greatness

The Nike Greatness commercials that are constantly being forced upon me every 4.5 minutes during the Olympics are starting to get to me. I don’t wear Nike shoes or clothes (they don’t have all the details I can get with Brooks or Mizuno clothes) but their ads always get me. So I’ve had greatness on my mind a lot lately.

I work at a desk job. I sit in a room with a computer attached to me all day Monday through Friday. This situation is difficult to derive a strong sense of accomplishment from, nevermind greatness. At some point in my mid-20s, I came to accept my fate as a regular working person. I spent several years lost as to who I am, what makes me happiest. I found myself beyond bored for 9 hours a day, feeling chained to a computer. I needed something. I needed my greatness.

I found running. I learned to love the burn of lactic acid in my legs; the stinging in my lungs trying to keep up. I could set goals, layout a frame work to achieve them, and then blow the goal out of the water. It wasn’t so much the act of running but more that I learned how to set goals and achieve them for myself. School always structured my goal setting for me: working toward a degree, taking classes to get that degree.

So I'm turning late summer into my August and September of Greatness (what IS September anyway? Is it summer? Is it fall?). The beginning of the summer (May-Half of July) weren't lacking in greatness. I let unknowns defeat me and let my Greatness fall by the wayside; I didn't let the Greatness of my achievements take root. So, let's re-evaluate and relish in it. What have I done to achieve my Greatness so this summer of 2012? Bullet list!!

• Finisher (and new PR) Minneapolis Marathon - June 3 - 4:01:10
• 1st Place Female - Overall - Sigma Phi Beta 5k - June 30 - 22:19
• $ days of Backpackin/Campin in the Black Hills with Patcheeze July 13-16
• New Mothatruckin Job!!! Started July 17
• 1st Place Age Group (20-29) - Lake Wherspann 10k - August 5 - 49:32 (after running 16 miles the day before)
• 1st Place Age Group (25-29) and 6th Female Overall - Boxer 500 5k - August 12 - 22:36 (also after running 16.5 miles of vicious hills the day before)

What else I got?

• This weekend - Saturday 20 mile run, Sunday 42 mile bike ride.
• Make a Wish 10k - August 26th (looking for 47 min or better).
• Go Girl Run 5k - Sept 3 (Top 10 overall, sub 22!).
• Peak to Peak 10 miler - Sept 8. Running 10 miles to the start, racing the 10 mile. Finish sub 1:22 on the last 10.
• Corporate Cup 10k - Sept 16 (Sub 45!!!)
• CHICAGO MARATHON - OCTOBER 7 - 3:40 [MAKE IT SO]

Bring it on back half of 2012.