I DID IT

The Wild Women at the finish line (don't we look fresh?)


Rachel, Kari, Kia and Danika at the finish line (aren't they beautiful?)


I was sick with the respiratory flu for two weeks, then traveled for a week, then my back went out, then I traveled to Bismarck, then my back gave out yesterday morning, but I had a thought on today's half marathon. This was something I wanted to do for myself. I wanted to train for my body, I wanted to complete it as one of my lifetime goals, yet here I was, hardly able to bend over, hardly able to move, much less walk 13.1 miles. But Kim and Becky were depending on me, so I gave myself permission to start and see how far I could go.

Well, it really started last night at 2:30AM. The dogs were barking frantically, so Jeff, Kari's boyfriend Brian's brother (did you get that?) went outside to put his dog in the van. At 3:30AM there was a knock on the front door. Steve went downstairs and opened it (note to self: NEVER OPEN THE DOOR AT 3:30AM unless you see a police car in your driveway). There stood a man with a shaved head, wild eyes, and no shoes, talking to one our green lawn chairs that we keep in our backyard. He started to push his way into our house, but Steve firmly shut the door in his face, locked it, then called 911. We found out that he had broken down our gate, and had been in our backyard for supposedly that whole hour. His worn tennis shoes were right by our trampoline. I think the spooky thing about it was thinking "what if he'd had a knife or gun? What if he had been able to push his way into our house? What if there had been others with him?" But he didn't, he couldn't, and there wasn't, so all is well. The police found him down the street by the bike path, sitting in our chair, talking to it. He was a familiar transient that had never been in this part of town before. I'm not scared of that, but it does make me aware (again) that not everyone is normal (well, you know what I mean), and that we need to remain aware, at least, not be stupid.

So I was awake from 2:30 on, meaning I had a grand total of 3 1/2 hours of sleep (actually, I haven't had much sleep since Kari's been home - it's just too darned much fun, and there's just too much to do!). But again I said, "I'm going to start, and see how I do."

My back was stiff, and Kim and Becky wanted to run because everyone else was. I waved them on and told them I'd see them at the finish line. They stayed with me for about 10 miles, then I urged them to just go. They're a couple of animals. Our matching t-shirts said, "Wild Women Walking" and that was GREAT for a million cheers and comments from the crowds. Kim was a little upset that I put our names on the back. "How wild are you, Susie?" someone would yell. Hah - it was great. I got to the 6 mile mark, down by our house, but decided to press on to the Y. I passed that, then thought "Hey, I'm over halfway, I can do this." A team of two women and a man in green were walking with us. I asked one woman the story behind the green t-shirts. "My 14 year old son died last December, and my sister flew out from CA, my brother from West Virginia." I put my arm around her and just walked for a block or so. I cried. Kim looked at me, turned around and pointed at the woman and said, "There's love all around you. Just look." I cried for another 1/2 mile or so.

At the two mile marker, we saw the two Kenyan men coming BACK from the other 24.2 miles. Okay, granted they started like 10 minutes before us, but it's still an amazing feat (oops - I typed "feet" which I guess makes just as much sense). I looked over at them, and they weren't even IN their bodies - they were just flying, zoned. It was kind of eery, but really cool to witness. There was an older woman wearing a flower wreath. I waved and called her a goddess. The tall transvestite wasn't there this year, but maybe he/she was over at the 5K where he/she was last year. I kind of miss her/him - she made it really festive, with the tight dress and heels. Around mile 11, I didn't know if I could continue. My back kept spasming, my left foot really hurt, and my stomach was cramping. I'd forgotten to pack my protein bar, but kept guzzling water every chance I could.

Then I had a thought: my body's in such dire straits because I've been taking care of everyone else, and this is the ONE thing that I want to do for myself. So I had a talk with my body - "do you really want to do this?"

"Only if it's important to you."
"Can you suck it up for 2.1 more miles?"
"Maybe."
"Will you do it for me? For us?"
"I'll try."

So I put on my On-the-Go Playlist 1, and vowed to keep going until it got to the end. That helped. "Venus" came on, followed by "I'm Too Sexy" followed by "Hips Don't Lie" followed by "Pirates Who Don't Do Anything" (don't bother to download my playlist - I'm a geeky nerd). Then came "Thriller" and I began chanting "Suck it up" with every step I took, then changed it to "we can do it" (me and my body), then "I am healthy I am strong I am loved." Then came "And She Was" and "Respect" and then "One Week." I was rounding the last corner and I called Mom and Dad to share the moment with them.

"You're what? You're calling during the marathon? I thought you weren't going to do it," Mom said.

"I decided to suck it up and finish it, Mom - I love you. I'm doing this for you and Dad," I said.

I started crying again - I'm going to make it, I really am.

I started up University and saw the crowds gathered - "Go, wild woman - you're almost there!" "We're so proud of you!" "You did it!" I started walking faster. I walked into the parking lot at the Dome and headed north to the opening. I waved at everyone, showing my t-shirt and bowing, then heard the announcer saying, "Here comes Wild Woman" and I waved and bowed again. There was Chitra, and Sandy, Jackson and Mackenzie. That was the most fun - seeing everyone (besides all the free stuff - I won't lie). There was Jane Alexander in the booth, screaming my name and waving frantically. I screamed back (would you doubt it?). I made it! Everyone else made it, as well. We got our medals, water, banana and pizza, then went outside to wait for Kari to come in from her marathon relay she ran with her cousin Rachel. She was running so fast - she's an amazing athlete.

My broken right toe is throbbing, my left leg keeps cramping up, but I feel really good - not too tired. I went on to "Map my run" and found out I'd burned over 1000 calories - I could get used to this! So ate a small Special K bar to celebrate. A fabulous day of 12 dear friends and family, snicker doodles and barbecued chicken and potato salad. We had a hot tub, watched "Return of the Jedi" and are now checking out movies for tonight.

I did it, everyone - after all the feelings of not being able to do what I want to do, I did this for myself, and I'm really proud of myself. And I'm proud of Kari, and Brian, and Mary and Tim and Heather and Jeff and Brian and Christina. And well, just everyone who participated in the Fargo Marathon. WE ROCK!!!!!