Full Circle: I Win

I came full circle today, and conquered the negative shit that was taxing my chi.

I finished the Stone Harbor Triathalon (S-.25M / B-11M / R-3.1M) this morning in 1:12:00 despite a bruised hip that refuses to heal, and a nasty abrasion that continues to threaten
infection. I did the swim in 7:40, the ride in roughly 40, and the run in about 22 minutes (the rest was transition time). I heard people groaning and whispering when they saw me run past, my oozing raspberry peeking out of my shorts. And it felt good to know I didn’t let it beat me.

I was actually singing (“Have You Seen Me Lately?”) aloud as I closed in on the finish line, doing my now customary “Rocky” thing shtick: jabbing and uppercutting the air (like a fool, I’m sure, but it works). I said to myself just before breaking into the finishing sprint, “You have this punk-ass course kicked.” I think I said it to some other dude too who looked like he was suffering, I’m not sure (endorphins get one a bit cloudy, you know).

Anyway, so my brother’s friend Mark drives me from Stone Harbor to his apartment in Ft. Lee and I get back on my bike, ride across the George Washington Bridge, down the West Side, and straight across the same gravel-choked puddle on 59th Street that tossed me like a rag doll on Tuesday.

Full circle. I win.

So, I’m just gettin’ my apartment back in order. The futon was out, dishes were everywhere, empty Gatordade bottles in the floor, clothes strewn — not pretty. But now it is. And I’m ready for the world. Again.