S2E11: Ditch walkin’

Day 11: Sept 20, 2023
Maryville, IL →
St. Louis, MO
Mileage: 25

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I hear footsteps and morning routines in motion. My sister-in-law and her family are gearing up for work and school. I remember this flurry of activity as a kid myself — the hustle to get motivated.

Jen goes upstairs to chat briefly with everyone before they leave the house for the day, and I take a few more restful beats. My eyes won’t quite open yet, though I am awake. Slowly, my body adjusts, and I walk upstairs. Jen is making herself at home in her sister’s house, grinding coffee beans and heating up a kettle.

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We recently started running. It’s a swap for me: I traded in cycling for running, due to an elbow break two years ago that largely compromised my bike handling. I missed the cardio, and a burgeoning interest in ultras and trail running stoked the idea. Since Jen and I started a few months ago, we’ve already raced a 10K, and the runner’s high is still real.

We do a shakeout run. But first we have to traverse the car-centric Everytown, U.S.A., to access a park that’s only a 10-minute walk away. There are no sidewalks. There is a hospital directly across the street, so we walk to that side and start walking in the grass. Which eventually becomes a ditch. Which eventually becomes a corn field. The Children of the Corn are whispering to us as we pass.

“We’re ditch walkin’!” Jen exclaims.

Yes, yes we are. This is the state of most places. To get to a park in your neighborhood, driving is (sadly) easier.

Two miles is what we muster. It’s hot and humid. We haven’t run since we left home, and the legs feel like lead. We manage to get it done, though, and the runner’s high continues.

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The first time we tried Five Guys, we were on the way back from our summer 2021 trip. We had a night at a Tru by Hilton in St. George, Utah, because the heat was too oppressive to camp in. We got takeout to bring back to our room since the pandemic still raged on.

We meet Jen’s mom at a local Five Guys. It’s the least offensive of the many, many chains and franchises that make up a huge swath of the country, and we know we can get lettuce-wrapped burgers here.

The free peanuts are a vibe. The Black woman who takes our order is a joy and makes our day.

The food is executed well, better than we remembered. We enjoy ourselves.

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Parting ways with Jen’s mom, we head back to her sister’s to do a bit of reorganization and stash some camp gear in her basement.

We make the trek into St. Louis and to our Airbnb, first stopping for takeout at Saigon Cafe. Our lodging for the next week is exceptional — perhaps one of the best homes and hosts we’ve experienced yet. Truthfully, the photos don’t do it justice. Midcentury-modern decor, updated fixtures, and stained-glass windows in a historical brick house characteristic of this area.

One of the hosts is a designer, so the touches are evident. Clear, unobtrusive signs are placed strategically around the home, marking, educating, and anticipating your potential need, request, or question. A condensed bold font is used. It might even be Trade Gothic No. 20, but I need to look closer.

We’re here for a bit, so we finally unload, unwind, and settle in.