Eight Hundred and Seventy Six Miles

On a clear day you can see the Empire State Building -- looking north

For the last nine years my walking goal has been 1,000 miles, but we're shaking it up a little this year. My goal is 903 miles. I know that sounds like an odd goal, but it's part of my next major walking goal, to walk 10,000 miles in ten year. As of this morning I have eight hundred and seventy six miles to go. 

If, ten years ago, someone had suggested that I would walk 10,000 miles -- or even 5,000 miles -- I would have completely rejected the idea.  I like to walk and I was grateful that I was able to walk, but that was just too big a goal. Maybe, 5,000 miles would work. But at the end of 2016, my dear Weight Watchers leader suggested we choose a goal for 2017, a goal that was possible, but a stretch. I, somewhat impulsively, chose walking 1,000 miles in 2017. I walked my 1,000 miles in 2017 and then just kept going. 

One World Trade Center -- looking south

It's been step by step, with some steps easy and some steps much less easy. Some days it's little more than a mile and on other days three or four miles. Most of it is not intentional. Some days I go out to just to walk, though usually there's an errand or two included in the walk. But most days it's a combination of steps at home, steps to the bus stop or subway station and then to errands and events. I'm happy to include them all in my mileage count, though I do like to take longer walks and get my heart rate up.  

The two pictures above are from yesterday, where I walked not quite three miles. I met a friend and we visited Anne Frank: The Exhibition. This is an extraordinary exhibit that includes a full-scale recreation of the Annex, where Anne Frank, her family and four other Jewish inhabitants spent two years in hiding. There were a number of items on loan from the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam. I had the opportunity to visit the house in Amsterdam with my mother many years ago, and I feel very fortunate to see this exhibition. I especially found the section on how Anne's diary, one of the most translated books in the world, came to be published. Photography was not permitted in the exhibition, but there are photos in the link. 

Anne Frank The Exhibition 

Our spell of warmer weather continues and I was happy to note that it was light out at 4:30. I finished one of my yearly medical appointments this afternoon and then enjoyed a nice walk on Madison Avenue. I took pictures of some of my favorite places along the way and hope to share them in the next post. 

As ever, thanks for visiting and take good care.