Unashamed Writing

Authentic writing from the gut - the studio of a self-taught writer

I thought I couldn’t run fast – I was wrong

treadmill fallI do most of my writing on a treadmill in my bedroom. The left side and the back of the treadmill are nestled right against one of the corners of my bedroom. Why is that detail important? And why is it a bad idea?

Here. Let me give you a totally hypothetical scenario … or a true story. You decide.

I’m on the treadmill, walking at a slow pace of about 1.8 miles/hour, completely lost in my fiction. Suddenly, the treadmill starts moving faster. Before I can even think “What the heck?”, my legs start moving faster. And faster. Faster still just to be able to keep with the infernal treadmill.

I’m fumbling with my laptop while running like a madman (or madwoman), trying to close it so I can reach the button that stops the death machine. That’s what my treadmill had become. A fall would be a painful, bloody mess. There’s a solid wall just four feet behind me. There’s no clearance between the treadmill and that solid wall. If I fall, I’ll be thrown against the wall while part of me would still be on a treadmill going at about 8 miles/hour now. Bloody mess, I’m telling you. Bloody mess!

As I said though, I found out that my legs can do a pretty good job at running fast. I’m happy to report that I made it alive after almost a minute of running at 8 miles/hour. I lived to write another day. That’s always a good thing, especially if this were not a hypothetical scenario, but a true story instead. You decide … again.

P.S. Here is a short video that shows a funny treadmill fail. You’ve probably seen it already. Now try to picture the same treadmill with its back against a wall. Not so funny anymore, is it? Unless you like bloody accidents. Then go ahead, laugh!

* treadmill photo courtesy of Edward Fieder Photography.

2 Comments

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  1. If you could please give me credit for your thumbnail image I would appreciate it.

    Feel free to delete this comment afterward.

    Thanks!

    1. I’m sorry about that. My only excuse is that I was relatively new at blogging and unaware of the right way to use images found through google search. I’m in the process of replacing those pictures with some I’m creating myself.

      Thank you for allowing me to use yours. It’s very funny and well done. I found your flickr account and linked the image to that. I hope that’s OK.

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