First thing's first: A very special thank you to virtual running partner extraordinaire, Mary Kate, who gently let me know today that I've had my running mileage listed as 2013 (above in "Today's Number") ALL YEAR LONG. I just laughed because, given how this calendar year has been, of course that's been wrong!! It just makes sense. In my world. Did I mention part of my real job is to edit? That makes it even funnier, doesn't it? To quote a famous philosopher from the Peanuts gang, "Oh, good grief."
When I first hooked myself up with a mess of Facebook running pages, I loved the slew of motivational pictures and quotes that were (are) posted. There was one in particular that used to just annoy the crap out of me, though. It was this one:
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| Ironic that this annoyed me, huh? |
I'm pretty sure my annoyance came from not wanting to credit something like running for something I felt I could or should be able to control. (But, hey, how many people credit a bowl of ice cream for launching them into a better mood? I'm just sayin'.) I also think when I first read this sentiment that I was finishing runs feeling spent and slow and sluggish and, frankly, pretty crappy, so it did not occur to me there was any other way to feel. This quote resonated like a big, fat lie ...
This morning's run, however, definitely proved its truth. I woke up in a righteously cranky mood which was double-dang-sucky because my scheduled run was a 5-miler. Not 4, not 3 ... freakin' five. In a bad mood. Ugh and *$&*%^, I did not want to run. With next week's Half, though, this was not the time to give in to a bad mood.
My hound pal and I set sail in 50-degree weather ... whuuuuut ?! Awesome!! But, wasn't it 70 degrees at the same time of morning just a few days ago? And, who wants to bet it's going to be 90 on race day? It's a sucker's bet; I don't advise taking it.
Anyway, weather aside, in no time at all, things felt peaceful. I was waking up, muscles were shaking out, and the crankies started to lift without any mental effort on my part. It just was. There was no denying the running was the reason. Around the same time I hit my fourth mile, the above quote crossed my brain out of nowhere, and it didn't even aggravate me. Let's face it, it was just true.
I wish I had a way to describe that time out there. I don't know if it's because I'm by myself and just lost in a little bit of nothingness or because of the onslaught of fresh air or ... Yeah, there's definitely a sense of accomplishment every time, and I know it's good for me, but it's just more than that. There's something a little transformative about every run, and I think I'm finally beginning to realize that I love it more than I tend to acknowledge even to myself.
Besides, who couldn't love an activity that requires screamin'-orange shoe strings and where you can find money?!
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| 19 more ba-da-bings for the Food Bank! |
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| That girl can cruise 5 miles when it's 50 degrees! Correction: those girls! |
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| YES!! Awesome running drool!! |
Do what I can to support you! :)
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