So cliche, but when you see it in action, it's sad: Old dude tries to pick up young chick at the gym.
Wednesday evening, I had my usual date with the treadmill at the gym. I'm trying out a new running routine that will hopefully boost me to 3 days of faster running each week, with one of those days at a 60-minute run. Anyway, this post isn't about me (though my new self-imposed running program is moving along swimmingly--or runningly), it's about the soap opera that I've been watching unfold at the gym.
It involves an older gentleman, I'm guessing in his very late 50s or early 60s, and a younger girl of 22 - 25. The gentleman, I think I'll call him Mack (it just seems to fit, and I like making up names for people), works out on the floor, utilizing the weight machines in a half-hearted manner, because his focus seems to be on the entrance, and more specifically, who may be coming through the door. It's the little red-haired girl he seeks.
The girl in the story, I'll call her Cindyloo, comes through the door, already dressed in workout clothes, and heads straight for the elliptical machines, chooses one, and begins a workout. She never seems to get more than 5 to 10 minutes into her workout when Mack (after visiting the men's locker room, and reappearing with much less sweat than before the locker room) comes up to the machine and tries to engage her in conversation. He starts flexing his biceps in mid-sentence. He keeps messing with his hair (really, I thought only young girls did that when flirting, but I guess not), and puffing his chest out in a move that looks almost unnatural (I bet his backbone is going to snap one of these days).
I found this to be so funny (and at the same time, a bit sad) that I actually laughed out loud while on the treadmill (which by the way is on the back row, so I see everything), causing the gal next to me to stare and probably make some assumptions about my mental state. If she only knew! Back to the story.
I've seen this same scene going on now for a couple of weeks, and I'm not sure if Cindyloo likes the attention, or if she is annoyed. She never seems to stay long on the elliptical. Maybe she just wants to do a quick cardio warm up and hit the weights, or maybe she just wants to scram and get away from Mack. By this time, I'm usually finished with my run, and I'm heading to the Pilate's room to stretch, so I guess I'm going to have to work up to my 60-minute run faster than I'd planned in order to stick around and watch the story unfold. I'm not sure if I should bring popcorn (the low-fat no butter kind, of course), tissues, or a barf bag.
--Fortuitous Observer
