The "Hostel"

Yesterday came to an end very quickly. I returned from my good friend’s house, talked with my other good friends did a little writing and called it a night. All of the information I have read and based on previous experience the most important night’s sleep before running a marathon comes two night prior which was last night. I had it in my mind to get a very good night’s rest and did just that falling to sleep very quickly and sleeping much later then I normally do. I didn’t have to workout this morning although it was an option but I thought better of this considering I will be embarking on 26.2 miles tomorrow. The better course of action was sleeping in and feeling refreshed. I had no idea what my accommodations would be like tonight and again based on previous experience I don’t sleep very well the night before a marathon so it was great getting a sound sleep last night.

I woke up feeling very good and strangely enough any discomfort or pain I had in my shins had disappeared. This did not mean I was pain free in my legs as there seemed to be some slight discomfort in my calf. This is not unusual and I remember prior to my very first marathon I had significant pain on the top of my left foot but during the marathon I had zero pain or discomfort. It is just one of those things and running I do believe is great for me physically but it is no secret it wears on the body. I did read a recent report that stated there isn’t a direct link between arthritis and running later on in life. Yes, running does put stress on the muscles, bones and joints but it seems to do more good then harm. I took it as a good sign that my shin discomfort had completely dissipated.

I had my morning all planned out and I followed my scheduled without fail. I had to go into the office for a little while before going to the Saturday morning Gamblers Anonymous meeting. I made my way into the office and completed what I needed to do and within no time I was in and out of the office on the way to the meeting. I arrived a few minutes early and a few other members had arrived early as well. I continue to learn so much about myself and about my recovery and arriving early this morning proved another learning session.

I learn just as much from new members as I do long time members. I learn that I don’t want to go back to the misery that compulsive gambling brings. There were a few new members in attendance this morning and some seemed to be struggling while others seem to be understanding the program of recovery. If anyone has any doubt that compulsive gambling isn’t an addiction like drugs or alcohol then they just don’t understand the disease. Sure a substance isn’t ingested into a person’s body but the brain treats compulsive gambling just like a substance.

I can speak from my own experience and I continue to hear this from other recovering compulsive gamblers that we have all experienced “withdrawal” like symptoms. I remember when I was in the throes of my gambling that if I didn’t have my wagers placed by a certain time I would get jittery, nervous and my palms would even start to sweat. Thankfully I had this taken away from me when I first entered the program. My life was completely unmanageable but through GA my life continues to get better with each day.

These new members exhibit the pain of these symptoms and of all the destruction compulsive gambling has brought to their lives. I hope and pray most of these new members see the great value of the GA Program and how it can save their lives. I know GA continues to save my life as it continues to teach me a better way of life. The crazy lure of the “big win” is most certainly the great obsession of every compulsive gambler. I think I lost this thought some where along the way because I know that there is no win big enough to cure all my problems.

The meeting was very good and I was toying with the idea of leaving the meeting early but I couldn’t bring myself to leave. I so enjoy these meetings and I never know what I may hear in these meetings. Today I heard so many positive things and once again I felt so much better after the meeting then prior to the meeting. This was a great way to spend a Saturday morning. When the meeting ended I departed for San Diego where I would spend the day in preparation for tomorrow’s marathon.

I had to pick up my race materials at the marathon expo which is sort of like a convention for marathoners. There are many vendors associated with marathons such as running apparel companies, running shoe companies, nutritional companies and many other health and wellness companies. I have attended five of these in the past and all five of these I have attended with my wife and children. Something was definitely missing today as I walked through the expo by myself. I had to call my family and was able to speak with them. My daughter did say she “wish’s” she was with me and so I do. My son and wife echoed these same sentiments. It won’t be long before we are reunited but days like today I really miss them because this was a family event in the past.

My wife who isn’t a runner even enjoyed these expos in the past as she made sure we had our fill of the “free samples”. Each both seems to be giving away something like free PowerBar samples and many other food vendors. My wife would scour the aisles and wouldn’t miss anything. I felt lost without her because she is so much more organized when it comes to walking down these aisles. I found myself going back and forth through the convention center and I missed a few of the booths my first pass through. I did cover the entire expo and even had my interview. The interview didn’t last long and I’m not sure if I will even make it off the “cutting room floor” but the person who interviewed me certainly understood running, recovery and addiction.

I completed my tasks at the expo and headed over to the hotel/hostel. I have been intrigued by this “hostel” concept ever since I made the reservation last week. I drove over from the expo and arrived. I noticed something very quickly; the hostel shared the same building with a YMCA. I was some what aware of this from the website which mentioned that the hostel had an agreement with the YMCA fitness center. What I didn’t realize was the hostel is actually the YMCA as it has been converted from the YMCA format. I am well aware that YMCA’s all across the country offer very low rates for young men but I didn’t realize they may have abandoned this concept and have gone the hostel route.

I walked up into the lobby and noticed the building was established in 1924 and although it has gone through some renovations since then the building most certainly was built 84 years ago. I checked-in at the front desk and signed all the forms. I received my key and made my way to the room. I entered the room and immediately had flashbacks to prison. The room was complete with a twin bed, desk and bureau. I am guessing it was actually smaller then some of the cells I had stayed in during my incarceration. The similarities to prison didn’t stop there as the small window had chicken wire on it. I noticed there wasn’t a television in the room even though the website stated there were televisions. I went back down to the front desk and very politely inquired about a room with a television and sure enough there were rooms with televisions and the front desk person was kind enough to give me a room with a television.

I made my way to the new room and it was exactly like the old room with exception of a television that was the size of a small laptop’s screen. In fact my laptop’s screen is much larger then this television. All of this doesn’t matter at all because I just need a place to rest my head for the evening. The shared bathrooms are much better then prison because they are individual shared bathrooms as opposed to group bathrooms. I guess if they were group bathrooms this could pose a code issue! Anyhow I am here in my hostel room relaxing with a good book and looking forward to wonderful run in the morning.