Big Picture Prevails. Always.

What's very cool about running for me is the bigger picture: I came home from this morning's outing to a family who cheered the effort; I received an email from a friend letting me know she was rooting me on, and, even though she didn't get to join me, Elly greeted me with her very, very waggy tail. When I started running in the first place, I did not see that it would thread its way into so many pieces of my life.

And, it rocks.

Before getting to these bigger picture moments, I first had a few steps to take! I was smart enough to get to bed early enough last night to accommodate the 6 a.m. wake up. That was a good call for sure! Without real issue, I was up, dressed, stretched and out the door with the hopes of finishing these 12 miles without any real issues, with the ability to just carry on with the rest of my day without too many moans and groans, and to return home with a penny in my pocket. Hope number three came early:

I caught it out of the corner of my eye before rounding out the
first mile! It was in danger of falling into the drain, too. Good
thing I was there, huh?

That was a big moment as it allowed my money count to leap on to the $2 mark! Awesome! And, with that desire out of the way, the pressure was off to find more today, so perhaps I could run looking forward rather than looking off to the side ... right? Whatev! I tried, but I'm so compelled to seek out the change!!

And, check out what looking sideways did for me because I would not have seen this with my eyes forward:

That same, lovely orb is about to get high
enough to pummel me in just a few miles.
I guess you take the good with the bad!

It was right after rounding mile three when I had to tackle some internal talk. It's when I realize I just completed a 5K's worth of distance that something inside me clicks and makes me think, "You know, if this were a 5K, you'd totally be finished." That's not helpful when you need to do that distance three more times, and I've learned to push through that "could be finished" thought instead of letting it envelop me. Learning these internal cues has been key to not defeating myself because that "just finished" thought is very inviting!

On I went encountering many runners out and about this morning. I would like to note that almost every one of them was very friendly which is just the way I like it! Oh, and here's the tree I wanted to show last week but it was way too foggy to do so:

Isn't it gnarly in many senses of the word?
Last week, it had no leaves making the
branches more pronounced. It's still super
cool, though. And, I feel it wise to note it
as such, or I'm afraid it might reach out and
grab me some day. Doesn't it look the type?
I think so, so I respect the tree.

On and on and on (and on!) I went, finding some treasures, waving to runners, saying hi to my friend on his bike and, evidently, scratching an itch on my arm really, really hard:

A bunch of miles worth of sweat will make
for some sensitive skin. Itch with care.

This whole run really came down to the last two miles for me. Why? Because I knew what was coming from mile 10 to 11 ... my current least favorite hill. It's not as long as others (um, still kinda long ...), but it is sharp on the ol' incline. And, of course, it hurts. There are times I've opted to walk up it because my calves start screaming, and I'd prefer to not pull a muscle to prove a point no one cares about. I don't even care about such a point; I care about staying in tact!

Today, I was determined to make sure I ran up it to keep my mental game going ... given I don't know the course I'm taking on for the Half, I don't want to train my mind to wander to the walking option every time I see a hill. I'm not against a necessary walk, I just don't want that as a go-to for myself.

I'd stretched accordingly and was mentally ready, but there is no part about this 10-to-11 length I was looking foward to. Nice that it was almost at the end, then, huh?! Great planning! Anyway, long story short, I ran right on up! If you call my slow jog a run (ha!), and if it counts that I stopped to pick up a DIME!

Big Picture: Totally Counts!

The last mile was pretty easy breezy in comparison. I even realized while out there that going from mile 10 to 11 even with that hill felt about the same as going from Start to mile 1 on my very first 5K. Seriously. That's pretty sweet! For all of the victorious moments and all of the happy tales I tell, would you like to know what I look like right after a 12-miler?

The face kinda tells its own tale, doesn't it?

But, give me a few moments of rest, a cold bottle of water and a Diet Coke -- thanks to the Pit Crew leader! -- and you have a pretty happy gal!

Thirteen cents for 12 miles ... booyah!!!

That's a 35-mile week in the books. I'm pretty proud of that! It was all capped off by my returning home to find PC2 making a post-run blueberry pancake breakfast!!

Oh, yum, yum!! Blueberries in my favorite Fiber One pancake
mix!! So fabulous!! Can't you smell 'em?? Mmmm ...

There are hardly any miles left on my countdown!! Yeah!!! I'll ponder that while I REST tomorrow!!