Opportunity Missed.

I was on my way to the library to study this Sunday, when I learned that I needed to take a detour as the Seattle Marathon was bifurcated my normal route. I was bummed.

It wasn't the needed detour that had soured my mood, but the fact that I wasn't in the race. Despite being super cold (by Seattle standards, I know I've become a weather wuss since leaving Idaho) and wet, I still wanted to be among the thousands soggily plodding along for those 26 miles.

I had made it a goal to complete a marathon before I turned 30. I had even told people early on in the year that I was training in the hopes that my oral statement would give some sort of internal pressure on me to run a marathon, and thereby, I would not appear to be fool. But, alas, despite the pressures I put on myself, I wasn't ready this year.

I have excuses. We bought a house and all the work it needed cut into my training time. I started law school and the new academic rigors didn't lend themselves to freeing up the time to train. And, my wife hates the idea. She doesn't want me to leave her for hours to pound pavement by myself, she doesn't want me to become addicted and divert our vacations so that they coincide with various marathons around the country. Regardless, those are just excuses and they shouldn't have gotten in my way (well, despite the wife’s disapproval, for those of you who are married, you know how difficult it is to do something your significant other is really against, right?).

To top it off, I'm the only one in my family who hasn't done a marathon. My Dad ran them when he was younger. One of my brothers has, despite an aversion to any athletic endeavor as a teen, has turned into an Ironman (this year's Ironman in Cd'A will be his fourth) and runs ultra marathons for kicks. My other brother and sister have caught the bug as well, and have each done at least one marathon so far. So, besides my mom, I'm the only one who hasn't done one and I feel the typical pressure that the baby of the family feels, I have to do one to!!!

So, I'm making the promise again. This year I will run a marathon. This is a goal I want to keep.