I Saw a Young Woman Jogging With Her Dog While Smoking

It’s pretty rare at age 47 for me to see something I’ve never seen before. This is especially true when I’m driving. When I do see something of this nature, I definitely tend to do a double-take.

Such was the scene yesterday afternoon. Driving to my daughter's school to pick her up, I noticed a young woman, probably in her early 20s, jogging with her dog. While smoking a cigarette.

I have to admit, my first thoughts were judgmental. I laughed at the idea of someone smoking WHILE jogging. It kind of defeats the purpose of a nice healthy run with your dog.

Then I thought about the aspect of jogging and smoking happening at the same time. How I had never seen anyone do that before in my life. I’ve seen plenty of people smoking, but never during exercise. I was somewhat impressed by it, suddenly.

This young woman didn’t give a damn what people were thinking as she jogged with her pet down a busier road here in town. The hell with what anyone thinks of her. She’s gonna go get some fresh air and some exercise, and she’s going to do it on HER terms.

While I don’t feel like smoking is a healthy choice for people, I don’t tend to judge them negatively for it. It’s a free country, at least for a bit longer.

If someone wants to smoke, so be it. Plenty of people still do. Many of them drink. A lot of people smoke weed. Who am I to judge them?

And who knows what this young woman is going through at this point in time? Maybe she’s having a hard time with life? Money could be tight. Worse yet, perhaps she’s in a relationship with a MAN. Egads!

Getting a smoke during a jog with her pooch could be just what she needed to defrag a bit and feel better about life. The world is a tough place. It’s getting tougher all the time. Especially for women. Don’t even get me started on that.

So I tip my hat to this lady. I hope I see her out running with her dog again, with a smoke fired up when I drive that same route to pick up my kiddo from school. I’d love to catch a picture of it this time, like a stalker paparazzi person.

Maybe I’ll bring a big ol’ glass of cabernet with me to the gym and park it on my treadmill or elliptical machine. I’d love to see the other gym members’ faces when I’m jogging at a 5% incline while swilling down red wine.

It would be awesome to bring an edible with me to snack on while lifting weights. I can see it now:

“Whoa Bro! Protein Brownie?”

“No, Mannnnnn. Pot Brownie! Damn, how many reps was that? I lost count again.”

Think about all kinds of crazy vices we could pair up with normal, everyday activities. Driving and watching Netflix. Pornhub in the back row at church. Some shrooms during the next sales meeting at work. The options are limitless.

So the next time you see something unusual in your daily routine, don’t judge. Take notes. Get some ideas. Life is short, it may as well be interesting and unique.

I would have never mentioned this story to my family about seeing someone jogging at our dinner table unless she had a Marlboro fired up during that run. That makes for some unique and humorous dinner conversation.