Banner Day!

Okay, this was just funny ... I spent the better part of my run this morning being faked out numerous times by washers in the road ... washers, particularly when rusty, look an awful lot like pennies from a bit of a distance. However, I'm not new to this game, so I've learned to not get too excited until I can make a close-up, positive identification. More often than not, it's a washer (and then I spend a great deal of time wondering why there are so many washers in the road ...).

Then, there was today.

I was closing in on mile 6 when ta-da! Payoff! There it was ... a dirty, hard-to-see-but-I-still-saw-it penny. It was in this little intersection:

Noting again that I am, indeed, a safety girl, I watched for traffic, snagged my penny, and took off again. It seems I took off a bit hasty because check this out in the lower right corner:

I MISSED ONE!! That's what I get for watching for cars ... HA!

I might be more disappointed about finding that out now that I'm home checking out the pictures, but you haven't heard the whole story!

So, I continue on for just a little bit when I spied in the corner of my eye something glinting in the sun. Usually, that's a piece of glass, and I kept going for a few steps. Besides, there were cars to respect! Then, I just had to check. There was a brief break in traffic, and, like a total dork, I literally backpedalled. I had to check this mess out:

In there is where I found another penny AND ... wait for it ... wait for it ... A QUARTER!! YAHOO!!

These have seen better days ...

For those doing the math, you do, indeed, see another penny in there because I found that shiny one immediately upon hitting (and stopping at) mile 8. Booyah!!!

By the way, I've occasionally seen pennies in such intersections when we've been in the car. The conversation between Aaron and myself has gone like this:
Me: Hey! There's a penny out there!
Aaron: So there is.
Me: Go get it real quick!
Aaron: No.

There were so many successes on this run besides the big bank. Let's name them:
1. I ate some oatmeal prior to running to make sure I had some slow-release energy going on, and I didn't feel sick even once while running (I don't usually eat at all prior ... upsets my tummy ...)
2. I was literally 3 steps away from being pooped on by a bird in a tree I was about to run under. I hear it's good luck to be nailed by that, but I'll pass.
3. I did not see the two dead mice on a sidewalk until passing over them, but I also did not step on them. (By the way, is being subjected to road kill not enough? Sidewalks?! Eww.)

All of this adds up to a banner day, don't you think? I felt great after:

A friend just gave me an elastic headband that fits my head
without rolling around (and out of) my hair. Perhaps I should
start using it, you think?!

Rest Day is tomorrow! So, meeting Aaron for lunch and having a yummy Diet Coke was in order!

Mmm ... so very good ...

And, by the way, we won some Redbox rentals today from the McDonald's Monopoly game! Seriously, banner day! I already have my run route mapped out in my head for Saturday ... it happens to pass by a lonely penny ...