I woke up this morning with an Angry Eyeball, dammit. Yeah, I can hear you... why don't you take your contact lenses out when you sleep? And my answer to you is... I like watching TV until I fall asleep, and it's more difficult to do that with glasses on. But the downside is dealing with shit like this, so is it really worth the convenience? I'm beginning to think maybe not.
Anyway, I pulled my contact out and hopped in the shower, then chilled out at my computer for an hour while my hair dried. I took some time to do some laundry then got us packed up and we were out of the door by noon. We picked up milkshakes at Steak & Shake, and Arby's for lunch, eating while we drove.
I don't know why, but there was just so much traffic everywhere! Even the turnpike, which is typically easy-going, was busier than normal. We got to Celebration by 3pm and parked over by the Celebration Hotel (the opposite side of the lake from where Packet Pickup was located). It seemed weird to see the waterfront devoid of people... I pretty much only see it when it's full of screaming spectators and sweaty finishers!
Packet pickup was easy (it's always easy), and I got my shirt, blanket, swag bag, and bib. We walked backward along the course (from Finish Line to Mile 12.5-ish) along the back of the lake toward our car. It was nice that Hubby could see what I see from the course.
From here, we headed over to Melia Hotel, where we were staying for the weekend. It's about a mile or so from The Corner where Hubby meets me, so I thought it would be good for him to be able to chill for a few hours in the hotel, instead of having to wait at Water Street. Check-in was extremely busy; I waited about 20 minutes for my turn. Ricky, the desk clerk, was great, but it was very hard to hear him over the cacophony in the lobby. Our hotel had hefty resort fees of $40/day, which covered parking, free happy hour (one hour, all you can drink), and the in-room minibar. Hey, cool, a minibar! Oh... maybe not...
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| Waiting in line in the lobby |
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| The entire room from the door |
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| Looking back to the entrance door |
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| Oooh, such a fancy mini-bar! |
Like many older hotels, the lobby was sleek and shiny, but the rooms and outbuildings were old and in need of love. The luggage carts were rough. The elevators were kind of beat up. In the room itself, it had the problem of wasted space. There was a lot of underutilized space by the door/bathroom, and the bedroom area was much more claustrophobic. The bed (definitely not a true King Size bed) was firm and not too bouncy. The AC was pathetic, and it actually got warmer when I set the thermostat to 64º. I wondered if there was something wrong with it. The bathroom was large, but boring, with a basic bathtub that I planned to use later. We had a pool view, but no balcony to go out onto.
Since it was Happy Hour, I went down to get a $40 glass of soda (I had a caffeine withdrawal headache at this point), and picked up a tub of ice on the way back to the room. We kicked around some ideas for dinner while I let the caffeine hit me, and we decided to go to Ford's Garage for dinner. Unfortunately, the Promenade at Sunset Walk (where FG was located) was blocked off for some sort of Street Car Show; it was full of douchey low-rider, neon-ground-light cars and extremely loud thumping music. All of the roads were closed except for one, but we found a back way in and found parking right by FG. When we checked in, we were told that the wait time was almost an hour, and I just couldn't deal with it (my head was killing me, I was hangry, and I didn't want to deal with the crowds) so we left and went to our Safety Restaurant - Cracker Barrel. It seemed like a great idea at the time! It was quiet, maybe only 1/4 of the place was occupied.
That should have been a warning.
I don't know what got in to me, but instead of my usual pancake breakfast, I decided to try the
Maple Grilled Chicken Breast dinner with mashed potatoes and french fries. It took almost 30 minutes for our food to come out, even after tables who were seated after us
and ordered after us got their food. My plate was screaming hot when I got it, but it looked like my potatoes had sat under a heat lamp for 20 minutes. The chicken was disappointing. It was just
meh. But the worst part was the ranch they gave me for my fries. It tasted like dill...? I wondered if I'd gotten some sort of Dill Sauce instead of ranch, so I nicely asked our server for a new cup of ranch, really enunciating the word
ranch. He brought us another cup of the same nasty dill stuff. (ETA: I just looked it up on CB's website, and apparently they have something called
Pickle Ranch which is probably what he gave me... Don't get it. It's gross). Hubby's meal was just as
meh with lukewarm mashed potatoes. As we looked around, it seemed like
every single table was having issues (the guy behind us was really kicking up a storm and demanded his meal be 100% comped). I want to be perfectly honest... I was planning on asking for my meal (not the whole tab) to be comped, but after the guy behind us made such a scene, I didn't want to pile on to our poor waitress. It seemed like the breakdown was with the cook and/or expediter, not with our waitress, so I didn't want to take it out on her (and I tipped her well, since
she did a great job with what she could.) We ended up being there for almost two hours!
We popped over to Publix for granola bars and chocolate milk, and then we headed back to the hotel. Our room was still over 70º, so I think we'll need to call the desk in the morning. But for now, I just want a hot bath and some sleep.
My phone alarm went off at 5am, but I snoozed it twice then fucked up and turned it off by accident. Luckily, I'm anal, and my watch alarm went off at 5:30 and I got up after an additional snooze. I got dressed and drank some juice, then cuddled with Hubby for 10 minutes until he got out of bed. As usual, I felt like ass; I couldn't poop, felt shaky, all the normal Pre-Race feelings. We drove over to the race and parked, as usual, at Celebration School. I geared up and we walked to the start line, with a kiss for luck before parting ways.
Right off the start, I realized I forgot my inhaler! Well, I guess we'll see how this goes. I've not felt that I needed it nearly as much as I used to, so many it's not a big deal. I also left my earbuds out, since it made no sense to get my groove on if I'm going to meet up with Hubby in the next 30 minutes.
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| Yes, I am this close to the back |
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| Sunrise at Mile 1 |
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| Slightly crowded at Mile 2 |
Weather-wise, this was a hot one... There was already one runner down before Mile 2 (I don't know if it was heat, or tripping, or what). I met Hubby at the end of the street and I drank some water and munched on a granola bar while we walked the next 1.5 miles or so. We parted ways when he went back to the hotel and I continued on with the race.
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| We walked together along the yellow route |
I talked with a gentleman behind me - he was an older military veteran (carrying a beautiful flag). He hoped to finish, but didn't know if he would. We chit-chatted for about 10 minutes, but eventually, I had to put my ears in and get going! My plan (which had already failed) was to "frontload" this race, running when I could, so I was ahead of pace when the inevitable "Fuck, I Hate This" came around the Motherfucker Mile™. I did 2 minute runs and 1 minute walks, and it worked well for me, until it started getting really hot as hell around Mile 5 (earlier than expected).
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| Mile 3 (Behind the hospital) |
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| Mile 4, along Celebration Boulevard |
I kept up my intervals, though all along the long stretch of Celebration Boulevard, picking up a Vanilla Clif packet and a small cup of pretzels.
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| Save some chowder for me! |
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| If you think this is hard, try dating you. |
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| I love the family/families who put out ALL of their inflatables! |
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| The sign said "Keep running for a major award!" |
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| Keep going... Shitter's Full! |
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| Pretzels and ClifShot (Vanilla) |
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| Drink water so you can stay hydrated while you suffer |
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| Yay for him... boo for me |
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2... 4... 6... 8...
I hate this all and I want to quit! |
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| I ate my ClifShot while I walked |
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| Mile 6 is on the track |
At this point, I know very well how close I am to the back of the half-marathon pack, and I just want to freakin' quit, but I kept going. I opted to continue my 2/1 intervals, even on the boardwalks. I kind of lost it for a while, and everything from this point on feels like a blur... I got passed by more people on the boardwalk, and I snacked on my pretzels, solely for the carbs (they were dry as hell!).
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| One of the most gorgeous parts of the course |
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| Yum, dry pretzels |
From here to around Mile 9, it was the same course, but it looked slightly different. Like I was in an alternate universe where the boardwalk went
left here when it should go right, and things like that. Maybe I was just delirious? All I know is that I beat The Motherfucker Mile™ - again - and that's really all I want.
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| Me too, Mile 8... Me, too |
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| A pretty visual representation of how much I hate Mile 9 |
By Mile 10, I said
fuck it, we're walking. By Mile 11, though, I was getting a true calf cramp, a new experience for me
in a race (usually those come after). I stopped at the little fishing boardwalk/pier at Mile 11 to stretch it out, and it helped a little, but not very much.
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| Yet another picturesque part of this course |
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| Oh, we're getting close! |
Usually, around Mile 11.5, we turn onto a walking path that goes behind some really beautiful homes, but this year, we detoured onto the actual street those homes are on. But there was no shade, and at 11am, the sun was ruthless. All of the homes were gorgeous! I picked up my intervals again, doing 1/1, because honestly, I just wanted to be done at this point!
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| A different route this year |
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| I wonder if this is why we went on a different route? |
We cut through another little boardwalk area right near the Celebration Hotel to reach the promenade around the lake so we could do the final mile.
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| The hotel is right there through the trees |
As always, I love this part of the course, the final mile or so, because you can see the marathon runners pass you, giving it their all, but also encouraging you as you trudge your way toward the end. You can hear the massive crowd across the lake cheering for everyone as runners cross the finish line. The voice of the race announcer floats across the water and pulls you toward the end. There's lots of runners who have finished already, walking backward along the course, giving you smiles and words of encouragement, pushing you further into the final .1 mile.
I ran it in ("ran") and crossed that finish line as strong as I could muster. Garmin says I finished in 4:12, which is neither my best nor worst time. I went back to my stats and looked, and it looks like I beat 3 of my past 9 times! I got my water, my medal, and my food card, and left the Finisher Chute to find Hubby.
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| Hey, I kinda look like I'm actually running! |
Where's he at? Well, I don't see him, but I'm sure he's here somewhere, so I found an empty table and plopped myself down to drink more water. After a few minutes, though, I started getting nervous - he's always here! I texted him, and he was about 5 minutes away (apparently, he underestimated how long it would take him to walk back from the hotel). While I waited for him, I peeled off my shoes and put my feet up. When he got there, we threw all of my crap into the backpack, and got my finish photo down by the lake.
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| Waiting for my Sherpa |
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| I like this, as a backdrop! |
On the way back to the car, I picked up some treats from the vendors; some Clam Chowdah, some donut holes, and some (supposedly) virgin Mimosas (aka OJ)... I don't think the Mimosas were virgin, so I chucked it into some bushes.
Back at the hotel, the AC still wasn't working, and it was stuffy and hot in our room. I took way too hot of a bath, for far too long, and practically boiled myself. I took a quick nap before we got dressed and headed out for lunch. We ended up at a place called
Sickie's Garage, which was
amazing! The menu is huge, and themed to an auto shop, but both of us ended up getting basic burgers and fries, with a side of melted nacho cheese for the fries.
Apparently, my body wanted all the cheese because I ate the majority of my fries and cheese before even touching my burger! Our total was only $26 after tax and tip, for two meals, two sodas, and extra cheese... not bad for a touristy town! We'll definitely come here again.
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| Sickie's Garage Cheeseburger, Fries, & Nacho Cheese |
We popped over to RaceTrac for a fountain Pepsi for me (it's the best for when I need caffeine!), then drove back to our hotel room, which was - you guessed it - still stuffy and warm. We gave up and called the front desk to request maintenance, who came and checked it out. The verdict? A broken compressor; we'll need to change rooms. Anthony from the Front Desk called us to say that they would move us next door, upgrading us from a basic room, to a King 1-Bedroom Suite with Pool View and Full Kitchen (that's about a $75/night upgrade). He even came up and brought us new room keys so we didn't have to go down to the desk. We moved all of our stuff over, pushed the AC down to 68º and now my feet are freezing... I'm gonna sleep so good tonight!
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| Living Room & Full Kitchen, from Balcony area |
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| Balcony and View |
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| Full kitchen with microwave, dishwasher, cooktop, and refrigerator |
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| Separate room with King bed |
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| Bathtub (bottom left), separate shower, and single vanity |
I found this funny, and just had to share... In our first room, on the back of the door, is the typical Fire Escape Plan - it was signed by Florida Governor Charlie Crist. Charlie has not been the Governor of Florida since 2011. In the new room, the FEP was signed by Florida Governor Rick Scott. Rick has not been the Governor of Florida since 2018. Our current Governor is Ron DeSantis (who is awesome), and has been our governor for over 6 years.
The most important question now is... Should I take another bubble bath? Nah. We decided to call it a night and go to bed early.
Monday morning, I awoke with hip pain from a mattress that was harder than a block of granite. I'd slept fitfully because of my pressure points hurting. We snuggled for a bit, enjoying each other's company, and trying to decide what to do with our day. I popped my contact lens back in (remember, so much earlier in this post, I said my eye was hurting?) and drank some chocolate milk while packing up our stuff. We checked out, hit up 7-Eleven for soda, then next door for a McDonald's Sausage Biscuit. I made a quick pit-stop at Walgreen's for some Excedrin, then we drove over to Old Town, as a place where we could wander around for a while (and work out some of the funk in my legs). When we got there, it didn't really look open at all. Despite it being almost 11am, it all just looked really janky, and not a place where I would want to spend any time at... maybe it's better at night... on the weekends... during high tourist season?
We decided to pop over to Disney Springs instead. Now, if you know me, you know how my feelings on Disney have soured since Covid and all of the following Wokeness within the company, But like an ex-boyfriend, we wanted to see if the magic was still there. I hate to say it, but when we saw the "Welcome to Walt Disney World" sign, I didn't get that I'm Home feeling, but I did get the "calm, relaxed, stressless" feeling, so I guess that's something.
We walked up and down the Westside neighborhood first, popping in to Candy Cauldron (not buying anything), and picking up some cotton candy when we got over to the Marketside area of Disney Springs. We talked again about what to do for lunch, and we decided to go to Rainforest Cafe for lunch, because it's "one of those places we should try just to say we've been there." Hubby got a burger and fries. I opted for fried shrimp and fries, and y'all... they were not good. The fries were good, but the shrimp were over-breaded and room temperature. The breading was dense and chewy with no "fried crispiness" to them at all... ugh, they were icky.
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| Burger & Fries (with toppings, even though he didn't want them) |
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| Shrimp & Fries (don't do it... it's so bad) |
So, yeah... we've been there.
After lunch, I had nothing left in the tank, so we just headed home for the afternoon. We got back around 3pm, unloaded the car, and then both of us retreated to our respective spaces and vegged out. At one point, I looked at the blister on my foot, and boy is it a big one!
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| Yeah, that's a linear blister, about the size of my finger |
I futzed around online for another hour or so, before having a bagel and some cookies for dinner in bed, and falling asleep before 10. Unfortunately, it's time to go back to work tomorrow.
