After the near debacle of week6R3, I knew it was time to get a little more serious. Hydration daily, rest the knee with ice and gentle stretches on the 2 days rest. Out with the comedy metal on the playlist; I’ve a battle of good vs evil to win here. Basically that’s the metal genre so in with some serious and heavy stuff. It also blends well with a love of mythology, especially Norse. Which means it’s not a long hop to another love: Tolkien! Apologies to him and other fans for the rest.
Today was a Tolkien-esque struggle of humility over pride. On the right, I chose Gimli the Dwarven warrior. Bearded, gruff and short tempered (any relation???) but good at heart. He’ll be on my shoulder. To balance that I had Nazgûl on the left, the sinister side. Dark, filled with pride and anger, lost. I chose these as they also look the coolest in artistic depictions 😂 They will also run whether I want them or not!
MJ wakes me from my walking daydream and urges me to run. Gimli grunts and jogs alongside. We run in search of Orc.
The knee was actually quiet for once! A couple of grumbles, but after talk of divorce it’s sleeping on the sofa. We’ll sort this.
Metallica launch into my ears. “Obey your Master!!” Implored young James. Not sure who that is yet lads...
I run past a group of lads on the playing field. A Nazgûl hovers into my periphery. “They’re laughing at you” he hisses.
“They're admiring your Beard!” Barks Gimli. I pat his back and we trudge on.
Corey Taylor’s turn on the playlist, in Stone Sour guise. “Go ahead, give it up, see if I care”. Not today. Like a Rocky montage, I’m gonna slomo through this.
MJ gives me the halfway call. Blimey, I’m past the usual halfway point. We turn back, puffing and trudging. The stitch threatens, a morgul blade to my side if you like!
MJ and Gimli appear to spur me on. I pass the point where I nearly passed out on Saturday, where yet another Nazgûl sat. “Remember this place?” He asks. I do, but that just spurs me further. I learned humility from the run that nearly wasn’t, and he failed to get in my head.
Puffing on, Dio sings of demons. Gimli grins and pats his axe. MJ says one minute to go, and that I can go faster. The very cheek!
Miraculously I imagine Orc in the distance. We pick up the pace as a fell beast swoops in. MJ fanfares the end and we all survey the decapitated remains of the beast that is Run 1 of W7, bleeding on the battlefield.
It wasn’t pretty. It still hurt, and I won’t let too much pride in. But epic music and a silly imagination, along with a healthy respect for the advice from graduates and admin who know way more than me, got me through that one. I might even be beginning to like this.
Week 7 Itch 
Week 7!!!
Failed Week 7 run 1
Week 7 r1 done....just!
