20 JUL 08: DUDE BUGGY
Some people simply can't believe it. I sometimes go running on the Riverwalk - after dark?! They consider it a dangerous thing to do. But they forget something - at least I'm running. That advantage works in cartoons, against coyotes.
Saturday twilight runs have become a habit for me, and are normally my strongest runs of the week. But this weekend, there admittedly were some unexpected dangers. Not from criminals, but from creatures. And for a change, NOT from dogs - as a 95-degree hazy July "dog day" even had them hiding under the porch for shade.
The first attack came 0.7 miles into my run, east of the Civic Center -- when a little bug flew up, and right into my mouth. I'm not sure what sort of bug it was. But it was NOT a firefly -- because then I would have had enough warning to turn my head.
I'm not one for eating insects, especially when I'm jogging. So I quickly coughed and spit it out, as best I could. That's one nice thing about the Riverwalk - it's OK to spit on the grass next to the river. Doing it indoors on gym walls is very different....
At about 1.1 miles into the run, it felt like I ran through a small swarm of tiny flying insects. At least I was able to shut my mouth for a moment, to prevent another surprise snack. But they should have seen me coming - and I rarely run faster than a ten-minute mile these days, so they had time to move.
On to Rotary Park we went - and at about 1.3 miles in, a larger insect tried to fly inside my nose. It hit between my nostrils, seemingly too big to fly into one or the other. If I'm suddenly this popular, maybe I should have been running past nightclubs on Broadway.
I'm assuming the insects made me a target because I wore a bright white T-shirt. It couldn't be because of my smell - because my sweat tends to repulse people. Take the restaurant which suddenly was closed, when I stopped there for dinner after the run....
The final score was 2.4 miles of non-stop running Saturday night. For a steamy July night, that was OK - especially with the annoying obstacles I faced along the way. But things could have been worse. There was enough light left that I missed running over a (ahem) dog deposit.
My running courses haven't brought me in contact with any Chattahoochee River alligators yet. But a couple of weeks ago, a jog at 8:30 in the morning led to something I hadn't seen on the Riverwalk before - a two-foot-long snake, lounging across my lane. It was easy to hurdle. I leave the big stomps for large cockroaches in the kitchen.
So before Mayor Wetherington begins allocating those new police officers to the Riverwalk, maybe he should send some animal control officers there first. Or at least send a police crew armed with bug spray - which could scare away criminals, who think it's mace.
>> How did our Thursday poker night go? Read the answer at our newest blog, "On the Flop!" <<
E-MAIL UPDATE: The Sound Off section of the newspaper must be full, because readers are writing us about it. For starters....
There was a letter to the editor in the Ledger that did not have correct facts..The letter stated that MCSD had made the choice to drop the graduation exam for end of course test..Both of those test are state mandated. However, in 2010 the graduation test will be dropped by the state...
Wow - and I thought the only misleading letters to the Ledger-Enquirer came from the atheists.
Another e-mail takes issue with the front page of the paper:
I was very disappointed in the Ledger's choice of pictures for the front of Saturday's paper..Showing 2 children wading in the river is so so dangerous..Even adults do not wade in the river especially below the dam..Did they already forget the two little brothers who drowned in the river earlier in the summer? Instead of making photos the photographer should have been dialing 911.
I didn't see this picture -- but how do we know adults weren't close by, watching the youngsters? And if Ledger-Enquirer carriers can stop burglars, how do we know this photographer didn't have a life preserver in his other hand?
But this e-mail does have a point - as a Fort Benning soldier died a few years ago, after stepping into the river near the 13th Street dam. The Phenix City riverbank has been officially off limits to Benning personnel ever since. And I don't think they even let the Best Ranger contestants compete on the Alabama side of post.
And Friday's mention of new web sites brought yet another message from the write-in candidate for Muscogee County Sheriff:
Richard,
I'm obviously not one of your biggest fans that's pretty evident in your writings about me, but that's the beauty of being protected by the 1st Amendment. As far as your background check is concerned you checked out clean, God forbid, we sure wouldn't want any of those facts about Zimbabwe's budget mixed by your by your rhetoric would we, since you like putting a twist on everything written to you. www.marklajoye.com
Now now - we strive to stay neutral around here. We didn't endorse anybody or any issue in the Georgia Primary last week. And if Democrat John Darr would come out of hiding, we might have some things to write about him.
But wait a minute - did this candidate for sheriff actually run a background check on me? Does this make him the candidate of the "police state," as another web site claims Columbus is becoming? Should all local business executives get caught up on their alimony payments before November?
By the way, we checked Mark LaJoye's first Friday News Summary on his web site. It had nothing about Zimbabwe, but we'll quote from part of it: "The residents of Muscogee County have stated to me that they have a reel concern with the leadership that currently runs the Sherffs Office...." A few people reading that would be concerned about something else - a campaign team not using Spell-Check.
Thanks for all your e-mail, and now let's quickly do our own version of a news summary....
+ The Muscogee County Election Board accepted 13 additional provisional ballots, and heard a complaint about the State Senate race. Reginald Pugh was accused of conducting campaigning last Tuesday while too close to a polling place. Please suspend all handshakes at the 150-foot mark....
+ Campaign reports filed in Washington showed Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions's account is larger than Democratic challenger Vivian Figures. In fact, it's larger by a margin of 234 to one. TV viewers in Montgomery this fall may see nothing but alternating ads for Sessions and Barack Obama.
+ The evening news reported legal papers have been filed to delay a public meeting on dissolving Hurtsboro for a second time. This matter could be postponed long enough for every city official to be arrested, not simply the police chief....
+ The Liberty Theatre hosted the second annual Columbus "Hip-Hop Summit." In other cities, there are variations on this. Knoxville, Tennessee holds an event on how to properly deal with children - the "Pat Head Summit."
+ Instant Message to Cascade Hills Pastor Bill Purvis: Isn't your church Baptist anymore? You're apparently speaking in this weekend's video against "mainline denominations" with watered-down beliefs - and around here, Baptist is about as mainline as it gets.
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