It had been years of a rather sedentary lifestyle, for one reason or another. Added to that, years of sleep deprivation, disrupted schedules, grief, skipped meals, illness, and all around stress. The Passenger's temple was a blob of low energy and less motivation.
Something needed to be done. On an whim, she researched the Fitbit. 10,000 steps a day sounded like a worthy goal, but how to measure them? She wanted to know how this piece of technology worked, what it could be connected to, and what parts of her life would be susceptible to its snooping? And, of course, what kind of price tag it carried.
Along the way, she realized there were apps that could be used instead of a Fitbit, downloaded onto her phone. And as the phone is always with her, and the apps cost nothing, this seemed the best option.
So she downloaded. And only then realized that few of her pockets were large enough to hold her phone and yet not obstruct activity as she moved through her day. Her phone was kept in a case that doubled as a mini wallet for grab-and-go convenience; too bulky for pockets. So much for planning ahead.
The phone app went to work, and daily posted updates on the number of steps taken. Mostly in the neighborhood of 200 steps per day. Not nearly the goal of 10,000, but then the phone mostly lived on desk, counter, or purse, in a day's work.
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The trucker had a short run coming up, to Omaha to pick up a trailer, add a load, and return home. A short run like that was the perfect opportunity for the Passenger to ride along.
The trip out was bobtail. With no loaded trailer to add weight, they blutzed (as the Trucker's father would have said) westward. The second morning, the cute little blue stripe on her phone posted the update on how many steps she'd taken the day before. Very few actually were expected, as she was a Passenger, and her steps only took her across parking lots for bathroom breaks.
But the update showed 5003 steps! A curious thing. Until she remembered the rough ride because of the bobtail. How fun. Apparently bounces a jolts counted as steps.
And next day, the 10,000 step goal was accomplished before noon. Iowa's roads were particularly rough. Funny how technology can be deceptive. And used to achieve ends by means that are not actually correct.
For the return trip, they'll see how many steps the app records now that a loaded trailer has been collected!
