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T h e A d v e n t u r e s o f C h i c a g o J o

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Jo Shuffles at the Shuffle

2004-03-29� � 3:34 p.m.
I�ve talked about it a few times before, but I started running in February in preparation for the Shamrock Shuffle. Yesterday was the big day, and I finished my first race.

Benito and I bummed around my place on Saturday night, trying to get to sleep early so we�d be good to go the next day. We watched a pirated copy of The Pirates of the Carribean, and the irony was not lost on us.

[I give the movie a thumbs-up, but wouldn�t you say that Captain Jack Sparrow was Hunter S. Thompson with eyeliner? He had the stumbling, the word-slurring, and the delusional behavior. There was also the odd hat. This is where I�d normally make some quip about the pen being mightier than the sword, except I�m pretty sure that PotC won some awards and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas didn�t.]

I slept pretty well, woke up extra early to eat something and drink some water (since I know that I need a good three hours of digestion time before doing anything physical), slept some more, and then finally got up.

I donned my favorite black workout pants, my new black workout shirt, and new black running jacket. My head-to-toe black ensemble made me the Johnny Cash of runners. Ya know, without all the dying and stuff.

The weather was supposed to be in the 50s with thunderstorms and 22 mph winds, but Mama Nature smiled on me and I was glad I slathered on sunscreen as I checked in my jacket before the race started.

Everyone lined up -- all 25,000 of us. This placed us somewhere around half a mile away from the start line. This race issued little trackers, so instead of those first ten minutes of standing around counting towards our time, we got ranked by our actual start and finishing times. The first mile was effortless, and I smoked Benito. This is mostly because I�m quite small and had no problems weaving in and out of people.

All went pretty well after that. I walked when I needed to. I tried to keep up with my teeny bopper music on the head set. Each mile marker said that I was right on pace with what I wanted. But then around mile 3.5, I encountered a situation.

I was running along the sidewalk, avoiding people as much as I could since I was keeping a fast pace whenever I was actually running. When I made a move around someone, I always checked right behind me before making my move. This was a congested race. I didn�t want to smack into anyone trucking it.

However, this apparently wasn�t the way of a particular 6-foot-something guy wearing khaki shorts, a long-sleeved Texas Longhorns shirt, and a brown cap. This bastard stepped onto the sidewalk, directly in front of me as I�m hauling it to Fever for the Flava. To avoid hitting the inconsiderate ninny, I swerved slightly. My veer put me directly in front of a pole, which I promptly smacked into. Much like a cartoon character who steps on a rake that comes up and smacks him in the head, I was laid out, flat on my back.

A couple runners stopped, but I told them to go on and that I just needed to get up. This police officer helped me up, dusted me off, and tried to get me into an ambulance since I hit my head. I declined the offer to get looked over, staying with him until I quit seeing stars and birds dancing in a circle over my head.

I walked for a good while, making sure that I wasn�t actually hurt, knowing that I was adding minutes to my time. My back and elbow stung like hell, but such is the way of road burn. (Ow ow ow!) At about mile four, I toughened up and started back to running slowly and walking as needed. I took two cups of water at that rest stop, poured half of one down my throat, the other half onto my back�s scrape, and poured the other over my head. Then off I went!

I finished the race, pulling a bit of adrenaline outta somewhere and giving a good run there at the last straightaway. However, there was a bottleneck back-up to cross the finish line. I walked those last 30 feet, trying to make it through the crowd so my time wouldn�t be any worse than it already was from the previous hold-up.

After the race I grabbed some bottled water (which luckily wasn�t Evian, as I�d rather go thirsty than drink that toilet water) and a banana, and headed to Buckingham Fountain to meet up with Benito and others. Everyone�s times were decent, even considering my stumble and that another friend stopped to take a leak at a nearby portapotty. The weather shifted closer to the weatherman�s prediction, and we headed for some real breakfast.

A few pancakes and some potatoes later, Benito and I went back at my place. We didn�t make it too far into the apartment before we fell asleep on the couch. We napped until 5 p.m., and I�m pretty sure I drooled on his face. Nothing says, �I think you�re great,� like a little drool on the face. Either he wasn�t completely awake or he�s awfully nice, because he didn�t say anything.

After he left, I ate about a pounds of grapes, a few bananas, and a Cliff bar before reading and settling down for the night.

Today I�m still all wobbly with super-sore calf muscles. (I�m wearing my slip-on flats instead of my knee-high boots. Hrmph!) I could use a good rub-down, but I haven�t yet taught Hambone how to massage me. (At least he got the toilet training done, unlike that Ming who keeps pooping on the bath mat...) Plans for tonight include going to the good fruit and vegetable store, doing some deep stretching, and finishing another book.

This running thing sure takes a lot out of ya. �



Miss something?

Moving Day - 2008-02-15
Working from Home is Glorious - 2008-02-13
Speaking in Tongues - 2008-02-07
I Have My Reasons - 2008-01-25
Got an Itch, Fix it, Shine it Up, Sing it Out - 2008-01-23

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