I got started jogging a couple of years ago. Getting older, needed a cheap and easy way to get more active. I already had a routine of walking the dog every day, so, hey, why not just pick up the pace? Our Lucy dog was in agreement with the program.

I have found there to be pros and cons to running with the devil dog.

1. Pro: No excuses. The dog wants to go. How can you resist the sad puppy eyes?

Con: The days when it’s raining, snowing, or 100°F.

2. Pro: Lucy pulls me up the hills.

Con: She also pulls me down. Not that I need any help. Those sidewalk joints…there’s a reason Grace is not my middle name. See Fig. 1.

3. Pro and Con: Frequent potty breaks. For the dog, I mean. They let me catch my breath with the excuse of waiting for Lucy to do her business. “Oh, just gotta (huff, huff) wait a minute (huff, huff) for the dog to go.” And the droppings? Pick up in a sealed bag and, presto! An instant weight to enhance the exercise experience! Who needs to buy hand weights when you have a Labrador?

4. Pro: Enhances my prayer life. Really. As in, “God, please don’t let me fall on the dog! Lord, please don’t let me fall on the dog poo bag!” Then, “Jesus, thank you!”

Side note: When we adopted Lucy, the name they gave us was Satin. Jill kept saying Satan. So we changed it to Lucy. Should have kept it. She likes to run ahead and I was constantly telling her to “get behind me.” Come to think of it, the name Lucy is related to Lucifer, right? Food for thought.

 5. I get to practice dancing! I got the moves like Jagger, to quote the song. Happens when Lucy darts back and forth in front of me.

Con: See Number 2 above. But then I get to practice Number 4, also.

Figure 2.

Here we are last December. This picture is on Lucy’s 8^th birthday. Getting a little grey around the snout. The dog, not me; I’m greying at the temple. No, wait, that’s my natural ash blond highlights. Yeah, that’s the ticket!

 

Figure 3.

So this past January, I hit the big one. Five-Oh. Halfway to 100. So to mark the big 5-0, I ran 5.0. Not setting any land-speed records, but I did it!