Mailing it in

For the last ten days, I haven't run. I decided weekend before last
that if I'm to have any chance at beating this lung infection and
healing up and getting on with my training schedule, then my body
needs rest, just like anybody else battling an infection. It wasn't
really that hard to skip the runs, as I've been working a lot and the
last runs that were so difficult and disappointing was making me feel
pretty negative about the whole thing.

But this morning, I got out for a short run. Very short. I took a
package to the post office and then continued jogging VERY SLOWLY to
the one-mile mark, then turned around, stopped at the post office
again for 2-cent stamps, and returned home. For a lousy two miles,
the run took entirely too long. However, I only had to walk three
times, and only for a very short distance. In fact, it wasn't so
much my lungs I was worrying about as my knees. Nearly two weeks of
non-running doesn't seem to have been good for them at all.

It's funny, not only did I go to the post office - twice - but I also
passed four mailboxes I'd never noticed before. For some reason,
their blue was really standing out this morning.

Have you heard the phrase "phoning it in" to describe a half-assed
job? That's what I felt like this morning, knowing that I didn't
exactly give it my all - or that maybe I had and this is what I'm
reduced to. It wasn't a bad run, just not even close to good. And
unless a miracle happens between now and Saturday morning, I'm afraid
the Manhattan Half will be a real test of my willpower. I believe
this will be my slowest half yet and most probably I'll be straining
just to beat the time limit.

Of course, this brings up an interesting question: am I fucking
STUPID? Fail to run well or at all for three weeks and then go
tackle 13 miles?? Then again, you could say that if I did a little
over two hours for twelve miles three weeks ago, I should still be
physically able to do this. Besides, no matter how long it takes,
I'll get a qualifier done for NY Marathon 2007 and I'll be able to
get a good guage of my lungs and legs for the next round of doctor
visits.

And so, in honor of the mailed-it-in effort this morning...I am, in
fact, emailing this post in.