How to be a Lazy Jogger

"So where are you going today?", asked my roomie who just got dressed for work one Saturday afternoon. "I'll take a jog nearby, maybe just by the park around this block," I said. "Be careful, okay. Remember when two big men saw us jogging together and stared at us like they were going to eat us? Argh! Be careful, okay?" "I will," I assured her.

Tada! Forty-five minutes later, I found myself more than a mile away from our apartment. I have a couple of books in my sling bag which I intend to return to the library. I've been going to the Evanston Public Library since I moved here; and I never had to buy books! (I am not cheap, just smart. Haha! Okay, okay, cheap AND smart. Hey, I consider it my way of taking benefit from the taxes the government takes from my paycheck! Besides, I really enjoy spending a few hours in the library, when I feel like it.)

I spent a few moments browsing through a current issue of Home Journal magazine which has two of my favorite celebrity chefs on its cover: Giada de Laurentiis and Ina Garten. I got a hold of 3 more books that I could take home with me. I borrowed Like Water For Chocolate, Moby Dick -- The White Whale, and The Inquisitive Cook. Yey!

I checked out of the library and jogged around a corner. I felt hungry and I was craving for freshly baked bread when I saw the Panera Bakery. Yeeeeee! The lazy jogger decided to take a break. She took her time skimming through the overhead menu. She was delighted with the sight of bread and pastries in the store. "I'd like to have a Portobello Mushrooms and Mozzarella Panini, please, ... and a tall glass of green iced tea."

The lazy jogger savored every bite of her grilled sandwich. She munched on the crunchy bread that hold together the stringy cheese and tender mushrooms. She picked up small bits of caramelized onion that fell off at every bite. Yummmy... She wondered, "Should I still jog my way back home or should I just take the train?"

She headed out of the bakery. With a fully belly, she decided to walk to the lake. The lake was making beautiful crashing sounds against the rocky shore. So, the lazy jogger sat by a big rock and basked in the sun. She let the wind brush her sweaty hair, reminding her of the ocean she misses back home. She misses the triggerfish that almost bit her on one dive, the big waves at Siargao, and the colorul fish and corals in the shallow shores of Anilao.

Time to jog. Again. She jogged alongside health buffs who were sweating like crazy. Some faces were familiar -- faces that she had seen jogging past by her an hour ago. She got distracted with the sight of one man jogging with his baby in its trolley. Cool eh? Talk about multitasking -- jogging and baby-sitting!

She heard dogs barking by the beach, with their owners throwing neon-colored toys to the lake. The dogs happily swim to the lake to get the toy back! The lazy jogger stopped and realized she finally found the Dog Beach she once read online. Lucky dogs. Then she wonders, do these dogs have lifeguards too? Could they be dogs, too?

It's past 5pm and the sun is still glaring. The lazy jogger forced herself to continue and not be distracted anymore. She made her promise till she realized she almost got lost. Thanks to the grid-like streets of Evanston, she managed to get home, relying on basic high school geometry concepts: perpendicular and parallel lines.

"What a pleasant afternoon jogging around Evanston! Now it's time to shift gears; time to do my laundry..."