Burlington brawl

More on that irresistible title later.

This morning I woke up early, courtesy of a broken air conditioning system in the UVM dorms that left me (and from what I heard today, everyone else!) tossing and turning in my hot dorm rooms.  (It reminded me of college cross-country pre-season in a very charming way, but I can say that now because the AC is fixed!)  I decided to run through campus again and check out the lakefront path.

Do people here ever tire of the Lake Champlain views?  Has it gotten more picturesque every day for the duration of its history?  As the sun rose higher, it started shining light on the pink clouds hanging over the mountains.   

 
I also passed Church Street, which seems like a bustling pedestrian mall with great restaurants and shops during normal hours.  Before the clock turns seven, though, it looks like pigeons run the show.

Despite all of my visual and written yammering about Lake Champlain, readers might be surprised that one of my favorite sights so far is unrelated.  It's this punny duo of stores that happen to be next-door neighbors: a bar called What Ales You and a salon called Mane Attraction.  Next question: is it a better story if the same person owned them and conceived both names, or if completely different people drummed them up?  I'm not sure.

 

In the less than 24 hours I've spent in Burlington, I have concluded that it's a sweet and crunchy place.  There are signs on the street that discourage vehicle idling because of its environmental impact, and the coffee stations include soy milk in addition to milk and cream and sugar.  I love this place.  It came as a surprise to me, therefore, when I ran by this sign advertising none other than Burlington Brawl '12.  I'd pay a lot of money to see what kind of crowd this draws.  Is it Burlington's counterculture?

Whoa!

Contrary to what you think, photography was not the main objective of this morning's run.  You know how when you leave for a trip and fret about forgetting something, you chase your fears away by saying you can always buy it when you get there?  Turns out that it's not so easy when you're in a college town in the summertime.  Bottom line, it was a time-sensitive and unpleasant emergency: I forgot my toothbrush!  I had to find one.

I encountered no drugstores or grocery stores on any of the streets I covered running or walking, so I began searching for gas stations.  I found two--one right next to the other--about half a mile away from my dorm, so I went in the larger and better-stocked store to investigate and struck out completely.  I felt utterly pessimistic as I walked into the tiny gas station, which was more like a cafe and already somehow smelled like employees were cranking out a day's worth of French fries.  Lo and behold, there was a toothbrush buried in the toiletry section! 

The cashier and the customer ahead of me thought I was the funniest and strangest sight in the world, shopping for a toothbrush mid-run.  I agree, I must have looked bizarre.  But something in my social functioning at such an early hour prevented me from clarifying my situation, and the jokes about trying to brush my teeth while running ran wild.

Finally, the cashier handed me my change and got serious. "No, really, it'd be pretty tough to run with a toothbrush because of all the foam that's already in your mouth from running!" she said.

Just another one of running's dangerous side effects: rampant foaming.  I think I've heard it all.

I may sign off with a pawprint from now on. Love, Catamount