Chalk and the Darkness

Ah yes, trail runs are a fun part of my week. Every Thursday there is a new "leg" to run and you "collect" miles per leg you run or walk. This week, I was a little late to my destination and ended up running in the dark....again. Leah was without her garmin (must have made her feel naked) and we had to make due with my stopwatch which I happily relinquished to her. We basically ran a 3.1 mile giant loop where we had to cross over intersections six times. Now, nothing hurts more than having to stop once you are on auto-pilot and we did this so many times! The first stop I did this little don't-stop-moving dance where I looked like I had to go to the bathroom. I am sure I entertained many people in their cars as I did this for about five minutes. Leah was exhausted from work and at one point started singing about how much our run sucked and that it was dark and we couldn't see anything. She had her trusty headlamp which was nice, but she looked like an angler fish! Towards the end of the run we started to notice little chalk markings on the sidewalk and then we realized they said stuff. Kids started to write in chalk because of a new rule in the school district that says if you live a mile or less away from your school, you cannot take the bus. So, there are little sayings all over the sidewalks like "keep it up" and "walking and rolling". It was pretty cute and we felt like those little sayings not only distracted us from feeling pain, but were uplifting little reminders :) Plus, it didn't hurt that our coach puts happy faces on the trail to make us feel good and so we know we are going the right way. Love it!