rate.

The afternoon is a slow mixture of laundry folding, homemade soup simmering, guitar playing... the ball game is on in the background, but only as a visual. One of many party-mixes takes care of the day's audio. Tom Petty is starting to make himself at home.

Evening is all about options. Drinks on the patio? The Quinnie's patio is the gold-standard. Slightly sunken below the porch-height to give you that cozy, tucked-away feel, and under constant cover of a huge Oak tree. The neighborhood is quiet at night. The little kid across the street plays Wii in front of his huge upstairs window. Last night it was bowling. When it's calm, I can smoke a cigar and just watch the smoke. It goes nowhere... just hangs in wisps.

Or maybe we walk off the day's remaining energy. Our new format is a quick subway ride to Greektown. From there we can walk through the restaurant district and across the Don Valley into the city. There's too much to see. I take pictures with my eyes.

Or maybe it's "small budget, big heart" movie night, and then discussing what WE would do if...


Sometimes, I think I wouldn't do much different than what we're doing right now.
Life's good.
JB