I have just made a commitment to do something that terrifies me. At the end of this month, I am joining my eldest daughter and some family friends on the Camino de Santiago. Some background for the uninitiated: for over a thousand years, pilgrims have been making...
Training Days
Day 1
A sunny, yet chilly March morning dawns. Today is the day I will take that single step and begin my “stroll,” as it were. A friend of mine suggested that I call it that (as opposed to, say, the Bataan death march) in order to keep positive about the now 240+...
Days 2 – 4
Chaperoning a school band trip to Disneyland Paris. Seven-hours on a bus with rambunctious teens. Oh joy. To my credit, when the bus stops at the base at the N.A.T.O. Base (SHAPE) in Belgium, I beg off the long lunch line at the bowling alley/burger joint and go...
Day 5
Monday morning. I officially have 3 weeks left to whip myself into something resembling shape before we fly to Spain. I’m told that the U.S. Army assigns a “battle buddy” to every recruit on the first day of basic training. You and this person are glued at the hips...
Day 6
Ventured out by myself this morning and walked for 1 hour and 46 mins. I covered 8.6 kilometers, which equals 5.3 miles. I’m more tired today that I was yesterday, can definitely feel the exertion today. Am stretching really well during my cool down and hydrating. ...
Day 7
Walk #1: 4.37 kilometers in 1:03 A midday walk begins at my friend KW’s house in Brunssum, NL. KW is the spouse of an Air Force officer and is the mother of two boys. She and I met through the Catholic women’s group on base where she struck me immediately as a warm...