4 Days to Go

I didn't run today. I was tired. Maybe the race is heavy on my mind but my legs didn't recover from yesterday so I didn't run today.
Tuesday I ran 4 miles in 34:38 (6.9 mph) at 8:39.5/mi. Yesterday I ran 10.2 miles in 1:24:40 (7.2 mph) in 8:18.0/mi.
A lot of things are going through my mind. I'm concerned that if I don't qualify for next year with this race I may not qualify. I have run all my marathons with the help of Shannon Kuzel my massage therapist and I may not be able to keep seeing her if I don't get a job which pays enough. I'll miss seeing her. She is such a great friend. She helped me reach my full potential in running at 54. But even more I found a friend as an adult which is difficult to do. My last really good friend I made as an adult died suddenly of a heart attack.
Running marathons after 50 seems to be a white collar thing. I may be wrong but if you don't have a desk job it takes a lot out of your legs to try and train all the miles to put in a good effort in the marathon. I'm afraid with the economy the way it is that I may not get the kind of job I need to keep running.
I may not be a great marathoner but I really enjoy the challenge of running 26.2 miles.
I''l give my all on Monday. I can run between 3:25 and 3:45. Any of those times will qualify me for next year. Last year was the only time I thought of stopping in a marathon. It was very tough. I don't know why but it made me appreciate even more Chicago and New York and the 3:18 I ran in Vermont.
Ruth said she may go and watch on Monday. I hope I feel good if she sees me. You just never know how you are going to feel during the marathon.