Runner to Runner Compliments

It was a chilly, low 50’s, sunny, cusp between fall and winter Southern California morning. I was feeling cold and dreary. Wanting to forgo the day’s activities and responsibilities to simply enjoy my French toast and coffee while cuddling my puppy. My home was nice and toasty, ready for the holiday season, with scents of vanilla, maple syrup, buttery French toast and coffee lingering as I enjoyed my breakfast, bundled up in layers. The thought of forgoing and swapping the day’s responsibilities with a soft, plush, snow colored blanket, my T.C. Boyle book and a third cup of coffee crossed my mind, more than once. But, no…, my phone chimed in to erase those pleasant thoughts. Why was the alarm going off? A reminder of goals needing immediate attention. One of many small goals needed to reach higher goals. The higher goal at the moment is the Los Angeles Marathon in March.

I had missed my 8 mile run and a few others earlier in the week due my son's need of superhero-nurse- mom role. I love being his superhero-nurse-mom. Hello, I am a mother of one for a reason. Amongst the plethora of factors for having one child, one of them is I honestly don't think I could love another child like I love him. Sorry, but I warned you, I am honest to a fault. I have dozens of nieces and nephews, but I definitely have favorites. I love all of them, they are all incredibly talented and lovely human beings, but I can’t help it, I feel a deeper connection with some. Maybe I'm crazy for thinking this way, but if I have favorite nephews, nieces, students, son's friends, etc., I KNOW he would be my favorite child if I had another. Plus, he is everything and more than I ever wanted in my child.

Now, you understand why I often regress in my training? If only, this lovely person I adore would listen to me and carry that darn Purell bottle I gave him to place in his lunchbox, my running stats would be closer to a Boston qualifying time. But, any delays in Boston dreams are well worth it for him. Don’t worry, you can stop gagging, feeling nauseous and rolling your eyes, now. I’m not all rainbows, cotton candy, lollipops and candy drops, I gave him a piece of my mind this time, “Ok, buddy, I love, love, love…, taking care of you, but can you PLEASE start washing your hands or using the hand sanitizer before you put anything in your mouth, cover your face when your friends, table partners, or any human coughs, sneezes, really, anytime they open their mouth. Oh, yes, also, try not to do any-th-ing that would make you sick. Only, until March 19^th. After that, you can be a normal child, again.” 

Deep sigh. If only, I could home-school and keep him in a bubble until after my marathon. But, I do have to mention, he felt sad that I had to cancel a reunion with friends from my graduate school/counseling days, so maybe that will motivate him to wash, wash, wash those hands to the length of the happy birthday song (ha! he did it as a toddler/preschooler, but at lightning speed) and shield, shield, shield from all coughing and sneezing in the air, lately.

Hopefully, he listens because, apparently, I am on a r-oll… You’ll never guess what happened to me while on my run on that cold and dreary morning? What is one of the best things a runner can say to another runner? Yes, I know, you are right, there are many things, but for me, pace and speed top my list at the moment. Well. Guess, who was complimented on her pace, not once, but multiple times…?! Yep. Me. Hence, why I am blogging about the experience. Like I mentioned to my friend/soul sister, I was going to tweet about the awesome experience, but a tweet wouldn’t do the feeling justice, so lucky you, you get to read about my thoughts and feelings, again.

Lace- Up and Go, go, go! No Turning Back. Just Keep Swimming...

.... Just keep swimmimg, just keep swimming, swimm-ing, swimm-ing, swimm-ing.... What do we do? Swim, swim, swim. She's right, we need to keep swimming, or in my case, moving forward with my goals. Are you singing Dory's song, now, too? 

SO, after listening to the nagging reminder to get out the door, my goal was to simply walk and warm up. No other expectations to unmotivate me. Baby steps, always. I was dressed in layers fit for someone living in the east coast because I was fr-ee-zing. Low 50’s is FREEZING to a Southern Californian. Memories of leaving the house wearing a similar running outfit told me to take off the top layer. This happened to me last year during my first freezing run of the year, but did I listen to experience? No, of course not. Less than .25 miles in, I was regretting my decision. Stubborn. Stubborn. Stubborn. No wonder my son can be stubborn about certain things, too. SO, I stopped to remove that top layer, forcing me to wrap it around my waist and run with it, a major annoyance for me, but needed to learn through self-discovery, I guess. Gee, my son is a lot like me.

Finally, after all gear issues were settled, I was feeling in the groove, zooming past people, and cars (parked cars and standing people ) since I decided to take a busier route. Ok, so here is where the compliment happened, I was running on one of my favorite /dreaded paths on a steep hill section when I hear, “…that’s a really good pace”. I turned back to make sure the man was speaking to me. He was?! I know I’m fast, but not when it comes to hills, my athleticism turns to sluggishness and incoordination. Since most courses include hills, I need to work on my legs to get to a point where hills and I can have a mutual friendship. 

Apparently, my determination is paying off because I had a similar interaction a few weeks ago as I was sprinting up a steep hill… I was complimented on my pace, again… by not one, but two (dos in Spanish) male runners in two different locations (both hilly). Only that time, the words were prefaced with a “Wow.” “Wow! Impressive pace.” And, “Wow! You’re fast!” It would make you feel pretty badass, too. I now know what it must feel like to be Des Linden. As you can imagine, I was beaming the rest of the way, both times. In fact, the most recent runner shouldn’t have made my head swell because somehow I slowed my pace and even stopped to observe a bee eating nectar and appreciate the beauty of our surroundings.

The only downside to snapping and enjoying this moment was I lost my new favorite chapstick. It actually worked to ward off cold weather induced chapped lips. Eeek..., the cold turns my lips to raisin like texture, but for this moment of mindfulness, I can deal with chapped lips.

I know what you’re thinking... I'm a mom and taught in a classroom, so that makes me a... mind... reader.

You’re thinking I was complimented by the three runners because they were trying to pick up on me, right? That’s what my husband thought, too, initially. But, if that’s what you’re thinking, then I’m in-sul-ted. 

Why? You dare ask, w-h-y…?! Hmmph. First, because it means you don’t believe in my ability to befriend hills. Secondly, you think I’m naïve. I’m definitely an “n” word (nice), but NOT naïve… Believe it or not, I can tell the difference between someone paying me a genuine compliment and someone trying to pick up on me. And, while both times, the pace compliments came from male runners, I did not get one inkling of a pick-up line. Plus, I always have an itch on my nose or somewhere in my t-zone that displays my left ring finger. If that doesn’t ward off pick-up lines, I immediately bring up my husband. Poor guy, whenever that happens, I come home huffing and puffing and see him rubbing his ears. Hahaha! I’m a dork, but a funny dork, right? No, I don’t get picked up while running or anywhere, really, but just in case I’m oblivious, I developed a habit of scratching my t-zone area with my left hand. Ha!

Why are you bragging, Karina?

I’m not bragging, I’m sharing knowledge to further enhance our already positive running community. The moral of my story is compliments can be good for the mind and soul, so spread them. Typically, I’m pretty confident, and don’t need external validation. Except for, parenting validation from my son. Anytime, I receive compliments from him on my parenting, it’s like winning the lottery, each time. Parents, teachers, and anyone that works with children, you know those are treasures. However, since I have been struggling with hills and pacing, it was very nice and motivating to hear a compliment from fellow runners who don’t know me. If you see good form, pace, speed, etc. while pounding the streets, trails or courses, try to say something to the runner doing the awesome act. They may look like experts, but, you never know..., they may have been working hard and you can be the one to make their day. If they are experts, I’m sure compliments are usually appreciated from them, too. If not, it’s their loss, your gain.

Ready for Parenting Duties

With my writing and running responsibilities out of the way, it was bath and walk time for my girl. Since it was my son's first day back at school after being home sick and he had early dismissal, I had no time to dry our hair, so I let nature do it for us... It was still freezing according to my usual internal temperature gauge, but the amount of endorphins from my 8.2 mile run and the pace compliment, I was warm and cozy enough to let the chilly air dry my hair. And, I was wearing a turtleneck, ultra chunky sweater dress with cute, stylish, winter boots covering my cute cozy, plush warm socks. I was ready to head to the bookstore and coffee shop... I can't get enough of either place.

"Ok, girl, smile for your dad. Let's show him you're nice and clean and ready for cuddles..." She was too busy looking for her next victim- poor lizards, birds, roadrunner, and anything else that makes its way near her. She thinks she's a mountain lion. I let her enjoy her pretend play. Unless, she is running towards a coyote thinking it wants to befriend her. At that point, I remind her, she's a small and adorable pup.

My second attempt, I changed the wording a little bit. I said, "Ok, girl, let's take a picture for M.... (my husband's name). It always works. It looks like she adores me (she does), but she's definitely a daddy's girl. Saying his name in a high pitched tone is like saying "treat", "walk", "chicken", etc. to any other dog. Deep, love sigh... I love my children...