My Mother, Mary Jane

It was five years ago today that I lost my mother.
Five years ago today my father, my sister, and I stood by her side, held her hands, and watched her slip out of this life.
Here it is, 3:24pm and I feel I've just been able to take my first breath of the day.  Grief creeps through your body, into your lungs, and steals the breath right out from inside you it seems.
But now, here I am.
And now that I've given the grief time, I need to give the positives time too.

It is so exciting that  Fight Like A Tiger has been so successful.  She would be so proud of what it has turned into today.  Of course it's still (and always will be) really emotional to see it on people.  When I see that subtle "MJ" in the tiger striping, it's like the shirt is winking at me.  I know most people don't know it's there and that's the way she would have wanted it.

To date, somewhere in the ballpark of 9000 shirts have been sold!!!! And orders are still piling in!!! That equates to over $45,000 in research and financial aid to families affected by leukemia, lymphoma, and other life altering diseases that those shirts have generated!!!! $45,000 donated!!!!!! Astounding!!!!
I miss her so much and there is so much more to her legacy than this, but this is really special and she ecstatic about it.

Thanks so much to Kim and Bart Landry at Creative Impressions Silkscreening in Port Allen, LA for the awesome work they have done!!!

As for this day, it's a very tough one for my sister and me.  It was the day we lost our mother, and the day my father's heart broke un-repairably.  But my parents are now in heaven together, and I just couldn't ask anything better for them.

Fight Like A Tiger With Mike

Karen got some time with Mike today.  They arranged to meet since she was his big supporter in the Capital One Mascot Bowl (Geaux Vote For Mike!!!!)
And you know about The Little Shirt That Could.
So she's combined the two for the most fantastic merging EVER!!!!!!!
I know to you non- LSU people this seems cool, but really, so what?

IT'S EVERYTHING!!!!!!!
It's so everything, I actually teared up when I saw the picture!!!!!

The FIGHT LIKE A TIGER t-shirt made it onto Mike!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Geaux Karen!  You've pulled it all off!  I'm so in awe!
She hired a photographer for the even, so I'll have better pictures later, but for now here it is:

Don't forget to hop on over to Karen's to see what's going on in the Mascot Challenge.

Eat Your Heart Out, Holly Golightly

So one of my very favorite movies is Breakfast At Tiffany's. Colin loves that I love it. He thinks it is so me, quarkey and glamorous all at once (I don't know about all that). I've seen it like, 110 times.
Well, eat your heart out Holly Golightly!
I don't have to sit at the Tiffany's window eating my breakfast while gawking over the beautiful jewelry in their display cases anymore.

I can eat my breakfast at my own home looking at my Tiffany & Co. necklace (aka my medal).






Also, yet one more reason why the details about this trip are so tailored to my parent's memory. My mother was always told how much my father looked like George Peppard in this movie.

I am not kidding you when I say that he looked soooooooo much like this when my dad was in his 20's.

So there it all is. My memories and mementos from San Francisco are now forever immortalized (at least virtually). I hope you enjoyed reading about all of the details of our trip. We've been talking about planning our next one, so I will apologize ahead of time for another barrage of posts one day from another Karen and Mary Beth trip.

Coming Home To A Ready Household

So I have to say that I was a bit nervous about what I would coming home to. Colin had the kids all by himself for the long weekend. Mrs. Tonia still had them on the weekdays during work hours, but outside of that, Colin was on his own.
Well, it wasn't long into my weekend when I saw that they were all doing just fine without me.
A mama likes to believe the world stops when she's away, but really it doesn't.
Colin kept the kids very happy. These are some of the pictures that he sent me while I was gone that reassured me.

Apparently Daddy had everyone sticking out their tongues while he took pictures for Mama.

Then when I came home, I didn't see what I expected. I'll be honest, I was expecting a sink full of dishes and toys, toys, everywhere toys. But the house was spotless. There were even fresh flowers on the table

(they were my finish line flowers, he said this was as close to the finish line as he could get..... awwww, so sweet!)
It was so good to be home and to hold my babies and be held by my hubby.
I love my life!
It's good to be home!

The Blessed Road Home

The morning after the race, I woke up at a rediculously early hour considering what I had done the day before (and after going to the victory party the night before). Karen's flight left much later than mine so I gave her a kiss goodbye and caught a shuttle to the airport.

I made it with no problem and I settled in at the gate waiting for my flight. After a coffee and a pastry I felt much better.

They started to call for boarding for my flight and so I slowly made my way over to the gate.

I congratulated a few other girls that I saw that were wearing their finisher's shirts and Tiffany's necklaces.

There was a woman in front of me in line with a mask around her neck to protect her from germs. It was a site that I am familiar with. My mother had to do the same thing.

She struggled down the hallway to get onto the plane. When the line stopped at one point, she put down her bags and sighed. She leaned back onto the wall and took a couple of deep breaths. These were also very familiar sites to me. She had the exact same weary look in her eyes that my mother would get after pushing herself to hard to keep up.

All of the sudden, all I could see in this woman was my own mother.

I asked her if I could help her. She looked at me and laughed a very efforted laugh and said, "Darling, you've helped me enough by running the race yesterday."
I was stunned, left standing there like an idiot while she picked up her bags and struggled on. I just couldn't believe she would act like I was the one who deserved to be honored. It's a dizzying feeling when a hero calls you a hero.
I almost immediately teared up and then had to face 39 rows of people on the plane with my sniveling crying as I boarded the plane.
I was barely even able to look for my seat, which is why I thought I had found the wrong one.
The charmed trip continued when I found row 40, seat C. It was one of those emergency exit seats. Exactly what I needed for this 4 hour flight.

Look at that leg-room!
It was certainly "Dr.'s orders" to stretch out the day after the race, so this was perfect.
So I looked around to make sure that I was at the right place and then I sat down. I called my sister and boo hooed to her for a while. Then, I noticed that the lady that I tried to help earlier was about 5 rows up and across the isle from me, so I could see her.
It made me start crying again. This time, I just buried my face in my hand and cried. Then there was a tap on my other hand, and I looked up.......
(A romantic comedy writer couldn't have written it any better, but I tell you that every bit of this is the absolute truth.... no exaggerations)
........ and there was the most gorgeous European man was holding out a Kleenex for me and he says,"I keep this for just such emergencies" in his most gorgeous European accent. OMG!!! You are kidding me, right! I actually laughed. I didn't mean to, I certainly didn't want to be rude, but if this scene was in a movie that I was watching, I'd say out loud, "oh yeah right. Whatever!"
Then, the best part......
...... he sits down next to me! Now if you know me at all, I am not the kind of girl who notices other men.... ever. So it was perfect that he sat down with his perfectly beautiful European wife. Some women would be frustrated by that, however I find that it really made what he said even that much more genuine. He was truly being what we all dream that those beautiful Europeans are like, and not some sleazy slime. It was perfect.
So I tried to compose myself for the flight.
When we were ready for take-off, the flight attendant came and folded down a seat that was right in front of me, facing me. My face was probably red and puffy (I'm telling you, I was disgraceful). He noticed my shirt and asked me if there was a marathon in San Francisco this weekend. I said yes and explained the whole darn story of how I got here. Poor guy. That's so not what he bargained for. As I told him, I started crying again...ugh. Then I told him that I was sorry, I didn't mean to unload on him like that, it's just that this was the first time I actually sat down and had time to think since arriving in San Francisco. He said, "oh no, not at all. You need to get it out." He touched my knee and said, "go ahead, get it out." Again, not a sleazy slimy move, I'm pretty sure I was NOT his type if you know what I mean. So I felt ok talking to him. I let out the rest of the story and he hopped up and got me some tissue from the bathroom.
What a mess!
Then, it was time for him to get back to work. He told me that if I needed anything, just let him know. It was very kind of him.
Then the guy next to me, across the isle piped up and said that his wife ran the San Diego marathon for Team In Training. I was so amazed. He and I talked for a long while about running and cancer awareness. Then after a long time, he mentioned something about his treatment. That threw me for a loop. After inquiring, I found out that he had just found out that he had cancer. He had just had surgery and would be starting chemo treatments as a precaution to be sure it was all gone in two weeks.
I just can't believe how many people are affected by cancer. It seems everywhere you look.
Then it was just about time to land and my little flight attendant guy came to visit me again. He sat down and strapped in and told me I looked much better. I told him thanks to his therapy session. He smiled and told me "anytime."
It was a great trip home.
My next flight was uneventful. Delta was doing a little fundraising of their own and offered pink lemonades for $2. All of the money went to breast cancer research, so of course I ordered one.
It was the perfect finishing touch to my perfect trip.

Just Do It? Just Did It!

So I made it. I crossed the finish line. I was met by a line of firefighters lined up in front of limo's holding silver platters with our Tiffany's necklaces on them.

I picked the firefighter that looked most like Colin. He told me congratulations...

(This actually is not the firefighter that I got my necklace from)

.....and handed me my little blue box.


It was the most beautiful site I've seen in a long time!
After collecting all of my post-race chachka and food, I went on to look around at the activities that I could partake in while waiting for my sister to finish. There were massages, stretch clinics, and other girlie type activities.
I went on to get my lunch and check in at the Team In Training tent. I met up with one of the Louisiana girls, Sarah. She was so sweet and supportive of me waiting for Karen. She got me a spot up front near the Finish Line and waited for Louisiana finishers as well.
It was chilly and so we wrapped up in our foil warmers and waited cheering on all of the finishers.

Then was KAREN'S BIG FINISH!
She was awesome. I was a nervous wreck waiting for her. I can't even imagine running that kind of distance. But she has trained hard for this. She was ready.
I can't even explain how wonderful it was to see her coming up. I noticed her first because of her pink visor. We were yellin' like crazy. Her coach, Maury, ran with her in.

When she passed by me I yelled like crazy. She finally saw me. I've heard her say since that I was crying.... that does not surprise me, but I wasn't aware of it.


She crossed that finish line and collected her necklace too.
I know it must have been an awesome experience for her. In her words:

"As I crested the hill, and could see the finish line just a few hundred yards below, I really began to sob. Then I saw my coach, smiling big as ever, running towards me to run with me in. I honestly don't know if I would have made across the finish running if she hadn't been there with me. I had just about reached the point that I thought I'd walk the rest of the way in, even though my goals were 1) to finish and 2) to finish running.

Then....the sight that meant the most. My sister.
She had waited 2 1/2 hours at the finish, AFTER RUNNING HER OWN RACE, for me to finish. She had tears streaming down her face, the biggest smile I'd ever seen her wear, her Fight Like a Tiger T-shirt, and she was waving her arm wildly over her head and screaming my name. For that moment, I not only saw her, but also my parents. She was a living, breathing reminder of why I was doing this crazy race. I could see my mom beaming through her smile, and I could see my dad choking back tears of pride in her eyes. That was why I ran the race...and I'm so grateful that she was there for me at the finish.

I crossed the finish line, grabbed the first "little blue box" I saw without paying any attention to the firemen in tuxedos holding the boxes on a silver platter (one of the most heavily advertised perks of this race). I grabbed my t-shirt, some gatorade, a sandwich, and told Mary Beth I was ready to get back to the hotel, so we made the LONG trek to the busses....which was almost as bad as the last mile of the course."

It was such an exciting time. She actually walked around a bit afterward. I would have fallen down and had to be carted off if I ran that long. But she still looked good.
Karen, I am truly amazed at your strength and even more impressed by your perseverance.

It Hurts So Good

So the race is on. We ran through the financial district for what seemed like a second and then we hit the piers. We ran along the bay for a little while. There were so many people. I was so amazed at the amount of spectators that were there to watch that early in the morning.
What a mix of people. People were running in costume (they amazed me, because most of them ran the full marathon) and some were running with bare feet or these "feet-glove" looking things! I'll never understand that!
It was a trip just people-watching during the race.
There were a few, much older runners (that were kickin' my butt, mind you) and even a couple of pregnant walkers with jerseys that said things like "running for two."
We passed the sign for mile two and I pointed it out to Karen. I was trying to watch times because, of course, wouldn't you know it, my watch stopped working when we got down to the lobby. Somewhere on the elevator, the battery ran out. Oh well.
Anyways, I pointed out the Mile 2 sign and Karen looked at me amazed. She removed her ear buds and said, "I thought we had maybe run 3/4 of a mile so far!"
That was the feeling of the race. You just couldn't feel how much you had ran. It was all so surreal and you felt nothing as far as pain went. There was too much to keep your mind occupied.
As we ran up along the bay, the Golden Gate Bridge came into view. It was beautiful. There was a lot of fog on the bay that morning, so you could hear the foghorn but you couldn't see the bridge completely, but it was still a beautiful site none-the-less......


(This is actually my picture from during the race and my audio of the real Golden Gate fog horn that I recorded on my iPhone) from our trip)

.....That is until you looked straight ahead. My love affair with the sites soon diminished when I saw the hill we were about to climb.... and then the switch-back and the next hill. Holy Moly! What am I going to do!?!
It was a bit of a crowded bottle neck situation because a lot of people stopped to walk. You couldn't get through enough by the time that we got there not to. So we did end up walking a bit of it. This is where I learned a little bit about myself.... I'm a terrible speed-walker! My legs are way too short to keep up with my sister. So this is when I realized I would be running every bit of this race. That's right folks. No walking for this girl. But don't let me misrepresent myself... I was running at a snail's pace up that hill. There were so many people and you could only go as fast as the masses were going.
The next couple of miles were the same. It was a beautiful part of the course which made it a little bit better, but it was tough. We saw Karen's coach, Maury. She was very please with how we were looking in our run even though it was such a tough part. It was very wooded and a piney fragrance lingered in the humidity which would every-so-often form a drop that would land right on your head. It was as if we had our own water cycle going on in those woods. One that we were apparently sharing with coyotes. We actually passes a road sign for coyote crossing.... yikes!
But it was all worth it when we turned that final corner to start the downhill.
The view was astounding. There is no way to describe it (but you know I'll try). As the tunnel of the forest that we were running through gave way to light, you could see that we were all of the sudden on a cliff. I actually stopped at one of the scenic view parking lots that they build for "motorist" to take in the view. I was on a cliff overlooking the Pacific Ocean. There were huge rocks.... not just rocks, but monoliths, jutting up from the water. It was almost like the scene from Goonies... you know which one I'm talking about? There was a beautiful sailboat out there that looked just like the one we saw at Pier 39. It was a scene straight from Heaven.... it had to be.
What a way to get energized.
So downhill we went.
Then we saw my coach. He was so funny because he's a really energetic guy. One of those with a smile plastered on his face even when he doesn't mean to have one. He's just that up beat and carefree. He spotted us among all of the runners and caught up with us. He was so happy to see us and said that we looked great. I explained to him that my feet had not quite hit the ground yet. He said that he hoped they wouldn't until the race was over.
He took me and Karen's picture and sent us on our way. It was great to see him.
Another part of the race that warmed my heart was how many people called out Karen's and my name. It was funny too because they always seemed to yell both of our names together, even when Karen and me weren't right next to each other per se. It was as if the whole world knew that "Karen and Mary Beth" go together. Karen missed some of it because she was listening to her music. She was in her own zone (which you have to be "in the zone" to run 26.2 miles). I however had ditched my earbuds and decided that I was going to take in the sites and sounds of the race. How often do you get to absorb and live in those kind of moments.
After our downhill, Karen and I were coming up on our split. It was very emotional. We went through one more "checkpoint." This one was neat because you ran through a little mini-finish-line type archway. The man on the microphone called out "You are awesome Karen and Mary Beth!" Normally this kind of attention would mortify me, but in this setting, I have to admit, I loved it. Then we started to see where they were splitting the 1/2 marathoners and the full marathoners into different lanes. My chest tightened knowing that I was going to have to split from my sister.
We came up on the split. We stopped at the last possible moment and hugged each other. I hugged her neck harder than I ever have before. I was so proud to be her sister.
I watched her go down her lane and off in the the direction which led her to a path that would take 15 more miles to reach the finish line.
I watched her almost until I couldn't see her anymore. I purposely stopped watching before that point came because my grandmother always said that it was bad luck to watch your loved ones leaving until you couldn't see them anymore. She always walked back into her house before we could no longer see each other due to physical distance. Those kind of things stick with you I guess. And I certainly didn't want any bad luck for us on that day.
As I jogged away in my direction, the emotion overcame me. I had to focus on my task at hand and put the split behind me. I started having issues with my breathing. I couldn't get enough air into my lungs because my emotions were effecting my physical well-being. But I got a quick handle on that and jogged on toward the "Chocolate Mile."
The next feed station was the Ghirardelli one. Because of our chocolate training the other day, I was ready for my chocolate. They handed me a piece as I ran through and I decided to save it. I actually held onto it, o so delicately as to not melt it, to give to Colin as a race memento.
Next, I start to hear the crowd that was formed around the Finish Line. I knew I was close. I turned the next corner and there it was.
As I ran down the red carpet that led to the Finish Line, I heard my name over the speakers. It put a little extra speed in my step. And there was my moment.
I DID IT! I CROSSED THE FINISH LINE!!!!!!!

Jelly Belly and Beyonce'

So we made it down to the lobby the next morning all tattooed up and in plenty of time to hang out a little bit before the race.

After doing a little bit of socializing (which I didn't realize that I could do that early in the morning... amazing what adrenaline can do for you),

we began our walk with the Louisiana team to the race. We were only about 2 blocks away so it was a short nip over.
We turned the corner and were totally awe-struck by the sea of people that were waiting to start, just absolutely pumped for this event.

You looked to the right and there were people as far as the eye could see.

You looked to the left and the crowd turned the corner and went on for who knows how long.

Team Louisiana was ready to go with their message.
Karen and I found our "corral" and got comfortable. It was pretty chilly so we started with our "Fight Like A Tiger" t-shirts on (of course, but what else!?!)

We knew there was a "coat check" at mile two, so we were going to take advantage of it.

I remember hearing a "professional" of some sort in the medical field on the microphone telling us that since it was a chilly morning it was "super important to get those muscles warm" (said in a very cheery, cutsie, female voice... you know the type). So we all started stretching and hopping around. It looked hilarious, but none of us cared. We were having way too much fun.
Karen and I popped our stash of Sport Beans (Jelly Belly knows how to do it!) I remember, I dropped one and was so upset. I frantically searching through the hundreds of feet in my immediate area to make sure I found it. I figured I would be ticked if I stepped on a Sport Bean at the beginning of my race and had to deal with that sticky mess at the beginning of my race, not to mention I didn't want to be responsible for someone rolling an ankle on such an important day, that would be my luck.
Then someone was singing "The Star Spangled Banner." I've never gotten goose bumps quite like I did at that moment. It almost brought me to tears. Of course, it almost brings me to tears when I hear it at a local sporting event, so I guess that's not saying much considering what a "mush" I am when it comes to that.
After that we heard a "good morning!" and then I hear...."All the single ladies, All the single ladies, All the single ladies, All the single ladies, now put your hands up..." Of course, the goof that I am, all I can picture at this point is that frantic dancing and a metal robot-glove, then Glee comes to mind. That makes me happy!
I smile a mile wide. I feel alive all of the sudden listening to the music. This is when my feet leave the ground (and don't think they touched back down until about mile 11 3/4... then they came SLAMMING DOWN!)
I tell you, that Beyonce' knows what she's doin'. She and Jelly Belly.... mmm mmm mmmm. What a great combination for the start of my race.
Then we hear the start of the race. Crazy thing is, I don't know if it was a gun shot, an air horn, or what. I can't remember. Which is crazy, because I could point out every detail of every person that was around us at any time during the race, but the start, I don't remember. My mind works in a crazy way, but most of you knew that already. =]

And then...
And then....
And then....


Nothing.

We stand there, now listening to Lady Gaga (which kind of messed me up, because I had already mentally assigned this song to the soundtrack of the Niketown part of my trip. Am I the only person who does this... creates "mental soundtracks" for certain times of your life and assigns songs to represent that time? I know.... crazy.) Then a few more songs play. As the playlist marches on over the loudspeakers, I pay less attention because I'm wondering when we can get this show on the road.

Finally, they lift our gates and we're off.....

.... at a blistering shuffle!

We walked (barely) up to the start line.
Now I know I'm making it sound like I was frustrated... as if I was going to "do some damage" to my "competition" in this race. But that in fact couldn't be further from the truth. I was smiling this whole time. There was not a negative vibe in the air. I could have stood there for hours, happily taking in the moment.
But we did finally make it to the start line (I think 22 minutes into the race, the winner was at about mile 4 when I crossed the start line).
Things opened up, and we started our run. It was fabulous. There are no words, so I won't even try. You'll just have to run one to know.

Getting Ready

Back at the room, we got everything ready for the next day's race. We had already gotten our jersey's ready by ironing on our names and Mom.
We laid out all of our gear for the next day so that we could be down in the lobby, ready to go, for 5:30 the next morning.

Pinning on my bib

It was almost surreal to see it all put together

Ready with my name

This is what it's all about

The Pasta Party

It was finally time to start the "marathon festivities." Team in Training puts on a pasta party the night before their marathons. We were so excited about this.

We walked down to the convention center, tickets in hand, with the Louisiana Team. They were really turning heads and I heard a lot of comments from different people "that must be the New Orleans team" because they were all decked out in their Mardi Gras beads, yellow green and gold feathers, and crazy hats.

No one else looked like this (typical Louisiana... I love the flare).

When we got about 100 feet from the door, I heard Amy say, "get your camera out Karen." She asked why and seemed like she wasn't going to. I fussed at her and said, "I don't know why, but just do it because someone told you to. They must know something we don't."

Well, boy that was an understatement! When we walked in, the first 100 yards or so was lined with our coaches and survivors cheering us on.



They all had noisemakers and were clapping as loud as possible.
It was so amazing. It truly felt like we were Olympians walking into the opening ceremonies. We waved to them as we paraded by and took in all of their cheers of encouragement and appreciation for what we had done. This was one of the most awesome experiences of the whole weekend.

Karen and I both teared up. It was so emotional. Our heroes made us feel like we were their heroes.

And into the pasta party we went.

Team in Training has this down to a science. The first thing they had us do was go through the food line. You hadn't even sat down before you got your food. This made for a smooth transition and no "hanging around" before getting to the business of the party.

We ate while some awards were presented for fundraising and participation and recognition was given to all sorts of different groups: first timers - 10 timers, ect.

Then we had the funniest speaker. He writes for Runners World and is known for being a very slow marathoner.

He talked about nutrition on race day. Some people have a banana for breakfast, some only coffee. He balked at that! He said, "I'm going to miss two full meals while I'm out! I'm eatin' breakfast!"

Then he spoke about the start line and how it's nothing like what you think of, or at least not for the masses. Those elite runners have that "dream" start... the gun goes off and off they go! We, however, stand there for about 15 minutes and slowly, slowly make our way towards the start line. The imitation of everyone at the end of the line shuffling to the start was hilarious. What I didn't realize at that time was just how true that is.

We got to see a slide show of the people that are our heroes and who we are doing this all for and many other uplifting things.

It was an inspiring night. Karen was presented with her certificates in leu of door decorations (Hilton did not let the coaches decorate doors the night before the race).

I was able to meet with my team for an inspirational and informational talk about tomorrow's race.

It was a great night and we were pumped for the next day.

Our Epic Trip To Haight Ashbury

We hopped on the bus after our lunch at Caffe Delucchi and ended taking a transfer over to the Haight Ashbury area to see "Post Card Row"

It was beautiful.

Now I must admit, I wasn't completely comfortable with this part of our trip. I felt like we really should have been saving our energy for the next day and we really didn't know our way around this area. But we did it anyways because we wanted to see it.

We went to the little dog park that is in front of Post Card Row

There is a man playing a guitar under this tree. How San Fran!.

Do these "painted ladies" remind you of anything? "What ever happend to predictability? The milk man, the paper boy, evening T.V. Everywhere you look....."
This is the background to the opening credits to Full House.
It was absolutely beautiful!

Then we walked over to the Haight Ashbury area. It was a very charming area. When passing by one area I saw a dog sitting on a couch looking out of an open window. You'll probably have to click on the picture to see him looking out of the window of the white house.

I wondered if he knew how good he had it.... what kind of real estate he was living in. It's just crazy to me that he is just living in his doggy dog world not realizing what he should be appreciating every day.

It seemed like we had gotten so far from our part of town. I guess it was because there was no true destination, it was not a part of the down town area at all, and the fact that we had come from the North Beach area (totally opposite end of San Francisco) that I felt like this was becoming an epic trip on a day that we were suppose to be resting.

This is the closest thing I can come up with as far as a destination. This was the point where we decided to get onto a bus to go back home. This picture captures the essence of the Haight Ashbury area. The peace sign (it's cut into the hedges, I know you can't really tell it from this angle) and the man sitting next to it. The upper Haight Ashbury area is synonymous with the 1960's hippie movement.

But anyways, we did some walking and saw some neat things, but we decided to jump on a bus and head back. It was a very quick bus ride back.

We met yet some more Team In Training people that were in town for the race. They gave us some good advice and cheered us on. This was their 6th marathon. Talk about being hooked!

We made it back to the hotel with plenty of time to get ready for the pasta party.

Loosening Up And Carb Loading

Saturday morning Karen and I went for a run in the downtown area.

It was a Saturday, so it was a very different feeling from our run our first day there. The streets and sidewalks were busy. With our iPod earbuds in place, we cranked up our playlists and weaved through people left and right. I felt like I was in a Nike commercial. It was a great run.... very entertaining.
Then we went for a latte at Starbucks and back to our room to get ready for the day. We had decided that we should really take it easy that day (since we had been all over creation the past couple of days). We also knew that we needed to get in a good pasta lunch. We had been told to make this lunch our "big meal" before the race.
So we talked about where we should go for this big meal. We knew we wanted to try somewhere in the North Beach area because the hotel's concierge had pointed us in that directions for a good Italian meal.
We decided to try the Urban Spoon App on the iPhone. It just seemed to fit the whole vibe of our trip to fly by the seat of our pants like this.
We locked our settings and shook the phone. I have to admit, we shook twice because we didn't like the first place it gave us.
So we ended up going to Caffe' Delucchi. It was just a bus ride away.

When we got there, there was a table out on the patio available, so we were able to eat our pasta al fresco on this beautiful fall day. Picture perfect!

Our waiter was a very nice guy who asked us where we were from (What! Are you trying to tell me that we do not sound like San Franciscans!?!) When I told him that I was from North Carolina he said that is where the owner/head chef was from too. Again, the perfect little details that made me feel like this trip was custom tailored for us.
I ordered the farfalle all'agnello and Karen ordered Spaghetti.
We sat and talked, beginning to get a little bit nervous about the next day. The vacation aspect our trip was wearing off and the reality of the work ahead was beginning to set in.
But then we forgot our worries for a short while after we were served.

(I'm starting to realize how bizarre it is that I was photographing so many of our meals... it's just that I knew I wanted to preserve all of our memories that we were making)
We both enjoyed what was quite possibly the best pasta meal I have or will ever have in my life. We gobbled it up and our waiter laughed and said he was so glad that we'd be running that off the next day.
So now, with the appropriate amount of carbs fueling our bodies, we felt much better about the day to come.