"If you run, you are a runner. It doesn't matter how fast or how far. It doesn't matter if today is your first day or if you've been running for twenty years. There is no test to pass, no license to earn, no membership card to get. You just run."
-John Bingham
I'm lucky. I really am a lucky girl. Lucky to have friends like these :)
Sometimes, it isn't about the time we run, what place we end in, or the difficulty of the course, but it's about those who are waiting for us at the finish <3
Even you too Bill!
June 26, 2010, Run For Cash, Old Orchard Beach, Maine
I've been doing this fun thing recently. I get all ready to go for a run, change my clothes, braid my hair, get my shoes on, and even start chewing the mandatory stick of doublemint gum. I stop right before I get to the door and then proceed to find 800 other things to do, everything except for actually running.
Here goes attempt number three to drag myself down the stairs and out the door. wish me luck!
Today, was hot. I've been home for more than a month, and even though I came home in May, I thought that it should be summer, right away, based off the fact that I wasn't in school. Either way, today was the first day where it felt like summer when I woke up! It was a beautiful day, Dad and I tried to pick strawberries but the place we went to had already been picked out for the day, so I spent the majority of my time laying outside, enjoying iced tea and a trashy teen novel.
This afternoon I felt so guilty about doing absolutely nothing all day, I decided that a run was in order. I however neglected to realize that even though it was breezy, the 4 pm sun was still as strong as ever. It ended up being a long, hot and terrible run, but a run nonetheless. As I was dragging myself up the driveway after sweating off probably half of my body weight, I pledged to never run this summer in the hot sun, meaning not after 10 am, or before 5 pm, something that I should smartly stick to.
And on that note, its off to Saturday Night activities!
This past weekend, I went to visit Kayla Reeves, my partner in crime and initial motivation for running, in her hometown of Shirley, MA. It was surprisingly similar to small town Maine, something I'm well versed in. Our first weekend together since moving out of Dobby was filled with what I like to call "soul searching," something not to be braved without thai food, Vera Bradley, and obnoxiously long stays at Starbucks. This weekend was a lot about thinking about what has changed since college, what choices have been made since then, analyzing why we made certain choices, and how these choices have changed us, as well as what is to come. They say that college changes you, and I can't disagree with that statement, but I believe that it is all in how you acknowledge, embrace, and face the changes that have been brought upon you that reflect true character and maturity. I'll leave it at that for the sake of anonymity and pages of rambling, but it was a much needed self reflection, not unlike the longer runs I've been taking.
Through a stroke of luck, I have secured a spot in the TD Bank Beach to Beacon 10K, which is Maine's largest race in the beginning of August. I've been going on longer runs, in preparation for actually training for B2B, something I deemed worthy of a new running playlist, appropriately titled "Long Haul Running." This playlist is not limited to, but includes "Where I Stood" by Missy Higgins, "Trust Me" by the Fray, "On Your Own" by Green River Ordinance and "The Chain" by Ingrid Michaelson. This compilation of songs is much different than my usual frat party beats that I rock out to while running, but I've found that with longer runs, my mind tends to wander beyond the shallow and raunchy suggestive lyrics, requiring a much different selection of songs.
I have yet to complete a long run without blasting Missy Higgins, "Where I Stood" multiple times, where she says it best in the beginning with,
"I don't know what I've done Or if I like what I've begun But something told me to run"
My longer runs, always accompanied by Missing Higgins, are very much like the "soul searching" time spent with Kayla, enjoyably long, but mostly full of reflections, like Missy says, of what has happened, and if I'm happy with the choices I've made recently. I can't say that I'm always happy with what I come to terms with by the end of a run,
but sometimes, it feels like the only thing I can do, is run.
Since the race last Saturday, I've taken a break from running in order to get my life in order, something that is arguably equally as important.
First off, last week I quit my job at the Maine Golf and Tennis Academy. It's the first job I've ever quit, and I didn't quite do it as gracefully as I had originally planned. I didn't imagine so many tears or hurt feelings, but what's done is done and I don't have to go back there ever again! I've been applying to a few jobs here and there, but between the summer classes I'm taking, and working at the gym, I'll be busy enough.
I've also been car shopping with Daddy, meaning our evenings have been consumed by craigslist and test drives. We bought one last night, a 2006 light blue Honda Civic and I'm so excited for my new car! I'm actually currently sitting at the Volkswagen dealership in Waterville, having the oil changed in the Passat so whoever buys it won't have to take care of that for awhile. Who knew that dealerships have free WiFi? Props to whoever made that call, because this is the perfect time to update!
Anyways, I plan to end my running sabbatical tomorrow morning. My goal for the week is to find running buddies, not focusing on distance or pace. Briana and I went for a jog last weekend, and I feel like she would be game for a few runs this week. I'm also attempting to recruit Nate, but I'm finding that it is harder than I expected to find a running partner!
