Race Day Eve

I make a mean blueberry pancake!

It's one of a few things I can do well, yet I'm always exaggeratedly surprised when they turn out deliciously perfect. (That I burned the first one a little bit, while reading blogs, did not surprise me; that the rest turned out beautifully did!)

I had blueberry pancakes for dinner because tomorrow is the marathon. And it might be the pancakes... or the caffeine (I had coffee at the Expo this afternoon, because it was free, though it may have been a mistake)... or the sunshine earlier... or just the anticipation of a general change in my fortunes... but I am ridiculously excited about tomorrow's run. I actually feel giddy!

I'm hoping the feeling sticks around, because I'm up against kind of long odds this year. I haven't been able to train as fully as I'd have liked, because of the recurrence of my stress fracture injury. And, not to put too fine a point on it, but I haven't been feelin' particularly lucky lately. (My mom and I were talking about how maybe I should get a cat this winter, to keep me company and help should the mice return. "With your luck," she said, "it wouldn't be a good mouser!" "With my luck," I responded, "it would die a protracted and expensive death as soon as I got it.")

In the potentially-unlucky category this year is the weather:

Last year, it was hot and a bit miserable. This year, it looks like we may have cold and miserable: there's nothing quite like a long run in the rain! I'm told that the TCM almost always has lovely weather, but it looks like I'm going to have to try for a third, next year, if I'm to actually experience it.

However, perhaps tomorrow's marathon will mark a turning point. The friend I'm running with has informed me of her decision to sling me, a la Forrest Gump, over her shoulders and run with me should I falter; I'm hoping that won't be necessary, and that I'll be able to keep up and to finish. As it's her first-ever marathon, and as I was the instigator (though she was keen to be persuaded!) in this situation, I'm hoping for the best for both of us.

If for some reason you wish to track my progress tomorrow, this link should get you there, although it'll be 6 a.m. for those of you on the west coast when we start, and--with any luck--just 10 or 11 by the time we're finishing. Woo! 'Here's hoping!