The Alphabet Game

Before portable DVD players and Ipods, every other year my two brothers, two sisters, two parents and me would pile into our family station wagon and make the cross-country drive from California to Florida to see our extended family.  Faced with endless hours of cramped captivity inside the slowly moving vehicle as we gradually made our way from one state to another, one of our favorite boredom busters was the alphabet game.  Even our youngest sister Vicki could participate--you just had to recognize the letters of the alphabet.  It's such a simple game (spotting the letters of the alphabet in order off billboards and road signs), but provides hours of entertainment--especially when you're looking for a "Z" in the middle of the desert.

Why do I bring this up in my running blog?  If you're starting to get a little bored with running, try playing the alphabet game!  Yesterday I got all the way up to "K" within a few minutes.  Then I stayed stuck on "Q" for over a mile while a FedEx truck kept circling.  Finally I spied a "Q" on a license plate, then whizzed through the next few letters, but got stuck at "X".  The FedEx truck was nowhere to be seen.  Eventually a "PED XING" sign saved me.  I was almost home and didn't think I'd complete my mission when an ISUZU truck drove by providing the last letter I needed.  I resisted the urge to raise my hands and cheer, but definitely was grinning from ear to ear.

When you LACE UP today, be on the lookout.  Let me know if you make it all the way to "Z".