Crunchy ‘Nanas

Sometimes I think England feels like it needs to live up to its reputation as dreary, rainy, and gray. I keep telling it not to feel so much pressure. If it wants the sun to shine, it’s okay. But it is pretty insistent to maintain its drizzly world image.

I was psyched to go running this morning. I was organized and on top of things. It was cloudy, yes, but it would be all right. I threw some stuff into the back of the car and then went back into the house for a quick bathroom stop. Apparently the time was ripe for the clouds to take a pit stop too. When I got back outside it was pouring. But, I thought, hey, it’ll pass. Let’s go out to Minnis Bay anyway. I’ve got a schedule to keep.

It didn’t pass. I sat at my run start for a few minutes waiting, willing the torrents to subside. I don’t mind running in the rain, but this was RAIN. Struggling with the thoughts in my head (the devil sneering, “ha, ha you’re gonna have to run 7 miles on the treadmill today,” the realist knowing I would make it only a half a mile before utter boredom struck and I chucked it in for the snack bar), I finally gave in and resigned myself to the gym. I turned the key in the ignition and the solution hit me. I didn’t have my towel. I can’t use equipment at the gym without my towel. That would just be rude and inconsiderate. So I decided to have lunch and then give the Minnis Bay to Reculver Towers another try.

So in take two, something weird happened. I felt like I was living the movie “Groundhog Day”. I got into the car and it was the same song that was on the radio when I drove out the first time: the Kooks, “She Moves in Her Own Way”. And then the next song came on. Halfway through “You and Your Hand,” the signal died. And when it came back on, it was the Kooks. And then it was Pink. And then I got stuck behind a silver sedan double parking at the exact same spot it happened to me on the first trip to the sea.

However, the movie ended when I got to Minnis. It had stopped raining, the kite surfers were out, and you could even see the towers (my turn around destination) in the distance. And it was an awesome run. Take that treadmill! [Karate chops the air for added effect.] I planned to eco-run on the way back, but there was NO TRASH! (Or, no trash within reasonable collecting reach. I don’t do steep, crazy ditches and the beach is well, too big to tackle with just one bag.) It was really nice to see the path clean!

[Note: yes, I realize I did yoga this morning. I meant to post this last night!]

This entry was posted on Wednesday, 22nd August 2007 at  12:07 and is filed under Eco-running, Running. You can follow responses to this entry using the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.