The last 48 hours have been an emotional roller coaster to say the least. It’s been more than 48 hours since I last posted and so much has taken place that I don’t even know where to begin.
I’ll start with a thank you. The number of emails, phone calls, text messages, visits, comments, Facebook messages, and more that both Bo and I have received over the past 36 hours have been incredible. We are so blessed to have a strong community of friends and family in addition to the blogging community and friendships that I’ve built over the past few years.
As you may remember, I took Friday off of work to volunteer at the ING NYC Marathon Expo, handing out bibs with Ashley and Beth from 9-3pm. It was exactly the motivation and inspiration we needed to get excited about the weekend! We met people from all over the world who were so excited to be in New York City and run in the marathon. Many even asked where they could make donations and help those who had been affected by the hurricane! It was an overwhelming but wonderful morning.
It was also the first day I wore makeup or straightened my hair all last week. Needless to say I spent 45 minutes in the bathroom at Equinox just enjoying the heat, electricity, and warm water.
I was smiling like this for the next few hours. I ran a few last minute errands, our amazing friends offered us their warm apartment on the Upper West Side for the weekend since it was near the marathon finish, and I finally ended my afternoon near Bo’s office, getting a pre-marathon manicure and toe nail polish change around 5pm.
Fifteen minutes later I received a text from Theodora asking me how I was doing that she’d just seen the news. I had no idea what she was talking about. Then, thanks to Twitter, I was quickly updated on the situation.
The next 24 hours are a bit of a blur following the announcement. While I, like many others, believe the right decision was made in the end, I was most frustrated about the communication and the timing. After the reality set in I went through more emotions than I realized possible. I cried at the nail salon for a good 30 minutes while talking with Monica, Bo, Gia, and my family on the phone. I yelled at Bo when he didn’t seem as emotional and merely said that there was nothing we could do so there was no sense in getting upset. I frantically tried to find another race but quickly realized I couldn’t join the Richmond Marathon brigade from New York since we have a wedding next weekend. Then I just shutdown. I was tired of talking about it and I was tired of thinking about it. Ten of us came together to laugh and morn over drinks Friday night which ended up lasting until past midnight. It was so fun spending the evening with people that I’ve met through running and blogging in New York City. Each and every one of these ladies touched me that night just by understanding and I can’t thank them enough. Then as the night progressed our friends’ outpouring of calls, texts, and even venturing downtown from the Upper East Side for drinks just made our hearts so happy.
When I woke up Saturday morning I was in full depression mode. I slept for 11 hours, didn’t want to leave bed, and called my dad to cry for a good 30 minutes. Between he and Bo they both helped me realize that I personally wanted to find another Fall marathon. While Bo is holding out for New York City Marathon next year or possibly a Spring marathon, I really wanted to put all my training to the test and run a marathon this Fall. After two hours of research, crossing my fingers, saying a few prayers, and support from Laura, Theodora, Bo and my family I decided to sign up for the Philadelphia Marathon.
I lived in Philadelphia for 3 years before New York City and still remember toeing the line of my first half marathon there five years ago.
I am thankful that I was able to secure a bib through a local Philadelphia charity. Even better, the charity is something that I’m passionate about supporting and am excited to share with friends and family. This will be my first time running with a charity organization and I’m excited to support a smaller, grassroots charity.
Yesterday, by noon, I found out that I was accepted and officially in the Philadelphia Marathon. As soon as I had this confirmation the weekend was able to turnaround for me mentally and emotionally. An angel had extra tickets to Book of Mormon which she shared with us yesterday and laughing for 2 hours was the perfect way to kick off a better mood. If you haven’t seen this show yet, do whatever it takes whether that means standing in the back, to see this hilarious musical. It is 100% politically incorrect but so much fun. The entire audience, old and young alike, were laughing for the whole show.
The rest of the evening included multiple Chelsea Pumpkin Ale’s with a spiced rim, great friends, college football, laughter, and birthday celebrations at a cute little bar and restaurant we discovered on 48th and 9th, West End Bar & Grill.
This morning I woke up refreshed and ready to conquer a double digit run in the beautiful Central Park with Laura, Theodora, Marcial, and thousand of other runners from across the world. I never expected the number of runners to be in the thousands but it was an amazing run. There were donation bins where people could donate food, water, fuel, or clothing along with thousands of runners enjoying 26.2 or 2 miles in Central Park’s late Fall beauty. The air was cold, the path was packed, bikers didn’t have a chance, and spectators even came out to support everyone. The 11 miles weren’t the easiest considering my tight legs and two days of late beer filled nights but I was smiling ear to ear the entire run.
This was definitely the perfect end to an emotional weekend filled with highs and lows. For now, Bo and I are spending the rest of our Sunday donating clothes, fuel, and shoes to local shelters and I’m working on a fun project to help out a fellow health blogger who lost everything last week. Check back tonight for a post explaining how you can help Jen and her family with just a few clicks of a button! Here’s a little hint..
