Anybody who has ever seen the movie Pretty Woman should remember the line where the guy says “Welcome to Hollywood!  What’s your dream?!  Everyone who comes to Hollywood gots to have a dream…”

It’s true.  We all have dreams.  I am notorious for having very vivid and really weird dreams, and I inevitably remember the ones that are excessively strange, like when I was pregnant with Ally and I dreamt I was riding a giant chicken.  What the heck is that about?! But that’s not exactly what I’m referring to here.  I’m really talking about the things that we hope for, that kind of dream.  Some dreams are realistic like, I dream of eating pizza and ice cream this weekend, and that Michigan State will win against Duke tomorrow night…not completely out of the realm of possibility.  Other dreams are completely fanciful, like dreaming I will win the Ironman championships in KONA someday.  Ummmm, not likely.

I do have a real dream.  Ok, I have lots of dreams actually.  I have a dream that someday I will go to Ireland and rent a little cottage for a month or two so I can start writing my book.  I’ll tour the Irish countryside and drink beer with the locals.  And I’ll become a best-selling author.  I have a dream that someday, someone will present me with one of those pretty, little blue boxes from Tiffany’s.  I have a dream I’ll get to visit my friend Jess in Australia and dive the Great Barrier Reef.  And, despite the fact that I’ve denied it for fear of admitting it, I have a dream of being in love again.  Preferably with someone who is also in love with me. I guess only time will tell…

But since I am Rambling Runner Girl, let’s talk about my running dreams.  I have a dream that someday I might qualify for the Boston Marathon.  And that leads to a dream of actually running the Boston Marathon.  When I ran my first marathon in 2001, I had absolutely no thoughts of this particular dream.  I dreamt only of crossing the finish line in Chicago and living to tell about it.  However, as my running career progressed, so did my dreams.  I got faster.  I broke 4 hours.  I keep inching closer and closer to the possibility of a BQ (Boston Qualifier for those less integrated into the running world).  And just as I got right within reach, the Boston Athletic Association went and lowered the times needed to qualify.  Now, I’m no longer just a minute away from my qualifying time.  No, now I have to drop at least 7 minutes and 12 seconds from my fastest marathon time.  Big sigh…

When my friend, Steve decided to run the Vancouver marathon in May to complete his first full, and I so graciously invited myself to join him, we talked about both of us running fast enough to get me that BQ for HIS birthday (his bday is the day before the race).  We were sitting at Nick’s birthday dinner at Drunken Fish eating sushi and drinking Dirty Martinis as this whole conversation took place (well, Nick and I were drinking martinis, Steve was likely drinking Diet Dr. Pepper) and then I went home and registered for Vancouver that night.  I guess you could say I like to make a big deal of my friends’ birthdays.

Tonight I led the social run at the store, but it wasn’t the same.  Steve wasn’t there.  At least not for the run.  He showed up later to hang out with all of us afterward, but he is unfortunately injured.  The other day I got the following text from Steve:  “I am so %#&$* for Vancouver”.  The sad reality is I might be taking on the Vancouver course on my own.  I’m not sure if that sucks more for me or him.  It sucks for me, cause I was hoping he would pull me along fast enough to get under that 3:40 mark.  But it sucks for him because despite his best efforts, he keeps getting injured and that 26.2 keeps eluding him altogether.  Yeah, ok, it probably sucks more for him.  At least I get to make the attempt.

I’m still hopeful that Steve will be running with me that day, in some capacity.  Even if we don’t run the whole race together, I’m hoping that he’ll be there at some point to celebrate with me, just like he has at so many other points over the past year.

So, I will go on about my training for Vancouver.  And I will hope that Steve will be well enough to, at the very least, run me into the finish.  Many things have to come together on May 5 for me to live a dream…the weather, remaining injury free, pacing myself just right, remembering all my gear, not wearing shoes that come untied (Stupid Kinvaras.  Ok, so that was probably the fault of me, not the shoes), and avoiding any other freak things getting in the way.  So, we’ll see.  If nothing else, I will keep chipping away at my goal.  I may hit it.  I may not.  But I’ll go enjoy a good, long run through beautiful British Columbia. Whether I get that 3:39:59 or not, I’m still going to keep trying to achieve it.  And eventually I might get to realize that dream.  Someday…

Steve, RRG, Nick and Dan enjoying some post run Froyo