I took Pop to Marathon today (hopefully I'll remember the story of the ride to share with you in another post...), and then did his food shopping. When I got home, I had a lot of chores ahead of me. I completed them and managed to change into running clothes. I casually looked out at the ocean, and saw the sky was absolutely black. I ran out to the porch, picked up the linens and things off the tables, stacked the chairs, and went in to apply sunscreen for my run. The rain always comes from the back side, never the ocean. In theory I had nothing to really worry about. Unfortunately, the exception was the rule today. In the short moments it took to apply the sunscreen, there was a whiteout of rain, and it all seemed to be pouring into my ocean side porch. That never happens. Never. Mr. Happy Vegan appeared, secured the blinds and so forth. But, I was absolutely soaked from helping secure things. I was mad. I wanted to run.
In this relentless heat, its been difficult for me some days to get a full run in. I do my best most days, but recently I found that 4 days had passed, each one "too hot" to run. I'm back in the routine a few days now, its not easy, I am forcing myself. The fact that the rain was pouring down into my house was simply annoying and interfering with a goal I set.
The whiteout subsided. It tapered to a more normal rain. I grabbed my iPod and headed out the door. The sky over the Bight was black. What had just passed me was now crossing the island. To my right I saw more storm clouds rolling in across the ocean. In between there was a teeny tiny Lorax-like patch of blue sky in front of me. "Just keep moving" I thought.
The rain continued to fall. A crack of thunder drowned out my iPod. "Yikes and just keep moving." I turned the iPod up, and hit my stride immediately.
The road was steamy, puddles were immense and everywhere. I looked for the animals that come out after a rain... snakes, turtles, and crabs out of their hidey-holes. But, there were no animals, which I took as a bad sign. Animals know when its over, and when its not. "Turn back, turn back" I thought as I was being pelted by rain. I demanded silence of the voice in my head, and turned up the iPod more.
Over the music I could hear my feet "slap-slap-slap-slap" against the soaked roadway. With that slap-slap rhythm, a poem I had to read in front of classmates decades ago began to take over. "We're foot-slog-slog-slog-sloggin' over Africa." All to the exact cadence of my iPod and my stride. What is this? Why are these words running through my head???? Turn up the iPod, drown out the poem. Just keep moving.
More thunder. A bolt of lightening. More rain. Don't stop running. Don't stop moving. "Don't--don't--don't--don't--look at what's in front of you." iPod is now at full volume. Command voice in head to stop reciting poetry, listen to the screams of Roger Daltrey on the iPod, drown out that poem.
Nothing stops the slap-slap-slap-slap. Nothing stops the poem. "Boots--boots--boots--boots--movin' up an' down again."
I ran the whole route, I never stopped, never broke stride. Not once. Even though I ran in the rain the whole time, the heat was oppressive, the humidity was like a living thing. And, nothing could stop that poem either. I have no idea why.
In this relentless heat, its been difficult for me some days to get a full run in. I do my best most days, but recently I found that 4 days had passed, each one "too hot" to run. I'm back in the routine a few days now, its not easy, I am forcing myself. The fact that the rain was pouring down into my house was simply annoying and interfering with a goal I set.
The whiteout subsided. It tapered to a more normal rain. I grabbed my iPod and headed out the door. The sky over the Bight was black. What had just passed me was now crossing the island. To my right I saw more storm clouds rolling in across the ocean. In between there was a teeny tiny Lorax-like patch of blue sky in front of me. "Just keep moving" I thought.
The rain continued to fall. A crack of thunder drowned out my iPod. "Yikes and just keep moving." I turned the iPod up, and hit my stride immediately.
The road was steamy, puddles were immense and everywhere. I looked for the animals that come out after a rain... snakes, turtles, and crabs out of their hidey-holes. But, there were no animals, which I took as a bad sign. Animals know when its over, and when its not. "Turn back, turn back" I thought as I was being pelted by rain. I demanded silence of the voice in my head, and turned up the iPod more.
Over the music I could hear my feet "slap-slap-slap-slap" against the soaked roadway. With that slap-slap rhythm, a poem I had to read in front of classmates decades ago began to take over. "We're foot-slog-slog-slog-sloggin' over Africa." All to the exact cadence of my iPod and my stride. What is this? Why are these words running through my head???? Turn up the iPod, drown out the poem. Just keep moving.
More thunder. A bolt of lightening. More rain. Don't stop running. Don't stop moving. "Don't--don't--don't--don't--look at what's in front of you." iPod is now at full volume. Command voice in head to stop reciting poetry, listen to the screams of Roger Daltrey on the iPod, drown out that poem.
Nothing stops the slap-slap-slap-slap. Nothing stops the poem. "Boots--boots--boots--boots--movin' up an' down again."
I ran the whole route, I never stopped, never broke stride. Not once. Even though I ran in the rain the whole time, the heat was oppressive, the humidity was like a living thing. And, nothing could stop that poem either. I have no idea why.
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