Germs, germs, everywhere germs

So there I am at The Big One's last track meet minding my own business watching him finish the 110m hurdles at the finish line. I'm holding a big drink because it's kinda hot and I need to stay hydrated. He finishes his race and comes over to me and says, "Oh I need a drink my throat is really dry". So I, being the wonderful father that I am, say "here take a drink of this, it's the Shakely sports drink". Great he says, taking a big long drink out of my cup. He hands it back to me and just as I'm about to take a drink he casually says, "Man my throat really hurts, it has for a few days now, I think I've got strep throat". People I literally had the cup an inch from my lips when he tells me this! I was an inch away from the little, nasty bacteria that this teenage germ factory was trying to sabotage my marathon week with! It's 4 days until I run my first marathon of the year and now I'm under attack. From my own family no less! Ahhhh! Once he said this, I could just see the little critters swimming around in the cup. My hands instantly felt dirty and I wanted to shower in bleach.

So now I'm a total germ phobe. I have threatened my children with eternal haunting from the grave if I get sick before this marathon. I NEED THIS PEOPLE! GET AWAY AND STOP WITH ALL THE BREATHING! My children are both carriers, I know it, they rarely get sick because they've bonded with the germs after living with them for so long. They just carry them around like pets, sharing them with the rest of us who aren't as accepting of the germ way of life.

The forecast for Oklahoma City on Sunday morning last week was for 60's with a good chance of rain. This wasn't the best forecast in the world but as long as it wasn't thunderstorms I was OK with it. NOW the forecast is calling for lows of 60's on Saturday night and highs of 80's and sunny on Sunday. THIS IS WORSE! I absolutely love training in the heat and sunshine, but my body is sooooooo not used to it yet. It freakin' snow a few weeks ago for goodness sake! It has been hot here for the last 2 days so tonight I went out and ran 6 easy miles more for heat acclimation than for any training benefit. Guess what? Around mile 4-5 I was really feeling it and now I have a nice sunburn going. Yea, needed that. It's suppose to continue with the heat so I'm thinking of getting in 3 miles a day from now until Saturday.

How 'bout the Americans in Boston?! I know they didn't win but a 3rd for the men and another 3rd for the women. We're at least in this sport again and I love it. Kara and Ryan ran their hearts out and I wanted a win for them so badly but it just didn't happen. I think I would rather have a bunch of Americans slowly climb their way to the top than to have a single American suddenly come along and start winning. This slow progression shows that we are developing a successful program of distance running and not just benefiting from a single person's natural ability. I want to see us at the top of this sport for many years, not just win a few races and then go back to the bottom of the pile. I respect long-term effort, go figure.

Speaking of Americans in Boston, Reese really made his presence known in Boston. Well, at least in Wellsley there was one person who new Reese was there. Go read his race report if you haven't done so already. He's an amazing runner and an even better man.

After reading Sarah's wonderful post a few days ago, I have a new motto for this week. "I'm running 2 marathons in 2 weeks. BECAUSE, YES, I CAN!"

Thanks for listening