Visualeyes 3

This week I was determined to avoid the car temptation and use the bus. I decided to try a trip to a neighborhood shopping center with Borders, Ulta, and WalMart. Here's the process: look up the bus  timetable, check,compare it to the second bus timetable that you also have to take, check, go back to the first timetable to be sure you're reading the Monday-Friday schedule, not the Saturday or Sunday timetable (which are both different from the rest of the week), check. Be sure the backpack has everything you need- wallet, keys, visor for walking in the sun, phone, bus schedules, water to drink, some almonds in case you miss meal time so the blood sugar doesn't get wacky, kleenex, hand sanitizer, a soduko book to keep from getting bored while waiting for the bus (which doesn't always show up at the time listed on the schedule), and of course, enough room to carry whatever you buy on your shopping adventure. "Shopping adventure"- see I'm trying to make it sound positive and fun. (Not fooling myself yet!) Now comes the 10 minute walk, all uphill, to get to the bus stop then stand around for 20 minutes until the bus shows up. Okay, I got the right bus and when I got on, I clarified where I picked up the next bus. Turns out when the 132 reaches the "end of its route," it just turns into the 150 bus. So why don't they just call it the 150 bus the whole time???? Okay, calm down, public transit isn't always handled efficiently.

I get to the shopping center, wait 10 minutes for the light to change on the major busy street in order to really get to the shopping center. Walk, walk, walk with 5-6 pound backpack through the stores, constantly taking the pack off (so I don't knock things off shelves) and back on between stores. Buy shampoo and conditioner + the free gift they threw in, now the pack is 7-8 pounds. Off to WalMart (whew, the pack can go in the cart) and buy several things, pack is up to 10 pounds now! The day started out coolish but the temp warmed up so the sweatshirt has to go in the pack too. Approaching 12 pounds and don't kid yourself,  just because you're drinking that water you brought along, the pack is NOT getting lighter!

As I leave the WalMart, I figured I better check the timetable to see when the bus will arrive, because of course, I still have to locate the bus stop. That's what happens every blessed time you go someplace new on the bus, you have to find a new stop. Timetable says the bus arrives at 2:05 and the watch said it's 1:40. So I start fast-walking across the vast parking lot to get back to the major street. Of course the path I take is all uphill and the pack now weighs double what it weighed when I left home! Made it to the bus stop and noticed there were 2 other paths, on flat parking lot, that I could have taken and then just climbed 8 or 9 stairs to land right next to the stop. (I'll know the next time!) Pull out the bus schedule, just to be sure ( a tad compulsive still) and lo and behold, I had checked the Sunday schedule and the correct time for the bus to stop was an additional 30 minutes! Wait, wait, wait... and I'm thinking of all the things I could have done if I only had taken the car!!!! Heavy sigh.....

Catch the bus, do the route in reverse, locate my stop in time, pull the cord, smile at the driver and thank him and then have the 10 minute walk back home, with the doubled weight pack. BUT, it's now downhill!!!! As I'm rounding the corner to walk into my condo complex, I called my sister. I told her I was proud of myself for accomplishing the day's trek but TOTALLY exhausted. My ever-positive psychologist sister  tells me, "Just think how fit you're going to get, and just think how 'green' you're becoming by decreasing your carbon footprint!" I replied,: "And you think either of those  things compensate for having to give up driving??? I don't think so!" At this point she suggested I might consider an attitude adjustment. I replied that I was doing what I had to do but I hated it and was going kicking and screaming all the way. This is still new to me and obviously, I'm still cranky about it. But she's right, an attitude adjustment might help. My thoughts on that... hell no! Not ready for that yet. I'm not done being mad about this. Maybe next week.