Why I'm out here some days...

Last Friday I crossed the bridge and left off of the island to do a loop around the Sea Breeze neighborhood that abuts the Intercoastal Waterway. Ran behind the Food Lion shopping complex and up the steep grassy hill and onto lake Park Boulevard, and on up up up and over Snow's Cut Bridge. The view while running on the narrow raised cement "sidewalk" is breath taking; off to the left the eye follows the Waterway as it channels back past the North end of Pleasure Island and wraps by the beach houses that jut out onto the far back side of the ribboned land mass, before seemlessly spilling back into the Atlantic Ocean about a mile or so away. To the right the waterway runs back thru the woods and steep sandy banks of the 'cut' on down and into the mouth of the Cape Fear River, as it meanders almost dreamy like slow molasses into the abyss of the Atlantic. Some days I catch the sun sliding down the western horizon a blazing ball of fire raining millions of bits of light onto the glassy sheen of the water; perhaps only broken by a passing fishing boat or old tug barge chugging along.

I got off work Wednesday and head to my friends house in Kure Beach for a run, its been one of those long days we all have from time to time. One of those days that i need to forget about even before i take my slacks and shit off and lace up my beloved running shoes. My release is on the roads, my release is to run as fast and as hard as i can, to make it hurt physically, challenge the mind and the spirit, or numb it with the rythym and cadence of sneakers machine like hitting gravel and macadame. Their's a killer on the road, his brain is squirming like a toad.... So I hit the 3+ mile turn around (5k) in Battle Park by Fort Fisher in 26 and a half minutes ... and then check out. Check out all the way back Lake Park Boulevard and back thru the center of Kure Beach back up the little winding hill where i dry heave coming off the last turn, and smile an insane little inward smile because its exactly what I needed. I take what I need, and spit up the rest. Under 22 mins of it in this case, and i look forward to going back again for more and more and more of it.