This is the second time my motivation has lagged. I haven't run in some time. Other interests have monopolized my time. World of Warcraft, sleep, swimming. All have stolen away the one to two hours a day that I would dedicate to running previously. Even some of those new obsessions have quickly waned with the reality of my layoff fast approaching. I have two months to find a job. Instead of scheduling my days and my weeks to optimize my time, I find myself sleeping late and browsing the internet, not even interacting on the internet, but just browsing and wasting time. I'm currently on a plane back from two weeks in Paris, my sons Christmas gift to his mother. I packed a swimsuit, running shorts and top, but was quick to drop the running shoes when I saw the suitcase was full. They would have fit, I could have found a way but didn't try. Instead I opted for the path of least resistance. I did bring one redeeming item. A stack of running magazines. On the flight out I just couldn't get into them. 10 pages into the new Canadian Running magazine (now entertaining someone on the flight from Amsterdam back to Paris hopefully) I felt numb and disinterested. I put it down and opted for the in seat entertainment system to watch Die Even Harder ( or what ever it was called.... Stuff blows up, Bruce Willis saves the day) and let my mind and body turn to goo. In Paris we did a lot of walking. We spent two days at Europain (does it count as exercise if I'm munching on gooooood pastry while walking?) and then saw all the sites. The first couple of days were train hopping as we hit all the hot spots, but the last couple involved lots of wandering as we took in Paris and filled the time.

Flying back I feel different. Refreshed and renewed a bit. My legs want to run, I want to ride. Not in the way you feel during the taper and before the race where your legs keep twitching, but in a way that says I need the exercise and the alone time. That says wind, rain, snow, sun I want to get moving. I devoured both of the running magazines I brought with me and flipped through Triathlon mag. I'm trying to decide what to do first when I get back, an early morning run or an early morning ride. If I run, I can ride in the evening, but if I ride, then I may be able to run in the evening if my wife goes to meet her friend and takes our son along.

I realize that I've put on some goo and the Vancouver Marathon is out of the question now, but I can still train for a sprint triathlon at the end of May while still finding myself a new job. If I do a good job early in the job hunt, then I won't even need to worry. Sunday morning I'll be back up and rejoining the ranks of the dawn patrol. Redrawing my plans to train for the next few months and recommitting to meet my weight goal of 180lbs.

To make things easier, in Paris we discovered really good coffee. A Starbucks latte doesn't hold a candle to a good cafe au lait or espresso! Good-bye and good riddance to that morning latte and scone!