After a weekend spent in the office, the theatre, and the bar, I was itching for some time outside.
Work's been insane lately, so I've been head down for 14 hours a day – I've barely seen the sun.
So I set my alarm extra early this morning.
And I told myself last night "no snoozing"!
I grumbled when the alarm dinned.
Threw off the covers in protest.
Put on my runners.
Hooked up my iPod.
And decided to make a run for it.
It was 5:30 by the time I set foot outside.
The sky was black. The streets were eerie – with the glow from the streetlights haloing in the fog.
It was cool. Brisk really.
I bundled up and I ran.
Down 7th toward Burrard. No cars. Just a man on his bicycle who waved and smiled.
Burrard across the bay – a beautiful kilometre of bridge, where if you look east, you see the lights of the city's best landmarks. Look to the right, and you see nothing but the edge of a continent. Vast ocean into the abyss.
The bridge is a gradual, steady uphill.
During races, people hold signs here that says things like "Own the bridge".
It's surprisingly difficult.
Lucky for me, some old school Bon Jovi came on and Keep The Faith got me through to the top.
From the bridge, I headed down to the seawall and carried on for the next 7 k or so home.
There was a marriage proposal in the rocks on the beach and two rowers paddling by moonlight.
The further east I ran, the more people there were. The city was waking up, the sky was pink, and the skyscrapers downtown were gold.
"Looks like you're going to have a great day" said one of the passersby, smiling.
Not sure how he knew, but I was feeling the same thing.
Around the bend, west again, the clouds rolled in and the sky was moody.
More runners. More bikers. More people heading to work.
So invigorating.
I take running for granted more often than not.
But today I paid attention to the steps and the feeling in my heart.
I took time to breathe and appreciate the delicacy of a brooding sky and the smiles of passersby.
The day is so young.
And it's sure to be a good one.
