The elephant

I have been working at my current job for 1 year and 11 months.  It is a 50 min drive south every morning, sometimes less and sometimes more.  I mostly enjoy the drive, especially in the morning.  When I started this job, and commute, I noticed a guy running on a road that runs parallel with the freeway.  I saw him regularly, I don't know if he was there every morning, sometimes I get focused on other things, and forget to look, but I saw him often.  I loved seeing this guy running.  He was not the "typical" runner.  He looked heavier, he wore a big sweatshirt and sweatpants, but he was running. 

I also used to look at the scenery when I was driving.  Washington state is such a pretty place.  On my drive to work I see mountains, I see water, I see fields, I see trees.  It is gorgeous, especially at the right time of year when the sun is coming up on my drive, which is right now.  I would always think about how the people on the road with me are probably not paying any attention to the gorgeous sites as they drive down this very busy freeway.  I told myself I would not take my views for granted as long as I was driving them.

Well, of course I don't notice it everyday.  And living here, the reason it's so green, is because it rains so much of the year.  So in the winter, especially when it's still dark out, I don't notice what's going on around me so much while I drive.  Then spring comes and the sun starts rising again during my drive and I'm enthralled by it all again. 

I don't know when I quit noticing the guy on the side of the road running.  I don't know if he quit running, or if I just got distracted by other things.  Every once in awhile I'd see him and think about him running his road, but I didn't pay much attention to him.  He looks pretty similar to the first time I saw him, same heavy, oversized sweatshirt, same sweatpants. 

I am impressed by him.  I don't know if he quit running for awhile, I don't know if he's running different routes at times, I don't know if I just forgot to look for him.  But I know that I still see him sometimes, I saw him this morning, and he is still running.  That inspires me.  I often wish I could go to his road and run with him. Ask him how far he runs, how often.  Just talk.  Tell him that I see him and that I think his morning runs are amazing.  I can't, I won't, but good job guy on the side of the freeway. 

So there is an elephant in my blog.  My 40th year goal.  The goal I had to run a race a month before my 40th birthday.  I was going strong.  I was running, I was also getting age awards.  And then I sprained my ankle.  I decided I was going to finish my goal anyway, even with a sprained ankle I was still going to complete my goal.  Well, I ran in July, and then in July the race I had planned on doing (on the last weekend of the month) was canceled with no notice.  I ended up running with a friend and counted that as the race, since I had no control over it's cancelation.  But after that I didn't have much motivation to continue with the goal.  I did run in August, but I didn't actually care about it.  By this time I had run 7 5k's and I was pretty burned out with the 5k's, and the races.  So for September I skipped a race.  And I don't really care.  It hasn't bothered me at all.  Besides, if you count all my races between my 39th birthday (Oct. 6) and my 40th, I still did 12 races, but it was not a race a month.  I did 2 last October.

And what did I learn about this?  I don't care for 5k's.  I miss the long runs of last summer.  I am a long distance runner.  Oh, and running a race a month is expensive.  ; )

So I'm going to work on building up my runs again.  I am currently running 3-4 miles 3 times a week and 5 miles for my "long run."  I can't wait to get higher mileage long runs again.  I was so excited in May when I ran my first 9 miles in forever,  And now I'm back to small mileage.  It's okay, I'll get there.  =)