Day 325: Balloon Carrot

What I should have
but don't

A cold edge to the morning.  Have to force myself outside for a run.  Despite the first long-sleeved shirt of the season, my teeth ache and my fingers turn white.  There are other people running.  Except for the man with the shorts and the weight-laden backpack, everyone else is fully togged up in tights, fleeces and beanies.  I feel less wimpy (but obviously not as hardy as shorts/backpack man).  Twice round the lake and up the hill to the Abbey, and I'm no longer conscious of the temperature, just my lungs threatening to explode.

For all the cold, the run is worth it.  Sun slanting across the park, catching a chevron of Canada geese, and a Virgin hot air balloon, which is drifting low in the sky.  I'm not keen on the conspicuous marketing message, but I like the slow, dreamy progress of the balloon, which pulls my eyes irrestistably skywards. 

 Back home the warm shower feels burning hot on chiller cabinet skin.  When I plug the Garmin monitor into my laptop, I find out I have made my fastest time yet, increasing my pace considerably in comparison to my average.  Wasn't aware I was going faster.  I think it must be a combination of balloon distraction (carrot) and cold (stick).

Stick got me started, carrot kept me going.  Needed both.