Some Days You Bite The Bear And Some Days . . .

"Did you warm up before you ran?" The Wife asked as I settled in the passenger seat and buckled my seatbelt for the ride home.

"No, dear, I never warm up," I said. There was, of course, the standard spousal exasperation tone to the reply, but it was not without a strong tinge of, "Yes, yes, yes. I know I'm a dummy, don't rub it in."

I left my house at 7 a.m. with the intention of running a 10K loop that I mapped for myself. I've never run a full 10K. I've done more than 5K on several occasions, but never 10K. I had several "break" points in mind for my route where I could decide to go ahead or finish a shorter route. I had made it past the first break point -- the corner where I turn in the morning for my regular 2.5 mile jog -- and made it to the 2 mile point of my route when I first felt the twinge in my left calf.

This isn't the first time. It always starts with a small cramp, as though some knot forms in the fibers. I tried to flex the leg as I ran. I tried to run "differently" to see if I could loosen the knot.

Nothing worked. Instead the knot tightened and started to hurt. With each step the damage grew with the pain. The pain wasn't so bad that I couldn't run, but, like I said, I've been here before. I know that if I continue to run it will just lengthen the time it takes before I can run again. It took six days last time.

So I stopped and sat down on the lawn next to the sidewalk. I pulled out my cell phone and called The Wife.

"I need a ride home," I told the wife.

The problem is that The Wife can't drive. At least she has been unable to drive in the morning for several months. She sees double, obviously not good when you're in traffic. But she recently purchased new glasses that include prisms that are supposed to reduce the likelihood of a wandering eye causing double vision.

"How's the double-vision?" I asked as we started home.

The wife put a finger to one eye to hold it closed. "Not good," she said. "But it's better when there are no cars on the street."

I offered to drive but I didn't have my glasses and I need them to see distant objects clearly.

"I'll manage," The Wife said as she continued to hold one eye shut.

So we slowly made our way home, the one-eyed leading the lame. Fortunately there wasn't much traffic.