I awoke bright in early at the amazing sleeping in time of 6 am in the sunny state of Minnesota. After laying there for a while and listening to the love of my life breathe and not hearing any stirring for the remaining residents in the house, I decided to go ahead and go for a run. I was thinking 30 minutes should tire me out and then everyone will start waking up.
So after double lacing my shoes and doing some stretches the bright sky hit me and I realized I left my sunglasses in the house, I checked my car and found my 80's style lime green color run sunglasses and said what the heck and channeled my inner Risky Business. I looked at the time on my fit bit, turned on the Map My Walk app on my phone, cranked my tunes, cause I forgot to bring earplugs and starting on my journey. (Just a footnote, I don't know this town at all, I know the street address of my family's dwelling and I looked for the water tower to give me some guidance as to where it was direction wise in case I got lost)
So off I went, probably would have been good to look at street names, but the tunes were rocking and the sun was shining and there was just enough of a breeze to make it seem like it wasn't to warm to get going. So away I go, not a whole lot of anything going on at 7:15 a.m. on a Sunday in the town of Springfield, MN but that was ok with me. I basically decided to walk the perimeter of the town and just kept guessing when I came to the end of the block, I finally landed on I guess you would call it a highway. So towards the sun I went, when I hit the edge of town, decided to take a selfie in front of the Welcome to Springfield sign and per my app I'd done 2 miles, so I thought I would head towards home. I had run the majority of time and only when needed did I walk, and I was at a personal best of a 13 minute mile so I was pretty happy.
I'm styling those shades, but didn't go all Risky Business with my attire, though you can't see below my neck I'm wearing a shirt and shorts.
So on my way back, it occurred to me I hadn't the slightest clue which road would take me back home. In fact, I had curved and switched directions a multitude of times that I had completely confused myself. So I had a choice, I could whip out my phone, look on my maps, type in the street and find it immediately or I could just fly by the seat of my pants and hope I didn't have to call my poor sleeping hubby to wake up and come save me.
So onward, saw an ad on a car for Rott Puppies, had to look at it twice because in my running state I thought it said "rotten puppies" and who would want to buy a rotten puppy? I was greeted by multiple furry residents of Springfield, most would bark a happy hello and I would say hello back and their backsides would wag from side to side.
I did go down not one, not two, but 3 streets thinking I could turn at the end only to be greeting with a dead end and having to go back from which I came, which I kind of thought funny I did it three times. I came to this path that looked like a hiking path but it has a big pillar in the middle of it and kind of looked like it might be someones private drive or something, so I didn't venture on, cause who want to find a sweaty Iowa girl on their lawn early on a Sunday morning, don't think anyone was praying for that! (Note this part is important to remember)
By this time I was at the 3.25 mile mark and to be honest I didn't think I was getting much closer to my final destination, and I was starting to feel it a little in my hips but the town is pretty and there wasn't anyone on the roads really, with the exception of a stray car or truck, I pretty much had the town to myself..
So after seeing some buildings that were looking familiar and my app telling me I was at a little more the 4 miles, I could feel it in my legs that sooner would be better for finding home. I decided to take one more turn and just go straight until I hit the railroad tracks or a field or the high school. So .75 miles later, I turn the corner and low and behold there was my final destination. I was sooooooo happy to see and and I was shocked and surprised that my final distance was 5.2 miles in less than an hour. That's almost a 12 minute mile which is an all time personal best.
So after a scavenger hunt in my brother/sister-in laws home, with help of my sister-in-law's mom, trying to find a towel to take a shower and desperately trying to get ice out of the freezer without causing too much noise or breaking it, I was pretty proud of us.
Slowly the family started to rise and I tell my sister-in-law, Shawna, of my journey that morning, now here's the funny ha ha. Apparently the "private drive with the pillar" is an actually walking trail that leads directly behind their house. So I probably wouldn't have gotten 5 miles in, I could have taken the trail and got a short cut to the house, but I think the way I went was more fun. I got to explore the beautiful town of Springfield, enjoy some Minnesota sunshine and fresh air. I got to giggle with family and friends when I got back. Who knew looking for a towel or getting a few ice cubes would be funny?
So you never know what's going to happen when you just decide to go! No destination, no clue as to where you are going, but just trying to get your workout in and start your day with a little bit of adventure.
So thank you Springfield, MN, you will always be remembered by me as the first time I ever did 5 miles at one time, 5 miles in less than an hour, and the fact I need to slow down when I read what's on the side of people cars, because I knew selling "rotten puppies" seemed wrong to me. Thank you my clan there for the hospitality and for the fun we had and to my partner in hunt of towel or ice, Juli, thank you for making me laugh. It was a FABULOUS weekend everyone and it's a great way to start a new week.
So set your own adventure and don't let a little thing like being lost stop you from exploring further.
As one of my favorite cartoon characters says, "TOO INFINITY AND BEYOND!"
Be well, be peachy and stay tuned next week for the 10 month recap.
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