2/22/15
The proximity of Key West to Marathon was too close for me not to go. Having completed the southern part of my run I wanted to relax a bit. The Florida Keys seemed like the perfect option for such an endeavor. Emerald green iguanas relaxed around Key West. The trees swayed when the cool light winds blew as we walked to Lupita’s Mexican restaurant. Right off the bat I knew I would love the food. The chips had been freshly made and the salsa had a light sweet taste. The enchiladas were filled with cheese and not too salty. The owners of the establishment had a daughter that seemed a bit shy when we first gave her a book. Her name was Elizabeth just like my mom. In very little time Elizabeth was out of her shell and chatting with us. She was a big reader so we made sure we left her with another book. They made sure that I had a T-shirt to run in.
The space on the island was limited. The places for us to park the trailer had grown increasingly slim. We decided on returning to Marathon. There we would again sleep in the IHOP parking lot. The journey has had an unpredictable nature. We never know when we will see luxury and when we must take refuge in a parking lot. The one constant has been the ability to treat both imposters the same and continue taking steps.
The mini vacation before stage two of the great reading run had already begun but we figured it would be silly for us to drive backwards from the Miami port just to run back up so, from Homestead, I began running toward Miami. This way, I could jump right back into work when I stepped off the cruise. As I approached downtown, I passed the university area.
The first couple days on holiday were great on the body. I gave my tired bones an ample amount of rest and I feasted around the clock. The water seemed to be just what the doctor ordered until I encountered other people’s germs. With so many sick people inside the floating box my own demise was inevitable.
Cold sweats, body aches, and a throbbing head marked my final days on the ship. The infirm followed me onto the land as I attempted to start stage two of the run. In the past I had successfully “sweat out” colds. I passed relaxing iguanas as I ran out of Miami and toward Fort Lauderdale. We ended at a parking lot in the town of Sunrise FL. My body screamed for more rest as I collapsed lifelessly onto the bed.
The next day we had a shower at a public pool. A swim comforted me for a moment but then I started to freeze. We parked around the corner of the pool and I crawled back into bed and threw the covers over my head. Another day out of commission. Stage two was off to a slow start. I had to will myself back to health. Despite having friends in the area that I was planning to visit, I maintained my patience.
In Wellington, several things awaited us. We looked forward to getting a decent rest at the Lion Country Safari KOA and a nice dinner at The Coach House with my friends from Colombia and my friend dawn from New York. The sun cooked my skin and my muscles fought me for thirty miles but in the end we got through the day.
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