I ran three miles today... finally I said, "lady, take your purse."

River Central 4.7mi

Okay. After a few undocumented runs, and a full week’s running and writing hiatus, I am back at it. For now. Maybe I needed the break. Probably not, but I’ll tell myself that it was necessary.
I was having some physical problems. On my last few runs I was plagued by a tightness in my right shin that would not go away. I did an eight-mile run through Rogers Park Golf Course where I was unable to shake it off. Eventually my toes went numb and my foot started to swell. I took a few days off to recover and, the next thing I knew, a week had gone by and I hadn’t run at all.
Today I force myself out the door in the last of the evening light to run an unknown route for a yet-to-be-determined distance. Following Ola south across the river, I feel smooth and relaxed at a 10:00 minute/mile pace.
Perhaps due to my lowland upbringing, I feel especially susceptible to gravity. Isaac Newton has always had a strong hold on me. When I am in motion I tend to stay in motion, but if I am at rest I tend to stay at rest. When I am backpacking I like to think of myself as a marble, perpetually seeking the lowest of elevations. I struggle to the top of each rise only to race down the other side.
Today it is my mental inertia that must be overcome. Despite what I may tell myself, I am very comfortable with stasis. My body thrives on change, but my brain prefers a routine. The less taxing the better. Like Emo Phillips said, “I used to think the brain was the most wonderful organ in the body, then I realized who was telling me this.”