| I've been putting this off. I've been sick and tired. And I haven't been to work for two days. Anyway, it all started in the middle of last week when I woke up with a sore throat. A sore throat always develops into something more. Come Saturday night, my throat had it's own heartbeat. I was "sleeping" on my aunt's couch. She didn't have any cold medication. I was in pain, I was congested. And I certainly couldn't sleep. I dosed off around 5ish. My alarm rang at 6:30. I somewhat considered calling Michelle and canceling. We were gonna meet up because she had my race bib and chip. I drank some ginger tea, grabbed some cough drops and a banana for the road and hoped for the best. I was worried that I'd be cold on the train. NYC trains have bumpin' AC. I was wearing a running dress with my arms out. And I'm always cold, being anemic and all. I get to the park, use the potty. Luckily, this time I was second in line. Then off to find Michelle. So many people in Columbus Circle. I wasn't sure how I'd spot her. Then all the sudden, through the crowd, I see a familiar tattoo. It's Michelle! How I spotted the tattoo on her leg before I spotted her is beyond me. Oh, and Cris was there too. He took awesome race pics. Check out his blog if you wanna see. We head over to the corral and Diane sees me. I met Diane at the Healthy Kidney 10k on 5/16. She's the one who started running at 40 but looks like she's been doing it since birth. Okay, so we're in the corral burning up. I don't care what BimActive says, it was warmer than 72. We were all sweating and complaining. Luckily, I brought my visor. Now I know to never leave home without it. It's good for blocking rain and sun. So we start running, Michelle tells me to go on. I stick with Diane for most of the race. We run about the same pace. That's cool because I've never run with anyone before. She's a trooper too. She was showing us young folks how it's done. I think I started out so fast because I trying to keep up with her. Anyway, it's hot, I'm sick, I'm lacking sleep and I'm wondering how I'm gonna make it to the end. I skipped all the water stops except the last one. Bad idea on my part. I normally won't drink anything on a 6 mile run. Of course, I normally won't force myself to run if I feel like crap. And we all know that I will cut a run short with the quickness if I get too hot. The only thing that kept me out there was knowing that I was in a race. Diane and I part ways at the water stop somewhere after mile 4. She came prepared with her own water, so she went on. I was so glad that there was water and Gatorade at the stop. Of course I walked through. We all know how bad I am at drinking while running. And I needed a break. I was burning up! I was miserable. From then on, I talked myself into finishing the race. And talked myself out of not walking. I decided to just slow down. I can do that, right? Okay, so the end is near. Those damn signs 800m to go, 400m to go, 200m to go. I hate those signs. It makes the race that much longer. For real. Just stop it. It didn't make me go any faster. I did however run faster after seeing the finish ahead. That's all I care about. Finishing. Oh, and not dying. My official time was 57:20. Almost a minute slower than my first 10k. That's not bad considering how I was feeling. Actually, that's pretty good. It's over and I can barely think. I was lightheaded. I needed to sit down. Michael, Diane's husband, noticed that my hands were shaking. Yeah, I should have sat this one out. While sitting on a shaded bench, Liz spots me. It's a small, small world. We get in some post race pics. And after I gather myself, set out to get some brunch with Michelle and Cris. But first, I must return my race chip. I never know where to find those people. All in all, it was a good day. The actual race was horrible. But I loved meeting up with my new running friends before and after the race. I'm not a people person in the least bit, but runners are awesome. Such nice people. I love y'all! Rock on! Run on!  Me and Michelle before race start Me, Jennifer, and Diane The happy couple, Diane and Michael Liz and Me Liz, Me and Michelle
  
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