The LENS - A Walk to Nowhere
Come with me as my Poodle Max and I stroll out onto the Overwater Drive of the LENS on August 23, 2015. It is about 11:30 AM.
It's a typical August day, the sun is shining brightly, the temperature is already about 92 degrees.
As Max and I step out onto the Overwater Drive and head toward the Marina, the heat radiating from the wood decking is a bit stifling. Max gives me that are you serious look, but plods ahead.
The Overwater Drive seems spacious until a group of people and a couple of bikers swing by making it seem a bit close. The view out toward the municipal Marina is nice.
We are about half way to the Marina and I am sweating like a sumo wrestler in a sauna and Max is panting like a steam engine.
About that time I hear a siren screaming behind me as an emergency vehicle makes it way out the Overwater Drive. There is a guy in golf cart screaming get out of the way, as the emergency vehicle attempts to miss the bikers, walkers and old guy in wheel chair.
Max lets out a howl as the emergency vehicle inches by, and as I look down I notice his tongue is now hanging about half way down to the ground.
We make it to the Marina, only to find the few actually shady seats occupied by a bunch of tourists from Minnesota playing musical chairs trying to cool off.
At this point I consider taking the Overwater Bridge back to the land side, but I figure what the hell let's try to make it the Promontory. Max looks at me like I'm crazy.
The sun is now low enough that it is shining in under the canopy so we are walking in the August early afternoon sun.
As we arrive at the Promontory, the emergency folks are wrapping up some sort of incident so I walk over to the stairs leading to one of the balconies. I feel a tug on the leash as Max , tongue now hanging limply out of the side of his mouth, sits down looks at the stairs and refuses to budge.
The ice cream shop is jammed full of people trying to cool off, there is a waiting line to get in and a sign that says No Pets.
Fortunately I have a bottle of water in my carry pack, so Max and I find a little shade behind one of the columns and get a warm drink.
Max and I head up to the Overwater Bridge to go back toward the Marina and the land side. A short way into the walk back, a group of cyclists whizz by, all wearing University of Iowa T-Shirts.
The sun is now low, no shade. I catch up with a guy and mumble, "man it is hot". He says "yep", looks at his I-phone and says, "about 106 degrees according to this." "Where is all this shade they talked about?"
I stop to lean on the rail, and then thinking quickly, reach out slowly to touch it, hot enough to grill a steak.
Max needed another drink of water, I finish off the bottle and we head toward the Marina and the land side in the now low afternoon blazing sun.
Apparently someone had neglected to inform the University of Iowa cyclists about the necessity of walking your bike off the bike ramp from the Overwater Bridge. The carnage was impressive.
We finally made to the end, fortunately there was a hot dog vendor selling cold water. Max and I find a tree and share a cool drink.
The day was well summed up by an enterprising T-Shirt vendor who proudly offered a shirt that said " I Survived The LENS"
It's dosen't matter how you spin it, it's still just a sidewalk to nowhere.
e-mail Doc at: dr.webb@verizon.net, or send me a Facebook Friend request.
Campaign Disclosures: Contributor to Kathleen Ford Campaign, Darden Rice Campaign, Concern Citizens of St. Petersburg
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