2/26/2015
Miscommunication can lead to misunderstanding. When I arrived in Wellington I was so excited to see a couple of friends from different time periods in my life. Our paths all converged conveniently on my 174th day of running. Crystal had worked diligently to secure us a place to meet and hang out. My mom and Crystal got to meet my friends Alejandro and Christian from South America, and my friend Dawn who was living in Wellington. We enjoyed lots of conversation and a light meal. The misunderstanding happened when the check came. Everyone that had come out intended to take care of the bill. We had made arranged beforehand to have our own portion donated to prevent an awkward scene. The bill came and everything was on the bill except for the drinks from the bar. The food had been discounted by half but the stage was set for folly.
Dawn tried to pay for the bill but Alejandro ended up picking up the tab. He had eaten the least out of everyone. Dawn had the bill from the bar that they had waved and of course I had the lion’s portion of food. The reality was that no matter how good the food of a place I would not pay exorbitant prices because it doesn’t make sense on several fronts. The bulk of this foundation and its charitable giving has been funded by me and my supporters. I couldn’t eat those types of meals with a clear conscience. Secondly I would bankrupt the foundation because of my high calorie needs.
The ridiculous part is that they would have made more money at the restaurant and in tips if they had separated the bills and comped the foundation members’ meals. Alejandro had defeated Dawn in the battle for the bill but then left a tip that our server felt disgruntled about. This guy came up to me and talked to me about this. I ended up adding twenty dollars to his tip. It just baffles me how all parties tried to treat me to dinner and this happened. I wasn’t sure if I should have been disturbed by the way it was handled by the management or by our server. I was just happy to head back to the Lion Country Safari KOA. My body still hadn’t fully recovered from that nasty bug.
After a quiet evening of much needed rest, I was startled in the morning. I had heard rumors that you could hear the wild animals from the safari but I didn’t know they would be in high definition stereo. It sounded as if Mufassa from the Lion King was about to go hunting. How close were these animals to me? To be honest, it was pretty awesome to hear them roaring and I would have loved to have had more time to see the animals. They are allowed to roam free in their sanctuary so that was awesome. Of course I had already had my one week break and there were miles to cover. We said good bye to Kathy at the front office and thanked her for helping us move forward on our journey.
Sinus pressure was the remaining symptom of that crippling bug. My breathing was labored as I made my way towards North Palm Beach. Since Wellington was located a few miles inland I had to make my way back towards Hwy 1. Google maps did not make my path straight. Every few steps I was presented with dead end roads and dirt paths. I met up with Crystal and my mom at a park but really it looked like a backyard playground. No parking lot existed we met up a couple miles later at a proper park. There I had a snack and took a nap. I needed my lungs to find their capacity.
The nap killed my fatigue and when I resumed the journey I began to run strong. One hundred percent was still a stretch but, I was close. On past occasions I’ve had to will myself to perform. The only way I knew to conquer the bug was by taking deep breaths and pushing myself forward. The sky turned dark and winds picked up speed a few miles before I made it to the destination parking lot. I kicked off my shoes, wrapped my legs, and let my mind go blank. Then suddenly I noticed my mom wasn’t feeling too hot. Oh no! She had caught that nasty cold. I ran to the store, bought some ginger, and proceeded to make her a tea with ginger and honey. It was a good think Crystal was still healthy. It would have been miserable for all of us to be sick.
The winds howled through the entire night. The scent of ginger and garlic lingered in the trailer. The exhaustion crept into our sphere and slumber befriended us for a lengthy period of time. I forced myself to get up in the morning and discovered we had all slept till about nine o’clock. It was a windy and overcast day with a temperature above eighty. The street was lined with plenty of franchise stores but after I crossed pga street everything became golf courses and private communities. Since Wellington I had noticed plenty of wealth in the Florida neighborhoods. My thoughts on the run turned to the disparity between the haves and the have nots. I then reminded myself it was useless to worry about things beyond my reach. I had to concentrate on my steps. I had to concentrate on the things I could control. Everything else was inconsequential. It began to rain a couple miles from my destination. I enjoyed the cool water. The clean rains washed away my thoughts. I ran in a meditative state until a runner in the distance caught my eye. He and I were running in the same direction. I don’t know if the stay by the safari triggered my animal instincts but I began to chase him down. I felt like the lion hunting its prey. With each step the distance between us shrank. He tried to pick up the pace as I was sure he felt me closing in. By the time I was a couple feet away, he had surrendered. He turned just in time to witness a flash pass by. From there, only a mile remained until I reached the trailer. I was feeling better.
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