Old Man Bateman

Taking a trip down memory lane can sometimes be a good thing, sometimes a bad thing, and then there are times when it’s just downright spooky. Today’s trip definitely fell into the spooky line.

This morning I had to go back to my old high school for work; it was the first time I’d walked through those doors in almost 15 years. And my goodness, a flood of nostalgia nearly bowled me right over. Walking into the front foyer, I knew if I turned right it would have led me to the science wing, if I climbed the stairs, I would have ended up in my math and family management classrooms, and if I went left and took a flight down the stairs, I would have walked through the doors of Mrs. Collins’ English class, my favourite class.

My class was the second graduating class of Bateman, everything here was brand new. So when I first approached the doors today, I was a little taken aback by how old and worn they looked with scratches and graffiti and chipped paint covering them like the wrinkles of an old man.

I walked through the foyer, passed the water fountain wall that seems to no longer be a water fountain, just a wall, passed the display of sculpted artwork that kids in my grade did the first year the school was opened, and just steps from my Grade 12 locker. Memories of best-friend conversations, and wild laughter and teenage tears in the bathroom were so strong in my head it was as though I was back there all over again. It was definitely a spooky start to the day.

Have you ever gone back to your old high school?

TONIGHT’S RUN:

  • 6:15 p.m. BG before: 5.0 (granola bar and 1 DEX)
  • Temp basal: -50 per cent
  • Distance: 10 km tempo
  • Average pace: 6:02
  • Time: 1:00:19
  • 8 p.m. BG after: 5.4

I spent a good portion of tonight’s run trying to figure out how best to describe it, and I think just one word comes to mind: Lonely. Actually, that’s not true, I’ve got more words. It was lonely, dark, scary, and yeah, it kind of really sucked. I went out with the Running Room tonight, because I didn’t want to do 10 km in the dark by myself. And the beauty of the Running Room is that you don’t ever run alone. Supposedly.

I tagged along with the marathon clinic which was running the same distance. And maybe it was my fault because I don’t know their routines or how they’re organized, and maybe I was expecting too much, given the amazing, super duper organized experience I had with my clinic. But I’m pretty sure I shouldn’t have been running 95 per cent of the run by myself  – through pretty much every sketchy, not-well-lit parts of town there were. Not cool.

How do you get around running at night if you don’t have a running partner?

4 thoughts on “Old Man Bateman”

  1. I either take vacation time so I can leave work early and run in the daylight or I hit the treadmill. No worries though as I will be running with you next Wednesday night. Gonna work on some different routes for us to try out.

  2. Whadarya, nuts!!? Running alone at night! In poorly-lit parts of town! Doesn’t the well-organized runner (of the female persuasion) have an alternate route for those nights when a partner is not available? When you went back to your old highschool, did you get butterflies in your stomach? Spooky, indeed! So much of your teenage life happens at highschool! Maybe you should take a partner along on those occasions, too 🙂

  3. Hang in there. I will be running with you on Wednesday in a couple of weeks too. Or you can come to the track and I’ll chase you around there…..

  4. Sadly, I just run alone in the cold dark night.
    I normally don’t have running buddies and some of my routes take me along completely unlit trails. I quite like it though for the most part. Sometimes I feel uncomfortable and afraid.
    And what’s with the Running Room? running alone? I’d complain

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