Running Around

So many people who are members of my local gym, seem to have been in the crowd running in the NYC Marathon on Sunday. And they were proud--as they should be. One man walked in and shouted, 3:51, baby! Someone had to clue me in about the number being the time it took him to run the full length of the marathon.

I am impressed. I was running on the treadmill and I wanted to stop after three minutes. Killer Trainer said no, keep running. I said something like, MAKE ME...and she did. Two minutes more. Yep, I amaze myself at how I exceed expections! I think I'm getting the hang of this gym business...

So all the talk of running reminded me of something I had read about last year. It seems that a female track star from Zimbabwe, who had won a gold medal from a competition that had been held in Botswana, was a MAN. Named Samukaliso Sithole.

One of her...er...his female friends was told about this by another friend who knew the truth, and she freaked. She went to court and Sithole was chared with crimen injuria, or psychological offense. The former friend complained that her sexuality and dignity was compromised because she had told Sithole secrets, even feeling comfortable enough to be talking and walking naked around her. Er, him.

Sithole defended himself by telling the judge that he was born congenitally deformed and that his family had taken him to a witchdoctor, who gave him “female status” through a spell. But the spell didn’t work because Sithole’s family didn’t pay the full fee. I hate when that happens.

So Sithole, still thinking he was pulling off being a girl, was getting ready to travel with a group of women to a track meet in the city of Bulawayo, when the jig was up. Police were summoned. S/he decided to make a run from the police but was caught. The police then checked his bits, and bob’s yer uncle!

So, these things come to mind:

1. I have several female friends that I trust enough to tell them secrets--of sorts. But would I actually prance around in front of them naked, all the while chatting about this and that? Umm. NO!

2. So Sithole was a track virtuoso. But he sprinted from the train station and the police CAUGHT him. Easily. Man, how fast is considered fast in Zimbabwe? That gold medal must be sh*t.

3. Can’t shake the feeling that the dude’s name is missing a letter.

4. Jeez. The Sithole family should have saved their money. That witchdoctor sucked. Maybe they should have gone to Harry Potter. Now, he knows about spells!