I Hate Scooter(s)

On the same day that Scooter Libby was convicted of four counts of doing bad things to good people, I rode a scooter for 6 miles and hated every bit of it.

The problem started when my doctor said that there was a chance that I'd developed a small hernia and that yes, I should stay off the unicycle for a few days. He didn't see anything wrong with a scooter, tho -- except that it's a terrible way to travel six miles other than on a gentle downward slope, which sadly is not the case in Manhattan.

True, the scooter was better than having to take the subway. I had to take the subway yesterday because my brain was too slow to think of the scooter until then. Subways are bad enough in NYC, but I make them worse thru my own stupid mistakes, so my 10 minute ride from Port Authority to my mom's turned into a 45 minute odyssey when I hopped on the E train instead of the C and didn't catch my error for 3 stops. That was so typical of me, and part of why I hate traveling underground. At least if I'm unicycling I can tell after a block if I've gone in the wrong direction.

This afternoon, at least I was traveling on the streets -- but that was part of the problem today. The streets were gross. It had just snowed, so everywhere I rode, there was a slushy muck that got all over the scooter. Opening and closing it after my rides was disgusting. This was the least of my quibbles today, however.

I have a student I pick up twice a week from his nearby school. I usually ride my unicycle while he travels the 19 blocks on his scooter. By coincidence, I asked him a few days ago whether he ever switched feet, because in the few times I've traveled by scooter, I noticed that switching is a good way to avoid muscle exhaustion. He said that he had a hard time switching and preferred just using one leg for standing and one for pushing. Of course, he's only 6, so maybe that's part of it.

So how lame did I feel today when I couldn't manage more than 3 blocks without having to switch legs? By the time my ordeal was over, both of my legs were a bit sore. And I still stink at pushing with my left leg.