It’s pretty
much a universally-accepted fact that maintaining a healthy lifestyle requires
commitment, hard work, and dedication. I would add that sometimes, you also need flexible, on-your-feet thinking and a
good, solid Plan B. And occasionally—today,
for instance—one’s definition of “keeping fit” must be expanded, to
incorporate…an intensive bout of screaming…and
some very focused swearing.
My original
agenda didn’t involve any of these
things, of course. It was just to be a simple endeavor: stow bike in car, drive
to Bethesda, ride Capital Crescent Trail
to Georgetown and back. I’ve done this before with no trouble at all, but I knew I had at least one small glitch to contend with this time—my
preferred parking lot at the head of the trail had been demolished and I’d have
to find somewhere else to leave the Subaru for a few hours. But still, I didn’t
anticipate any problems; Bethesda boasts numerous garages, and surely
parking in one of them would be a breeze (she thought naively). I didn’t even
bother getting quarters, because for at least the last several years, every parking facility I’ve visited has
used an upgraded system by which you could pay with a credit card. (And really,
plunking coins into a meter? Antiquated! That’s so…20th
century…like placing a call on a pay
phone…) But heck, I was so organized, I even had some CASH for once: Just.
In. Case.
I sound
impressively prepared, right? Well…my
first glimmer that all was not going to proceed smoothly—that is, “according to
my brilliant schedule”--occurred before I even reached my destination. Little
did I know that, in order to arrive in downtown Bethesda, you must first pass
through what can only be described as Traffic
Hell. Evidently, I’d blocked out of
my mind from past excursions just how many freakin’ cars…and stoplights…Bethesda
has. But it all came rushing back to me pretty quickly as I—and hundreds of my
fellow drivers—inched forward a few feet at a time, trying to pass through
signals that remained green for approximately 10 seconds a cycle. So after a
delightful interlude of creeping and cursing, I finally achieved my goal: a
Public Parking Garage. See all those beautiful empty spaces? And look at those…meters…that
only accept quarters…are you KIDDING
me? Oh wait, not to worry, you have one other
option—you can download an app
that lets you pay with your phone.
That is, IF you can receive a signal…completely
enclosed inside a concrete structure…yes,
this is where the aerobic training
(frustrated shouting…of aforementioned colorful vocabulary) and cardio workout (heart rate climbing due
to angry stamping of feet and waving of arms) truly began. Consider it my warmup, I suppose.
At this
point my choices as I saw them were: A. leave the garage to purchase an
unnecessary item from a nearby shopkeeper and beg them to make change for me or
B. exit the garage to download the stupid program…which may or may not function properly on my phone
anyway. However, while standing there fuming in that blasted garage, I devised
a third course of action I hadn’t considered previously. Let’s call it the “Heck
with you, Bethesda” alternative. This called for abandoning the current
unfriendly environment to retrace my steps by just a few miles, back to a
section of lovely Rock Creek Park,
where I could pull my car into any number of available, no-cost, shady roadside spots. Then, at last, I was
free to hop on my bicycle and roll for miles
along a pleasant, paved path…no muss, no fuss…and no quarters necessary!
No comments:
Post a Comment