noise-in-the-dark

Have you ever been running in the dark and pick up the pace because you heard something rustle off the side of the trail? Turn around and run the other way when you hear a growl? Scream like a little girl because a banshee is letting out a horrifying squeal?

Heh heh, uh … me neither. Well, maybe once. Or twice.

A couple weeks ago, I was running along at 6 AM, in the dark, minding my own business. I was lost in my thoughts, cruising along with my path illuminated by my headlamp. Out of nowhere, a blood curdling screech emanated from off the path behind me. It sounded like a screaming banshee and only got louder and louder. I turned and screamed/barked/bellowed some kind of noise so loud it echoed off the nearby houses. I thought for sure it was a woman screaming and chasing me down the trail. The squeal eventually evolved into a feline squall. Stupid cats … scared the living poop out of me. My heart rate was through the roof. My scalp tingled. I was startled!

I calmed down and continued my run with a bit more pep in my step … and maybe a little something in my pants.

The next week, I swear I heard a baby crying at 5:30 in the morning in the middle of a neighborhood. Of course when you hear a baby crying outside at 5:30 am in the pitch black, it could only be:

A) A zombie baby wreaking havoc on the neighborhood, crawling from house to house looking for brains to eat.

B) A baby dropped off by aliens for me to find and raise as my own, discovering his super powers and struggling with how to use them for good instead of evil.

C) A cat. Again.

You’re right. It was a cat. Stupid cats …

What have you heard at night or morning while running in the dark that set you on edge?