Running is bliss...

Yesterday was supposed to be a rest day (according to the schedule prepared by my coach - I'll talk more about him at a later time), but my week got completely sidetracked on Thursday morning when I was told that I was being laid off. In short, a lousy few days followed, and my training plan went TOTALLY out the window. Although sometimes when bad things happen, you realize how truly lucky you are - the support I received from colleagues (actually, that's a poor description - these people are good, good friends, not just colleagues) and friends was tremendous, and I was truly blown away by their thoughtfulness and kind words/deeds. I could go on, but then I'll start crying, and I've already moved on from sadness to bitterness and anger about the whole thing and have no desire to backtrack - the bitterness/anger phase is great fun, while crying just sucks.

Anyway, so yesterday. Anne, one of the rock-star friends mentioned above, planned a long run for Sunday, followed by brunch at her house. In addition to being a great friend, Anne is a genius - she's an amazing cook, so if food is involved in any way, shape or form, you say yes to whatever she asks of you. "I'm cleaning the grout in my bathroom this weekend, want to bring your toothbrush and come help?" "Ummmm, I think I might have to take the kids to something or other this weekend......" "I'll make lunch!" "Oh! Well, then, I'm IN!" Not that food was needed as a lure for a long run. I'm a huge fan of the long run - while other folks complained about the longest long runs of marathon training, I looked forward to them. I use them to totally veg out and think about nothing at all, simply listening to my playlist (I have the greatest running playlist of all time) as I crank out the miles. I use them to think about problems with work. I use them to think about problems with life. The long run is better than any therapist in the world, and it's always available and free. You really can't beat that.

So I was in for the run even BEFORE Anne mentioned the food. The weather report wasn't looking great (a good chance of rain was predicted), but that was also of no concern, at least to me (I'm a big fan of running in the rain). Turns out we totally lucked out - it was a lovely day, a bit windy but that added a bit of fun to it. Anne's house is within a mile of the Fresh Pond Resevoir, which has a very nice 2.25 mile running loop around it, so we (Anne, myself, and her friend Laurie who I had met once before) headed over around 10:00 with the notion that we'd run 2 loops for sure, then make a call to decide whether to call it a day at 7 miles or tack on another loop.

Anne asked us what our goals were before we started (always the planner, that Anne!), while Laurie wanted to finish, I wanted to forget about life for a while. Hmmmmm, now I can't remember what Anne said! Anyway, we headed off and had a lovely run. We were all feeling good after the 2nd loop and continued on for another - it's amazing how quickly the miles go by when you are running with others and chatting! We called it at 3 loops and headed back to Anne's. She had already made muffins that were waiting for us, and started in on one of the best omlette's I've ever had!

It was a great morning with a great group. In addition to the wonderful company, I realized yet again that I'm stoked about my winter running plans. The 9 miles felt like nothing - I could have gone on for much longer, and today I feel great. I have definitely settled into the 1/2 marathon distance as being my comfort zone distance (I'm not even feeling warmed up until the 3-4 mile mark!), so I'm really excited about training for races like Derry and Stu's this winter.

Oh, and keep your fingers crossed for me! There are 7 people in my running club interested in the 5 numbers that the BAA has made available for us. I *really* want to run Boston again this year, this time without my bum calf so I can actually train HARD for it to see what I can do. I think I'll find out sometime this week if I get a number.

Viva la Run!