The Stairs Less Traveled

On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I travel from a class in the basement of the JFSB to a seminar room on the fourth floor. This is equivalent to 6 floors (because the staircase from the basement to the first floor is actually double in length). I usually take the elevator to get from point A to point B.

Today is Tuesday. I walked out of my class in the basement toward the elevator. I reached my hand out to light the button and request a trip upward. But as I reached out my thumb (I like to hit elevator buttons with my thumb for some reason), a thought passed through my mind. What if I take the stairs today? I'm not late after all, and who knows, it could be fun.

I was semi-right about the fun part. Here are my thoughts in a simplified equation:

1 basement floor x (2 length)+4 above ground floors= 6 floors of possible funness

What I did not account for was energy (E). I'm not sure what the technical equation for this would be, but I imagine it would look a little like this:

1 basement floor x (2 length) x (.9E)+ 4 above ground floors x (E)^(-4)= 6 floors of not a lot of E, and slightly less funness.

But after taking the stairs instead of the elevator, I gained some ever-so-small feeling of accomplishment that made the burning in my legs all worth it. Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-- I took the stairs.