Perspective

If mucus were gold, I'd be as rich as Scrooge McDuck, swimming in my vault of cash moneys and flying around in my helicopter. Alas, the only thing I could fill a vault with right now is dirty tissues and curse words. Nothing is seriously wrong with me and I'm thankful for that, but I'm tired of being only 75% healthy. I want to be 100%.  It's making me intensely frustrated, which is only exacerbating the situation. So instead of fighting it I'm going to accept it. I got my last 20 mile run in on Saturday at a fairly decent pace, even though the last few miles were rough. I'm hoping that after this week's sessions with the chiropractor, a lot of ice, stretching and ibuprofen, and taking as many days off running as I can (I hate this part, but it has to be done), I'll be in decent enough shape for my races.

In the meantime, or in case all that fails, I'm trying to have a better attitude about it.

Perspective:

*If I add up all the days I felt less than 100% over the course of my life, it would be maybe a few months worth out of 30 whole years. Not bad, cells, not bad. And 75% health is better than 50% and far better than dead.

*Usually, when things happen that I think are bad, I end up realizing a) they are only temporary, b) I am better/stronger for having gone through them and c) there is a pretty sweet silver lining.

*I tend to think of pain as a bad thing, but it's really more like a helpful messenger. A messenger usually bringing bad news, but still helpful in that it's a not so subtle reminder to pay attention and address the situation before it turns calamitous. Of course, it would be more helpful if my muscles communicated in English instead of achiness, but I'm grateful that most of the time they take me where I want to go with little to no complaints.

*I am becoming quite fond of the stair machine at the gym. I like looking down at the end of my workout to see that I have climbed 250 floors or 5 miles of stairs. I imagine that I've climbed to the top of a skyscraper and am enjoying the view. In reality, I am only 4 feet off the ground and the view is comprised primarily of the sweaty backs of other gym goers, but it's more scenic in my head.

*These are not real problems. They are minor annoyances at best. Life is infinitely good. I wake up every day next to someone I love in a house that I worked hard to buy all by myself, I go to a job that makes me laugh and I get to be friends with some funny, smart, amazing people.

Lyric of the moment: "worry is wasteful and useless in times like these..."