Summer in February

Here it is almost the middle of February, and today was a summer day. If the Chambers of Commerce in southern California could bottle a day, today would be that day. The temperature reached 81 degrees with a slight breeze and not one cloud in the sky. I don’t know what the weather is in the rest of the country, but I would guess it doesn’t get much better than it is here. Today, the State of California celebrates Lincoln’s birthday, so it was very much like a weekend. This gave my roommate and me an extra 15 minutes working out this morning, which we needed since it wasn’t one of our best efforts. We tried for an alternative workout which never really had any flow to it. We tried a few different exercises which really didn’t pan out.

I was able to telephone my mother this morning because the telephones were on all day. I now have only two more telephone calls to her remaining. Our telephone calls always seem to drift over the 15-minute time limit, and I have to call her back for an additional 15-minute telephone call. I shudder to think how much money my mother has paid for these collect calls over the past 19 months, and she has told me on several occasions not to worry about it. I won’t have to worry about it anymore two weeks from now, and I will be able to call her without the annoying recording of, “your call may be recorded or monitored” every two minutes. The telephone call today was very good even though neither one of us had much to say, yet we took up a 30-minute phone call! I am always glad to hear her voice, and she has been incredible all throughout this journey. I am so grateful for everything she has done for me and my family.

The telephone call ended, and I went about my abbreviated daily bathroom cleaning duties. Those duties didn’t take too long, and I was planning on running. I had to run because the weather was absolutely perfect. One of my younger friends wanted to run with me and was waiting for me. When I say younger, I mean younger as in 15 years younger. He really is a good “kid,” and there have been so many times I wonder how he ended up in prison. Not only has he ended up in prison, he has a significant sentence to serve my 19-1/2 months of incarceration is nothing, and he will serve more than four times this amount. If the prison system came up with a “test” to gauge whether or not a person understands why they are here, he would pass this test with flying colors. Addictions don’t have to be long term to be detrimental. Any addiction is horrible and can lead a person to this place. Anyhow, his goal was to run with me for about three miles. I thought the pace I normally maintain was compatible to his pace, but I was mistaken. I was running a bit faster than he expected, and shortly after the first half mile, he drifted back. He kept falling back as I continued. As it turned out, he ran his normal pace, and I ran my normal pace. He did finish the three miles, and I ran 14 miles. My run was one of the best I have had in a while. Comparing it to Saturday’s run, I was so much better and stronger today. I cut off 10 minutes from that run, and I guess whatever cold I had was now dissipated. I was in a “zone” for about 45 minutes of the 1-3/4 hour run. I even had time to truly enjoy all of the surroundings such as the serene hills adjacent to the camp. It was a wonderful way to spend a summer day in February.