Perky Paula and the tortoise at the 5k

This weekend I participated in my first 5k. Unfortunately it was unseasonably hot (we’re talking every ambulance in town out and firemen hosing down runners — which isn’t nearly as appealing as you might think…) so I didn’t do particularly well. Not that I was expecting to set any record. I’m a walker, not  a runner.  I’m a tortoise, not a hare.

This whole tortoise thing applies to the rest of my life, not just “racing”. I’m a low-energy person, always have been, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing, because I am also what I call a “slogger”.  I’m pretty good about putting my head down and slogging through any project I tackle. I may not finish first or fast, but I do finish — that whole “slow and steady” thing.

 I did this particular “race” because my dear friend Perky Paula suggested it. Perky Paula is a hare — hell, she’s a freakin’ Energizer Bunny.  If you haven’t already guessed: Perky Paula is a runner. She runs races most weekends. I saw her before the race started and that was the last time.

I had plans for after the race, so I didn’t dawdle at the finish line, I left immediately, so I didn’t find out how she did. She left me a message after the race, checking in to see how I was (because while she’s incessantly perky, she’s also incessantly kind). She complained about the heat, that she’d had to WALK part of the race (thank goodness, because I was thinking maybe I was the world’s biggest wuss since the temperature had bothered me) and that she’d done her worst 5k time EVER. 

I, on the other hand, set a personal record since I’d never done it before and I’m encouraged that next time I won’t have too much trouble breaking it the next time, lol.

 I called her back, thinking maybe she needed her spirits bolstered.  NOT! Her WORST time netted her the second BEST time for women in her age group and she got a freakin’ medal! Go Perky Paula! (In case you’re wondering, this tortoise was 13th out of 14 for women in my age group — but I did beat a bunch of 20-somethings which amused me!)

 Today the tortoise is back to slogging through her work-in-progress!