Karma, Bandera and two-hour runs

I woke up at 4:10 yesterday morning.  This was wildly and immediately upsetting  because I was supposed to meet my friends at the Exxon Tiger Mart at 4.  We were heading out to Bandera for a run.  I was only supposed to run for two hours, which doesn’t really merit the two-hour Bandera commute or a 4am meeting, but I miss my running friends.  (And this is the time you get up for a long run in Bandera in the summer.)  In any event, I was up and swearing and running through the house with untied sneakers in seconds.  I woke Eliot up and employed his help.  While I pony-tailed, he filled my hydration pack.  You heard me right, swearing a blue streak, I woke Eliot up and “asked” him to fill my hydration pack – so I could go running and leave him with our child for most of Saturday morning.  Apparently he accumulated quite a karmic debt at some point.  Anyway, as I chugged gas station coffee and chatted happily with my friend Tony en route to Bandera, Eliot lay awake for a couple of hours.  He doesn’t fall back to sleep easily sometimes.  Fast forward through one great run and wonderful friends.  Eliot’s in the yard clearing brush.  He isn’t upset with me.  He doesn’t really do upset.  He is tired though.  Weary even.  I needed to make amends.  My opportunity came when he offered to cut down a dead tree in our neighbor’s yard.  (Long dead tree threatening the road, our driveway and possibly some powerlines. Cash strapped single mom living with elderly mother.  No chainsaw savvy.)  While Eliot labored, I chatted with the neighbor lady.  (Best not to interfere with karmic debts.)  It turns out a tree service was going to charge her $300 to take the tree down.  I made my move.  Would she be able to watch Asa tonight while Eliot and I went out for dinner?  Free sitter in hand, I headed to the computer to find a nearby date night restaurant.  Fast forward through Eliot’s three hour nap and Asa and me using walkie talkies to coordinate our firefighting efforts and then rearranging the rocks in front of our house.  It’s time to walk Asa over to the neighbors.  Eliot walks outside wearing a clean shirt.  Asa and I are covered in dirt and sweat.  (Pictures of our rock-scaping to come.) He looks mildly irked.  OK, he doesn’t look that way at all.  He doesn’t do “irked” either.  But I perceive a subtle disappointment that I’m not ready to go.  Shoot.  I run into the house, shower off quickly, and put on a Dress.  And I apply make-up.  And I blow dry my hair.  Big guns.  Asa is present for my speed makeover and asks for hairdrying, perfume and eyeshadow too.  I touch his lids with the tip of the eyeshadow applicator, spray perfume in the air, and aim the hairdryer in his direction.  We run back outside to present our gorgeous selves.  Eliot is pleased.  It was a great date and I feel safe I will not be reincarnated as a cockroach for the time being.

Running: two (and a bit) hours