Women, Walking, and Talking

Like many people who work full-time, I didn’t have much spare time left after work or on weekends once the house chores, errands, grocery shopping, etc were finished.  Fitness and exercise were crammed into the early hours in the gym at work before the day started.  This meant that most of my socializing revolved around people I worked with everyday who lived all over LA and Orange Counties.  Then, came the opportunity to retire…hallelujah!!  But, even with the joy of a more relaxed life, there was the nagging concern about missing out on the great conversations about “everything and yet, nothing at all” that I had shared with my work friends. 

My new world was great and living by the ocean in Hermosa Beach gave me lots of options for walking to replace the time spent indoors at the gym.  I used my map and covered the various streets and different ways to get to the beach for the first year.  These were pretty much solitary walks as I learned about my town.  Then, good fortune smiled on me and I met a kindred spirit who has become a dear friend while covering many miles with me as we walk and talk weekly.  We’ve solved the problems of the world, discussed books and recipe ideas, dissected knitting patterns, and shared the joys and worries about our families. 

Good fortune smiled on me once again when a little over a year ago a mutual friend introduced me to some nearby neighbor women who just happened to be walkers every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.  I wasn’t ready to jump into three days a week so I started with one.  There are six of us “local ladies” in the group.  However, on any given day, the actual number varies from two to the full group, plus our two boxer mascots – Lola and Maggie.  For some, this walking routine has been going on for over 30 years when they met while their children were toddlers.  Others have blended in and out over the years.  A lot of life experiences have happened in the course of that many years…marriages, grandchildren, losses, travels, and many everyday adventures associated with just living in the modern world.   I have heard many of the stories; shared some of my own. 

The month of February has been especially interesting as I have gotten to share in celebrating birthdays with both of my walking groups.  Patricia and I sat in the sun and enjoyed coffee at the Metlox Plaza and later laughed over her birthday card before heading home. 

 

 My “local ladies” make sure that each member of the group has a special day to honor individual birthdays either with food at someone’s house or a planned adventure outing in place of the walk.  The beginning of the month was a trip to the Getty Villa in Malibu for a tour and tea for Tommy and we wrapped up the month with another tea and garden walk for Isa at the Huntington Gardens in Pasadena.

Once again…I have that wonderful feeling of joy that comes with socializing and talking about “everything and nothing at all” with friends on a regular basis.