Pheidippidi-Do: The Art of Compromise

When I am motivated - as I was last year at this time - I am an early morning runner. A set your alarm an hour earlier and just get it done runner. A "I like to drink after work and sometimes AT work so I can't run in the afternoon" runner. There were exceptions, of course. Random bits of motivation that come fluttering in and are impossible to ignore. You have to seize those because they are rare (at least to me).

Last year I actually did a lot of my running on my lunch breaks too, because it was kind of the best of all worlds - didn't have to wake up early AND I could have a beer at the end of the day with my boss and coworkers.

But this year, it is all SO very different. I can tell in just the first week of this silly plan, and there are several reasons for it. The first reason it's different is that I have ZERO motivation to run on my own. None. Nothing. Billy is the one - it was his idea and he's the driving force. He's doing abs and arms and back and chest and and and and workouts BEFORE we go run. When he asks me to join, I'm like "meh. There are things going on in the interwebs that are very important and I can't miss right now." Another reason it's SO different this year is because I'm doing this as a team. This is good (see above motivating factor) but it means that I can't run on my lunch break. Nope - for the most part we are very much trying to do this together.

I love it, I do. It's much better this way BUT also...just...different. Take this Sunday morning, for example, when the alarm went off at 5:30. The night before I had insisted that we run in the morning. I'm a morning runner. It's what I do. It's cooler. And then it's just DONE and you don't have to worry about it for the rest of the day. (At this point, Billy says something like, "Bullshit, Ash. you just like to drink rum drinks on the beach on Sunday afternoons." Well, duh.) I'm getting off track - ANYWAY, Billy has no problem running in the afternoons. In fact, he would prefer to do our long runs on Sunday afternoons because 1) YOU CAN SLEEP IN ON A SUNDAY! (novel idea, eh?) and 2) well, there really is no other reason. So, when I got my way (which I usually do) and the alarm went off at 5:30 on Sunday so we could go run 10 miles, what do you think happened?

I told him to shut the damn thing off and that we would run later. I was tired! I had tossed and turned all night! I just DIDN'T FEEL LIKE IT, ALRIGHT?! He was displeased because he had opted against his second Steinlager Saturday night in preparation for our a.m. jaunt. Displeased though he was, I think he was tired at 5:30 too and just decided to roll with it. And we ran in the afternoon.

AND IT WAS GLORIOUS!!! No, really. Like, who knew running with your spouse for 8.6 miles at 6 pm on a Sunday evening could be so fantastic?! It was by far the best run both of us have had since we started. Totally amazing and wonderful run. And the BEST part?! There was still wine waiting for us when it was over ;)

So, the moral of the story is: Billy was right.

HAHAHAHAHA!!! No, no, no, no...that can't be it. It must be Compromise. Yes, that's the moral! (You see, because I decided on Sundays we could move our long run to the evening because he already does everything else my way because it is the most correct way)

**A Note**
I just read through this thing and realized it's basically all about balancing my wine schedule and my running schedule. We're such lushes.