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...
Abe! Wacky weather we are having. watch out for hail.
ReplyDelete