First I did something very dumb – about a week and a half ago I hopped on my rowing machine in bare feet. I didn’t notice the strap which holds my feet down cutting a hole in my big toe, so I got off the machine with a bleeding foot. One of the really crappy side effects of the diabetes is how slowly I heal, especially in my lower body (I have a puncture wound on my leg from 2 years ago which is still healing, believe it or not) and now I have a cut on my foot which is keeping me off my rowing machine. Hopefully it won’t take 2 years to heal. Meanwhile though, I have an inability to exercise problem (I’ve tried the rowing machine – even with cotton padding on the wound, the rowing machine causes it to re-open and bleed).

Enter the solution – the second dumb thing I’ve done in a week or so. I live about 5.5 miles from work and there’s a paved bike trail that connects my house to campus. I decided yesterday to see how long it would take me to walk it, and Soolin and I set off at a little before 10. Keep in mind, I hike pretty long distances with some regularity in the warm months, but aside from a short 3-4 mile hike in early February, I haven’t done anything since almost getting trapped in the Tongue Mountains this fall. So I set out, and 1:15 later at was at my office door. Not bad, I think. I headed into Amherst, got some coffee and rested for a half hour or so, then headed back. By halfway back I was feeling sore in my hips and especially in my feet, and by the time I got home I could barely walk. Today my left heel is so sore I have to walk on my toes, which makes me look ridiculous.

The conclusions: First, I’m an idiot, and should have started the hiking season with something a little shorter. Second, I need more comfortable shoes. (I wasn’t wearing my good hiking boots since it seemed foolish to burn out their tread on a flat paved path). Third, aging sucks! Since when is my joint system so feeble?

Still, as soon as I feel sufficiently recuperated I’ll be doing that hike again, this time to get me to and from work on a weekday, Soolin in tow. I also want to get a trailer for my bike so I can do it with Soolin in the trailer and only spend 15 minutes getting to work instead of 1:15. The other cool thing is that two of the three major shopping centers in this area are connected to the trail system, meaning I can peddle over and do my shopping that way once I have the trailer, or for small trips I can just use one of my backpacks.