Congratulations M 💍

Published December 1, 2019

I remember your birth –

Manchester Hospital, May 18 1993.

Your first day of school.

Your love of EVERYTHING Disney,

Disney Princess every Halloween.

I remember [you] cutting your first Christmas tree.

Your love of COLOR, Michaela sense of style.

Pink-n-orange pillow still adorns my Colorado couch today.

Your high school graduation &

this past summer, our holiday in Iceland.

Today, you’ve said yes to another.

Congratulations baby girl. You’ll always hold my heart ❤️

: BIG NEWS!

: it’s official 💍

: Michaela & Eli

: grandpup Zelda

: cake topper preview ❤️

Osaka Marathon 🇯🇵

Published December 1, 2019

goal SET, goal MET 🌏

1:30am. Sleep cycle off. World weather, London knifing. BBC only channel not Japanese.

3am. Partial pack of Doritos & a mustard packet. Mighty slim pickin’s. Still dark. Luggage pack’d, repacked. Showered. Phone fully-charged. Run ready. 7 Continent Day.

9:20 Start. Layered up; peeled clothes early. First day of December. Beautiful sunshiny Japan.

15-minute walk to Castle Park. Corral C. 30,000 runners; whole lotta buzz. Osaka Japan. Pinch me. ‘One & done’ marathon 6 years ago. Today #172, first in Asia. Whose life am I living? Crazy.

Loud-speaker Japanese. Doesn’t really matter. I move when the sea around me moves.

Phone on airline. Calf stretch. iPod queued. Go, go, GO!

Easy flat course. Lotta out-n-backs, whole lotta runners. City race, reminiscent of NYC 2015. Marathoners elbow-to-elbow. Mile 1, Mile 26. Big buzz excitement. Sheer amount of people super overwhelming. Playlist blaring, eyes forward. Stop, walk, breathe. Soak it in. Make a memory.

Out fast, faded fast. Warm second half. Course a half-mile long. But… finish I did.

Last kilometer. Osaka Castle. Path lined with late-autumn arbor. It’s really gonna happen.

SUPER HERO day – 7 Continent FINISH.

: my first in Asia

: 30 THOUSAND

: Team RED

: Corral C START

: whole lotta runners 🏃‍♀️

: make a MEMORY 🙂

: 7 Continent FINISHER

: Official Certificate

Osaka Marathon

Posted in Asia, Marathons/Ultras | 1 Comment

Foreign Runner Check-in

Published November 30, 2019

Osaka EXPO 2019

Like all my big-city races, day’s Expo far away. Guessing city-tourism likes to share the wealth. 7-Eleven yen withdrawal, metro day-pass purchase. Phone fully-charged, I got this. Chuo Line to Cosmosquare. Osaka Convention Center, all the way to the end.

Volunteers awaiting, pointing the way. THOUSANDS of runners. Crowd line-queued, inching forward slowly. 2^nd largest marathon-only event in my life [behind NYC].

Rainbow-variety of charities. Participants choose a cause & pledge a donation. Funds withdrawn after July’s lottery pull. Team Red. Cancer not unique to Americans.

Hour+ bib pick-up. Foreign Runner Check-in. WOW – signage says it all. Even amongst the Foreign, I felt foreign. China, Hong Kong, Taiwan… and me.

Tomorrow, my last continent. Road pavement (or Antarctica trail). Marathon on all Earth’s landmasses. 26.2 miles. Honored. Blessed. And super emotional.

Osaka, Japan. Right time, right place. Sooo many people I’ve met on this journey.

Inspiration overload ❤️