Thursday March 25th, Day 25; Ran 2.5 miles/ Total so far: 62.9/ Miles to go 937.1
I did not sleep well last night. Knowing that I needed to get up at 4:30 I kept dozing off and waking up. When my phone alarm finally rang I was awake and just shuffled into the Kitchen to make some coffee. Actually, I have to make my coffee in my breakfast room because the wonderful high end red it will grind the coffee for you coffee pot is too tall for the kitchen counters of my 60's style house. I had bought the coffee maker along with other red Kitchen Aid appliances when I lived in a cool Loft at Mockingbird Station for three years when I first started working at SMU. Most people get an apartment for their kids when they go to college. I left my son in charge of the house (he was in law school) and got the aparment for myself. I lived there for three years until his moving out to get married and the bad housing market convinced me that I needed to trade my urban chic digs and become a suburban boy again. Mockingbird Station kitchen cabinets were high above the marble counter tops and the coffee maker fit just fine. Not so at Casa Summit, my current abode. So I have put the coffee maker on the breakfast room table.
Two cups of coffee later, dressed in sweats, off I went to meet my friend and former collegue from Jones Day and her running group. I got to the Dedman Gym parking lot about 5:15. Amazing how much quicker I can drive the 6 miles from Richardson to SMU that early in the morning when the traffic is light. I ditched the sweat pants (no I was not naked, I had on running shorts underneath) but kept the sweat shirt and a baseball cap. More heat escapes from the top of your head they say than any other part of your body (not sure I agree....I have seen some angry people blow a lot of smoke and hot air out of their mouths). It was chilly, but I knew I would warm up when I started running. Not wearing a watch, I did not know exactly what time it was when I reached La Madeline Restaurant next door to await my friend. We were supposed to meet at 5:30. Shortly a herd of runners came by and I made the mistake of thinking they were the group I was supposed to meet. One of them was a law student who shouted out the familiar "Hey Dean Camp" line. I followed them to the track and started running laps.
This group was doing interval training. Short fast runs followed by spells of walking. Another group also arrived and was doing intervals. I did not want to do intervals. At this point in my running, I am a LSD man (not a druggie...Long Slow Distance - although some might argue that my runner's high takes me on a trip, especially if they read some of these posts). I just kept running laps on the outside lane. I never saw my friend but found out later she was there and never saw me. Bizarre. I guess she was in the second group. It is dark at 5:30 in the morning, even with the lights around the track. It was a beautiful, crisp morning and the track setting is pretty. Stately buildings and the Gerald Ford (no not the President Ford, the other Gerald Ford) stadium surround the track, except for the Doak Walker Plaza with his Immortalizing Statute (see an earlier blog for the significance of statutes and immortality). The buildings and plaza are back lit and everything is so clean and pristine. The only problem was that I was hurting and it was hard to enjoy. I had not had enough sleep after my Lays potato chips and wine dinner and my body complained. I just kept running and decided I could do anything for 30 minutes so I was going to run 2.5 miles, which I did. I was very happy to stop and walk another half mile. For a fleeting moment I thought maybe I would run some more....very fleeting because of another problem that developed......
One of the problems that all runners have experienced, especially if doing morning runs is, dare I say it? morning runs....the other kind, the "coffee is kicking in and telling you that you have to go" runs. It was fortunate that the gym was right next to the track. I was saved from the embarrassment of an accident.
After the gym I went to the Starbucks for a smoothie and another cup of coffee. It is an interesting crowd who people that Mockingbird Starbucks at that time in the morning. Businessmen and students, newspapers and laptops. I do not know what one girl was reading on her lap top (or perhaps watching since she had on earphones) but her face kept going through a whole range of emotions. Even though I knew I should not be watching, I kept glancing at her. I felt like I was watching a silent movie actress who had to use an expressive face to portray the emotions that the dry subtitles could never express.
At the gym I had realized that I had forgotten my dress shoes. I decided it was not worth driving back to Richardson for them, especially considering what the traffic would now be like. I just thought people at school could see me in my running shoes and khaki pants and sweater. I had no important meetings where I needed a tie and to look Dean-like.
Even though I was tired, I have to admit I felt good and I was glad that I had run. I remembered how good it used to feel to run every morning. I will have to work more morning runs into my schedule. I will also have to increase my miles if I am going to burn off the sugar calories I keep consuming. Today at lunch I had two hot triple chocolate chip cookies from the University cafeteria washed down with whole milk....I paid the price later in the afternoon for that sugar high...but the view from the sugar high was nice for a while.
Going to be early tonight to catch up on my sleep. Life is Good.
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