Morning Turkey Day Events
11-24-05, 10:28 AM

Before the crack of dawn, I�m up, showered and driving to my mother�s house, all four houses down the street, to make the turkey. The night before we agreed that 6 a.m. would be ideal to start the turkey, yet no lights are on in the house. Letting myself in through the garage, the alarm sounds a beep to indicate a door was open yet no one stirs. Brewing some coffee, I�m hope for the classic Foldger�s commercial where the long lost son arrives home and surprises the family with his arrival and coffee. No luck, not even their faithful watchdog awakes.

With black coffee with one Sweet-n-Low, I begin to cut onions and celery and melt the butter. Only after the fragrant onions begin to permeate the house does my mother appear and I greet her with a coffee. I think she enjoys my helping-out because she tells stories of her mother and grandmother that I each remember fondly. The family stuffing recipe has been handed-down by generations and my grandmother taught me as well such that it is not lost. Unfortunately, I don�t have any kids to continue the tradition.

The night before we went through the checklist to ensure all the ingredients were present. Low and behold, what ya� know? The parsley was missing. With a quick drive, all four houses, I return to my house because I had some left over from my dinner with the �girl�. Uncle Bob saves the day!

With time ticking away, we cleaned and stuffed the bird and placed it in the oven. Since we expect a decent size crowd, we�re cooking a turkey breast as well and I�m trying a Southern stuffing recipe since we, Yankees, have crossed the Mason Dixie Line and now live in the south.
I promised to return after my race.

As one of the first arrivals at 7:15 a.m., I donated my $23 late entrance fee to the YMCA for the 25th annual Turkey Trot which is truly a big family event with races for the tikes, a two mile fun run/walk and a 6.2 mile run. I, of course, tried out my new set of legs that I�ve been working on since September 15th: this was my first test to see how my training was going and how I�ve slowed with age.

Once again, I mistakenly was too close to the front of the pack with the elite runners: high school cross-country athletes; semi-pros; and, those work-out fanatics with ripped bodies. Part of the reason, I must admit, that I remained close to the start line was due to the hot bodies the late teens and early twenties/thirties women have. I just love their long lean muscles, etc.

The gun shot and we�re off! Immediately, the asphalt surface wore on me as I�m used to running on cinders. Somehow, I fell behind a guy in his fifties with asthmatic condition, or at least it seem he did with his weezing. I had to pass him but then I noted everyone was passing me and he was the only I passed. Son of bitch! I�m blowing my load to early! I can feel the strain to keep-up with the pack when this was only to be a pace run for me with a goal of being under a 9 minute mile. Soon, it became disconcerting that everyone was passing me! I dare not look back to see if I was last in the pack, otherwise it would be crushing.

The mental battle began: stop running! Surely, you�re beyond the half-way point! Finally, the 3 mile split! The guy said 25:14! Not bad, considering my training runs all have been at 9:09 splits! Can I keep a 8:24 mile pace? Not bad, fat boy!

The race really fucked with my mind as I was passed by a fifty year old woman, a woman pushing a stroller, the asthmatic guy who was also fifty, two dogs and a guy dressed as a Super Hero complete with cape. Truly disconcerting for the psyche!

In the final stretch, I see the clock at 52:00! Oh, shit I can break 53:00 which was my goal. The sprint was on and I became competitive with another guy but he beat me by a foot step. Nonetheless, I exceeded my expectations with a 52:21, 6.2 mile race. I�m content with 8:26 mile. If nothing else, I learned I kept an even pace without losing a lung or having a heart attack. Also, I really need to training harder and become more dedicated for the upcoming marathon.

The rest of the day is dedicated to nothing but turkey cooking, sampling, drinking and football! The sense of accomplishment, hopefully, will carry throughout the rest of the day and I can gloss over the comments from family as to why the �girl� is not having dinner with us. Last night, I was lectured about how I�m gauche not to invite her.

�Is someone getting married that I�m not informed about?�

Yesterday - Tomorrow