Sunday

Today I did something I have never done before.

I got out of bed when the alarm went off. And although I have gotten out of bed when the alarm has gone off on many other days, I don't ever recall doing so on a Sunday. At least not before today. Sunday is a day of rest after all.

Oh sure. Sure it is. Let's ask the Pastor's Wife shall we? Because if she doesn't get to rest on Sunday, there is absolutely no reason whatsoever the rest of us heathens, godless and not, should get to rest either.

So I got up. Had coffee, showered, dressed, kissed my girlfriend goodbye, got in my car and headed for the Metro.

Riding the Metro is a different experience on Sunday morning. There were some other riders, but not nearly the volume I see on weekdays. It feels calmer, both at the stations and on the trains. There were a smattering of folks carrying signs and such, obviously headed to the same place I was headed.

Today was the 29th Annual Marine Corps Marathon in DC. One of my co-workers was running it. Several of us decided we'd go laugh and point and mock his misery encourage and cheer for him along the route. So I rode the Metro to Union Station and met up with one co-worker and his daughter. We walked a few blocks until we were near the Capitol where we met up with another co-worker (the boss) and his wife. We were positioned at the half-way point of the race.

Meanwhile the racers started passing by. The wheelchair folks were the first to arrive. Incredible. Some looked like they were quite comfortable and others appeared to be using the last of their energy. The same was true with the runners as they began to pass our position.

It was hot here today. Like 80 degrees of hot. The sun was brutal, even at ten o'clock in the morning. Those poor racers were sweating buckets. One lady stopped near where we were standing, took off her shoe and sock, and wrung out her sock leaving a puddle behind. The she put the sock back on and repeated the procedure for her other foot. Blech.

Most of the runners where in shorts and a shirt. Others, in celebration of Halloween, were wearing costumes. I saw a woman with cape and a Superman logo on her chest and a fellow dressed as a caveman, complete with a wild wig. My favorite odd attire was the man with a huge hat shaped like a foaming beer stein on his head. There were others carrying flags and balloons and many many wearing political messages.

We spied our co-worker approaching. We jumped up and down. We waved our arms. We shouted his name. We screamed "go go go!" and "yeah co-worker!!" among other things.

The expression of pure unadulterated complete and total misery and pain on his face did not waver. He did not turn his head our way, wave or crack a smile. He was not even aware we were there. But his stride was steady and his pace was good. Surely he was enjoying himself somewhere deep down inside?

The Boss and his wife live on Capitol Hill in an old row house in which they raised their family and have had renovated over the years. The house is really quite lovely. We all adjourned there where we breakfasted on pancakes and fruit. Nice, laid back, casual and fun. I'd not spent too much time talking to the boss' wife before and it was nice to get to know her a bit. Plus she makes really good pancakes. Who knew?

As I was on the Metro riding home, I received a text message from my co-worker who had gotten a notification from the website tracking the runners. It said "He finished! He finished!"

Like there was ever any doubt he would.