Marathon Man

A friend of mine once told me that you could meet a guy anywhere, at any time. I did not expect to meet anyone in Japan.

I had the privilege of running the 2018 Tokyo Marathon this past Sunday. I was here with a group of runners that came from all over the world. It was amazing to get to know each runner's story - why they started running, where they have been, struggles unique to each marathon.

On Friday, we went in a group to a Taiko drum demonstration. After the demonstration, they allowed volunteers to come up and do a segment of drum beats. I, of course, got up to volunteer. It was so much fun! I had a huge smile on my face the entire time, a smile that caught the eye of Marathon Man.

After the drum demonstration, we went to the Marathon Expo. The expo was essentially a giant ball of Japanese advertisers, foreign runners, Tokyo Marathon memorabilia, and running gear for sale. For someone that doesn't speak or understand Japanese, having hundreds of Japanese words thrown at you in one tornado is a lot. I was relieved to get back on the bus to our hotel.

As I was waiting in line for the bus, there was Marathon Man. He was 6'1", had reddish brown hair, fair skin, blue eyes, and the face of a Ken doll. He started speaking to me with a beautiful accent. I was smitten. I asked him where he was from.

"Take a guess," he said to me with a smile.
I usually guess wrong, and I stayed true to my streak.
"New Zealand?"
"What! No! Australia!" He jokingly turned his back to me. "I can't speak to you anymore!"
I started to giggle. "Sorry! You said to guess! At least I had the right part of the globe!"

Our banter continued on the bus to our hotel. I waited for my sister to get off the bus. "I'm sure I'll see you later, Australia!" I said to him. He smiled at me. My sister told me I should've left her behind and kept talking to him. I kicked myself. I vowed not to let the opportunity pass again, if it came.

And it did come. I ran into him again the next morning at breakfast. We walked past his table. Not wanting to squander this opportunity to talk to him again, I stopped at his table.

"What's up, Australia?"
"Hey!" He smiled. I melted. "What are you up to? Here, have a seat!"

We started chatting for a bit. We got each other's real names, where we each lived (he lives in Canada), and I learned that he planned to go to North Korea after Tokyo.

"North Korea? Do you have a death wish? Why would you go to North Korea for a vacation?" 

"Well, I'm turning 40 on Thursday. So I wanted to do something adventurous for it. I thought, why not go to North Korea? If you follow their laws, you'll be fine."

Why not go to the Caribbean instead? Or Iceland? Or anywhere where Westerners don't come back in body bags?

We started talking about politics and gun laws in Australia vs. Japan vs. the US. We aligned perfectly. I ended up spending the entire breakfast hour (or two) with him.

He asked me to meet up with him later in the day after I was done sightseeing. So I did.

We ended up spending a few hours together before dinner. His kisses were as amazing as his eyes, and more electrifying than the Tokyo nightlife. I had to leave again to make it for the pasta dinner. He asked me if I was going to the marathon after-party.

"Of course! Aren't you?"
"I was going to skip it. I fly the next day."
I smiled at him. "You should come."

And he did. As soon as I walked in, there he was, near the entrance, drink in hand. I was so happy that I made the effort to put on makeup and dress up a little after running 26.2 miles a mere 2 hours earlier.

He smiled. "You're here!"

I talked to him for a little bit, then got sidetracked by other marathoners I'd met in our group. Towards the end of the party, I went to him and we chatted it up.

"So, am I going to hear about your North Korean adventure? If you make it out alive of course."
He chuckled. "Of course. Here's my card." When he started to pull out his business card, I said, "You must not be into me to give me your card and not take my number!"
"What!"
"When a guy gives you his card, he's not that interested."
"Give me your number then. I'd like to stay in touch." 

I did and he texted me on the spot. 

"Now you have my number, too. I guess it'll be a while before I see you again." He hugged me and gave me a kiss on the cheek. He whispered in my ear, "I'd grab your ass but I don't think your sister would like that." 

I started laughing. "You're probably right."
He gave me another kiss on the cheek, held me, and looked in my eyes. 

"When I'm back from North Korea, let's talk and we can make arrangements." I smiled and told him to come back alive.

I never expected to hit it off with someone at a marathon overseas, 7,000 miles from home. Is he the next big love? I don't know.

But I want to see where it goes... if he really is interested in me...

... and if he comes back alive from North Korea.

The Tug of My Uterus

My uterus has been tugging at me a lot lately. Not just a little bit, but a LOT. No, it's not a sign of early pregnancy (because that would be biologically impossible for me).

Is it the proverbial biological clock that has my uterus on fire?

Either way, I've acquired a burning desire to have kids now. I never felt like this before. Five years ago, I ran away at the idea of having kids. I've always wanted them, but the idea of them was scary to me. Everything about pregnancy horrified me, and then the idea of raising a child freaked me out. To be responsible for another human being who was relying on you for everything was not music to my ears.

Within the last month or so, I've really wanted to have a kid. Maybe it's because I've been teaching faith formation at my church lately, or being able to have one-on-one time with my nieces and nephew (although sometimes my nephew kicks the baby bug right out of me because he can be super cute and a super terror). There's one little girl in my class that comes from an abusive household. All I want to do is protect her. Every time she comes into class, the first thing she does is give me a big hug, and my heart melts into a giant puddle. All I want to do is be there for her. I've wanted to quit teaching, but I decided I'll quit after she graduates high school. Maybe.

Yesterday, I really felt the baby bug when I took my friend's teenage daughter out for the day. I've known the girl since she was 8 years old, a little sprocket who wore big bows in her hair all the time. Now, she's a full-fledged freshman in high school. I took her out for lunch, then gelato, and then we went shopping together. She told me stories about her friends, she asked me questions about things like what credit is and why it was important, and I shared some of my knowledge and wisdom with her. We went into a Swarovski store where she fell in love with a bracelet that I decided to buy her as a gift. It was a beautiful bracelet. To see her joy at receiving the bracelet made my heart overflow. The whole day was so much fun with her. It really made me want to have a daughter. So very much.

The idea of taking care of a life suddenly didn't seem so scary. It was beautiful. Obviously, there is an ugly side - I've seen my nieces and nephew at their worst, but I've also seen them at their best. That's just how life is. It's not all poetry.

But at 33, I don't have a boyfriend. I'm no where close to being married. Who knows if I ever will at this rate. I've become so repulsed by men that I've almost totally lost interest in ever getting married.

So what does a single woman like me do?

Well, I've decided that this will be the year that I become a homeowner. By June, I'll be shopping around for bank loans and the best interest rates and deals on closing costs. By August, I'll start looking at homes. By December, I hope to get the process started on closing. My lease at my apartment ends in March, so the deal must be sealed by then.

And if I'm not married in my 30s? Oh well!

I'll just continue building myself up financially, because somewhere out there, if not in my uterus, maybe there's a child waiting for me to adopt him or her.

And maybe, if everything is right in my life and I'm stable enough, I could adopt that child.

Maybe.

It's a very big deal, not to be taken lightly, and as much as I want to be a mother, I also want to make sure that I can be a good provider. It's a decision that's bigger than deciding whether to buy a house. This is taking on a new life, for life.

We'll see...

For now, I'll keep the tug at my uterus in check.



photo taken from: http://www.newkidscenter.com/Interpreting-Children's-Drawings.html