58: 6M Run in Seattle

I called room service for a bucket of ice. "On second thought, could you possibly bring two?" Party in room 1406! No really... I was about to go out for a run and wanted to make sure I had plenty of ice in the room, ready for my return.

"Yes, ma'am," the bellboy replied, I'm sure wondering why anyone would call for two buckets of ice at 7AM. Then I thought of something else I needed.

"And can you bring a pair of scissors? Would you have those in the kitchen or do I need to call the front desk?" There was a long pause. "Are you there?" Silence. I thought maybe I'm confusing him; I should explain, "It's for some medical tape I need to cut."

Too much information? Why do I always say too much? "Ummm... Let me ask my manager," he murmured and then, more silence. Finally he came back, "Yes, we will send scissors."

Within what seemed like moments, there came a very firm knocking on the door. That was fast! I expected it to be the young bellboy with my ice and scissors but, instead, an unfamiiliar deep male voice called out, "This is security! Is everything OK?" I rushed to the door and peeked out.

Apparently, at this hotel, people don't often call downstairs for two large buckets of ice and scissors, and mention things like medical tape, at 7AM. They feared an accident on the premises, or maybe, something more sinister. I opened the door in my running clothes and explained the situation. We all had a good laugh, and, in the meanwhile, the goods came up from the kitchen.

Seattle's a groovy town. I experienced some lovely things on my run this morning. Seagulls. Crab apples. Hobos playing the guitar. The smell of fish at Pike's market, and salty air down on the path stretching north along Elliott's Bay. The Space Needle. Myrtle Edwards Park. Kinnear Park. Massive container lifts. Tourists pulling wheelie bags. And coffee shops everywhere.

It's grey and damp here today. Women are wearing down parkas. Men are in fleece and layers. Me? I did my tour in the usual summer attire - shorts and a sleeveless technical tank. People seemed unfazed. I got a high-5 from a vendor selling posters on the fringe of the market.

I didn't have any water along the way which I didn't like. No fountains. I wonder why. I brought some cash but there wasn't even a place to buy water.

I took a route that mapped out originally to 7 miles; but I ended up cutting a city mile out - too much traffic. So today I went 6 miles, with probably a half a mile of walking in there in the first 3 miles. The last 3 I ran straight, thinking to myself all the while, "This may be unpleasant now, but running makes the rest of my life better. I'm doing something good for myself. 100 calories a mile! Woo hoo!" And after mile 3, it wasn't even unpleasant. If the last leg hadn't been uphill on a 30 degree incline, I might have sprinted.