All the Other Kids With the Pumped Up Kicks run faster than me anyways.

"Running is the greatest metaphor for life, because you get out of it what you put into it." --Oprah Winfrey

That's right, I just nailed you with an opening quote. From Oprah, nonetheless. So anyways, to make up for my crappy blogging of late, as in, y'know, slacking off and not even doing it, I'm going try and make today's good. I think that was a run-on sentence. Whatever. I shall be talking about running today, and we'll sorta see how this goes, because I haven't really thought of an organization yet. Here we go.

Unless you're completely oblivious to what goes on here at The Happenings, you know that I'm running cross country this year. I have yet to go as far as to say that I'm a cross country runner, because I'm still getting there. As of right now, my 5K time is 41 and a half minutes, which sucks if you know about long distance running, and I am consistently the slowest person on my team. Trust me, it gets freaking old being the slow one. Today I felt it a lot, because we did a lot of starting and then stopping to do something like stretch or hill sprints, so I was always behind while my team was already at the next location. It got really frustrating for me, because I knew they were all waiting on me, and I really don't know what I can do to be faster. When I start out slow, I just get behind right away. But when I start out fast I just get tired more quickly and then drop back later. Either way, I end up dropping back. I haven't yet figured out if it's my stride or my turn over, but some combination of the two constantly leaves me in the dust. That's not to say I don't work as hard as everyone else. Today especially I almost felt like I was working harder, just because it comes so much more easily to some of the other girls. On top of all this, running really sucks. You get tired as hell, your muscles ache and cramp up, you get cramps in your sides and you feel like you can't breathe. When the run is over, your spit kind of congeals on your lips and forms this weird gel stuff, which I know is beyond disgusting for those of you imagining what that's like. Then there's the whole "Oh my goodness, I can't freaking move anymore" feeling after the run is over, and you feel sort of dazed and trippy. Oh, and the sweat. Sometimes when you sweat, it's not a big deal and it sort of drips, and it's only in a few areas. On a run, you sweat frickin' everywhere, and it doesn't drip. It's just sort of a general uncomfortable wetness. Then you go to wipe your forehead with your hand, and your hands are sweaty, so you just make it worse. See how much fun cross country is? So why don't I quit? Why don't I just stop? For me, it's always about proving a point. Once I'm in, I'm all in, because I know that a lot of people don't think I can do it. It's why I did Tae Kwon Do for almost four years, and why I was on the wrestling team in 8th grade. Sometimes I just have to prove that even though I'm not athletic or strong, I can still kick ass. Another reason is being in shape, which is always good. I don't necessarily struggle with my weight. It's not like a serious issue, but I am a teenage girl, and you know how that goes. I'm not running to lose weight at all, but I like it because I know that it's keeping me healthy and active. I think the biggest reason, which I didn't even realize until the season started, is the team. I know I couldn't quit if I wanted to just because I'd miss the time I spend with those ladies. They're some of the most supportive and awesome people ever. Never once when I come in last do they chastise me for not being fast enough. I doubt they even think it. Almost every single time I'm running in, there's someone waiting for me and cheering me on to the finish. It's the best feeling in the world when the whole team comes back and runs with  you for the last couple of blocks, because you know that they've got your back. All of them are totally awesome, and totally funny and fantastic to be around. My coach is pretty fabulous herself, because she always runs with me at the end. I'm really glad I made the decision to run, because even though it's hard, it's so worth it. As my coach said today, "It hurts so bad it's good, right?". Exactly.