Happy Birthday 20-Miler

So I laid down the 20 that I'd postponed yesterday. I wasn't too thrilled to be pounding out the miles on my birthday but as with all things I know my responsibilities and well, follow through. I'd arranged to run solo, knowing full well that I needed the time to think and listen to what my body was saying. Erie is next week and no amount of good will from well intentioned running partners 400 miles away will carry me through. My plan was to run Bubba twice and then head towards the cannons twice. I was greeted with an unexpected surprise on my first loop. The VA National Guard was out 'ruckin' and not less than 50 men were marching 4 across as I made my way down the backside of Bubba. With roughly a 1/2 a mile between there and the end of my loop I was sure that I'd only see this spectacle once. But oh no, on my way back up Bubba, they were returning, too; words were exchanged and I wouldn't be surprised if that particular roadway doesn't have a few more runners there next weekend. Happy Birthday to me; compliments from strangers are a great motivator. Unfortunately, the same can't be said for the final miles where my tank was empty and I ended up doing more walking than running. But the miles were completed, that box can be checked. Tomorrow I'll hit the trainer. . .