a little more than taper madness

This week has been an emotional roller coaster.

On Friday, a friend of mine died suddenly at the age of 44 while driving to work. Not in an accident, but just died while driving. A coworker, one of my favorites of them all, had an aneurysm on Friday and died on Sunday. Age 59. To say that I'm in shock from this double-whammy is a massive understatement.

I've been a wreck all week, basically. I'm this close to crying at all times. My friend's service was Tuesday night and my coworker's is tomorrow. So many times this week I've thought of one of them as if they're still with us. I'm hoping that my psyche will process it all soon.

Meanwhile, it's race week for my biggest race in a year and the biggest since my last injury: the Charleston Half Marathon. I have trained as well and as faithfully as I can. I've been near 10 miles since November. I am READY. So, this week, since a Monday treadmill 5k, I've been resting my legs, taking hot baths, getting sleep, and trying to hydrate like a crazy woman--all that crying is dehydrating.

I just got home from work and I have a 4-day weekend ahead of me. The race is in about 38 hours. I am simultaneously excited and exhausted. Grateful to be healthy and trained and ready. Grateful to be alive when Bruce and Rick are no longer. In a crazy emotional "life is short" mode. This ought to be interesting.