I Must Be Insane

There are some things that are so completely insane you just have to blog about them. This is one of those blogs.

I am going to run a marathon. You read right -- a marathon. The Chicago 2013 marathon.

This started, as crazy things often do, with my wife getting together with her friends. In this case one particular running obsessed friend. They got together to go to HUB. HUB has nothing to do with running, but somehow during the time my wife and her friend were supposed to be worshiping and listening to a sermon the topic came up anyway. Here's how I imagine the conversation went:

Wife's friend: (Whispering covertly) We need new running shoes.
Wife: Yes, we do! I know just the pair I want. They're gold and when you run rainbows shoot out of the heals.
Wife's friend: I found a pair made out of chocolate! We definitely need these shoes and I know a good excuse for getting some. We could enter the Chicago marathon.
Wife: (Pausing for a moment to weigh the cost) Great idea! I bet I can trick Paul into entering to.
Wife's friend: Mwahahaha!
Wife: Mwahahahah!

Since I don't care about shoes, my wife had to lure me in with something I do care about. Children. So, she told me about team World Vision. World Vision is an organization that does humanitarian things all over the world. To quote their website :

"World Vision is a Christian humanitarian organization dedicated to working with children, families, and their communities worldwide to reach their full potential by tackling the causes of poverty and injustice.
Working in nearly 100 countries around the world, World Vision serves all people, regardless of religion, race, ethnicity, or gender."

I already knew all about World Vision since we sponsor a child and I have cried my way through Richard Stearn's The Hole in Our Gospel. But giving money and reading a book is a lot different than running twenty-six miles. I argued that was a long, long way to run. She said something in her hypnotic, everything-will be-fine, psychologist voice; the next thing I knew I was clicking on the "join" button and committing myself to run a marathon. A MARATHON! I must be insane.

So, I started this blog to document my journey from semi-professional couch potato to marathon runner. I'll try to update this on a weekly basis from now until I complete the marathon (if I die before I complete it, just assume my last words were: "I can't brea ...").

Besides making bets on whether I make it or not, you can help me and World Vision raise money to supply people with clean drinking water. Visit my fundraising page here and donate. Thanks.