just a good day

You know how some days are just good days. Nothing terribly remarkable but just a feel good day. Well, that was today. I guess it all started with a good night's sleep in crisp fall air and rain softly falling on the bamboo outside of my bedroom. And then waking up to cool air again for my long run. Met up with T3 teammates at the rock - a small group of us but enough of us who ran around the same pace to make a nice little pack for the 7-mile loop. Ben, Yvonne, Jim, and I were the group and while Yvonne eventually sprinted ahead of us, we held a solid pace. Ben was on a recovery run and Jim and I knew we had 11 miles to tackle so we were keeping some in the tank for that last 4-mile loop. Or at least that was the plan. I've done a lot of runs on my own this training season so I was delighted to have company again! For the last 4 miles, Jim and I got unexpected company from Logan. If you know Logan, Jim, and me then you are wondering what the heck Logan was doing running with us. Recovery run for him, too (a.k.a. a nice jog with Jim and ETG) - otherwise he would have been miles ahead of us. But it was nice to have him with us for a while. For some reason, I felt strong today and felt like the first 7 miles were solid and controlled and the last 4 miles were faster but still controlled. I tried to focus on all of the things we're supposed to focus on - form, turnover, breathing... And sometimes I did. At any rate, it's one of the best feeling runs I've had a in while...well, since our last cool day. And I think that makes all the difference for me. I run better in cool weather. Fingers crossed for Conroe in three weeks. It's been a funny training season for me - getting ready for something that's not my "A" race, balancing a new "focus" schedule, and working in some days off. I'm really not sure what I will bring to the table on November 8 but I'm excited nonetheless. New course. Potentially cooler racing weather. Road trip. Teammates. FUN!
Speaking of teammates...Jess completed the Chicago Marathon today - way to go, Jess! And with a marathon PR to boot. Not quite the time that she wanted, which I only bring up because she had the most awesome, and totally "Jess" response which was basically that it just gave her something to work for next time. In the meantime, congrats are in order to this amazing athlete, person, and friend! It was fun to track her this morning and know when her legs were finally getting some rest!
The afternoon took me to the PTC to make some signs for the Longhorn 70.3 in two weeks. I'm not necessarily the most creative but I can color in other people's block letters quite well...and even do some of my own from time to time. Above all, the laughter with Catharine, Christine, Nancy, and Logan was priceless...I hope that the athletes at Longhorn get as much of a kick out of the signs as we did when we were making them.
Quick trip to the grocery to get some forgotten items for cooking and baking, phone calls with friends and family, a bunch of school work...all finished and finally I'm finishing up the day, sitting here in my compression socks that I've been in since my run, listening to the rain again (is fall actually here?!), and getting ready to hop into warm sheets just out of the dryer.
Yes, life is good. It might not be as exciting as some people would like for my life or their life to be. But, you know what, I don't care! I've never been one to live for excitement. I'd much rather be able to find excitement and joy in the normal, everyday life things because they are at the core of life. Hmmm...in writing that I'm remembering the graduation speech I gave a few years ago at St. Andrew's that was all about the "in-betweens" in life and how those are what matter. It's not about the big moments; it's about the every day moments. Guess I still believe that. Today was filled with lots of "in between" moments so it was a great day.