Waiting
I'm trying to work but distracted by the feeling that I'm waiting for something. I'm waiting for some word on my manuscript. I'm waiting for some word on a query about a grant proposal that, if it went ahead, could help shift me into a different orbit. I'm waiting until it's a decent enough hour to eat my lunch without fear that I will starve to death mid-afternoon. I'm waiting for the tune of The Devlins' "Waiting" to stop playing endlessly in the back of my mind. It might be a long wait for all of these things. Longer than I've got. The air is getting worse.
On my run this morning, I was trash talked by an old woman in an electric wheelchair because I took a walk break. She punched me. Really. Right in the arm. The idling oxygen truck was still at its post. I can judge the quality of the air here by how loudly I wheeze during my run. There's a father and daughter team in town who go bike riding wearing gas masks. What is now a statement of protest may soon be an essential sports accessory. I'm sure the Swatch people will be all over it, designing decorative cover plates for ventilators. Nike commercials may look a bit different.
On my run this morning, I was trash talked by an old woman in an electric wheelchair because I took a walk break. She punched me. Really. Right in the arm. The idling oxygen truck was still at its post. I can judge the quality of the air here by how loudly I wheeze during my run. There's a father and daughter team in town who go bike riding wearing gas masks. What is now a statement of protest may soon be an essential sports accessory. I'm sure the Swatch people will be all over it, designing decorative cover plates for ventilators. Nike commercials may look a bit different.
posted by Colin at 11:51 AM
4 Comments:
I can't believe she socked you one! How funny. And I've been thinking about waiting, too. Hmmmm.
Hi Colin,
I have what may be a stupid question. You talk about breathing problems and oxygen trucks (which you've mentioned in a past blog). Is the air there so much different than other places (here/Chicago being my egocentric landing place)?
I know amazingly bad things that are never written about happen in S. America (and I'm sure elsewhere) but what you write is extreme compared to my daily grind.
We have 'ozone action days', but you have to know where to look to find info on them. Unless, of course, you just can't breathe, which would be your first clue.
Just want to learn.
Thanks,
~Robin
Hi Robin,
I'm no smogologist, but I do know that this part of Canada is particularly bad for air pollution because we're in the path of efflux from a large number of coal burning power plants in the Ohio valley. About half our bad air comes from Ohio and half of it is locally produced. Also, as I mentioned in a more recent post, it can seem as though something is not much of a problem, but then a closer look at the statistics suggests otherwise. Here, people are definitely dying from the effects of bad air. Joel Schwartz of the Harvard School of Public Health estimates that smog is killing 250,000 people per year in just the U.S. That's more than breast cancer, AIDS, prostate cancer and colon cancer all put together. The difference is, you'll never see 'smog' as a cause of death on a certificate. But nevertheless, there is a raft of evidence to support the idea that smog is lethal.
Thanks, Colin!
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