So I left work early. Allowing myself time to get downtown, park, run 5 miles, drive home, and be on time to let our nanny leave. Everything was going according to plan. I even scored an excellent parking spot (without a meter). As I sat on a nearby bench to put on my shoes, I heard the first rumble of thunder. It sounded far away and the sky wasn't too dark so I decided to run.
Exactly 0.98 miles into my run H-U-G-E raindrops started to fall; 0.02 miles later I spotted cloud-to-ground lightening. I realized I wasn't going to finish my run before the storm. In fact, I started thinking I couldn't make it back to my car before the storm hit.
And about half of the tourists in DC.
The Lincoln Memorial is a great place to wait out a storm. It is high enough to provide great views of the Mall and Arlington. It was also relatively dry. And it is a solid structure. When the winds picked up. I felt safe along side good old Abe.
The Memorial also gave me plenty of time to people watch. I chuckled (out loud a few times) listening to tourists talk. My favorite overheard conversation was of a guy on the phone with family/friends who were riding out the storm in one of the museums. The guy kept insisting he was at the Jefferson Memorial. Seriously... there are four Presidential memorials/monuments on the Mall (Lincoln, Washington, Jefferson, and FDR). It is not that hard to keep them straight!
I left my shelter at the Lincoln after about half an hour. The storm looked like it had passed. About half a mile into my second attempt at a run, the skies let loose and I was soaked by the rain. This time there was no shelter in sight - so I ran.
I ran 3.0 miles in the pouring rain. Not the 5 that I had planned, but I'm proud of myself for just getting out there. We are expecting more storms tomorrow. We'll have to wait and see what adventures that brings...
1 comment:
Abe! Wacky weather we are having. watch out for hail.
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