I probably think too much, I know I overthink too much, but maybe that is what Tumblr is all about. Anyways, I added a new goal to my “Leveling up” sidebar link. This is one of those goals that is lifelong and you fail if it happens. It’s to achieve the absence of something happening, if that makes sense.
I was driving on campus this morning (in the recreation center parking lot, nonetheless), and parking was limited as always. The parking services on campus oversell the passes (which makes sense to a degree), and take away parking lots each year. I was also noticing the amount of handicap spaces that I NEVER see utilized. Anyways, as I drove by these mostly empty spaces, I saw someone who was driving recklessly (in a parking lot!) with a handicap plate, parking in the handicap spot. As a sufferer or road rage, I thought to myself, “the only handicap is your driving”. The person got out of their car, looked to be pretty young (middle-aged), and my shift went from “bad driver” to “wonder why they have a handicap plate?” Then I started thinking about all the reason a person could have a handicap plate. Obviously, a lot of older people have them due to mobility issues, but I see my fair share of people not much older than I am with plates. A litany of reasons exist for why someone has a plate, most of them are valid, but in indexing all the possibilities in my head, I thought to myself : “I NEVER WANT A HANDICAP PLATE”.
I remember when I was younger, the allure of having the plate was always a seemingly positive thing to have – you get to park closer, less walking. Now, when I park, although I try to park as close as possible, I don’t fret if I have to walk a ways to get to the store (exception : WINTER). Then I shifted my focus mostly away from this random person to myself (which is always best when coming off of a parking rager), and thought about how I want to keep going in the direction that my life is going in right now, fitness, health, etc. I want to be 75, and still using the regular parking spots. I certainly do not want to be 50 and needing to have a handicap plate because I could have treated my body better than I did.
I think about the path that I was on just a year and a half ago. 10 more years of living like that, and cardiac disease, diabetes, fatty organs were all going to drive me into that spot, closer to the store, closer to a grave, closer to a life with less of a healthy and positive outlook. Sure, something legitimate may happen in my life, I may suffer a stroke, I may get into a freak accident where my leg is severed, who the hell knows. All I know is that, for now, the way my life is heading, I don’t ever want to use that plate as an excuse for not living life the best way I knew how.
With that said, my body is feeling the pain from the last couple workouts, and luckily I get to the gym early enough to get a good parking spot 🙂
