I wrote a pretty long entry yesterday but got almost bored with it by the end and decided not to finish or post it. I was writing about fencing and refereeing and realized by the end that I didn't want to think about it anymore - at least for a few days until the next competition. I am a little frustrated this morning, as I am trying to coordinate my schedule and figuring out where and when I have to be. People who are horrible at organizing are given tasks that are way over their heads and at this point I feel like I am doing a little too much in my own time to get in touch with these people. But now again, I am talking about fencing. Just great! Can't get away, even when back in the city and in lab, my thoughts wonder.
With work and traveling and the cold weather, I haven't been running very regularly in the past few weeks. I figured that the month after marathon would be rather lazy and it's probably for the best to let my body fully recover before the new racing season starts, but it's been difficult nonetheless. Running is the greatest stress reliever for me these days, and so I have been more anxious and worried in general. Finally yesterday I decided that I just had to go, no matter what. During the day, I couldn't focus in lab, I was on the computer too much, but wasn't getting anything done. I had a guest staying with me - another long story, as my apartment turned into a hostel once again for a few days - and I wanted to get dinner and a few drinks with him in the evening, so I wasn't planning on anything else. Thankfully, Rachel texted me in the afternoon to see if I wanted to go running with her. It's just what I needed: some motivation and urging.
We left for the park after 6, it was cold, very windy and pretty dark. I was all bundled up but still, the wind in our faces was a bit too much. I just really can't wait for spring to finally come! We ran to the park and then decided to do the 4 mile loop. The only other people out were runners and people walking their dogs. It was even almost quiet at times, with no cars, no people around. How calming! Only hear the sound of the wind and the pounding of our shoes on the pavement. Lately, I have been more sensitive to noises: timers going off, machines beeping, cars passing on the highway right below my lab window, all of these have been driving me crazy. I was just thinking yesterday about where I could go in the city to find a quiet place. It's almost impossible, but Central Park at night comes closest. The lights of the city seemingly far away are absolutely beautiful and magical too; it's moments like that when I can once again appreciate living in this city.
About halfway through, I realized that this was the first time Rachel and I ran together - except for some warming up in Miami the day before my marathon, but I was mainly walking then - since I first got hurt in September. It was great running with her again. Like usual, we first chatted about the happenings of the past few days and our frustrations with research and life in general and then what I really like about running with her is that we can just run next to each other without feeling the need to talk. When I run alone, I listen to music, always. When running with her, we're just quiet and it makes me more focused; probably because I can hear my stride and can really concentrate on that. We actually ran pretty slow all in all, but at the end of the 4 miles, the short sprint felt amazing! I just let my legs go as fast as they can go and felt almost like the rest of my body wasn't even connected to them.
In any case, I am so happy to be running with Rach again, and I am really looking forward to the warmer weather and starting up some sort of regular training again soon!
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