Office, Treadmills and a Run in the Woods

I am working on my campaign.  As you all know, I have been working as a volunteer for many years.  It is work but I never had an office like I did back in my consulting days.  The other day, I was downtown working with my fundraisers.  I had about 30 minutes between meetings, and they let me use one of their offices.

I plugged in my phone, pulled out my laptop, shut the door, and made a phone call.  It was the first time I had been in an office in years, sitting at desk doing work, and it was surreal.

People have asked why I am running for office.  As with anything this large, it is complicated.  After Ada died and Claire Adele was born, I got off the treadmill of the corporate world.  While Claire Adele napped, I wrote.  When the Boy started kindergarten, I started my advocacy career.  At the time, I didn't think of it starting a career, nor did I directly compare it to working at E&Y.  Instead, I thought I was finding a way to get to know people, solve some problems and use part of my brain that had been on hold for years.

Then it became a way of life, but a way of life that was opposite of running on a treadmill.  Running a treadmill isn't a bad thing.  I have a membership at the University YMCA, and I like to hit the aerobics machines, especially when it is raining or cold.  The temp is usually consistent, it is dry and I know I'll get a good workout.  I can choose the workout ends, and I never get lots or trip and fall.

Corporate life is like a treadmill.  The work is predictable, I knew I would get a workout, and it was reliably there.

Being an advocate is different.  It like running in the woods.  It could be cold one day, dark and rainy the next.  You could get lost or trip on a branch.

You could also find yourself running on a beach, or catching a sunset.

Both are good for cardio, but the woods are better for the heart.