I'm a little bit worried about a friend of mine.
Well, not so much a friend as an acquaintence.
Well, actually, not even an acquaintence really...just a woman who I've seen every Saturday for the past 2 years at approximately 11:30 AM.
Here's the thing - when it comes to my Saturday morning run I have two
incredibly predictable tendencies:
1) I ALWAYS run the exact same Saturday route (rain or shine) on and
around Arlington Cemetery, Haines Point and the National Mall from
10am-1pm - the route never changes right down to which water fountains I
stop at and where I J-Walk. Those who know me best would probably
lovingly describe this behavior less as a "predictable tendency" and
more as "OCD" but this is my blog so I'm going to describe my behavior
precisely how I want to.
2) I NEVER drink enough water the night before (because, honestly, who
wants to drink water when you can drink diet coke?) and I usually wind
up choking down a large glasses of water approximately 1/2 hour before I
leave for my run in the morning in a pathetic attempt to avoid the
unavoidable dehydration/ dehydration headache that comes from not
drinking the stupid water the night before. The same people who
lovingly described me as "OCD" in predictable tendency #1 would probably
(also lovingly) describe me as slighty dense for apparently not learning
anything from the hundreds of dehydration headaches which have defined
much of my running history.
As a result of running the same route every week and not ever being
properly hydrated, it's pretty much a given that at the same point of
the run every week I get really, really, really thirsty. So it's very
convenient that there, in all it's glory, at mile 10 is my running oasis
(otherwise known as the Haines Point Public Restroom).
For as long as Haines Point has been a part of my Saturday, I have
looked forward to seeing the little round brown and white building on
the north stretch of Potomac Park. After the long trek around the
point, with not a drinking fountain in sight, I am usually parched and
pretty desperate for a break.
There was a brief moment of panic about 3 years ago when I discovered
that the drinking fountain outside the building had stopped working. An
especially hot day, I was desperate for a drink so I went inside, cupped
my hands under one of the sink faucets and kind of slurped up as much as
I could. Now drinking out of the sink of a public restroom is not the
most civilized of moves but let's face it, beggars (or people that don't
prepare sufficiently) can't be choosers. Since fixing that particular
drinking fountain doesn't seem to be a high priority for the park
service, drinking out of the faucet has been the norm for the past few
years.
As not many people go to Haines Point(and even fewer are brave enough to
use the public restrooms there), I'd grown accustomed to not seeing
anyone around which is why one Saturday morning about a year ago I was
startled to find a woman there. Actually, she wasn't just there, she
was THERE - for the most part, she had moved in. Most likely homeless
(the shopping cart, suitcases, and conversation with
nobody-in-particular clued me in on that point), she was busy washing
her hair in one of the sinks and had a couple pairs of socks drying on
the hand dryers.
I don't think she was expecting company because, as I swung open the
door, she jumped a little and immediately walked over and took the socks
off of the hand dryer closest to where I was standing (either she didn't
want to be rude or she was afraid I might try to steal her socks). Once
all of her possessions were secure on her side of the room, she went
back to washing her hair and continued her conversation with the person
who wasn't there (at least not that I could see), completely back to her
little world and ignoring me as much as possible.
I can't say I was thrilled that somebody had discovered my little rest
area but that particular day was really hot so I was just happy to get
out of the glare of the sun for a bit and splash some cold water on my
face. Of course I was thirsty so I started to drink from the faucet,
like normal, when I noticed the woman had stopped talking to whoever she
had been talking to. I looked up to find her staring at me with an odd
look on her face - apparently she found drinking out of the faucet to be
very, very strange behavior.
Done with my break, and honestly a little embarrassed, I ran out the
door.
The woman was there the next Saturday, and the next Saturday, and the
next Saturday, and the next. The funny looks continued for a few weeks
but eventually she seemed to just accept my behavior and learned to
ignore it and focus on her chores. Seeing her there ,washing her hair,
washing her socks, and talking to somebody I couldn't see became a very
predictable pattern - just like everything else about my Saturday run.
One Saturday another woman was there, talking loudly on her cell phone
about slighly inappropriate things. My acquaintence looked up from her
laundry and I looked up from the faucet and we shared a moment of
annoyance - both rolling our eyes as if to say "some people are so
weird!"
She wasn't there last Saturday and, I have to admit, it caught me a
little off guard - Did something happen to her? I know that DC rounded
up a lot of the homeless folks in preparation for the Inauguration so
hopefully she is in some sort of shelter or longterm housing but you
just never know.
Then again, maybe she just found another place to do her laundry
(perhaps where people don't drink out of the sink)?
Well, not so much a friend as an acquaintence.
Well, actually, not even an acquaintence really...just a woman who I've seen every Saturday for the past 2 years at approximately 11:30 AM.
Here's the thing - when it comes to my Saturday morning run I have two
incredibly predictable tendencies:
1) I ALWAYS run the exact same Saturday route (rain or shine) on and
around Arlington Cemetery, Haines Point and the National Mall from
10am-1pm - the route never changes right down to which water fountains I
stop at and where I J-Walk. Those who know me best would probably
lovingly describe this behavior less as a "predictable tendency" and
more as "OCD" but this is my blog so I'm going to describe my behavior
precisely how I want to.
2) I NEVER drink enough water the night before (because, honestly, who
wants to drink water when you can drink diet coke?) and I usually wind
up choking down a large glasses of water approximately 1/2 hour before I
leave for my run in the morning in a pathetic attempt to avoid the
unavoidable dehydration/ dehydration headache that comes from not
drinking the stupid water the night before. The same people who
lovingly described me as "OCD" in predictable tendency #1 would probably
(also lovingly) describe me as slighty dense for apparently not learning
anything from the hundreds of dehydration headaches which have defined
much of my running history.
As a result of running the same route every week and not ever being
properly hydrated, it's pretty much a given that at the same point of
the run every week I get really, really, really thirsty. So it's very
convenient that there, in all it's glory, at mile 10 is my running oasis
(otherwise known as the Haines Point Public Restroom).
For as long as Haines Point has been a part of my Saturday, I have
looked forward to seeing the little round brown and white building on
the north stretch of Potomac Park. After the long trek around the
point, with not a drinking fountain in sight, I am usually parched and
pretty desperate for a break.
There was a brief moment of panic about 3 years ago when I discovered
that the drinking fountain outside the building had stopped working. An
especially hot day, I was desperate for a drink so I went inside, cupped
my hands under one of the sink faucets and kind of slurped up as much as
I could. Now drinking out of the sink of a public restroom is not the
most civilized of moves but let's face it, beggars (or people that don't
prepare sufficiently) can't be choosers. Since fixing that particular
drinking fountain doesn't seem to be a high priority for the park
service, drinking out of the faucet has been the norm for the past few
years.
As not many people go to Haines Point(and even fewer are brave enough to
use the public restrooms there), I'd grown accustomed to not seeing
anyone around which is why one Saturday morning about a year ago I was
startled to find a woman there. Actually, she wasn't just there, she
was THERE - for the most part, she had moved in. Most likely homeless
(the shopping cart, suitcases, and conversation with
nobody-in-particular clued me in on that point), she was busy washing
her hair in one of the sinks and had a couple pairs of socks drying on
the hand dryers.
I don't think she was expecting company because, as I swung open the
door, she jumped a little and immediately walked over and took the socks
off of the hand dryer closest to where I was standing (either she didn't
want to be rude or she was afraid I might try to steal her socks). Once
all of her possessions were secure on her side of the room, she went
back to washing her hair and continued her conversation with the person
who wasn't there (at least not that I could see), completely back to her
little world and ignoring me as much as possible.
I can't say I was thrilled that somebody had discovered my little rest
area but that particular day was really hot so I was just happy to get
out of the glare of the sun for a bit and splash some cold water on my
face. Of course I was thirsty so I started to drink from the faucet,
like normal, when I noticed the woman had stopped talking to whoever she
had been talking to. I looked up to find her staring at me with an odd
look on her face - apparently she found drinking out of the faucet to be
very, very strange behavior.
Done with my break, and honestly a little embarrassed, I ran out the
door.
The woman was there the next Saturday, and the next Saturday, and the
next Saturday, and the next. The funny looks continued for a few weeks
but eventually she seemed to just accept my behavior and learned to
ignore it and focus on her chores. Seeing her there ,washing her hair,
washing her socks, and talking to somebody I couldn't see became a very
predictable pattern - just like everything else about my Saturday run.
One Saturday another woman was there, talking loudly on her cell phone
about slighly inappropriate things. My acquaintence looked up from her
laundry and I looked up from the faucet and we shared a moment of
annoyance - both rolling our eyes as if to say "some people are so
weird!"
She wasn't there last Saturday and, I have to admit, it caught me a
little off guard - Did something happen to her? I know that DC rounded
up a lot of the homeless folks in preparation for the Inauguration so
hopefully she is in some sort of shelter or longterm housing but you
just never know.
Then again, maybe she just found another place to do her laundry
(perhaps where people don't drink out of the sink)?
Might I suggest getting one of those camelback hydration packs that sit flat on your back that hikers use.....
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