How Did I Get Here?

Friday

“Hey Babe, you wanna go on the Turkey Trot with me today?”

I guess there was probably a better time to ask this than 0615 when I was shaving and Carrie was still in a warm bed.

But I still talked her into meeting me at noon so we could get her signed up and she could run with me for 3 miles on the base. It was the same course as when I ran with my daughter earlier this year.

Carrie’s complaint was that she has not been running and even though I pointed out that it was only three miles, she said “Yeah! I haven’t even run one for months.”

I guess I tend to forget how long three miles is when I have been training for distance. But like the wonderful wife she is, she agreed to join me so we could spend some quality time together, huffing and puffing (and not in a good way).

I’m not going to disclose our time because it was, after all, a turkey TROT and not for time. Anyway, the winner in my age group knocked out a 15:38 which I truly hate him for. I mean, come on, how am I supposed to compete with that?

One interesting note: there were picketers right outside the fence line along the path we ran and they were holding up signs in support of a Drill Instructor going through a court-martial. I wasn’t aware it was even happening so it wasn’t until I Googled it did I realize why they were out there.

After the run, I was ready to eat my own shoes but luckily, they had sandwiches so I didn’t have to ingest my running gear. Then it turned cold (for San Diego, ~60 degrees) as I put on my spiffy new Turkey Trot long sleeve t-shirt on and sat there with my wife as we DIDN’T win a damn thing from the raffle.

OK, that’s about it for the day and I know that wasn’t all that exciting so I will leave you with a story I told at Morning Colors about something I never blogged about (during one of my many blog-blackouts).

It was last week when we had to wear our “Blue Dress C” uniform. That’s the one with the long-sleeve khaki shirt, tie, blue trousers, and white “Blues” cover.

I happened to be in my office and it was time to go to the once-a-year-can’t-miss lunch at the chowhall when they serve steak and lobster with all the fixin’s in celebration of the Marine Corps birthday.

Well, out of habit, I grabbed the green barracks cover instead of the white “Blues” cover. I had it in hand, walked down the stairs, and headed for the door. No one was around (everyone was at the big lunch) so no one was there to notice I had the ridiculously wrong cover in my hand.

As I walked to the door, I thought, “Hey, I need to talk to Nico real quick” and made a 180 to head to his office. I walked in, sat my cover on his couch, and proceeded to talk to him about Ball matters.

When we were finished, I walked out and headed to the door leading out of the building. I realized that I had forgotten my cover in his office and went back in to get it. When I did, he happened to notice it was the wrong one and pointed out how I was an idiot.

Because I like to over-analyze things, here is what I came up with.

If I wouldn’t have thought of talking to Nico at the last second, I would have donned the wrong cover and walked all the way to the chowhall looking like a complete buffoon. I saw no one until I got to the chowhall so no one would have had a chance to tell me until I was in line with over a hundred people in the area.

Hell, even if an enlisted Marine would have seen me, they would have probably laughed, given me an exaggerated snappy salute and loud greeting to bring attention to me.

“Hey, how are you doing, Sir? Gotta love wearing the mods, huh, Sir?”

Additionally, if I would have gone to Nico’s office but remembered to grab my cover the first time, he would have never turned around and seen it was the wrong one.

So I had to happen to decide to go to his office, had to forget my cover in his office, and return to get it in order to avoid my imbecility to reach outside eyes.

Go ahead, have a laugh on me.

Oh, by the way, check out the side bar. I added a few things like the Flickr Badge (the picture thing up top), my Ball picture with my wife, and a widget that displays books from my personal library. And I updated my blogroll so those of you that dropped off, you need to update your blog sometime this friggin’ century if you want me to leave your link on my blog.

On that note, welcome, Smell of Wine and Cheap Perfume. Go read her stuff. She’s a New Yorker that’s been making me laugh out loud lately.

Free Advice for Today: “Don’t buy a cheap tennis racket.”