As you can see from the URL (assuming this page has loaded for you at all), I've finally gotten around to purchasing an actual website in my determination to make a brand of myself. I went through several options, and I almost bought one a few months ago, but got out-bid in the auction at the last moment by some major company that uses it now for useless searches.
Eventually I'll get this printed onto a shirt that I use in my races, but for now, it's just a nicer way to find the blog.
All of this got me thinking, once again, about the future of my little endeavor and what I'm going to make of it. As of right now, it's still pretty much about me. I'm doing this because I want to do something extraordinary, and this is something I know I can do. It'll take time and more money than I'd like to think about, but it's definitely within my grasp.
And yet, I want to make it about something bigger. Charity? Maybe. That seems like the most likely option. But I've never enjoyed the prospect of asking people for money. Even back in grade school when we had to sell chocolates and popcorn and wrapping paper, I always felt a little weird about it. Sure, I got whatever noisemaking prize that Malley's was giving out, but being a door-to-door salesman was not my calling. Even when the money is for a good cause, it's strange asking for it.
There are many causes that are near and dear to me, none more so than cancer research, which has affected my family time and time again. St. Jude Children's Hospital runs through our veins, and I greatly look forward to running in Memphis for them. In fact, I'd like to make that one a milestone race. Maybe number 10.
Even as I write, I'm trying to think of bigger things I can do with this. Dean Karnazes runs to raise awareness about health issues left and right. Heck, he did what I want to do, and it only took him 50 days. Of course, he had massive sponsorship and many, many more training miles than me. So I guess I just need to get to that point. It's tough to raise money, awareness or even a few eyebrows unless people are paying attention to you in the first place.
So now I start getting attention. And I'm starting with my own website. Hooray! Even the greatest journeys of all time had to start somewhere.
Like starting with slow five mile jogs in impossible humidity. My run this morning, though cooler, was through very thick air, and I was soaked by the end of it. The good news was that my running motion felt much more fluid than it did yesterday, which means I'm right on track. The down side was that I had two unusual feelings on the run. The first was a pain in my left foot, which fortunately had dissipated by the time I finished. The second was a wave of nausea as I neared the end. I'm putting that down to heat, but I'm going to keep my eye on it.
Overall, I still don't feel like myself when I'm running, which is not fun, but I recognize that it's probably just the marathon working its way out of my system. As of now, I'm considering doing tomorrow's 3 miles on the treadmill just to give my legs a break from the hills and to rest up for Saturday's pace run, which I intend to do at speed. There are a million things to think about as I gear up for the next phase of this journey, but there's one thing that's always most important.
My next run.
Wednesday's Run:
76 Degrees / Humid
5.05 Miles
36 Minutes, 44 Seconds
Let me know how I can help. Love, Bugs.
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