Passing the Baton...

Yeah, this is a longish posting, but c'mon, you can take 3 minutes out of your day when you're drinking your morning coffee, right?! Before I start...congrats to all who got out and ran this past weekend on the East Coast - it was like a steam room even at dawn! And, thanks to all who have moved me closer to my fundraising goal, I'm almost 50% of the way there for the Falmouth Road Race. For more info and to support the cause, click here.

OK, so last weekend I was all revved up to run a 5k with my pregger sister (6 months, give or take a week) that would be followed by me, being the very proud aunt I am, watching my 4 year old niece Carrie Anne and my soon to be 6 year old, (born one year to the day of 9/11, reminding us all that there we are still living among miracles) Cecelia run in a kids race. And, yeah, with a name like that, I more often than not find myself "singing" to her, "Cecelia, you're breaking my heart..." (C'mon - sing along!) But, I think I may have worn out my welcome with this. Unfortunately for me, I think she's now old enough now to realize she doesn't have to humor me with feigned flattery and giggles. Sadly, but not surprisingly, sometimes (ok, ok, most times) she gets embarrassed and rolls her eyes as if I'm a crazy lady. Mmmm, children can be rather intuitive...

Anyway, I digress...the race was an 8:30am start on Sunday and I was under strict instructions to meet my sister at the entrance to Tavern on the Green in Central Park at 8am. With my weekend turning upside down, having to agreed to work a gig Saturday day into the night, I was on my feet for 8 hours and didn't get to sleep until after midnight. When my head hit the pillow, I realized I would only have about 5 1/2 hours to sleep and I really am the type of gal that prefers/needs 8 hours of sleep to function at full potential.

I woke up to the chimes of my cell phone alarm clock at 6am and hit my laptop to get some of the race details. And, that's when I found out it was a 5 mile race, not a 5k! I know, I know, it's only a 2 mile difference, but I was tired, hungry and possibly have a broken pinky toe, right foot (Reader's Digest version - stubbed it on couch over 3 weeks ago and it looks like my big toe, but with a really small nail on the wrong side of my foot! I know an attractive visual - I almost opted to add a pic, but didn't want to incite a vomit fest!) So, I threw on my running skirt - - yes, I said running skirt and this choice of running gear has been an on and off debate my sister and I about how ridiculous she thinks it is - - and running tank; slipped on my flip flops and threw my iPod and sneakers into my running bag; and I was off.

The bus stop is a short two blocks from my Weehawken digs and the bus ride drops me at Port Authority within 10 minutes. Ok, so I don't live in NYC, but the consolation is that I have a great view from the seven windows in my small apartment. So, there I was waiting for the bus and some guy still walking off (and stinking of) the previous night's damage asked if I was going to play tennis. I ripped a page out of my niece's book, rolled my eyes and set him straight letting him know that I was a runner. I mean, duh? Did he not see me? All right, so score one for my sister on the running skirt debate.

For the 10 minutes I was on the bus, I felt every ache in my body from the previous day's workout and work and my top eye lid was very much behaving like a magnet to the lower one. So, by the time I hit Port Authority, I talked myself out of the race. I wouldn't be a total waste though, I'd go, help my bro-In-law with the rug rats (read: my three cute little nieces) while we cheered on preggers sister.

No sooner did I arrive on the site of the race and I realized that I was filled with sorry ass excuses (and, as one of my friend's dad's says, "losers make excuses!") and I would be running the Hope and Possibilities race. For anyone that would like to read about a great race and great organization, Achilles Track Club, please click here. I felt compelled to run the race when I entered the park and saw people that were much braver than I, faced with far more physical challenges than a broken toe, some even running with prosthetic limbs. And, the nail in the coffin was when I saw the back of a shirt that read, "we were just doing our jobs." It made me realize that I truly feel that whether I agree with the the U.S. decision of being in any kind of war or not, it's irrelevant when it comes to me giving 100% support and admiration to the men and women who fight for my freedom to live a good life with the exorbitant amount of options that are thrown my way each and every day.

So, I decided to run with my sister. She urged me to run ahead, but we hadn't had a chance to chat in awhile and I thought it would be far more entertaining to pace with her and come up with some possible baby names. We went through the alphabet and there were many names that came and went, but when I got to "U" I declared that the baby-to-be should be named "Unis." In subsequent conversation with the family, my father corrected me, telling me that the name would actually be spelled, "E-U-N-I-C-E." My sister chimed in, defending the "U" saying that she and her husband could spell the name any way they wanted and her "Unis" would be known to everyone as, " Hey U!"

So, no matter what this baby's name is, she'll (or he'll) always be Unis or "Hey U" to me!

Finally to the real point of the blog...the passing of the baton to the next gen. I couldn't have been a prouder aunt watching my nieces get lined up for the race. Carrie Anne clung to my hand at the pack of the 4 year old girls and when actor Anthony Edwards (you all know who he is: Tom Cruise's side kick "Goose" in Top Gun or more recently known as Dr. Greene from ER) blew the start horn she ran her hardest, gripping my hand the whole way. Cecelia ran with the 6 year olds with the focus and the form of a young runner and outran a couple of gals that started ahead of her!

You could see the elation and pride in their faces as they both crossed the finish line where their mom was waiting. I can tell the girls have the "bug" now...well, at least I think so. And that wasn't the only win for the day, the really big one came when the they swindled their mom into buying them ice cream from the NYC cart guy before lunch! Nicely done! I could not have been prouder of them at that moment!

It felt like the baton had just been passed to the next gen, just as my dad had done with me many, many years ago....

Stay tuned for next posting...I'll tell you about my high school track days and the literal passing of the baton with one of my best friends, Kristin...she's really psyched about this posting 'cause I'll prob. have some pics...