Levy Trail Loop/Levy Trail South

It's sunny, dry, and 46°F in Levy at 7:56 a.m. I just got in from walking the Levy Trail Loop in 28:58. Last night I set my alarm for 6 a.m. as part of an attempt to prepare for a 5:30 a.m. wakeup on Sunday to cover the Little Rock Marathon for the paper. I wandered into my living room at 6:35 this morning as I tried to figure out why all those bars and nightclubs around my front bedroom were using the same noise-maker to draw my interest. It took me about a minute to figure it out and return to the bedroom to turn off the alarm.
Maybe I'll do better tomorrow.
This afternoon I walked Levy Trail South in 32:14.

Paragraph(s) of the day from A Different Closet

He got out and began to walk. Cars flowed past. Then one slowed, and its driver waved. She looked familiar. Her AMC Pacer pulled to the side of the street, twenty yards ahead.

She stood, leaned out of her window and twisted back. “Mr. Ingram, do you need help?”

“Yes, I do. I need a ride. My car just blew up.”

“Well, come on,” she said. “Let’s go. You’re gonna be late.”

Keith knew her from somewhere. She was cute, a distinct tomboy with short blonde hair, dressed in a bright red tennis skirt and a white St. Louis Cardinal baseball jersey.

“This’ll be a story for my grandkids,” she said. “I drove Keith Ingram to one of his speeches.”

“You’re a life saver.”

“No I’m not. Buckle up.”

He knew her. “We’ve met, haven’t we?”

She accelerated into the traffic. “Yeah, I’m an assistant producer at KSLM, the TV station. I helped...”

“With my makeup! Of course, sure, before that Monday Night Football game last fall. I knew I recognized you from somewhere. How have you been? How’s school going? I’m sorry, please tell me your name again.”

“I’m Sarah. Sarah Schiff. I’ll never forget how nervous you were that night.”

“Man, I was about to crap myself. And you know what, I’ll never forget the way you winked at me just before they turned on the cameras. You said, ‘Don’t worry. You’ll do fine,’ or something like that.”

She beamed. “Yeah, it is was something like that. I’d forgotten.”

“I remember how much it helped. I still almost threw up, but I would’ve for sure if it weren’t for you.”

“That’s why they hired me, to keep people from puking. But you’ve come a long way. Every time I see you now you look like a regular pro, like you’ve been making speeches and doing interviews all your life.”

“Yeah, well, you get the credit.”

“Bullshit,” Sarah said. “You’re the one who’s done this. The credit goes to you. You’ve just been wonderful right from the start.”

Keith suddenly wondered if this was the most beautiful woman on earth. “You know what, you’re gorgeous,” he said. “I remember thinking that last fall. Thank you. That was so nice of you to say.”

“I’m not just saying it. You’re someone no one’s ever seen.”