12,000 of my closest friends and I got out in the freezing Seattle weather this morning to participate in the 25th annual Jingle Bell Run in Seattle.  This is a kind of anti-race: the joy is in the participation, in the costumes, in the shared community spirit, not necessarily how high you finish.

Having said that, I did really well, ha ha ha!  I beat my previous 5K PR by over a minute, coming in at 26:01, or an 8:31/mile pace.  Pretty good considering I woke up with really sore hamstrings and ran the whole way with reindeer antlers.   I think that I can definitely get down to a 7:00/mile pace by mid-to-late spring, if I keep exercising and eating right.   Good things happen to good people, right?  And I’m DEFINITELY due for some good things to happen.

To the lady in the port-a-potty who forgot to slide the latch shut so that the label still read “OPEN – I’m really sorry.  It’s just that I was one of hundreds of people standing around, looking excitedly for the green “OPEN” labels, and I really didn’t mean to *cough* expose you to the world.  I hope the fright made you run a bit faster.  Next time I’ll knock first.

Best costume?  Hm.  There were quite a few Cindy Lou Who lookalikes, but my favorites may have been the two Santa’s elves who were taking pictures on the top floor of Westlake Center.  You two looked like you were having the time of your life, and your costumes were fantastic!

Full Jingle Bell Run race results here, for those of you interested.