Lesson Learned

Note to self: never run by yourself with your iPhone (which here is just my iPod) here again.

The past couple days I have been trying to get myself back in to the swing of running again. This afternoon I went out for the third day in a row of running around a track just up the street from my apartment. It's not exactly hidden, but it's not out in the open for everyone to openly gawk at and harass me. Today there were some other people around, so I wasn't totally alone.

While making my 5th lap around, three young boys (no older than 15) who had been sitting on the side breaking tree branches and hollering such priceless lines as "hola guapa" at me were finally leaving, but not before they tried to rob me of my iPhone.

I've always wondered how I would respond if someone attacked me, as I have been so fortunate in my life that up to today it had never happened before. I always wondered, because the truth is you never know until it actually happens and adrenaline kicks in.

Apparently I am a fighter. I kick and punch and scream at the top of my lungs. So loudly that even with my mouth covered you hear me across an overgrown soccer field. Thankfully, the only thing the boys succeeded in getting was a kick to the nuts.

The boys gave up after about 30 seconds, when the people running on the other side of the track started yelling and coming to my defense. The only reason they didn't get what they were going for was because my iPhone was in one of these under my shirt. Thanks Mom. However, the only thing I'll be using it for now is holding my keys and inhaler while exercising in broad daylight.

I did leave my inhaler there, but my lovely roommate Saray went back with me to find it. She thinks I'm brave... I think I'm lucky (not to mention stupid). I knew the boys didn't have any weapons on them because I made note of them while I was running. But they were young, relatively weak, and unorganized. The littlest one, who must have been 5 foot nothing, started running away as soon as I started fighting back. The other two just failed and ran when people started responded to my screaming.

I ended up on the ground, thankfully unhurt, and I walked (ran, actually) away with everything I had when I got there. So really I'm okay. Just shaken up and pretty angry. Both with myself for thinking I'd be fine running around by myself with my iPhone and with those boys for thinking they could get away with hurting someone.

Time to start looking in to joining a gym, I guess.

I'll post about the other (happy) things that I've been up to since I got back later. Just felt the need to write this one out while I'm still angry.

Love you all.