April 12, 2017 RUN LIKE HELL

17 HOURS. That's how long it took to get home from our trip to Florence. That was a huge improvement over the 24 hours it took to get there. Traveling is hard work. Absolutely loved our time in Florence but it was a comedy of errors. Plane left Boston 1 1/2 hours late because a passenger had a medication issue---causing us to miss our connection in Amsterdam. Of course--there were NO other flights to Florence--our only option was a flight to PISA--a BUS to the train station--and THEN a 1 1/2 TRAIN ride to Florence. 24 HOURS. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that they LOST our luggage for 3 days. Don't worry--WE didn't let any of this ruin the trip. So what if we didn't have any underwear--toothpaste--ANTI-wrinkle cream right??  Seriously, we had a great time despite all the traveling nonsense. Like I said--TRAVELING IS HARD WORK. Didn't run for a week but boy did WE WALK--between 8-10 miles every day.  No running, reading or writing  UNTIL we got on our flight to come home. Read a great book on the way home about running called Again to Carthage--which inspired me to get up this morning--jet lagged and exhausted-- for an easy 5 mile run.

Again to Carthage is the sequel to the cult classic Once a Runner by elite runner and U.S. Track & Field Steeplechase champion John L. Parker, Jr.

The first novel ends when Quenton Cassidy, the main character, captures the silver medal in the Olympics for the mile. In  Again to Carthage, it is about 10 years later. Quenton has graduated from law school and is a successful lawyer, separated from his wife,  living in Palm Beach. After facing  a series of  losses, including the death of his grandfather and uncle, Quenton decides to return to his passion. Running. Quenton enlists his old coach Bruce Denton to help him train--this time for the Olympic Marathon team. The training includes running in the mountains of North Carolina which is captured beautifully by Parker--I seriously wanted to make the journey to North Carolina to  run through the breathtaking mountains myself. What also makes this book special is that Parker actually gets the mind of the runner. It is inspiring because he understands that running is about will--determination--and the crazy--almost idiotic--reasoning of the runner. He captures the lonely almost spiritual journey the competitive athlete-- or any long distance runner for that matter-- endures--perfectly. It is a single minded journey NOT for the faint of heart. This book is GREAT--as good or even better than the first. It's about 380 pages or a 5 mile run that will inspire you to be the best you can be. Just found out that there is another sequel. Can't wait to read it!