Boston recap
We've just arrived back home, and all of the photos are still on my camera card, so for now, a few from the race, as well as some stats, can tell the story:
Number of days away from home - 7
Number of kilometres driven to run 42.2 - 2600
Number of provinces visited/traversed - 2
Number of states visited/traversed - 5
Number of problems at the border - 0
Number of moose seen - 1 (in Algonquin, just an hour from home)
Number of wildlife almost hit - 1 (wild turkey)
Number of nights spent in the most beautiful Boston apartment - 4
Number of dog walks on Boston Common - 17
Number of museums visited - 3
Number of special friends met/stayed with in Boston: 5
Number of toys gifted to the dogs by said friends : 6 (including one large Donald Trump doll)
Number that remain extant: 3 (including one large Donald Trump doll)
Number of restaurant meals - 4 (more than the total for the entire rest of the year
Number of Bostons run - 8
Number run well - 1
Number run ok - 6
Number run very poorly - 1
Number of miles run this week after Boston - 17 (the legs felt surprisingly good, meaning that I didn't push them as hard as I might have)
Number of kills (runners passed) on my run around Boston Common on Thursday - 2
Number of visits to the port-a-potty before the race start - 4
Number of cups of water either consumed or thrown on myself during the race - 62
Rank at the start of Boston - 16601st
Rank at the finish of Boston - 10094th place
Number of people who finished Boston this year - 26 411
Rank among all female finishers - 2891/11973
Number of hydrants/hoses run through on the course - 4
Number of clothing items lost along the course: 1 (my Red Sox hat, taken by a gust of wind somewhere in Framingham)
Number of times I wanted to give up - 0
Number of times I walked - every mile/water station from mile 19 on
Number of beach visits - 2
Number of pictures taken - not sure, but a 32GB card is full
Number of tries it took to get out of Boston in the car as we headed home - 2 (this is a personal best)
Number of dog biscuits received from customs officers/ toll collectors - 6
Number of times I cussed out the dogs in front of small children - 1 (sorry, Montreal)
Number of running-related injuries - 0
Number of dog-related injuries - 1 (thankfully incurred after the race)
Amount of American money left from the cash we took with us: 43 cents (we managed to scrape up enough change to buy a bagel and 3 mini donuts at a Dunkin Donuts in Ogdensburg)
Number of sock monkeys sewn while travelling - 4
Boston
Well, the first 30 km of Boston went well, but the final 12k were a tough day at the office, as I knew they would be. It was a hot day, and the hills chewed me up and spat me out. I reined it in seriously at 30k, worried I would crap out entirely. I did manage a nice solid final mile and a half. Boston is Boston, though, and it was an amazing privilege to run it. Here are the girls with the medal and a sweet, personalized congratulations present from the place we are staying. Oh, and the girls got a present (among others) from our hosts. Thank you to everyone who followed my progress, sent messages and good thoughts. You were in my thoughts all along the way.
Happy Easter
A quote I've used before, but one that never gets tired:
“Real isn't how you are made,' said the Skin Horse. 'It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real.'
'Does it hurt?' asked the Rabbit.
'Sometimes,' said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. 'When you are Real you don't mind being hurt.'
'Does it happen all at once, like being wound up,' he asked, 'or bit by bit?'
'It doesn't happen all at once,' said the Skin Horse. 'You become. It takes a long time. That's why it doesn't happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand.”
--Marjery Williams, The Velveteen Rabbit