today's mileage: 3.3
on the iPod: "never say never" -- the fray
Had a great run last week with Mrs. Pugh and Mrs. Murie to kick off Winter Break. What started out to be a damn-near perfect day for running, sunny in the mid-fifties, turned into a less than ideal day for running, overcast and windy in the forties, just before we headed out. But after running through the artic tundra better known as the Fayetteville Half Marathon, this was just another walk in the park.
We ran in Bentonville, which is fun for me because we almost always see our students. That sounds creepy, but I rarely run into them outside of my classroom, which is a good thing. But I don't mind jogging past them once in a while. It let's them see us as something other than their boring teachers. And, as we're moving, there's no chance for lingering conversations that can get awkward. It's just a wave and a hello. Done deal. Gone. Mrs. Pugh's son came along with us on his bike. We all loved it because he carried running provisions in his backpack. He was our own little aid station on wheels. He had gum and gatorade. And I think he had a granola bar or something.
Today's run was fairly cold, but heavy on sunshine. The sun being out makes an incredible difference for me in terms of the enjoyment of a good run. There's not a month on the calendar when I won't run in the middle of a sunny day. I'm drawn to the sunshine. Enough so that I rearranged some plans today to get laced up and out on a trail. That was good idea number one.
It's not that I don't enjoy Winter Break, because I do. Immensely. It's part of working in education. But there are some times during breaks from school when I tend to get antsy and uncomfortable. As much as I would love to lay up all day and watch TV, I can't do it. I have to get up and do something. Can't sleep in. At any rate, I was distracted and antsy and needed something. A run was it.
There was hardly anybody on the Botanical Gardens portion of the trail system where I ran, but I did see a family wearing Green Bay Packers gear. My initial thought was "they must really like this weather because it's crazy cold in Wisconsin", then I thought "who in the hell wears Packers gear in Arkansas?" Really.
I got a facebook friend request this Winter Break that really made me smile. It was from a childhood friend that I'd lost contact with after high school. She and I lived in the same neighborhood and went to school together all the way through. I have great memories of being her friend over the years. At any rate, like so many other people who have facebook, I was able to reconnect with her on an informational level and learn what she's been doing all these years. Which is running. Alot. Like tons of marathons. Seeing all of her success makes me want to run more. Not that I needed new motivation, but you never know when it's going to show up.
I will get in a run this Friday, on the last day of 2010, on the eve of a new year. Looking back, I'm such a lucky guy to have had the year that I did. Four halfs and my first full were the clear highlights, but possibly the best moments were those quiet, peaceful solo runs with only me and the sunshine. Running has become my way to not only clear my thoughts and keep things in perspective, but to also celebrate all that is good and right in the world. And I've got lots to celebrate.
Here's hoping that 2011 finds many trails, registrations, training runs, sore legs, and finish lines in my path. Peace.
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