CCU's HR department has instilled a new "summer fitness program" that is called "GO!". As part of this "GO!" program, we have selected teams of 4 to keep track of our physical activity for 6 weeks in order to increase our health and fitness. For every 15 minutes of certain activities you get a specific number of points, which you add together with the rest of your team to see who is making the fastest progress across a map that has been displayed in the HR department. (For example, 15 minutes of walking is 15 points, 15 minutes of running is 25 points) There are two leagues for this competition, the champion league, which is "racing" across the world, and the recreational league, which is "racing" across the U.S. Each team is represented by a country or a state, based on their league.
I am on "Team Arizona"-the recreation league because we are pretty confident we will get first place in this league. I have decided to take this competition very seriously. While I am not always super competitive, I do believe that we can win this (the prize is still unknown), and so I am committed to being as active as possible.
Part of this means that I am getting back on my "no more snooze" new year's resolution, and I am getting up early enough to go for a walk every morning. This is delightful. First of all, I live close to the greatest park in Denver. Second, it is crisp and quiet in the morning. And third, I can enjoy the beauty of nature, including the wildlife of the city.
This morning, it was raining but I was committed, not only to my renewed new year's resolution, but also to Team Arizona. So I got out of bed at 6:15, bundled up in a sweatshirt jacket and rain coat, and was out the door for an hour walk by 6:30.
It was a nice day, despite the rain, and it was reminding me of the good ol' days in Oregon. As I was enjoying the beautiful setting and joy of just being outside, I was suddenly struck in the back of my head. At first, I thought that perhaps something had fallen out of a tree, until I heard the awful screech of a crow and heard the ruffles of feathers fly by my head. Lucky for me, it was raining, and thus, I was wearing a sweatshirt jacket, with hood up, and my rain coat. This did provide some extra padding with the initial hit.
My thought at this point in time was, "Stupid bird, he flew right into me." My jacket is purple though, and I started to think this didn't make much sense, as there was no good reason for him to not see me, or mistake me for a tree. Suddenly, he came back for another strike, this time from the front. As flashes of Alfred Hitchcock's movie, The Birds, ran through my head, I quickly ducked, avoiding his sharp beak and dirty, dirty talons, but not missing his loud screech as he once again flew by my head.
At this point, I realized that this bird was not stupid, but for some reason, believed my purpleness to be a direct threat to his territory. The only natural response for me was to start waving my arms frantically over my head, probably scream and/or yell (although I don't really recall if I was making any noise), and of course run down the path in the opposite direction.
As it was raining, there was no one out walking, and no witnesses to this event. This is good, although I am sure it would have provided a great story for someone passing by.
Pretty sure this is a bad omen...crows attacking me. Maybe I should have stayed home today...it is too bad I am so serious about this competition.
And so much for the great city wildlife.
Who I am:
- Missy
- student of life, people, God and higher education. resident of colorado! lover of life, laughter, sasquatch, coffee, cold weather, the outdoors, fresh ink cards, mittens, jesus, and YOU!
4 comments:
First: This is only something that would totally happen to you and as I read it I thought, "You would."
Second: I think this story is hilarious and yet am so glad it happened to you and not me - SO SCARY!
Third: I love the irony that even though no one witnessed the attack and thus you were saved from embarrassment that you then proceeded to document it FOR THE WORLD on your blog.
Missy, I miss you really really a lot. Thanks for making me laugh with this post! I needed it!
That a girl!
Question: Are birds color blind?
Was the prize that you are allowed to vote for one democrat but only in a municipal election?
Too much?
First off, turkeys are color blind. No I take that back, they are not color blind (which I think is a contrast to the majority of birds). This makes turkeys difficult to hunt, because they can see the hunter better... especially if he/she is wearing a bright orange safety vest.
That was for the Butlers
Now, for Missy, I just reread your blog about the crow and it made me smile. I recall how you were terrorized by Hickcock's The Birds and so I assume that this event is somehow related. I think God has a wonderful sense of humor, and that his humor is not without purpose. I am sure that having survived this episode of your sitcom life, your fear of birds has been decreased... either that or your trust in God was forced to increase. No matter what, it was with purpose.
For me, it has served the purpose of entertaining me from a land far far away in a time when I am feeling a bit down and in need of a good laugh.
Also, I enjoy your cultural insights in your most recent blog about Beaver Falls. I am looking forward to someday soon eating some Ely's ice cream and playing bean-bag toss while trying to understand the local dialect.
I am also a big fan of the picture of Trigger's 250,000 mile mark. I did the same for my truck at 200,000 in the middle of Wyoming.
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